Career Pathways Philanthropic Leadership Program

At LearnPhilanthropy,we’re interested in hearing from the community about learning and development projects taking place in our field.  In the post below,Elizabeth Myrick shares insights about the Council on Foundations Career Pathways Leadership Program.  If your organization is engaged in a learning activity that you would like to share via this blog,we’d love to highlight it.  Please contact editor@learnphilanthropy.net and we’ll work on it together to spread the news.  There is some great information in this post.  We hope you find it valuable.

–Editor,LearnPhilanthropy.net blog

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Last spring,more than 60 senior staff from diverse backgrounds were nominated by supervisors to participate in the Council on Foundations Career Pathways Philanthropic Leadership Program .   Following review of the applications by a team of Council,foundation and search firm executives,15 individuals were invited to join the Inaugural Career Pathways Cohort.  The cohort reflects the Council’s broad definition of inclusiveness,while also representing corporate,community and independent foundations and grantmaking,finance,communications,administration and evaluation roles.

As program consultant,I have had the good fortune to work with Renée B. Branch,the Council’s Director of Diversity and Inclusive Practices,and consultant,Marta Siberio,as well as an external advisory committee,to design the program.  For our team,determining a learning agenda for such a highly skilled,accomplished and experienced – not to mention diverse – group of individuals has been daunting.  It has also proven to be one of my most rewarding experiences,both professionally and personally.

The program emerged,in part,from Council-commissioned research about leadership in philanthropy—how individuals make their way to top positions and how philanthropic organizations choose their leaders.  Covering the period of 2004-2008,the research surfaced data that directly influenced the Pathways program:

• The majority (79.5%) of the 440 foundations appointing CEOs and executive directors during the study period filled them not through internal promotions but from candidates outside the foundations.
• The majority of the successful candidates made the transition from fields outside of philanthropy—primarily from the business (24.3%) and nonprofit (24.8%) sectors.
• Of the successful candidates,nearly 20 percent were from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds and about half (48.7%) were women.

Pathways is designed to help seasoned philanthropic staff from diverse backgrounds advance and succeed in foundation leadership.  Comprised of three group learning sessions as well as a year-long coaching relationship and a home foundation project,Pathways provides the cohort with an intense,rigorous learning experience.  Among other objectives,Pathways aims to make the hiring process less mysterious and more inclusive.  Toward this end,Pathways connects participants with search firms,foundation CEOs,philanthropic thought-leaders and foundation trustees who serve as program advisors and speakers.  Launched last July,the inaugural program will wrap up in June 2011.

In retrospect,and having done a lot of learning-as-we-go,the program’s guiding question has proven to be:  How will you lead? Not,Will you lead? Not,How do I become a foundation president by next June? And not,What tactics and skills do I need to lead? But,rather:  How will you lead?

The thing is,we have no doubt that this group can and will lead.  In fact,they are already leading in their current roles and institutions.  Pathways,instead,has exhorted the cohort to go beyond substantive expertise and current responsibilities to prepare for and prepare a vision for their own philanthropic leadership.  Through unflinching assessments of skills,values,life story and knowledge of the field,the cohort is increasing their know-how,developing a vision and getting the push they need to succeed.

What do we mean by push? I go back to the conversations we had with leaders in philanthropy,both from diverse backgrounds and not,and with managers of leadership and educational programs around the country as we began to design the program.  We heard the word vision over and over.  But,we also heard something else:  networks,networks,networks.

In creating a learning agenda,how would one “teach” networking? It seemed to be less a curriculum question,and more of an activity or matchmaking service.  We’re still not sure.  But,given philanthropy’s small (and chatty) world,and insight from one search firm executive helped us think about it. He said:   “This cohort needs to know that their interview starts now – wherever they are and whatever their current role,treat it like a job interview.  Rather than keeping their head down and just doing their job,they need to participate actively and positively in networks that have influence.”

In other words,to move into a leadership position,articulating a vision is only a first step.  The rest of the world needs to know your vision and be confident that you can achieve it.  One way to let the world know is through productive engagement with networks.  Networks create community,foster new ideas and breed accountability.  Networks give us the push we need to achieve our potential.  So,we have helped identify and build skills that will help participants access,contribute to and be “seen” by philanthropic networks.

Beyond this,and perhaps even more exciting,we see the Pathways cohort becoming a pretty powerful network in its own right – one that will continue to grow in size and “push” over time.  The level of collegiality,candor and accountability exhibited so far within this group has been striking – given the short amount of time they’ve been together.  With little coaxing,cohort members have met between sessions,emailed job announcements,congratulated one another on achievements and offered both tough love and empathic support.  Program speakers,coaches,faculty and advisors have embraced the goals of the program as well as the spirit of the participants in ways that will only enrich and empower it as a network.

One member of the cohort described it this way:   Finding this group at this time in their career has helped to answer a question that they sensed,but had not yet fully articulated.  The question was not,Will you lead? But,instead:  How will you lead and remain true to your values,your own life story and your vision for philanthropy?

Networking opportunities are varied and numerous in philanthropy;yet,rarely does a diverse network of imminent leaders come together to learn across real and perceived differences,for a significant amount of time,and with a commitment to push one another to achieve excellence and impact – now and in the future.  This is the path the Career Pathways Program is forging – stay tuned to see how we do!

The deadline for nominations for the 2011-2012 Pathways cohort is March 31,2011.  For more information about the Pathways program,or to nominate someone for next year’s cohort,contact Renée B. Branch,Director,Diversity and Inclusive Practices,at inclusive@cof.org.

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Elizabeth Myrick is an independent consultant with nearly 15 years experience in the nonprofit and philanthropic sector.  Residing just outside Washington,DC,she is principal of Elizabeth Myrick Consulting,LLC. Her work focuses on leadership development and learning,strategic planning and organizational change.  Her career in philanthropy began with the Maine Community Foundation,where she served as a program officer and,ultimately,as Director of Programs.  As assistant director of The Aspen Institute’s Nonprofit Sector and Philanthropy Program,Elizabeth created education and leadership initiatives to enhance the effectiveness of nonprofits and philanthropy and to encourage peer learning in the field.  Elizabeth can be reached at emyrick4@gmail.com.