“We cannot solve problems using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” —Albert Einstein

Pick up any newspaper on your way to work in the morning, and chances are, you’ll see numerous stories about the negative effects the recession has had on every local economy across the nation. The ongoing financial crisis has not only the for-profit industry worried about profit losses and layoffs, but nonprofit leaders are concerned about declining donations and jobs, too. The nonprofits we all look to as a safety net for the most vulnerable are now scrambling to figure what the financial meltdown means for their work over the long-term. Of course, no one can know for sure what the outcome will be, but one thing is clear.

The nonprofit landscape has been changed forever. Especially in Hawaii.

According to a recent survey by HANO and PHOCUSED (Protecting Hawaii’s Ohana, Children, Under Served, Elderly and Disabled), 70 percent Hawaii nonprofits underwent budget cuts during their last fiscal year, despite the need to deliver additional services during the economic recession. Strategies for coping with budget cuts included these:

• 67 percent met budget challenges by cutting staff
• 52 percent reduced programs and services
• 37 percent cut salaries
• 22 percent re-financed loans
• 21 percent were forced to waitlist clients

What the economic crisis is showing the nonprofit sector is that they can no longer depend on corporate social responsibility, unlimited government funding or stable donations from even their most loyal donors.

So what kind of leadership is needed for these challenging times? How can nonprofits start getting “all hands on deck” to support the work that needs to be done?

Right now, it’s clear that the old top-down hierarchy isn’t the best model for what needs to happen in organizations today. When you just don’t have the time to come up with another five-year strategic plan to survive in this economy, how do you generate new ideas to address issues head on? In all this uncertainty, the nonprofit sector does have a major asset at its disposal: the energy and talents of a new generation of leaders who want to make a difference.

Right now, nonprofit organizations have an unprecedented opportunity for young professionals to bring fresh, innovative ideas for how to do the work of social change. There’s a very clear match here: a nonprofit sector in need of solutions in an uncertain economy and a cadre of young people eager to contribute in a meaningful way.

Nonprofit CEOs are thinking: How do we fundraise differently? How do we engage volunteers more effectively? How can we cut organizational costs? How do we maintain the quality of our programming? These questions fill the whiteboards of so many nonprofit conference rooms even as I write this. And young people in the workplace are asking, how can I use my talent to help, to make a real difference in the community? Current leaders have the perfect resource sitting right next to them and this is the perfect time to tap into the minds of young employees. This is the perfect time to mine the knowledge from younger generations that might be more effective than ideas generated in a closed board meeting involving only senior management. Why? Because young professionals bring the very skills organizations need in these rapidly changing times:

• Advanced education: More and more, young nonprofit workers are completing Master’s degrees and MBAs, learning the latest information available about the management needs of nonprofits. We really should be tapping into that more. Why put “Masters preferred” in our job descriptions if you aren’t really going to use their knowledge?


• A spirit of collaboration: Young professionals realize that the huge social issues that nonprofits are trying to solve cannot be addressed by a single organization. Younger nonprofit staff tend to be naturally more willing to collaborate on projects and see the value of sharing information as part the work. And as we see big funding sources dry up, the more nonprofits will need to partner to get the work done.


• Mastery of social media and new technology: Older leaders need not fear that they must learn all about Facebook and Twitter. Let your younger employees take off with it and get the glory for your organization. Young tech-savvy workers are always thinking of ways to use social media tools to get more donations, more volunteers, more press attracted to nonprofits. Why not let those ideas flourish?

While it’s clear that the nonprofit sector will continue to see challenging times ahead, I can also see so many ways to emerge stronger on the other side if organizations start to recognize the enormous opportunity for current leaders to partner with the younger generation to come up with innovative solutions. It will take a shift in mindset, but it can be done. After all, everyone is beginning to see the writing on the wall in permanent marker: the nonprofit sector needs to change or die. Which will you choose?

I invite you to join hundreds of Hawaii nonprofit leaders grappling with these issues and more on November 29-30, 2011 for the Second Annual Conference of Nonprofit Communities of Hawaii. Featuring more than 50 sessions over two days, the conference features timely and relevant professional-development topics; interactive workshops; fascinating and inspiring local and national speakers; and panel discussions – all interspersed with numerous opportunities to network and explore potential collaborations within the nonprofit sector.

Best of all, this year’s theme just happens to be, “Delivering Innovation: The Future is Not What It Used to Be.”

Indeed.

About the author: Rosetta Thurman helps nonprofit leaders change the world. She is the founder of Thurman Consulting and the co-author of How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar, 50 Ways to Accelerate Your Career. She holds a Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Management and has taught nonprofit management as an Adjunct Professor at Trinity Washington University. She is a member of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network and is proud to be a featured speaker at the Second Annual Conference of Nonprofit Communities of Hawaii.