-Shana Peete, Chief Executive Officer

Join CEN on Wednesday, January 11th for our next Information Session! If you want to learn how to make the most of your membership, register today. This is the perfect introduction for those new to the CEN community. During this information session, you'll learn about membership benefits, discount codes, our cohort programs, workshops, private coaching, and have the opportunity to ask questions. We hope to see you there!

Paulette has spent over 20 years managing complex projects within engineering, marketing, and business operations organizations at companies such as Applied Materials, Intel Corporation and Onsemi. Her areas of expertise include developing project plans and documenting metrics.

CEN's virtual roundtable series provides nonprofit EDs/CEOs with a unique opportunity to connect as we enter 2023 and continue to meet the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Our monthly forum is a space for nonprofit leaders to come together for peer-to-peer connections and support. Participants will share experiences, challenges, and solutions during facilitated discussions that also include resources and leading practices provided by CEN. In addition, we will offer a Leaders of Color Roundtable in the latter part of 2023. (More details to come!)

CEN has revamped its sponsorship program. Sponsorships provide you or your company with a unique opportunity to gain widespread visibility among CEN's community and partners. CEN works to provide a variety of sponsorship formats including funding for general operations, special events, and targeted programs.

Interested in becoming a sponsor? This is a great opportunity to share your services with our community of nonprofit leaders and to support CEN's ongoing efforts! Please email development@cen.org.

As a member of CEN, you will get connected to a diverse network of nonprofit leaders who are on the same learning journey that you are. You'll receive deep discounts - usually 50% or more - on all our offerings and will gain access to partnership opportunities and no-cost services. We are dedicated to empowering nonprofit leaders through continued learning and to building spaces where everyone has a seat at the table and individuals are comfortable bringing their whole self. CEN resources can provide you with the support you need to thrive in the nonprofit sector, both personally and as an organization.

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Each month we share articles/resources that challenge the way we view work and inspire a new way to effect community impact.

"Associate Board can play in your organization is incredibly flexible, and forming one can be an excellent opportunity to think broadly about new kinds of support you might want to receive"

Blue Avocado writer Jess Blackshaw discusses how nonprofits can engage with the next generation of donors, but it requires a shift in their approach.

Workplace stress is unavoidable, especially in the nonprofit sector where compassion fatigue runs rampant and we see high rates of turnover and burnout year after year. Ultimately, the industry and institutions must do a better job of caring for its employees. While CEN continues the fight for organizational and systemic change, we also recognize the immediate need for external resources and support for you, the individuals working within these dysfunctional systems.

This course provides space and tools to help you lean in without burning out. Participants will join in productive conversations that explore new strategies and coping skills while gaining tangible resources to identify workplace stressors, end self-deprecating talk, build communicative workplace structures, and calmly deal with change at any level in an organization. As a result of this session, participants will be better equipped to effectively manage daily upsets, foster healthy relationships with coworkers and clients, and increase happiness and satisfaction in day-to-day work life.

Branding, when done right, makes clear who we are, what we do and value, and why. This applies to individuals and organizations alike. In our “Intentional Branding: You and Your Organization” workshop, we will help you define your personal professional brand and do so in service and support of your organization’s brand as well. We will also focus on sharpening your understanding of and the ways you message your individual and organizational brands.

Whether it is time for your organization to develop a new plan or you're looking for a guide to adjust your current plan, this workshop will leave you with the tools and resources you need to get the process going. We will review the three basic steps to effective strategic planning and will explore the various ways that organizations can utilize the process to increase impact and meet goals.

Is your organization prepared for the transition or departure of your executive or key staff? This workshop will develop attendees’ understanding of succession planning and the unique challenges and opportunities organizations and leaders face in its wake. We will explore the components of an effective transition plan which include clarifying the roles and responsibilities of board members as well as incoming and outgoing staff. Participants in this course will leave with skills to develop succession planning goals and outline action steps for future success and increased sustainability for your organization. Planning for transitions is a critical strategic process that you can – and should - start working towards well before a departure is expected.

Our organizational consulting program combines IDEAL principles with leading practices to offer tailored consultations that meet an organization's unique needs. Whether an organization is looking for a basic refresher on board roles, a custom-designed staff or board retreat, or a long-term engagement on organizational effectiveness (IDEAL work, strategic planning), CEN can provide an engagement that meets both needs and budget. Once we agree on a scope of work, we begin with an organizational assessment (recommended assessments vary by project but include resources such as the DEI Spectrum Tool and our board self-assessment survey based on BoardSource’s Ten Basic Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards). Armed with a baseline for expectations, we work in partnership with organizations to set new goals for improvement. Each engagement is customized for our clients based on organization size, goals, and need and is delivered in a format that appropriately fits the scope of work. These customized consultations are conducted by nonprofit experts on staff at CEN and can range from a 1-hour onsite facilitation to an 18-month long, in-depth engagement that involves the entire staff and board in an organizational evolution.

Withinnovate! is a series of interactive workshops that empowers early career social impact professionals to be mindful and skilled solution-seekers within their organizations. Our approach is grounded in intrapreneurship, which teaches creative problem solving within the structure and resources of an existing organization. We believe that to be an intrapreneur is to withinnovate, first understanding yourself and your org (within), then using innovation methods to create change (innovate). Withinnovate was founded in 2021 to fill a need co-founders Alanna and Emily both experienced first-hand in social impact organizations – the perspectives, skills, and energy of early career professionals have never been more important, and yet they can go underutilized due to resource, structural, and coaching constraints. This can lead to disengagement, subpar work quality, and ultimately attrition. Through accessible training, self-reflection, and hands-on exercises, Withinnovate! empowers these emerging professionals with the skills, mindset, and motivation to have greater impact and fulfillment within their current scopes.

Participate in Fair Pay for Northern California Nonprofits:

The Individual Major Gifts Officer will serve as the primary staff person, under the direction of the Senior Director of Strategy & Engagement, responsible for leading efforts in expanding and stewarding our individuals and family foundation relationships who give $5K+ with the primary goal to increase revenue and outreach results.