Excellence in Nonprofit Management

Thursday, November 21, 2024 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Making the transition from direct practice to management is often a difficult process. While many of the skills that social workers possess are useful in the management role, the complexity and diversity of management functions, changing organizational relationships, and moving out of one’s comfort zone can make this transition challenging. Most social workers and other human service managers promoted to management roles have received little formal education or training to equip them with the tools to make the transition less stressful and more successful.

This workshop will be geared to individuals considering a career move into management as well as those already in management roles seeking to strengthen their skills and deepen their insight into the psychological and technical aspects of management. The workshop will use an interactive approach which includes discussions, small group activities, and case studies.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• Demonstrate a clear understanding of the “paradoxes” of management including conflicting demands, dilemmas, and competing values
• Identify management learning needs
• Describe the common pitfalls staff encounter when moving from a staff position to a management role
• Understand the multilevel dimensions of management.

About the Speaker

Michael Swerdlow, PhD, has more than 30 years of experience managing a wide range of mental health and human service programs. These programs have included a full-service community mental health center, a family practice residency program, and an integrated primary care/mental health program. Dr. Swerdlow has been the recipient of grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Substance Abuse Mental Health Service Administration (SAMHSA). Dr. Swerdlow has published in the area of cross-cultural mental health. During the last 15 years, he has developed workshops and training for people transitioning from direct service to management. Dr. Swerdlow is an adjunct professional at the NYU School of Social work and has a PhD in medical anthropology. Dr. Swerdlow is also a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Thursday, December 5, 2024 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Today’s managers play a critical role in building high performing teams that are able to carry out the organization’s mission and plans. Managers must possess the knowledge, skills, and tools for talent acquisition, retention, and effective performance management of their teams and individual team members. This full-day course will explore the major roles, functions, and competencies of an effective manager in developing and managing their teams and team members.

In this course, participants will learn the essentials of effective talent management and people development processes and practices and will receive self-assessment tools, handy checklists, and other resources that provide insight into how to build their managerial and supervisory strengths and adapt their styles in ways that lead their teams and organizations to greater success.

Learning Objectives

Participants will increase their knowledge of:

• Management functions and competencies; and
• The skills and styles they need as managers of their teams and departments in today’s nonprofit organizations.

Participants will:

• Create and maintain procedures, processes, and practices to effectively manage the performance of staff and volunteers;
• Foster a learning environment in which employees can increase their knowledge and competencies, leverages the talents and skills of its team members, and in which there is a pipeline for future management; and
• Handle difficult employees and situations, resolve conflict, and address problem behaviors.

Topics

• The essential and key functions of an effective manager.
• Human Resources Compliance: Understanding and using HR policies and procedures and employee handbooks.
• Competencies, skills, and organizational tools in people management processes and practices through the entire employment cycle, including effective hiring and interviewing, orientation, onboarding, and retention strategies, setting and implementing department and team objectives, performance management, coaching, and the design and implementation of knowledge transfer and performance improvement plans.
• Addressing workplace behavior issues including managing and resolving conflict; handling problem employees and difficult situations; countering bias in the workplace and ways to maintain a safe, barrier-free, respectful work environment and team culture.

About the Speaker

Jennifer M. Rutledge has over 35 years’ experience in providing assistance to organizational leadership in the areas of governance, board and individual leadership development, management development, long-range and strategic planning, organizational development, and training. She has helped private companies, associations, and nonprofits develop strategic initiatives designed to address emerging issues and has served as a facilitator and guide providing technical assistance throughout the resulting processes. Rutledge has worked with nonprofit organizations on Long Island for over 20 years and has served as a consultant with the Center for Nonprofit Leadership at Adelphi University’s School of Social Work since 2010.

Rutledge has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergraduate degree in Industrial Psychology. She is an author and has served as adjunct faculty at the University of Virginia, Marymount/Fordham University, and the University of California at Berkeley.

