Build the Culture. Then the Mission Thrives.

An open call to stop normalizing dysfunction in nonprofit work

I’m back, telling the truth as I see it:
Your strategic plan doesn’t matter if your people are quietly quitting behind their laptops.

Your donor strategy won’t stick if your fundraisers are burned out, unsupported, and out the door every 18 months.

Culture without equity is just gloss—and no one benefits when people are too nervous to even say the word.

We keep chasing external solutions for what are fundamentally internal problems.

We restructure teams.
We rewrite job descriptions.
We launch new campaigns.

But rarely, if ever, do we pause to ask:

• What’s it actually like to work here?

• Are our expectations sustainable—or just inherited dysfunction?

• Do our teams trust each other enough to deliver on any of this?

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Culture isn’t a vibe.

It’s infrastructure.
It’s strategy.
And right now, it’s the part of your strategy most likely to be failing.

I’ve spent 30 years in the nonprofit world, mostly in fundraising—and if there’s one place the culture cracks show up first and deepest, it’s there.

• Turnover isn’t just a talent issue. It’s a trust issue.

• Unrealistic goals aren’t a planning problem. They’re a leadership problem.

• Burnout isn’t inevitable. It’s a design flaw.

These aren’t isolated symptoms. They’re system signals.
And the system needs to change.

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Culture Belongs in the 101 Work

Culture isn’t a module we get to in Week 5 of a training program.
It’s the lens we should be using from Day One.

• If you're teaching fundraising 101, culture should be part of it.

• If you're onboarding new board members, culture should be part of it.

• If you're writing a strategic plan, culture should shape the entire process—not get bolted on as an implementation concern.

Too much of our sector’s professional development is technical training layered over cultural dysfunction. And then we wonder why it doesn’t stick.

This isn’t a pitch. It’s a signal flare—a call to leaders, fundraisers, and changemakers who are done settling for toxic norms and ready to make culture central to strategy.

Let’s Talk About It—Together

Many of you reading this are also writing, leading, coaching, and thinking deeply about nonprofit dynamics.

So here’s my ask:

• What would it look like if we all started naming culture as core strategy?

• What if the next thread, post, or article you write centered not just on what we do—but how it feels to do it?

• What if we used our collective voice to shift the conversation—from surviving dysfunction to building alignment, trust, and sustainability?

This is an invitation to start something bigger.
To talk more honestly.
To write more boldly.
To stop normalizing dysfunction and start building what we actually need.

If you want to join this conversation—or shape it in your own way—drop a comment, share this post, or tag me in what you write. I’ll be highlighting others in the coming weeks.

Because when people thrive, missions flourish.
And it’s time to build a sector where both can be true.

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Over the next few weeks, you’ll see small changes to the name and branding of this newsletter as I broaden the scope.

Thanks for being here!

Tina