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Lead with confidence and build an inclusive culture where everyone can thrive.
Hosted by nonprofit founder and former executive director Marcia Beckner, the Nonprofit CEO SPARK podcast delivers your weekly dose of clarity, confidence, and practical leadership wisdom for social impact leaders.
Each episode dives into real-world strategies to help you achieve your biggest dreams and professional goals without burning out along the way. From setting healthy boundaries to creating empowered, thriving workplace cultures, you’ll find the tools, stories, and inspiration you need to lead boldly and sustainably.
19 Episodes
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Send a text In this first episode of a two-part series, we name what many nonprofit CEOs and Executive Directors are carrying privately. After personally interviewing leaders across missions, budgets, and growth stages, one pattern became clear: the challenges aren’t isolated. They’re sector-wide. Board misalignment. Staff exhausted from constant pivots. Key leaders leaving with no bench in place. The quiet pressure to have answers in moments of deep uncertainty. You’ll hear the exact words l...
Send a text If leading Gen Z has you second-guessing yourself, this episode is your reset. Right now, five generations are working side by side. According to the World Economic Forum, the age span in today’s workforce has never been wider. Gen Z entered work during disruption, institutional mistrust, and rapid change—and that context matters. Drawing on insights from Meg Jay’s The Defining Decade and research from Deloitte and Society for Human Resource Management, this episode reframes the t...
Send a text Culture is never neutral. It’s either strengthening your mission or quietly eroding it. In this episode of Nonprofit CEO SPARK, Marcia Beckner sits down with Kelly Dunkin, President & CEO of Colorado Gives Foundation, to unpack what it really takes to build a high-performing, inclusive culture that delivers measurable results. Under Kelly’s leadership, Colorado Gives Day generated $56.5 million for 4,600 nonprofits—in a year when many organizations were navigating funding unce...
Send a text What do you do when you’re responsible… but not really in charge? Before I ever coached nonprofit leaders or facilitated culture transformation initiatives, I learned some of my most important leadership lessons at 30,000 feet—as an American Airlines flight attendant in my 20s. And one late-night flight out of Chicago made it unmistakably clear. In this episode, I share the true story of an emergency landing—and why, in moments of uncertainty, people don’t look to titles or ...
Send a text In challenging times, abundance isn’t about having more. It’s about defending what matters most. Recently, I met with an Executive Director I’ll call Susan. She had been in her role just a few months when the funding landscape shifted in a way that couldn’t be ignored. This wasn’t a temporary disruption—it was a permanent change that forced hard decisions forward. Susan reviewed the financials and knew layoffs were coming. She also knew her team would struggle—not from lack of com...
Send a text One of the toughest calls for nonprofit leaders right now is which staff members get remote flexibility… and which don’t. You’re juggling programs, fundraising, and staff wellbeing — all while trying to create policies that balance fairness, equity, and mission delivery. But when different departments play by different rules, silos can deepen. Here’s a common example: 💼 The Development team’s working hybrid. 👥 The Program team’s in the field. 💬 And soon, staff are whispering...
Send a text Let’s say you’re leading a team meeting with the main goal to ‘Decide on new donor database’. Two hours later, you’ve heard passionate arguments, five different options, and you’re running out of trail mix in the middle of the table. Then someone says, ‘So who’s actually deciding this?’ Blank stares across the room. And that is the moment everyone realizes…nobody knows. I’ll be honest …I was very guilty of this myself. When I was the Executive Director for MyLifeLine Cance...
Send a text Welcome back to Nonprofit CEO SPARK. I’m Marcia Beckner, and today we’re kicking off with a hot take I’ve been sitting with for a long time: On-going staff drama isn’t normal. It’s a leadership choice to tolerate a low-trust environment. I know...that’s bold, maybe even a little controversial. But I also know it’s true, because I lived through one of the most painful and ultimately transformational chapters of my Executive Director career. There was a season when my staff split in...
Send a text As we step into a new year, I want to talk about one resolution that almost every nonprofit leader needs, but very few actually name out loud: Stop personally sacrificing yourself to get the work done. Consider giving yourself permission to lead without losing yourself. Today, I’m giving you 3 practical strategies to stick to this resolution, so you don’t spiral back to living on caffeine, email triage, and pure adrenaline. Typical resolutions sound like: “I want to work les...
