Client: Non-Profit in the Greater Philadelphia, PA area

Situation: A non-profit based in the Philadelphia area was entering a significant transitionary period. A team of 8 individuals from core disciplines such as Finance and HR were brought together to help address this change and facilitate the transition. As seen within many non-profits, the organization was constrained by limited resources and had also grown accustomed to functioning in a very silo-ed manner over the years, with leaders focused on channeling resources into their own individual program or department. LFP Consulting was brought in to help the non-profit develop a common sense of purpose for the organization at large, and learn to delegate resources aligned with the greater mission of positively affecting the most beneficiaries.

In working with Lorri, the leadership team applied the same dedication that they demonstrate every day to our participants, to the internal and personal work of professional development to create better alignment, decision-making and communication processes.

- Non-Profit Executive Director

Process: First, Lorri conducted interviews with the new Executive Director as well as each member of the lead- ership team and performed a situation analysis. She realized the team lacked a common mission and didn’t have the processes or communication paths to talk through competing priorities, which ultimately resulted in a constant struggle over resources. Through the language they used, it was clear each member had their own perspective of the organization’s core purpose based on their own history. In order to resolve these issues, the team needed to co-create an overarching sense of purpose for the organization at large.Lorri determined that an off-site retreat would be the best way to achieve this. On the first day, the team completed Myers-Briggs with the goal of getting to know each other’s styles and individual priorities. During the second day, Lorri worked with the team to determine the top 5 priorities for each discipline and identify a common purpose for the organization based on these priorities. She also worked with the team on conflict resolution during resource allocation, and anticipating where shared resources and competing priorities might cause a conflict. After the off-site, Lorri attended the leadership team’s staff meeting once a month to review priorities, unforseen conflicts, and identify accomplishments.

Results: A clear mission statement that had buy-in from the entire team laid the foundation for looking at individual programs. Ultimately, this shifted the way the organization allocated resources, with one program ending altogether because it did not best serve the overarching vision. The team was aligned when it came to shared resources and developed a more intentional planning process. This new, structured approach allowed them to look through the lens of the overarching mission and vision for every decision about resource provisioning and programs moving forward.