Thursday, December 12, 2024 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Today’s managers play a critical role in building high performing teams that are able to carry out the organization’s mission and plans. Managers must possess the knowledge, skills, and tools for talent acquisition, retention, and effective performance management of their teams and individual team members. This full-day course will explore the major roles, functions, and competencies of an effective manager in developing and managing their teams and team members.

In this course, participants will learn the essentials of effective talent management and people development processes and practices and will receive self-assessment tools, handy checklists, and other resources that provide insight into how to build their managerial and supervisory strengths and adapt their styles in ways that lead their teams and organizations to greater success.

Learning Objectives

Participants will increase their knowledge of:

• Management functions and competencies; and
• The skills and styles they need as managers of their teams and departments in today’s nonprofit organizations.

Participants will:

• Create and maintain procedures, processes, and practices to effectively manage the performance of staff and volunteers;
• Foster a learning environment in which employees can increase their knowledge and competencies, leverages the talents and skills of its team members, and in which there is a pipeline for future management; and
• Handle difficult employees and situations, resolve conflict, and address problem behaviors.

Topics

• The essential and key functions of an effective manager.
• Human Resources Compliance: Understanding and using HR policies and procedures and employee handbooks.
• Competencies, skills, and organizational tools in people management processes and practices through the entire employment cycle, including effective hiring and interviewing, orientation, onboarding, and retention strategies, setting and implementing department and team objectives, performance management, coaching, and the design and implementation of knowledge transfer and performance improvement plans.
• Addressing workplace behavior issues including managing and resolving conflict; handling problem employees and difficult situations; countering bias in the workplace and ways to maintain a safe, barrier-free, respectful work environment and team culture.

About the Speaker

Jennifer M. Rutledge has over 35 years’ experience in providing assistance to organizational leadership in the areas of governance, board and individual leadership development, management development, long-range and strategic planning, organizational development, and training. She has helped private companies, associations, and nonprofits develop strategic initiatives designed to address emerging issues and has served as a facilitator and guide providing technical assistance throughout the resulting processes. Rutledge has worked with nonprofit organizations on Long Island for over 20 years and has served as a consultant with the Center for Nonprofit Leadership at Adelphi University’s School of Social Work since 2010.

Rutledge has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergraduate degree in Industrial Psychology. She is an author and has served as adjunct faculty at the University of Virginia, Marymount/Fordham University, and the University of California at Berkeley.

Thursday, January 9, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Understanding key concepts in financial management and reporting is critical for any nonprofit manager. This course is designed to enhance participants’ understanding of financial management principles and processes that must be in place, given their roles as managers and the need for everyone to maintain effective internal controls within their departments and the organization. The course will increase participants’ knowledge and understanding of:

• Fiscal, budgetary and financial planning issues as they pertain to their departments and organizations; and
• How financial data is organized, reported and used to make decisions.

Learning Objectives

Participants will develop the ability to:

• Create and manage budgets that address the needs and plans for their program/department.
• Effectively communicate with organizational leadership and finance professionals regarding financial decisions being made for their departments/areas and in their organization.
• Interpret and assist in the development of financial statements and tracking systems; and
• Report on the financial condition and outlook of their programs or departments.

Topics

• Budget planning and management.
• Developing and using effective accounting processes, financial policies, and internal controls to manage risk.
• Functional expenses – What managers need to know about classifying and allocating their program and department expenses and changes in FASB rules.
• Financial reporting:
  • What types of financial reports does our organization generate and use; and
  • How to interpret and share information related to the organization’s financial reports.
  • The audit and 990 Processes – What; why; and interpreting the results.

About the Speaker

Nyrekia White, BS Ed, MBA has over twenty years’ nonprofit executive and director-level experience in the areas of Financial Management, Operations, Human Resources, and Fund Development. White has designed and directed the Finance and Operations Department of a multi-site national nonprofit organization and, as a consultant, she has assisted client organizations’ Executive Directors/CEOs and Department Managers in developing and implementing their organizations’ business models, lines of business, and operations.

