NGO Soul + Strategy

• 088. When You Have to Wind Down Your Nonprofit: How to do It Well, with Amy Miller-Taylor

  SummaryWhat does it take to lead an organization through a responsible and strategic closure? In this episode, I speak with Amy Miller-Taylor, Executive Director of Global Integrity, about her experience navigating the complex decision to wind down an organization while ensuring its legacy, people, and resources were safeguarded. We explore the financial and strategic challenges that led to this decision, the leadership lessons Amy learned, and how organizations can approach closure as an intentional and thoughtful process rather than a last resort.Amy's BioExecutive Director of Global Integrity, an organization focused on open governance and anti-corruption.Former COO of the National Cooperative Business Association CLUSA International.Advocate for responsible leadership transitions and sustainable organizational change.Experienced in global development, governance, and nonprofit management.We Discuss:Facing financial realities early on: How Amy quickly recognized the urgent need for a new business model upon stepping into leadership.The role of transparency in leadership: Why erring on the side of over-communication helped maintain trust and morale among staff.Navigating financial and grant structures: The complexities of nonprofit funding and how the fine print of grants can influence an organization’s survival.Seeking external counsel: How a small group of peer advisors helped Amy evaluate alternative business models and ensure the decision to close was strategic, not reactive.Ensuring an ethical and responsible wind-down: The steps Global Integrity took to transition programs, preserve resources, and document key learnings for the sector.Supporting staff during closure: The importance of providing job placement support and ensuring employees had access to career transition resources.The administrative side of closure: Legal, financial, and operational considerations when dissolving a nonprofit.Shifting power in practice: How Global Integrity’s approach of handing over program leadership to local partners in prior years eased the transition.The emotional weight of closing an organization: Amy’s reflections on the psychological toll and how she found meaning in the process.Why ending well allows for new beginnings: The importance of reframing closure as part of an organization’s legacy rather than a failure.Quotes:“Closing well was more important than a last-ditch effort to make it work.”“Our efforts toward a responsible wind-down, shifting power, and advancing Global Integrity’s mission could have been more impactful if we had embraced the idea of a strategic ending earlier.”Resources:Read Amy’s reflections on some aspects of Global Integrity’s ending

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• 087. Coaching Leaders Through An African Lens: Nankhonde Kasonde-Van Den Broek

  Western coaching models weren’t built for African leaders. So Nankhonde Kasonde, a Zambian international development as well as a leadership development specialist and certified coach, created something that was.Nankhonde's Bio:Nankhonde Kasonde is a Zambian international development specialist, certified leadership coach, and the founder of Zanga, an African leadership assessment and HR analytics company.As a leadership coach, Nankhonde recognized that African leaders need a coaching framework rooted in African national, regional, and continental values—rather than Western models that do not align with the cultural realities of high-context societies like Zambia.In high-context cultures, such as those in parts of Africa, China, and Japan, communication is often layered and indirect, relying on shared understanding, relationships, and cultural norms. This contrasts with low-context cultures, where communication tends to be more explicit and direct, as seen in Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States (for example). Recognizing this fundamental difference, Nankhonde developed a coaching framework tailored to African leadership, built on five key cultural dimensions: belief, pride, community, loyalty, and respect.Through Zanga, she provides African-grounded leadership coaching, self- and 360-degree assessments, and HR analytics that support talent management and organizational development. Her work aims to reshape leadership development in Africa by integrating culturally relevant coaching methodologies that truly resonate with African leaders.We Discuss:How did Nankhonde come to conclude that the Western approaches to coaching were not sufficiently helpful for African clients or tailored to their needs? In what ways were these coaching approaches not culturally appropriate?How did Nankhonde set out to develop your new coaching framework?What are the components of Nankhonde’s coaching framework for African clients and how it is different from Western or  North-founded frameworks?Where does this coaching model diverge from Western ones?Resources:Zanga’s LinkedIn pageNankhonde’s LinkedIn pageZanga’s websiteClick here to subscribe to be alerted when new podcast episodes come out or when Tosca produces other thought leadership pieces.Or email Tosca at [email protected] if you want to talk about your social sector organization’s needs, challenges, and opportunities.You can find Tosca’s content by following her on her social media channels: LinkedIn  Facebook 

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• 086: The Modern Development Leader, How to Manage Change and All That: Torrey and Tosca in Conversation Part 2

