Learning for Good | L&D Solutions and Leadership Development for Nonprofits

Role clarity, career development, and accountability - are just a few of the most common reasons a nonprofit reaches out to me about creating a custom competency model.

Here's the thing, a competency model can do all of those things if it's created with your organization in mind and implemented correctly. It has to be specific to your nonprofit. That's why today, we are focused on two questions you can ask to identify your nonprofits core competencies

▶️ Ask These Two Questions to Identify Your Nonprofit's Core Competencies

▶️ Key Points:

02:10 Tailoring your competency model to your organization

04:00  Determining the knowledge, skills, and behaviors staff need

04:55 Aligning competencies with your nonprofit's strategies

Resources from this episode:

Episode 20: How to Determine Which Competencies Are Right for You

Episode 19: One Nonprofit's Honest Opinion after 6 Months with a Competency Model

Episode 18: Four Reasons Your Competencies Don’t Work

If you need support creating competencies for your organization, I'd love to connect. Send me an email at [email protected]

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective: https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

As nonprofit learning and development leaders, there are so many reasons we may feel overwhelmed, disconnected, or even burned out. And to overcome burnout, we need to be able to identify the underlying causes of it. That's why I've invited special guest Jessie Pagliari to talk about dealing with corporate burnout and managing stress as a nonprofit leader.

Jessie is the founder and CEO of Everyday Bliss, a personal and corporate wellness company. She is an ex-top performer in the Fortune 15 and a survivor of stress-related illness. If you are struggling with burnout yourself, if you have a staff person who is, or if you're responsible for the corporate wellness program at your nonprofit, then tune in to today’s episode.

▶️ Dealing with Corporate Burnout? One Easy Way to Manage Stress as a Nonprofit Leader with Jessie Pagliari 

▶️ Key Points:

03:19 How Jessie’s medical leave and year-long sabbatical led to creating her company – Everyday Bliss

05:30 Why burnout and corporate wellness are becoming such popular topics

08:12 How organizations typically respond to corporate burnout

11:00 The five key causes of burnout and the four ways stress affects us

13:19 One easy step to take to overcome burnout

Resources:

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective: https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Episode 30 of Learning for Good: Why staff well-being is the secret sauce to change management in nonprofit organizations

Connect with Jessie Pagliari

Linkedin: Jessie Pagliari

Website: everydayblissco.com

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

I remember many years ago, working on a tough project – like all caps, screaming at the microphone tough. I was working internally at a national nonprofit on a high-profile project. I had a difficult subject matter expert, things kept changing, and decisions were hard to come by. 

And yet, I somehow managed to keep the project on time and within budget. How did I do it? That's what we're focusing on in this week's episode of Learning for Good.

▶️ Two Ways to Keep Your Staff Development Projects On Time and Within Budget 

▶️ Key Points:

01:43 The two things I do to keep projects on time and within budget

02:04 Setting the project calendar

04:35 Scheduling regular check-ins with the project team

Resources from this episode:

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective:  https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Was this episode helpful? If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or  Spotify, follow and leave a review! 👇👇👇

Know anyone who would benefit from this episode? SHARE this with your friends.

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather  here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

If your nonprofit or association is undergoing organizational change, you know that it can feel heavy and overwhelming. That's where play comes in. As nonprofit learning and development leaders, we can use play to bring curiosity and fun back to the workplace. I'm so excited to have play expert Acey Holmes here with me today to explore how we can do just that. 

Acey believes that adults deserve (and need) more play. As a former speech and language pathologist, Acey has decades of experience studying the effects of play and flow on our brains and behaviors. She helps organizations implement playful work and through her efforts, she is transforming the future of work.

▶️ How Nonprofit Learning and Development Leaders Can Use Play to Create Organizational Change with Acey Holmes 

▶️ Key Points:

03:23 Acey’s winding career journey and where her passion for play started

05:41 Why play is relevant and important for adults

08:43 Some of the benefits of using play in the workplace

13:35 How other non-profit learning and development leaders can use play to support big organizational changes

16:09 One thing that an L&D leader can do today to be more playful

Resources from this episode:

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective:  https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Was this episode helpful? If you’re listening on  Apple Podcasts or  Spotify, follow and leave a review! 👇👇👇

Know anyone who would benefit from this episode? SHARE this with your friends. 🔗

Connect with Acey Holmes

Linkedin: Acey Holmes

Website: playfulworkdesign.com

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather  here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

People managers are critical to your organization. They have the greatest influence. They have the ability to help initiatives go well. They hear from both the senior leaders and the support staff.

I've heard from several nonprofits that they are focused on developing their people managers this year. But how do you know what to focus on? That's what we're going to explore in this week's episode of Learning for Good.

▶️ Training Your People Managers? Three Ways to Identify the Skills They Need 

▶️ Key Points:

02:14 The three ways you can identify the skills your people managers need

02:43 Looking at employee engagement data to inform learning needs

04:15 Talking directly to your people managers to uncover what they really need

06:20 Doing external research to find trends happening in staff development

Resources:

Episode 32:  5 Coaching Questions to Spark Behavior Change in Your People Managers

Episode 22:  How People Managers Can Improve Employee Performance and Job Satisfaction

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective:  https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather  here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

I've worked with dozens of nonprofits as a consultant. And one thing I hear over and over again is the need for clear staff expectations. And you might be thinking, but isn’t that what the job description is for? Isn't it all laid out there? 

A job description is a great first step – and it's an input into the fundamental resource I often recommend, a competency model. In this episode, I’ll share what a competency model is and how it can help your staff thrive.