She has reconstructed fiscal records in preparation for audits at client organizations; managed funding and resource development, tracking grants and producing financial reports for interim and final grant updates; and she has directed all of the finance and human resources-related tasks involved in the merger of two national nonprofit organizations and related tasks in the closing of a national nonprofit organization. These tasks included negotiating employee severance, overseeing tax filings and final audits, negotiations with vendors, closing out all operational accounts, and providing technical assistance on establishing and maintaining operational systems and internal controls.

Thursday, January 23, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Effective grant writing and well-organized grant management programs are the lifeline of many nonprofit organizations. This highly-interactive course will guide participants through the process of writing successful, persuasive grant proposals and supporting documents and the key elements and major steps in the maintenance of effective grant management programs.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• Write clear, high-impact proposals for foundations, corporations, and government funders.
• Research and cultivate new grant/contract opportunities or renewals with expansion possibilities.
• Work in collaboration with their program staff, Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer, and others to develop grant proposals and necessary supportive material.
• Develop relationships with funders.
• Handle the administrative tasks required for an effective grants management process that meets generally accepted standards as well as the requirements of each funding source.

Topics

• Identifying fundable ideas and cultivating viable funding sources;
• Effective proposal writing for a variety of sources including local, state, and federal government, private and family foundations, and corporations;
• Developing a grant proposal budget and budget narrative
• “Elated or Deflated:” Handling the response to your request for funding  and Taking next steps;
• Evaluating and reporting program outcomes;
• Establishing timelines and meeting deliverables; and
• Managing multiple funders.

About the Speaker

A native of New York, Paola Muggia is a graduate of Oberlin College with a B.A. in Art History with Masters work in Art History from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. She has worked in the field of fundraising for over 20 years both in New York and the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 2019, Paola has been Executive Director of The Chemotherapy Foundation, a cancer research organization based in New York City. Her areas of expertise are strategic planning, annual and capital campaigns, grant-writing, major gifts and donor relations. Her experience with small to medium sized organizations has given her the opportunity to wear many hats, which has allowed her to effectively build and rebuild fundraising programs.

Paola is the Founder of As It Develops, a consulting firm that offers small and new nonprofits pro bono development support. She has also  been a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Fundraising Professionals-Golden Gate Chapter and Charles Armstrong School’s Development Committee and is currently a member of Women in Development, New York and AFP NYC.

Thursday, February 6, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Fund development is a primary responsibility of anyone leading today’s nonprofit organization. This course will explore the current trends in fund development and provide participants with the tools to create and implement a fund development plan that increases the financial stability and sustainability of their organizations.

Learning Objective

Establish a fund development strategy and plan and how to take the critical steps to ensure they have the support for the organization’s fund development plans.

Topics

• Designing  and implementing your fund development plan and strategy for building your funding base;
• Developing an effective strategy to guide  the development and implementation of the organization’s fundraising plans;
• Making your case and telling your story;
• Engaging Your Board of Directors in fund development
• Donor cultivation and stewardship:
  • Identifying viable sources;
  • Cultivating potential donors;
  • Solicitation: making the ask;
  • “closing the deal;”  and
  • Stewardship: Creating “lifelong donors.”

About the Speaker

A native of New York, Paola Muggia is a graduate of Oberlin College with a B.A. in Art History with Masters work in Art History from New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. She has worked in the field of fundraising for over 20 years both in New York and the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 2019, Paola has been Executive Director of The Chemotherapy Foundation, a cancer research organization based in New York City. Her areas of expertise are strategic planning, annual and capital campaigns, grant-writing, major gifts and donor relations. Her experience with small to medium sized organizations has given her the opportunity to wear many hats, which has allowed her to effectively build and rebuild fundraising programs.

Paola is the Founder of As It Develops, a consulting firm that offers small and new nonprofits pro bono development support. She has also  been a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Fundraising Professionals-Golden Gate Chapter and Charles Armstrong School’s Development Committee and is currently a member of Women in Development, New York and AFP NYC.

Thursday, February 20, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Effective management and evaluation of a nonprofit’s programs and services is key to fulfilling the organization’s mission and to ensuring that the organization remains relevant and vital to the communities served by the nonprofit. These are also critical steps to make certain that the organization has the resources and support to continue its mission and realize its vision for the future.