  Summary:What are the attributes of the modern humanitarian and development leader? Why modern? In what ways? How does one become one?Torrey’s Bio:As a certified coach with twelve years’ experience in international development Torrey Peace facilitates rising and established leaders in the humanitarian and development world to become the leaders they admire, or “people centered leaders.”  She has taught and coached over 400  supervisors globally from the UN, INGO and civil society to become more inclusive and caring leaders that make a greater impact while also stepping out of overwork and overwhelm. Her mission is to provide leaders the skills they need to be part of the change we want to see in the humanitarian and development world while also maintaining their wellbeing. For more information about Torrey’s work and podcast, please visit www.aidforaidworkers.com. We Discuss:What defines the modern humanitarian and development leader?Why self-awareness and intentional leadership are crucial in humanitarian workThe importance of recognizing and overcoming traditional ways of leading that hinder progress.Leadership coaching as a style, including the shift from managerial to coaching approaches.Reverse mentoring: how younger team members can teach older colleagues.Resources:Torrey's podcast: The Modern Humanitarian and Development LeaderTorrey's website: Aid for Aid WorkersTorrey's Linkedin pageTorrey's course on Humentum's learning platformClick here to subscribe to be alerted when new podcast episodes come out or when Tosca produces other thought leadership pieces.Or email Tosca at [email protected] if you want to talk about your social sector organization’s needs, challenges, and opportunities.You can find Tosca’s content by following her on her social media channels: LinkedIn  Facebook 

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• 085: The Modern Development Leader, How to Manage Change and All That: Torrey and Tosca in Conversation Part 1

  Summary:This is part one of a two-part conversation between two podcast hosts: Torrey Peace and myself. Torrey’s podcast is The Modern Humanitarian and Development Leader. Torrey and I tackle two broad topics: in this first part of our conversation, Torrey interviews me:How do people in development agencies experience organizational change? What is the psychology of organizational change that a development leader needs to be aware of? How can experiencing organizational change affect staff motivation? How, as leaders, do we tackle any reactance as well as resistance to change?Torrey’s Bio:As a certified coach with twelve years’ experience in international development Torrey Peace facilitates rising and established leaders in the humanitarian and development world to become the leaders they admire, or “people centered leaders.”  She has taught and coached over 400  supervisors globally from the UN, INGO and civil society to become more inclusive and caring leaders that make a greater impact while also stepping out of overwork and overwhelm. Her mission is to provide leaders the skills they need to be part of the change we want to see in the humanitarian and development world while also maintaining their wellbeing. For more information about Torrey’s work and podcast, please visit www.aidforaidworkers.com. We Discuss:What defines the modern humanitarian and development leader?Why self-awareness and intentional leadership are crucial in humanitarian work.The importance of recognizing and overcoming traditional ways of leading that hinder progress.Leadership coaching as a style, including the shift from managerial to coaching approaches.Reverse mentoring: how younger team members can teach older colleagues.Empowering teams by building trust and facilitating self-learning.Resources:WebsitePodcastAid for Aid WorkersClick here to subscribe to be alerted when new podcast episodes come out or when Tosca produces other thought leadership pieces.Or email Tosca at [email protected] if you want to talk about your social sector organization’s needs, challenges, and opportunities.You can find Tosca’s content by following her on her social media channels: LinkedIn  Facebook 

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• 084: Towards Ubuntu 2.0? A Wide-Ranging Leadership Conversation with Martin Kalungu-Banda

  SummaryWhat does the concept of Ubuntu teach us about leadership, community, and the well-being of people in organizations?How can African leadership models inform and enhance global approaches to management and organizational development?How do we navigate the challenges of avoiding romanticizing Ubuntu while honoring its depth and practical value?In this NGO Soul + Strategy podcast episode, Martin Kalugu-Banda, a thought leader on organizational development and leadership coach (among many other things!), about redefining leadership through African paradigms and systems thinking.Martin's BioMartin Kalungu-Banda is an expert in Leadership and Organizational Development, with senior-level experience in business, government, and civil society.He is co-faculty of the Leadership Academy at the Presencing Institute and the MIT Global Alliance for Banking on Values.Martin served as Special Consultant to the President of Zambia (2005-2008), helping to re-establish the position of Chief of Staff.As an adviser to the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, he has supported leaders across Africa, including governance reforms in Rwanda, healthcare transformation in Namibia, and Tanzania’s National Skills Development Strategy.He has co-designed and facilitated flagship leadership programs for Rand Merchant Bank and HSBC, as well as teaching at Cambridge, Oxford, and London Business School.Martin is the author of Leading Like Madiba: Leadership Lessons from Nelson Mandela and other influential books on leadership and transformation.We DiscussMartin shares how leadership as it is taught at the Presencing Institute involves “presencing”—combining being present in the moment with sensing future opportunities and needs.Ubuntu, often defined as “I am because you are,” needs to expanded as a concept to include interdependence across generations, global connections, and non-human beings like animals and nature.How Ubuntu aligns with systems thinking by emphasizing the interconnectedness of individuals, communities, and the environment.The challenges of avoiding romanticizing Ubuntu while appreciating its practical applications in leadership and organizational well-being.Coaching leaders to embrace open-mindedness, emotional intelligence, and an openness of heart and will in decision-making.How African leadership models provide valuable insights into collective well-being and interconnectedness that global North frameworks often overlook.Martin’s reflections on the limits of knowledge as we age and the importance of humility in leadership.ResourcesMartin’s profile at the Presencing Institute Ubuntu Lab Institute (similar institutes exist for other regions within the Presencing Institute)Martin’s books:Leading Like Madiba: Leadership Lessons from Nelson Mandela

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