Send a text As we wrap up 2025, it feels like the perfect moment to pause and reflect. This year stretched every leader I know from staff transitions, funding dips, and the nonstop pace of change So before we sprint into 2026 planning mode, let’s take a breath and look back at what actually worked. I asked four incredible nonprofit leaders one simple question: “What’s your #1 best strategy to build trust and morale during times of disruption?” Their answers? Honest. Practical. Grounded....
Send a text Hey there, nonprofit CEOs and Executive Directors — welcome back to Nonprofit CEO SPARK, where we help you lead with more clarity and confidence — without burning out. I recently met a CEO who runs a nonprofit refugee center. As you can imagine, her organization is facing some of the toughest challenges imaginable —threats to documented and undocumented immigrants, shifting government policies, and the constant emotional weight of caring for people in crisis. So when she told me, ...
Send a text Hey there, nonprofit leaders, tell me if this sounds familiar… You leave a staff meeting thinking, “Yes! We’re totally aligned. Everyone’s got it.” Then 48 hours later, your inbox tells a different story. Half the team took your idea and sprinted in one direction. Another half politely waited for more instructions. And one person… somehow started building an entirely new project. You sit back, reread your own notes, and think, “How did we get here? I was so clear!” That’s today’s ...
Send a text Have you ever had a staff member who seemed great on paper, or even had moments of brilliance, but behind the scenes, their toxic behavior slowly drained the energy out of your whole team? Maybe you found yourself thinking, “If I just give them one more chance, maybe this time it will stick.” Today, we’re exploring what happens when those second, third, and fourth chances start working against you. Because sometimes, the real damage isn’t just in what the employee does...
Send a text Welcome back to Nonprofit CEO SPARK, the show that fuels your leadership, protects your energy, and helps you spark lasting change. I’m your host, Marcia Beckner. Let me paint the picture. You spend three hours writing a job posting. You list all the “must-haves,” cross your fingers, and wait. --> Fifty-three applications land in your inbox. --> Only two even kind of fit the bill. --> You reach out to one, and they ghost you. --> The other wants $30K more than you can ...
Send a text Hey there, nonprofit leaders, and welcome back to Nonprofit CEO SPARK, the podcast that helps you fuel your leadership, protect your energy, and spark lasting change. In today’s episode, I’m sharing behind-the-scenes lessons from a unique opportunity I had in 2024, stepping in as the Interim Executive Director of a thriving arts nonprofit in Denver. This wasn’t my first rodeo, but it was my first time back in the ED seat since 2017, and wow, the experience gave me powerful t...
Send a text Let’s talk about something every nonprofit CEO and Executive Director will face… and usually at the most inconvenient moment possible. Picture this: It’s Monday morning. You’re halfway through your first cup of coffee, still convincing yourself this is going to be a productive day. You open your inbox, and there it is… a subject line from a staff member that reads: “Quick Chat?” Now, we both know “Quick Chat” means anything but quick. It’s code for: This is going to be...
Send a text If you’re a nonprofit CEO or Executive Director, you already know there are a million things you can’t control: The economy. Funder priorities. Donor preferences. That one staff member who thinks “fashionably late” is a cute personality trait. But there is one thing you can control, and it changes everything else. Back when I was an Executive Director, I tried to control it all…I even lost sleep over details no one else cared about. I thought if I worked ha...
Send a text If you’re a nonprofit CEO or Executive Director, I have a question for you. How many mornings have you opened your laptop and thought, I’m not sure how much longer I can keep this up? How many nights have you laid awake worried about staff conflict, budget gaps, and your organization’s long-term sustainability. Wondering if you’re holding your organization back? So, if that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. What you’re experiencing isn’t just stress. It’s what I call The Si...
Send a text Find the full transcript for this episode and more resources for nonprofit leaders here. Hello, and welcome to my very first episode of the Nonprofit CEO SPARK podcast. I’m Marcia Beckner, and I help nonprofit CEOs, Executive Directors, and founders lead with confidence, boost team morale, and design inclusive cultures that fuel sustainable growth. Since 2020, my mission has been to partner with leaders who are ready to create “best place to work” cultures, places where your...
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