This course will familiarize students with the:

• Major components and steps in deciding on, designing, producing, and delivering the services of a nonprofit program;
• Leading the shift from providing volume of services to providing value;
• Balancing stakeholders’ interests; and
• Different types of program evaluation, including needs assessment, formative research, process evaluation, and use of the logic model for monitoring of outputs and outcomes, and assessing impact.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• Learn how to build and structure a service or program that is:
  • Vital to meeting community needs and resources.
  • Aligned with the organization’s mission, goals, and strategic direction.
  • Able to clearly demonstrate impact.

Topics

• Designing & structuring your program or service:
  • Assessing needs and resources;
  • Key elements of the program or service: resources, inputs, process, outputs, and outcomes, and structure and staffing;
  • Identifying and engaging key stakeholders; and
  • Making the decision.
• Positioning and promoting the program or service.
• Program assessment, evaluation, and continuation:
  • Building your program’s monitoring and evaluation plan;
  • Collecting and analyzing data;
  • Using data to develop a compelling story that demonstrates impact and positions the program/service for its next funding cycle; and
  • Building a culture of integrity and ethical behavior.

About the Speaker

Jamie Bogenshutz has played an active role in the human services field for over four decades. She graduated with her MSW from Washington University, George Warren Brown School of Social Work in 1978, receiving her LCSW, R shortly thereafter. She began her career in the field of foster care/adoption and ultimately found her passion in her role as the Executive Director at a multi funded, community based organization serving Nassau County residents with a strong focus on adolescents and families, addiction, mental health, and trauma. She has assumed a wide variety of leadership roles within the county’s youth service, suicide, prevention, and substance use prevention coalitions. She has trained and worked for Adelphi’s Center for Nonprofit Leadership working with numerous nonprofit leaders and organizations related to board governance, strategic planning, and nonprofit management and fund development/grant writing.

As a senior adjunct professor, for Adelphi’s School of Social Work, she has taught a wide range of courses on both the undergraduate and graduate level for over twenty-five years. Additionally, she is a certified trainer for the New York State Department of Education’s mandated reporters child abuse course, and has provided numerous support and trainings related to crisis intervention, grant writing, assessment and evaluation.

Thursday, March 6, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Nonprofits and Human Services organizations can offer great products and services, but they can’t reach potential audiences and customers without effective communications and branding strategies. This full-day workshop will provide managers and organizations the tools to understand how to formulate and execute an applicable marketing, communications and branding plan. The workshop emphasizes a broad range of best practices and are appropriate for small and mid-sized organizations and is an excellent resource to understand how best to approach marketing and communications and tactics that can help the organization grow.

Learning Objectives

This workshop is designed especially to help small organizations develop branding and marketing communications programs to build awareness with potential users, clients and partners. The topics of the workshop are:

• Developing strategic, fully-integrated communications
• Internal communications and policies (Board, staff, board and staff)
• How to utilize earned and social media for maximum effect
• Crisis management
• Effective messaging – understanding your audience
• Determining the most effective medium
• External communications strategy
• Community engagement
• Audience-centered communications
• Positioning your organization properly
• Measurement and metrics

About the Speaker

Chris Tuttle is an accomplished communication professional with more than 20 years of experience working in marketing, community organizing, and digital engagement strategy and helping brands increase audience reach, engagement, and cultivation. Over his career, Tuttle has worked with more than 200 brands across the globe, including SeriousFun Children’s Network, Save the Children – Canada, GLSEN, Arcus Foundation, Pottery Barn, Miss J Alexander (America’s Next Top Model), Janet Mock (NYT Bestselling Redefining Realness and MSNBC’s So Popular!), and NeighborWorks America.

Tuttle is the CEO and Principal of TuttleCo, a digital strategy agency providing nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and personal brands with training, services, and support to most effectively manage communications and marketing across web, email, social, SMS and chat.

Combining his experience as a community organizer with a background in technology, website development, and marketing, Tuttle has developed groundbreaking national and global campaigns that continue to reach and engage millions of people annually.

