How to Create an Inspired Nonprofit Culture

Culture is the foundation and embodiment of your organization. An effective nonprofit culture demonstrates the collective understanding of your nonprofit by all those involved.

Good organizational culture is not just about having a fun workplace with perks. Culture is created intentionally and must be actively maintained by leadership, requiring work and consistency. The benefit is that your nonprofit’s culture can give your staff a motivating sense of purpose. The better your culture, the greater the potential for your nonprofit to positively impact the community.

Here are some key factors in developing and maintaining your nonprofit’s culture:

Your whole team should be on board with your nonprofit’s core values

Your nonprofit’s values should be well-established and line up with the actions your leadership and staff take on a day-to-day basis. Core values can relate to the way money is used within the organization, the organization’s philosophy on work-life balance, and how to measure impact and success. Be sure to incorporate your core values during decision-making processes to ensure your whole team is staying committed to these values. 

Everyone needs a clear understanding of your nonprofit’s mission

Your mission ties your nonprofit’s core values together. A clear mission statement acts as a guide to help the members of your organization make critical decisions. It also serves as a reminder of the higher purpose of your organization. Members of your team are not just completing tasks — they are working toward an important goal, outlined by your mission.

Leadership should take an active role in defining culture

Culture doesn’t just happen on its own. Your nonprofit’s leaders play an important role in shaping its culture, especially for building morale. They’re in charge of determining the ways in which staff work (independently or collaboratively), scheduling, work hours, work-life balance, the physical environment of the workspace, communication methods, and transparency.  They make clear to staff what their responsibilities are and create other systems that pertain to the goal of working toward your nonprofit’s mission. The best leadership is open to receiving feedback and gives opportunities for staff to feel appreciated and talk about their achievements to the team.

Treat Your staff with thorough consideration

Proper treatment of staff is crucial to a thriving organizational culture since it impacts the quality of their work. Just as your employees care about the success of your nonprofit, they too should feel valued. To ensure this, your team should be clear about your organization’s policies and have solid internal communication methods. Leadership should demonstrate that the professional and personal growth and happiness of employees matter to them. That will ultimately lead to better work performance and commitment to your nonprofit’s mission. And stay away from discouraging failure, because if you do, your employees may not take the innovative risks required to make your nonprofit succeed.

With good organizational culture, your staff and volunteers will feel motivated to do their best work. Creating and maintaining your organization’s culture is a real task- it will not just happen successfully on its own. It requires finding out what all members of your nonprofit want, and leadership taking charge in ensuring that the interests of those involved with the organization are met. Create an outlet for receiving continuous and open feedback about the organization so your team feels heard and empowered. Encourage your staff to take risks. Treat honest mistakes with compassion and failures as positive learning experiences. Let your team know their value and the impact of their successes.

What does your nonprofit do to maintain its culture? What core values do you uphold? Let us know in the comments!