Lean-In to Community
I was working through a client’s organizational health audit using the Six Segment System last week. One of the client team members viewed the “Community” segment through the lens of internal culture.
Super important - but slightly off the mark.
We believe culture is one of the building blocks of the organization. It falls under “Ethos,” one of the Four Foundations, along with the “Big Questions” as to purpose, “Strategy” and “Positioning”. Ethos is the soul of your organization, and it includes your vision, mission, values and culture.
Together, the Four Foundations plus the Six Segments, what we call the 6+4 System at The Nonprofit Planning Company, form the basis for your organization’s business and operational plan.
Community, as one for the Six Segments, refers to the external community or communities in which your business operates. That might be the local geographic community, a national or statewide organization, the Chamber of Commerce, the philanthropic sector, a member association… A doctor, for example, may be in private practice. But they exist within a hospital system, a local community, the American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians at the state and national level, perhaps even an informal golf group with other physicians. It could be that they are reviewers or contributing authors to a medical journal.
You need a community of peers, however defined. Your organization does not exist in a vacuum. You must be aware of the externalities facing your sector. You want to be considered a thought leader in your space. You want a network that you can tap into for advice, best practices, and benchmarks. If you lean towards advocacy, you know “it takes a village.” You need to stay abreast of trends and information.
And, for that community to flourish, you need to contribute to it.
The Six Segments System suggests annual community tasks such as publishing an article, spending a day on advocacy, reviewing industry association opportunities, renewing memberships in communities that align with your mission, updating your profiles across the various member organizations to which you belong, and attending a conference.
Ongoing tasks to nourish your communities include volunteering outside your organization, attending events, offering to mentor someone, asking someone to mentor you, networking, keeping up with news through reading. Most communities have some kind of newsletter, social platform or blog. Check it out regularly.
Today, as I try and keep up with the flow of information coming from national and state government - and the interpretation of that information - I rely heavily on our communities. The confusion our team feels is shared across the sector. Tapping into our communities reminds me that we are not alone. And, they provide a wealth of information from organizations and associations out there doing the research and making sense of it all. I’m both commiserating and figuring things out with my peers.
Nonprofit work is hard. It can be all-consuming. But looking internally 24/7 will ultimately hurt your organization. You exist within many larger communities, all of which give you strength even as your belonging strengthens the communities.
