Nonprofit Management: The Lost Profession

As I see all the postings on social media and online communities about my colleagues and fellow nonprofit management professionals heading off to the 2023 ASAE Annual, I am sorry that I won’t be there. My schedule and personal obligations didn’t allow me to fit this in, which is disappointing to me because I will have to wait another year to see many people I only see at this meeting. And a personal favorite event of mine is cheering on all the new CAEs which I will do from a distance.

Regarding the new CAEs, I am a big supporter of our credential because it is one of the only things that the public can see as a demonstration that we are indeed a separate and unique profession. No, it’s not something you do when you retire, or something you do because anyone can do it, and it’s definitely NOT something you can do simply because you are a member of the organization that represents your profession or industry.

Without the CAE to help us stand out, there is no other messaging to get this across to the society and the world that we serve. We need SOMETHING because we are lost as a profession. There is a leadership vacuum in the nonprofit management profession world, and as I’ve written and spoken about before, we are fragmenting into smaller and smaller groups that are going it alone or focusing on tiny niches. It’s similar to the health care profession except for the fact that the smaller health care groups tend to come together under a “big tent” of a national group. For example, the American Medical Association is the big tent for most physicians, while the physicians also have the option of joining their specialty group. All the specialty groups are able to participate in the AMA meetings as part of the House of Delegates (a model that many of the other health care associations follow).

It's a great example of representing the niche or unique needs of specialties while still participating in a larger community that can have a stronger impact. There is a common tie and unity with a focused message and clear identity. Too bad we can’t emulate this.

We do not have a unifying organization in the nonprofit management world, and our increasing fragmentation demonstrates this. From nonprofit professionals forming groups based on identity politics to networking organizations forming as 501c3 organizations to State Societies and regional organizations all doing their own thing, there are many groups and most of them are working in silos.

Our impact is diminished, our resources are dissipated, and our stakeholders are exhausted trying to keep up with all the different groups and activities. Many of the groups that have formed are in direct response to this lack of leadership, representation, and focus on what is supposed to be our higher calling. In my blog post of September 29, 2022, “Are We Elevating the Profession? Or Just Ourselves?” I shared my thoughts on our lost profession, specifically on the wrong definition of success that is being promulgated: 

“But in my opinion, the definition of success in our profession has taken a wrong turn and created too much focus on individual position and glory -- the elements of self-promotion – rather than the higher calling and what I like to think of as the true spirit of the nonprofit profession.”

I also discussed in the blog post from last fall why I support the CAE: it makes us stand out and sends the message we are a serious profession with serious people. However, I am always slightly wounded when I hear potential CAE Candidates ask how much more money they will make if they have the designation. If that is the motivation for earning the CAE then I discourage candidates from applying. Why? Because somewhere the wires have gotten crossed about WHY we join this profession.

We are going in the wrong direction and destroying our own profession in the process. If we are going to behave just like corporate raiders and not focus on the core driver of making the world a better place, then just what in the heck are we even doing? And why are we following leaders taking us over a cliff?