Posted on Tuesday, 14th July 2009 by chris wignall

As my exposure and experience in diverse non-profit organizations grows I find my self increasingly convinced of the enormous potential of an effective board. I am also increasingly frustrated by how few effective board there are and how little understanding I see of how to improve.
Cathie Leimbach of Strive writes an article that neatly summarizes [...]

Posted in Leadership, Resources, Uncategorized | Comments (0)

Posted on Friday, 12th June 2009 by chris wignall

I am just finished a term on the board of one organization and discussing seriously the possibility of joining another. In the past year I have become convinced that strong pairings of effective boards and lead staff are surprisingly rare and extremely powerful. At Catalyst we want to support organizations that are attempting to make [...]

Posted in Leadership, Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Thursday, 21st May 2009 by chris wignall

In my sessions with teens and young adults I often reflect on the way many people in (and following) my generation are looking for a career in which they can be deeply fulfilled, make a lot of money, and never have to deal with frustrating bosses, co-workers, or clientele. The 30 years my dad spent [...]

Posted in Leadership, Resources | Comments (1)

Posted on Thursday, 16th April 2009 by chris wignall

An interesting piece from the Stratford Social Innovation Review today that relates to some leaders I know, including myself not too many years ago. Here’s a taste:
Let me tell you about this guy I know. He’s a young, energetic nonprofit leader in his field and in his extensive volunteer work as well. We are about [...]

Posted in Leadership, Partners, Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Monday, 19th January 2009 by chris wignall

I tend toward the optimistic side of most issues, occasionally to my detriment. The state of the economy is undeniably bad the world over, but I’m reluctant to spend much time lamenting the situation. Doing so serves mostly to distract us from mission and probably contributes to the self-fulfilling prophecy of doom that is simultaneously [...]

Tags: Leadership, Resources
Posted in Leadership, Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Tuesday, 6th January 2009 by chris wignall

On my 2009 to do list is to start reading things by Malcolm Gladwell. All the more after reading this article by Fred Smith. He takes off on Gladwell’s book Blink and describes how there are philanthropists who have the innate ability to ascertain the value of applicants with remarkable intuition and speed. As most [...]

Posted in Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Saturday, 6th December 2008 by chris wignall

In the last year I’ve spent more time in a variety of leadership workshops and training seminars than ever before, including the last two days. I like learning and leadership is a topic for which I have a large appetite. So why is it that in the vast majority of cases I am checking email [...]

Tags: Leadership, Resources
Posted in Leadership, Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Monday, 24th November 2008 by chris wignall

I am coming to really like Patrick Lencioni’s work. I recently read his latest book and am eager to try applying the principles and strategies to my own family. Now, he has again written something quite stimulating in his POV newsletter. (sign up here)
This time he argues that no Executive/leadership team/board, whoever really makes the [...]

Tags: Leadership, Resources
Posted in Leadership, Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Tuesday, 28th October 2008 by chris wignall

One of the e-newsletters I subscribe to if from Patrick Lencioni. As with his best selling books, these shorter pieces are always insightful.
Here’s a quote from the latest:
Whenever I hear someone encourage all young people to become leaders, or better yet, when I hear a young person say glibly that he or she wants to [...]

Tags: Leadership, Resources
Posted in Leadership, Resources | Comments (0)

Posted on Wednesday, 8th October 2008 by chris wignall

This morning we began our first program of leadership development for high school students. We are with a class of 24 through the business department of Abbey Park High School in Oakville, ON.
It was a good start as we explored the ways in which those things we did as children that we really enjoyed and [...]

Tags: Catalyst, Resources
Posted in Catalyst, Resources | Comments (2)