First Things First: A Leadership Guide to Building a Gold Standard Nonprofit

by Tom Iselin

"I wish the IRS gave a copy of this book with every new 501c3 they issue."-Debra England, McKinsey and Company.Lined with bold messages and practical advice, First Things First is a bestselling book that takes readers on an insightful journey of how to build a high-performance nonprofit. "Too often nonprofits want to do what's convenient, not what's important," says Iselin, who has spent the last 20 years building eight sector leading nonprofits. "The nonprofit world is filled with passionate people eager to make a difference. Their intentions are noble, but many leaders tend to take short cuts and make hasty decisions. The result is costly disruptions, operational migraines, and in some cases, failure."First Things First is a guidebook for nonprofit leaders and board members. It's not filled with useless theory. It's conversational and PRACTICAL. It focuses on a set of governing principles, operational structures, and practical tactics that can be applied quickly and easily.Each chapter provides a case study example that relates chapter topics to experiences Iselin had during the five years he spent as chief executive at SVAS and the founder of Higher Ground. Readers see how his staff and board overcame a host of challenging situations to create a pathway for the organization to develop pioneering programming and effective operations that propelled his organizations to national recognition and acclaim.Iselin notes, "Seasoned leaders know costly mistakes made early on can have long-term consequences that can derail the dreams and momentum of fulfilling a worthy mission. First Things First shows leaders how to avoid common mistakes and how critical it is to make important decisions early on that might not seem obvious or intuitive."In the book, readers learn how to hire the best staff and nominate the best board members by identifying a set of uncommon attributes. They learn how to efficiently leverage their human capital, how to build a brand that captures the attention of national media, how to raise big money from major donors using rarely applied fundraising techniques, and how to dodge the traps of "lip service" passion.Readers also learn why it's more important to hire an amazing CEO, how to unravel the mysteries of developing a healthy relationship between board members and a chief executive, how to develop an engaging culture, how to establish a structure of organization that lasts, how to develop simple tools to measure outcomes without having to conduct research, how to receive untold commitments and donations with a system that costs almost nothing, and much more.Most importantly, First Things First teaches leaders how to think (mindset) about the process of building and operating a high-performance, GOLD STANDARD nonprofit.

312 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2014

Reviews

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has several formats and editions. The 2014 paperback Third Edition (Revised & Expanded) does not appear to be listed on Goodreads.
Information is presented in a consistent, approachable manner. Each Standard is illustrated with an anecdote from the author's personal experience with a nonprofit that provides opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in sports and recreation.
The chapters are short and engaging and most of the information feels relatively timeless. But chapters that address technology and branding feel dated with their references to MySpace, WordPerfect, etc. The chapters on Executive-Board Relations and One-on-One Fundraising were especially helpful. I would recommend this to any executive director or engaged board member.