"In these troubled, uncertain times … we need better means to engage everyone's intelligence in solving challenges and crises as they arise." -Margaret Wheatley

Some days it seems that the ground does not stop shifting. Rioting over austerity measures in Greece, Spain, and elsewhere in the Euro zone dominates the news. Headlines then alternate between uplifting and adverse data about the U.S. recovery, only to careen to a bank’s $2 billion loss – a troubling echo of our all-too-recent recession.  

Technology, globalization, and other factors further contribute to an increasingly uncertain world. Social media and apps connect people like never before, but simultaneously widen the digital divide. Globalization is helping to launch a new middle class in India and China, but also accelerates environmental degradation.

Members of the nonprofit and philanthropic community are trying to manage such developments, but doing so is challenging in the ambiguous, evolving environment in which we work. To be successful, our organizations must be capable of crafting creative solutions to tough problems using limited resources. One of the most effective ways to do so is by investing in the people – staff and volunteers alike – who can translate ideas into effective programs. 

Last year IS joined others in calling for greater attention on the importance of talent and leadership at the individual, organizational, and sector levels. In November, IS and other partners organized the White House Forum on Nonprofit Leadership to develop a blueprint of actionable goals and high-impact strategies to strengthen nonprofit leadership. Over 200 social sector leaders organized their thinking along five themes:

1. Advancing Diversity and Inclusion
2. Developing Cross-Sector Talent Pipelines
3. Equipping Leaders to Face Tough Challenges
4. Scaling Social Innovations
5. Catalyzing Public and Private Investments in Leadership

This gathering of passionate leaders launched the Initiative for Nonprofit Talent and Leadership to increase awareness of the need for leadership development and mobilize cross-sector attention, resources, and expertise. Hundreds of participants discussed leadership during 5 follow-up webinars.These conversations tapped into a significant body of research that posits nonprofit leadership is one of the most effective ways to spark transformational results; developing such leaders will require a focused investment of time, attention, and resources.

Listening closely to the participant’s contributions, we proposed four goals to frame the next stage of input needed to continue developing this Initiative:

	Rally: Individuals across the sector will champion leadership as one of the leading means to significantly increase the sector’s impact in our communities.
	Identify: A critical mass of nonprofit and philanthropic organizations will demonstrate a commitment to best practices in leadership development.
	Scale: A significantly increased number of nonprofit and philanthropic leaders will engage annually in high-quality leadership development that equips them to deliver significant results.
	Engage: Leverage significant new public and private financial investments in nonprofit and philanthopic leadership development.

You’ve likely noticed that these four verbs spell “RISE” – and that’s no accident. The Initiative and its theory of change represent a major shift in how we approach our work. We want to RISE together.

To gather more feedback on the goals, core beliefs, strategies, and vision of the Initiative, IS facilitated an online Town Hall three weeks ago. People participated from all types and sizes of organizations across the charitable sector, business, and government. We asked them to answer three questions:

• How would you describe high quality leadership development?
• What models, promising practices, or existing programs can we identify and elevate?
• What strategies and results-driven indicators would advance our progress toward these goals?

Answers to these questions will help us collectively lay the groundwork for implementing the changes we desire to see in our sector. We need to create a shared narrative as we elevate practice in every nonprofit and foundation, large and small, urban or rural, no matter their mission. The Initiative is not intended to replace existing programs. Our hope is to do the very opposite: multiply current investments in leadership, scale the most effective and efficient practices, and activate more programs.

One of the most encouraging results of the Town Hall was hearing the big ideas participants are already implementing. Some are working with their local chambers of commerce to develop holistic, citywide leadership development. Others have implemented “stay interviews” to understand better why employees remain on the job, not just why they leave. We heard from dozens of people talking about the energy that already exists around the need for talent and leadership development.
We appreciate all of the feedback offered thus far. We continue to seek your input as we develop a strong plan this year as the foundation for strategic implementation in 2013. If you haven’t been involved yet, I urge you to:

• Share your thoughts on the Initiative;
• Link the Initiative to your website;
• Volunteer to craft a blog post about it;
• Inform 10 people from your networks;
• Invite Initiative leads to speak to your organization; or
• Commit to advancing the Initiative in 2013.

We are at a decisive moment. We’ve put a stake in the ground that equipping leaders for impact must be a top priority in the social sector. Margaret Wheatley, a leader in the field of organizational behavior and leadership, said, "In these troubled, uncertain times … we need better means to engage everyone's intelligence in solving challenges and crises as they arise." We can better navigate ambiguous, uncertain times if we work together in ways that will enable our sector to achieve greater impact in in people’s lives. Join the Initiative for Nonprofit Talent & Leadership!

Follow Diana on Twitter: @diaviv