Management excellence is an art: not a science. It is like a symphony where each member has a distinct role. Alone, it is music but together, it is a work of art.
Many non profits have a gap between the vision of what they would like to do and the actual of what they do. Management has a job to bridge those two forces in a way that goals are accomplished, roles are defined, clients are served, and society reaches a better place.
Management excellence is leadership excellence. As the name implies, "non-profits" do not make a profit, and that sets them apart from the rest of the universe in which they operate, however, effectiveness and excellence is a function of taking the best business practices and turning them into the an organization of excellence. The rules are simple:
- Remember who your customer is (customer can be donor, client, or board)
- Provide the best service coupled with outstanding communication. Don’t say what you are going to do. DO IT and then talk about it.
- Develop people – NOT organizations. People drive the organization, and organizations can’t have oxygen unless they are being driven
- Raising funds is the report card of how well an organization manages to achieve excellence
Hiring the right people to do the right thing and letting them do it is the highest form of management success - Saying what you believe and believing what say forms the consistent bond leading to success.
- The organization should work at the convenience and benefit of the customer and not vice versa.
Excellence is the art of debate and not autocracy. Create an environment that encourages debate and an environment will be created that focuses on excellence.