▶️ 34: Get Clear on Staff Expectations with This Fundamental Resource 

▶️ Key Points:

01:41 What’s a competency model? And how it can impact your nonprofit organization

 03:05 What you should consider when creating a competency model for your nonprofit

03:45 Engaging staff in creating your competency model

Resources from this episode:

 Episode 20: How to Determine Which Competencies are Right for You.

Episode 19: One Nonprofit's Honest Opinion after 6 Months with a Competency Model

 Episode 18: Four Reasons Your Competencies Don't Work

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective: https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather  here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

As nonprofit L&D leaders, we are investing time and money into creating engaging solutions for our learners. But all of our learners are not the same. Their needs are not the same. Their likes and dislikes are not the same. Their goals are not the same. And their abilities are not the same. So how do we create solutions that are accessible to everyone? 

That's what we’ll explore today with Dr. Saeide Mirzaei on this episode of Learning for Good. Dr. Saeide's journey is inspiring. She grew up in a small town where she was denied access to education because of her gender and socioeconomic status. Now, as an accessibility expert, she ensures that her design is accessible to all learners, and she’s committed to promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in all aspects of e-learning design.  

▶️ Misconceptions, Barriers, and Solutions to Creating Accessible Learning with Dr. Saeide Mirzaei

▶️ In this episode:

03:53 How being denied access to education opportunities put Dr. Saeide Mirzaei on this path of accessible learning

08:16 Seven reasons why nonprofits should be thinking about accessible learning

22:00 Common barriers that nonprofits face when creating programs that are accessible

28:41 Solutions to overcome those barriers and ensure your nonprofit's learning initiatives are accessible

35:00 Training staff and volunteers on accessibility best practices, guidelines, and tools

39:15 How accessible content can also be engaging, empowering, and fun!

Resources from this episode:

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

Join the Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective:  https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Connect with Dr. Saeide Mirzaei 

Linkedin: Dr. Saeide Mirzaei

Website: https://saeidemirzaei.com/ 

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather  here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

Are you investing in your people managers this year? They have a central role in the organization – taking the vision and strategy from leadership, and helping your teams put all of that into action. It requires a lot of skill and leadership. Yet, people managers don't always have the training or the support they need to be successful.

So, in today's episode of Learning for Good, we'll explore five coaching questions you can ask to spark behavior change in your people managers.

▶️ Top 5 Coaching Questions to Spark Behavior Change in Your People Managers 

▶️ Key Points:

01:53 Why coaching is essential to spark behavior change in your people managers

02:50 Five core questions to spark behavior change in your nonprofit organization

05:32 How you can offer more support as they go through that change

Resources from this episode:

Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective: https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Was this episode helpful? If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, follow and leave a review! 👇👇👇

Know anyone who would benefit from this episode? SHARE this with your friends. 🔗

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

Have you ever created a training, but realized staff just didn't want to attend? Maybe you facilitated or observed and saw the hesitation, or worse, the resistance from learners. Sometimes our staff isn't ready to change. So, today, let’s talk about creating buy-in for staff development.

In this episode of Learning for Good, I'm going to share an approach that I used in a virtual instructor-led training for a national nonprofit focused on the early childhood years. 

▶️ Staff Not Ready to Change? This One Practice Creates Buy-In for Staff Development

▶️ Key Points:

01:48 How to make learners actually want to learn and implement your new approach

04:07 Combining discussion with practice so learners can benefit from buy-in and skill development

04:50 How you can apply my approach to your work as a nonprofit L&D leader 

Resources from this episode:

Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective:  https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective 

Was this episode helpful? If you’re listening on  Apple Podcasts or  Spotify, follow and leave a review! 👇👇👇

Know anyone who would benefit from this episode? SHARE this with your friends. 🔗

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather  here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms

We keep hearing that burnout is at an all-time high, especially within nonprofit organizations, yet changes continue happening and can sometimes add to our stressors in the workplace. That's why today I've invited Mandy Sharp Eizinger to talk about staff well-being and what nonprofit organizations can do to help prevent burnout even in the midst of a change.

In this episode, we talk about shifting the narrative around rest, how staff well-being affects your nonprofit culture and bottom line, and some practical tips on what you can start doing today to prioritize your staff’s well-being.

▶️ Why Well-Being Is The Secret Sauce to Change Management with Mandy Sharp Eizinger

▶️ Key Points:

05:01 The start of Mandy's interest in well-being within the non-profit sector

08:32 Burnout, busyness, well-being, and rest: shifting narratives we’ve been reproducing for decades

15:51 How staff well-being impacts things happening across nonprofits and other organizations

18:10 Simple questions you should ask your staff to increase well-being and productivity 

20:39 8 Tips to improve staff well-being in your organization

Resources from this episode:

Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski’s TED Talk: The cure for burnout (hint: it isn't self-care)

Tricia Hersey’s article: Rest is anything that connects your mind and body

Nonprofit Learning and Development Collective: 

https://www.skillmastersmarket.com/nonprofit-learning-and-development-collective

Was this episode helpful? If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, follow and leave a review! 👇👇👇

Know anyone who would benefit from this episode? SHARE this with your friends. 🔗 

Connect with Mandy

Linkedin: Mandy Sharp Eizinger

Connect with Heather

Linkedin: Heather Burright

Website: skillmastersmarket.com

Book an interest call with Heather here.

Learning for Good is the podcast for nonprofit leaders seeking practical L&D solutions. Hosted by Heather, an experienced consultant, we dive into leadership development, instructional design, change management, and staff management strategies tailored to nonprofit organizations.

Discover how to implement impactful learning solutions, foster belonging, and influence senior leaders. Each episode provides the tools you need to confidently navigate high-level conversations and drive meaningful change within your organization.

Let’s create lasting impact through innovative L&D solutions!

Produced by Ideablossoms