This groundbreaking book will help nonprofit managers think in new and creative ways about how they define and meet the challenges they face--and how to rise above standard practices to lift their organizations to greater performance levels.

Breakthrough Thinking for Nonprofit Organizations is based on a simple but challenging idea: "Good performance" is no longer good enough for nonprofits. In a world of increasing demands that must be met, nonprofits must set and achieve breakthrough goals. Bernard Ross and Clare Segal show nonprofit managers and board members how to transform their thinking and improve their performance to meet the needs of the people and causes they serve.

With practical advice, exercises drawn from their successful workshops, and examples of best practices from companies such as 3M, Hallmark, and Microsoft- as well as from the most innovative organizations in the nonprofit world- Ross and Segal show nonprofits of every size how to tap into creativity and transform that creativity into innovation. Exploring why and how some organizations achieve extraordinary results, the authors offer the practical advice and tools that readers need to emulate those results in their own organizations. Because methods and approaches differ depending on individuals and organizations, the book is organized so that readers can pick and choose the specific tools or techniques that work best for their own situations. The wide range of case studies includes both best practices and worst disasters, so that readers might avoid the mistakes of others and apply the principles of others successes. The authors show how to set breakthrough goals, identify sources of creativity, overcome creativity-killing mindsets, turn creativity into innovation, and sustain a high-performance culture.

Breakthrough Thinking for Nonprofit Organizations offers a veritable "ideas toolbox" for managers who want to achieve significant and inventive change in their organizations, whether in fundraising, service delivery, or overall performance.

This groundbreaking book will help nonprofit managers think in new and creative ways about how they define and meet the challenges they face--and how to rise above standard practices to lift their organizations to greater performance levels. Using examples of best practices from innovative organizations in both the corporate and nonprofit worlds, Breakthrough Thinking for Nonprofit Organizations offers a mix of "how-to" advice and case studies that will guide readers on a new road to creativity. This book will fundamentally change the way nonprofit professionals think about how they do their work--and usher in a new era for nonprofits.



Table of Contents:

Tables, Figures, and Exhibits.

Preface.

Acknowledgments.

The Authors.

Introduction: The Change Environment: Why Good

Isnt Good Enough Anymore.

1. Where Are You Starting Your Breakthrough From?

Strategic Decisions-Simple Choices.

2. Second Wave Thinking: Moving Toward Radically

Different Performance.

3. Setting Breakthrough Goals: Moving Beyond Stretch

Goals.

4. Unlocking Potential: The Strategic Role of Creativity

and Innovation.

5. Releasing Creativity: Unleashing the Power of Your

Intelligence.

6. Creating a Smart Organization: How to Help Your

Organization Learn.

7. Mapping the Possibilities: Organizing Your Thinking

for the High-Payoff Idea.

8. Balancing Creativity and Innovation:

How You Can Get to the Breakthrough.

9. Challenging Mind-Sets: Getting Rid of the

Creativity and Innovation Killers.

10. Driving the Change: What You Can Do to Ensure

Your Breakthrough Stays on Course.

11. Working in the Breakthrough Organization:

How to Change the Way You Work to Prepare for

Breakthrough.

Conclusion.

Select Breakthrough Thinking Booklist.

References.

Index.



About the Author

Bernard Ross is a director of The Management Centre, the United Kingdom's largest nonprofit management consultancy and training organization. He has worked in nonprofit management for twenty years and has tested his methods with organizations such as Greenpeace, Save the Children, the Red Cross, and others.

Clare Segal is a director of The Management Centre. She works extensively with organizations in Europe and the United States on marketing, coaching, and communication skills.