When the Mission Does Not Reach the People Doing the Work

Nonprofit organizations are often built around powerful words.

Dignity. Equity. Compassion. Opportunity. Belonging. Community.

We place those words in strategic plans, annual reports, grant applications, fundraising campaigns, and carefully written value statements. We use them to invite donors into the mission and assure the community that our organizations are safe places for people who need support.

But there is a question every nonprofit leader should be willing to ask:

Do the people working inside the organization experience those same values?

It is possible for an organization to do meaningful work in the community while creating an unhealthy culture for its employees.

Both things can be true.