Another great article in the Winter 2010 Outcomes from Christian Leadership Alliance is from La Piana Consulting. Their research in the wider social service sector has identified five major trends. Quoting them, the five are:
- Demographic shifts redefine participation
- Technological advance abound
- Networks enable work to be organized in new ways
- Interest in civic engagement and volunteerism is rising
- Sector boundaries are blurring
The La Piana team thinks these trends will reinforce each other. It will take an intentional effort to understand these trends and deal with them.
To cope with these developments, they perceive nonprofit organizations will have to expand capacity in three areas. Quoting again, NPOs will need to grow in:
- how they lead and manage people
- their facility with new tools and technologies, and
- their strategic use of partnerships and new organizational structures”
The La Piana team has made their research available online here. I have not yet read the 29 page report but plan to do so soon.