Tuttle’s passion for digital engagement work comes from his early days as a community organizer and web programmer, and the increasing power of digital communications to connect people and build communities towards tackling our greatest challenges. Over his career, Tuttle has had the immense privilege of helping develop numerous groundbreaking campaigns that have changed the world for the better, including; Developing a private social network engaging more than 40,000 high-school students fighting anti-LGBTQ bias in its inaugural year; Evolving the Day of Silence, now in its 25th year, into the largest student-led protest for LGBTQ rights in history, with millions of 6-12 grade students participating annually, and; Creating Giving Day for Apes for the Arcus Foundation & GFAS, the first online giving day focused on ape-conservation, which has raised more than 1.65 million dollars to support ape sanctuaries.

From Durham, NC to Lilongwe, Malawi, Tuttle has shared his skills and expertise, training thousands of nonprofits and working with organizations across every sector and of every size, from local affordable housing and child welfare agencies to global LGBTQ-equality and animal conservation, as well as authors, celebrities, and small businesses.

As the former head of communications for GLSEN, a national education organization, Tuttle put his expertise into practice overseeing branding, marketing, media, digital, and design production efforts, including the development of more inclusive branding standards & protocols, for a national organization with 43 chapters across 29 states and 1.9 million combined social following. During his tenure, the organization saw a 30% increase in online engagement, as well as additional marked improvements across press mentions, digital audience reach, constituent engagement and acquisition, and online giving.

Finally, Tuttle is also a self-diagnosed geek, jigsaw puzzle enthusiast, and Kermit the Frog impersonator, who lives in NYC with his partner, Marcelino, and two fur-children, Luca & Lola.

Thursday, March 20, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Nonprofits and Human Services organizations can offer great products and services, but they can’t reach potential audiences and customers without effective communications and branding strategies. This full-day workshop will provide managers and organizations the tools to understand how to formulate and execute an applicable marketing, communications and branding plan. The workshop emphasizes a broad range of best practices and are appropriate for small and mid-sized organizations and is an excellent resource to understand how best to approach marketing and communications and tactics that can help the organization grow.

Learning Objectives

This workshop is designed especially to help small organizations develop branding and marketing communications programs to build awareness with potential users, clients and partners. The topics of the workshop are:

• Developing strategic, fully-integrated communications
• Internal communications and policies (Board, staff, board and staff)
• How to utilize earned and social media for maximum effect
• Crisis management
• Effective messaging – understanding your audience
• Determining the most effective medium
• External communications strategy
• Community engagement
• Audience-centered communications
• Positioning your organization properly
• Measurement and metrics

About the Speaker

Chris Tuttle is an accomplished communication professional with more than 20 years of experience working in marketing, community organizing, and digital engagement strategy and helping brands increase audience reach, engagement, and cultivation. Over his career, Tuttle has worked with more than 200 brands across the globe, including SeriousFun Children’s Network, Save the Children – Canada, GLSEN, Arcus Foundation, Pottery Barn, Miss J Alexander (America’s Next Top Model), Janet Mock (NYT Bestselling Redefining Realness and MSNBC’s So Popular!), and NeighborWorks America.

Tuttle is the CEO and Principal of TuttleCo, a digital strategy agency providing nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and personal brands with training, services, and support to most effectively manage communications and marketing across web, email, social, SMS and chat.

Combining his experience as a community organizer with a background in technology, website development, and marketing, Tuttle has developed groundbreaking national and global campaigns that continue to reach and engage millions of people annually.

Tuttle’s passion for digital engagement work comes from his early days as a community organizer and web programmer, and the increasing power of digital communications to connect people and build communities towards tackling our greatest challenges. Over his career, Tuttle has had the immense privilege of helping develop numerous groundbreaking campaigns that have changed the world for the better, including; Developing a private social network engaging more than 40,000 high-school students fighting anti-LGBTQ bias in its inaugural year; Evolving the Day of Silence, now in its 25th year, into the largest student-led protest for LGBTQ rights in history, with millions of 6-12 grade students participating annually, and; Creating Giving Day for Apes for the Arcus Foundation & GFAS, the first online giving day focused on ape-conservation, which has raised more than 1.65 million dollars to support ape sanctuaries.

