Synopses & Reviews
In
Managing at the Leading Edge, United Kingdom’s nonprofit expert Mike Hudson (a modern-day Alexis de Tocqueville) offers an outsider-looking-in guide to the management and governance of nonprofits in the United States. In this important book, he tackles three major questions: What are the leading-edge approaches to managing nonprofit organizations? What should managers and board members be doing differently to enhance the performance of their organizations? How can the impact of the nonprofit sector be significantly increased? Basing his interviews on face-to-face interviews with leading nonprofit CEOs, consultants, academics, and senior managers, Hudson shows what does and does not work in nonprofit organizations. He then distills the best practices from these organizations into practical advice and guidance.
Managing at the Leading Edge presents Hudson’s thought-provoking, proven-in-practice agenda and shows nonprofit leaders how to
- Build capacity within their organizations
- Manage organizational performance
- Create strategic alliances, both within and outside the nonprofit sector
- Make the most of changing patterns of funding
- Develop effective, mission-focused leadership
- Strengthen governance and board performance
Moving beyond “one-size-fits-all” advice, Hudson encourages readers to take what works for their nonprofits and modify it to create effective, significant organizations.
Review
"This book excellently captures the leading concepts and provides practices vital to high-performing nonprofit organizations."
--Professor James E. Austin, chairman, The Initiative on Social Enterprise, Harvard Business School
"Managing at the Leading Edge is a significant new guidebook for leaders engaged in capacity building, collaboration, and navigating in tenuous times."
--Frances Hesselbein, chairman and founding president, Leader to Leader Institute
"Mike Hudson takes a fresh and innovative look at nonprofit management, and comes up with fascinating results that are well-grounded in theory and relevant to practitioners. Looking at management practices and developments in the United States through a United Kingdom lens, this book is a treasure trove of thought-provoking ideas and key insights."
--Helmut Anheier, professor, Public Policy School, University of California Los Angeles, and Centennial Professor, London School of Economics
"Managing at the Leading Edge is a terrific resource for all those who care about the performance of nonprofit organizations, from current nonprofit staff and board members to students who will be tomorrow’s nonprofit leaders."
--Alan Abramson, director, Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy Program, The Aspen Institute
"From building organizational capacity to creating strategic alliances, Hudson highlights numerous best practices among leading nonprofit organizations."
--John H. Graham IV, chief executive officer, American Diabetes Association
Synopsis
In Managing at the Leading Edge, English nonprofit expert Mike Hudson offers an outsider-looking-in guide to how nonprofits in the U.S. can be more effective. He spent a year investigating what does and does not work in U.S. nonprofits and has distilled the best practices from these organizations into practical advice and guidance on how to successfully manage a nonprofit organization.
About the Author
Mike Hudson is the director of Compass Partnership, a management consultancy specializing in the nonprofit sector. He was the administrative director of Friends of the Earth UK during its formative years. Following this, he worked in the United Kingdom and the United States as a business strategy consultant.
Table of Contents
Tables, Figures, and Exhibits.
Preface.
Acknowledgments.
The Author.
1. Building Organization Capacity.
2. Managing Performance.
3. Creating Strategic Alliances.
4. Exploiting Changing Patterns of Funding.
5. Leading with Integrity.
6. Strengthening Governance.
7. Reflections of an Outsider.
Resource A: A Brief History of the Nonprofit Sector.
Resource B: People Interviewed for This Book.
Resource C: Some Comparisons with the U.K.
Resource D: The Best Reading.
Glossary.
References.
Index.