Working in any mental health organization in itself is technically challenging and keeps any worker emotionally invested where focusing on the mission can be more challenging. Darrell Burnham, the CEO of a community-based mental health organization called Coast Mental Health, talks about how he manages to stay connected with the mission while working with the staff and board. He shares that he’s been able to accomplish these goals by always coming back to the organization’s mission. For anyone vying to be a CEO, Darrell suggests understanding the full context of the work by taking time to do so. This includes meeting everyone involved in the organization, particularly the staff, family members, and people being served.

Providing welfare to those in need or what is called philanthropy is not as easy as it seems. Veronica Carroll, CEO of Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver, points out that philanthropy is not just about donations and rich people giving their money to poor communities; it is more than that. Veronica says that donors do not just donate but also work with them hand in hand after the organization’s benefits are articulated. She shares how, as a leader, she keeps the board up to date with the projects and on the same path as the organization by showing an investment framework. Sharing a strong advice on being a CEO, she says you have to be prepared to be flexible all the time and understand how to get people to work collaboratively in a team environment.

There are a lot of means to develop a community, but it is incomparable to build one through the power of food. David Long, the CEO of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, walks us through how he became the leader of a donor-centric organization. As he recounts the compassionate people who helped through donations and other assistance, he shares what the perception of the food bank is and how he sees it in the upcoming years. On top of that, learn how David’s leadership has changed from Terminal City Club to where he is now, and find out how he defines leadership and how to keep board members engaged.

Deep engagement in an organization can only be made possible through radical listening. President and CEO of Central City Foundation, Jennifer Johnstone, defines what radical listening is and how it has created an authentic and healthy relationship within a community. Starting off her career in the non-profit sector as the founding program coordinator with the Whistler Centre for Business and the Arts in the late 1980s, she shares the core values and functions of the Central City Foundation and how she maintained the long-term focus with her management team and board members. Moreover, learn from Jennifer the importance of putting truth and reconciliation at the core of what you do. On the side, discover the way to get people to move past that feeling of competition and scarcity in non-profit organizations.

There is so much hope in young entrepreneurs and promising future to every startup that we tend to forego. Conversely, Karen Greve Young never misses out on these business ideas that may actually change the world. CEO of the Futurpreneur Canada, a non-profit organization that has been fueling the entrepreneurial passions of Canada’s young enterprise for two decades, Karen touches on how they help manage young entrepreneurs launch and grow their business. A master consultant and fundraiser, she reveals the way to keep everyone moving in the same direction given that they are the only national non-profit organization that provides financing, mentoring, and support tools to aspiring business owners aged 18-39. As she goes through the surprises in her CEO journey to date, discover the challenge that national organizations face these days and how it gets sorted.

Generative leadership means getting the board at the appropriate level, and keeping them there in a very successful and strategically beneficial way. Kevin McCort, CEO of the Vancouver Foundation, dives deep into generative leadership when working with your board. Kevin shares his journey towards taking the shift from being in the international realm for 25 years working with two leading Canadian international development organizations, to the domestic with Vancouver Foundation. Not one to stand still, he takes us to the restructuring he implemented in the organization when he was appointed as leader and discusses how he managed the organization across the people behind it, highlighting the importance of bringing everyone in the know about the operations

Not everyone can be a leader. Leadership is a privilege and it is about getting people together to achieve a specific purpose. Having the opportunity to be a leader is Pascal Spothelfer, CEO of Genome BC, who has taken on leadership roles in both the business and social sector. Shifting from profit to non-profit organizations and vice versa, Pascal describes that leading both sectors is not entirely different as the purpose to achieve a specific strategic mandate is basically the same. As Pascal dives into social profit leadership, he outlines the critical roles of the CEO and the importance of finding your purpose as a leader and understanding what the organization exists to do.

All of us are capable of doing extraordinary things that help and uplift other people. Bringing this to healthcare and philanthropy, Karen Jeu – President of California Pacific Medical Center Foundation – takes us into the final stages of a really important campaign which aims to open two brand new hospitals within the whole Bay Area. Karen talks about the importance of the conversation on philanthropy and bringing that to the community. Going deeper within herself as well, Karen shares how the mission of the organization she has worked with has helped her develop as a fundraiser and a leader. Karen touches on the role of the rest of her team, sharing how she is doing well at building teams and mentoring them from the start to the last phase of the campaign.

Losing a loved one can be tragic and traumatic. It takes a lot of courage and determination to bounce back from the grief that it takes along. Patrick Sullivan, Founder and President of Team Finn Foundation, shares how losing his son to cancer changed his life. A lawyer by profession, Patrick walks us through his transition from leading a journey to conquer cancer and making scientists more aware and motivated to improve their expertise in Oncology to playing significant roles in numerous boards of organizations with the same purpose. Learn the number one mistake he sees CEOs and executive directors are making and the problem with starting a new organization.

Social profit organizations have their respective mission that sets their team into motion. As much as it is essential to have a clear vision of where an organization is positioned, to keep it engaged to the purpose is also crucial. Diana Gibson, a serial founder of social profit organizations, gives insights on the relevance of bottom-up leadership and flex time in an organization. Even with her track record as a serial leader with countless expertise, Diana still encounters some bumps in the road, revealing the most prominent challenge sectors face nowadays. Learn more about organizational alignment as Diane goes in-depth on how we can improve the structure of mission-driven organizations.