From Durham, NC to Lilongwe, Malawi, Tuttle has shared his skills and expertise, training thousands of nonprofits and working with organizations across every sector and of every size, from local affordable housing and child welfare agencies to global LGBTQ-equality and animal conservation, as well as authors, celebrities, and small businesses.

As the former head of communications for GLSEN, a national education organization, Tuttle put his expertise into practice overseeing branding, marketing, media, digital, and design production efforts, including the development of more inclusive branding standards & protocols, for a national organization with 43 chapters across 29 states and 1.9 million combined social following. During his tenure, the organization saw a 30% increase in online engagement, as well as additional marked improvements across press mentions, digital audience reach, constituent engagement and acquisition, and online giving.

Finally, Tuttle is also a self-diagnosed geek, jigsaw puzzle enthusiast, and Kermit the Frog impersonator, who lives in NYC with his partner, Marcelino, and two fur-children, Luca & Lola.

Thursday, April 3, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

An organization’s Board of Directors is held responsible and made accountable for the organization’s ability to fulfill its mission, garner and properly manage its assets, and ensuring that the organization has the plan for and the resources to sustain its work. Although the Board may delegate to and work in partnership with the executive leadership of the organization, oftentimes, the staff at all levels, including managers and directors, are unsure of the value of an effective Board of Directors and the critical role the board has in the organization’s success.

This course will address the major role, responsibilities, and functions of effective nonprofit Board of Directors and how Board and staff work together to make certain that the organization is effective in fulfilling its mission and has a viable, sustained future.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

Increase their knowledge of the legal requirements of boards; governing responsibilities; board structure and decision-making processes; accountability at board and staff levels; community leadership (external relations and advocacy); and fundraising responsibilities.

Topics

• The legal and ethical framework of governance.
• Board and Officers’ roles and responsibilities.
• The Staff – Board partnership.
• The “Board Development Cycle”: Strategically building and maintaining an effective board in which every board member is appropriately engaged.
• Enhancing board operations and refining our structure.
• Beyond the boardroom: Board self-assessment and board retreats.
• Identifying and handling common board and governance challenges and issues.

About the Speaker

Jennifer M. Rutledge has over 35 years’ experience in providing assistance to organizational leadership in the areas of governance, board and individual leadership development, management development, long-range and strategic planning, organizational development, and training. She has helped private companies, associations, and nonprofits develop strategic initiatives designed to address emerging issues and has served as a facilitator and guide providing technical assistance throughout the resulting processes. Rutledge has worked with nonprofit organizations on Long Island for over 20 years and has served as a consultant with the Center for Nonprofit Leadership at Adelphi University’s School of Social Work since 2010.

Rutledge has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergraduate degree in Industrial Psychology. She is an author and has served as adjunct faculty at the University of Virginia, Marymount/Fordham University, and the University of California at Berkeley.

Thursday, April 17, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

When managers and organizational leadership develops a plan for their departments, areas, or for the entire organization, that plan should reflect more than just meeting program and funding needs and the implementation of our plans can result in the introduction of new processes, systems, and people or the reduction, realignment, re-focusing or re-engineering of the same. So, we must always align our plans within the organization and include in our plans strategies to effectively manage transition and change throughout all of the areas impacted by our plans.

This course will:

• Focus on the importance of and the steps in developing department plans and the ways in which managers can align the organization’s plans and Theory of Change with the priorities and work of their departments and teams;
• Introduce contemporary theory and practice in modern change management processes and the methods available to address challenges and problems associated with change and transition.

Learning Objectives

Participants will:

• Learn the process, major steps, challenges to, and anticipated outcomes of effective department and team planning processes.
• Build their understanding of the “Logic Model,” and “Theory of Change” and how they are used.
• Learn what change management is and why it is important, and identify the steps in putting together effective change management plans and processes.

