Balancing the Mission Checkbook » CompasPoint http://www.nonprofitsassistancefund.org/blog Nonprofits Assistance Fund shares thoughts and insights on nonprofit management and finance Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:28:41 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 The Case for Sabbaticals http://www.nonprofitsassistancefund.org/blog/2010/02/03/the-case-for-sabbaticals/ http://www.nonprofitsassistancefund.org/blog/2010/02/03/the-case-for-sabbaticals/#comments Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:15:06 +0000 Kate Barr http://www.nonprofitsassistancefund.org/blog/2010/02/03/the-case-for-sabbaticals/ How many of you have wanted to take a break from the pace and pressure of work and decompress? I have been given this gift in the form of a one-month sabbatical during February. After seeing the positive effects of a similar break on a friend of mine, I made the request and our board quickly agreed. While I didn’t do any other research about sabbaticals, it made instinctive sense that time away would be a good idea for both me and for Nonprofits Assistance Fund. In the year since my request, two other professional colleagues have taken one-month sabbaticals and had very positive experiences for themselves and the staff of their organizations.

Now, just in time for my break, CompassPoint released a study titled Creative Disruption about sabbaticals at nonprofit organizations. This summary of the report is affirming for my own sabbatical and for any of you who’ve been thinking about it.

This study exposes the myth that an executive sabbatical will be a chaotic disruption, finding instead that the creative disruption of a well-planned sabbatical can be productive for the entire leadership of an organization.

Organizational capacity is increased as the second tier of leadership takes on new responsibilities. Governance is strengthened as a result of the planning and learning that goes with a sabbatical process. Executive directors come back rejuvenated, with a fresh vision and innovative ideas, and tend to extend their tenure with the organization. And funders gain a deeper perspective on community needs from the feedback, networking, and innovative ideas that sabbatical alumni bring.

The report is an interesting read, including the results of surveys of executives who took sabbaticals and the interim directors who took on a new role. The subjects of the study were all recipients of funding to support sabbaticals, usually for three months.

I’m eager to see what kinds of experiences and ideas I have during the month. I’ll be kicking back for some of the time and using some of it for reading and discussions about the big issues and ideas for nonprofits in the future. (Although I can promise I will not spend all four weeks of February in Minnesota.) I started this weekend by reading an advance copy of the book Switch How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip and Dan Heath. The book addresses the reasons why change is so hard with a well-formed framework that makes the concepts accessible and actionable. They offer three essential components needed for change to happen:

  1. Direct the Rider – clarity and direction
  2. Motivate the Elephant – emotions and energy
  3. Shape the Path – plan and influence the situation

The book will be released on February 16th, but you can read an extensive excerpt in Fast Company.

More reading and thinking to come, but you probably won’t hear much from me this month. We’d love to hear any comments about sabbaticals from other nonprofits – what have you done, or wished you could do?

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