Topics

• Definitions, overview, and key elements of effective planning, the Logic Model, and Theory of Change.
• Components of and major steps in developing and implementing a department plan.
• Aligning your department’s or program’s plan and budget to the organization’s strategic plan and Theory of Change.
• Helping Your Team Adapt to Change:
  • Identifying and taking the steps to introduce change and achieve the greatest chances for success.
  • Meeting resistance to and the challenges of making changes.
  • Tools and techniques to help you and your team make necessary/desired changes and team members make successful personal transitions resulting from the changes.

About the Speaker

Alison Brock has 10+ years of experience in consulting, nonprofit leadership, business development, and corporate social responsibility to empower marginalized groups. As the Director of Social Impact Strategy at PG Mediabrands, she developed and managed the advertising industry’s first-of-its-kind social impact fund, established by the company’s Global CEO. Through this experience, she built relationships with global nonprofit leaders, identified areas of opportunity to expand program reach and deepen stakeholder engagement, and led the change management process in a highly matrixed organization. The fund, which leveraged strategic partnerships with media publishers and forward-thinking clients to catalyze change, featured major brands like MillerCoors, Six Flags, Newman’s Own, iHeart Media, AMC Networks, NBCUniversal, Acumen Fund, Kiva and DoSomething.org.

While serving on the Board of Directors of a New York Based nonprofit organization, Brock facilitated 50% growth in operating budget by leading the organization as a Board Fellow, 10-Year Anniversary Consultant, Development Committee Chair, Board President, Interim Development Officer. She also supervised the succession planning process for a Founding Executive Director.

Brock is a 2013 graduate of UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business. Currently, Brock leads her own practice called The Brock Method, where she commits her time to small businesses and nonprofits as a thought partner, project manager, and consultant on growth and development strategies.

Thursday, May 1, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Understanding, valuing and leveraging the growing diversity of our employees, donors, and those we serve and ensuring that equitable and inclusive policies and practices are embedded in the core of our culture and work are essential for our effectiveness and success as supervisors, managers, and organizational leaders.

This workshop is designed to help participants understand and develop principles and practices of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and how to weave DEI into the fabric of their organizations and their work.

Learning Objectives

Participants will

• What DEI means and how they can support their organization’s stated commitment to DEI principles and practices;
• Ways to achieve diversity, equity, and inclusion on their teams and throughout the organization;
• How to create and maintain a culture that values, appreciates, and welcomes diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Topics

• The “What, Why, and Why Now of DEI”: Building a Common Language and the Frames for DEI.
• “From People Management to Program Management:” Aligning Exemplary DEI Practices with the Major Components of This Certificate Program.
• Living Our Commitment, Maintaining Consistency,  and Fostering a Culture of  Respect, Inclusion, and Belonging.

Reflections

This segment includes learning about the major roles of organizational leadership and the skills and styles required and expected of emerging leaders. Participants will have the opportunity to reflect on what they’ve learned throughout the course. Participants will have the opportunity to network with one another, explore lingering issues, and share their thoughts about how best to share what they’ve learned and introduce change into their departments and organizations.

Learning Objectives

Participants will develop the framework for their personal leadership plan that reflects their professional and personal growth and development as managers.
Participants will determine their next steps.

Topics

• Reflections, key learnings, and lingering questions/concerns.
• Taking the next steps personally and professionally.
• Closing Remarks & Certificate

About the Speaker

Jennifer M. Rutledge has over 35 years’ experience in providing assistance to organizational leadership in the areas of governance, board and individual leadership development, management development, long-range and strategic planning, organizational development, and training. She has helped private companies, associations, and nonprofits develop strategic initiatives designed to address emerging issues and has served as a facilitator and guide providing technical assistance throughout the resulting processes. Rutledge has worked with nonprofit organizations on Long Island for over 20 years and has served as a consultant with the Center for Nonprofit Leadership at Adelphi University’s School of Social Work since 2010.

Rutledge has a Masters Degree in Business Administration and an undergraduate degree in Industrial Psychology. She is an author and has served as adjunct faculty at the University of Virginia, Marymount/Fordham University, and the University of California at Berkeley.