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Valerie Jarrett is no stranger to the tough challenges nonprofit leaders face today. She is now head of the Obama Foundation, which is working to build an extensive library and community center in Chicago. From that perch she collaborates closely with leaders who pursue a wide range of social-change and economic development efforts.
Jarrett built many of her leadership muscles decades ago, when she served as a key senior adviser to President Barack Obama through all eight years of his presidency. In the years since, she also served on many corporate and nonprofit boards.
What she learned in the White House — responding to crises like the Great Recession — and now emphasizes as a nonprofit CEO, is the importance of assembling and building a great executive team. In an episode of Nonprofits Now: Leading Today, Chronicle CEO Stacy Palmer talked with Jarrett about her team-building strategies and advice to fellow leaders. Jarrett says not only does a strong executive team get more done, but it also enables the CEO to spend as much time as possible working on big-picture issues that are essential to the organization’s future.
Among her recommendations to nonprofit CEOs:
Start thinking about the whole team from the very first interview with a candidate for an executive role. Talent and expertise matter, but they are not the only skill sets to assess. Jarrett seeks out people who talk candidly about their mistakes, show vulnerability, and demonstrate their interest in continuous learning. She is also on the hunt for people who will push back if they disagree with her. And she puts a premium on people who demonstrate their sense of humor and compassion. “A lot of the challenges we face are really tough, so I look for people who can recognize when people need a little extra care and tending to,” Jarrett says.
Make sure everyone at the leadership table feels welcome. In the White House, Jarrett learned that many women leaders felt dismissed by men on the staff. She gathered the women leaders for a dinner with President Obama, who — after listening intently for hours to their concerns — told the women he would speak to his male colleagues and check in with Jarrett to make sure things got better. But he also made sure they knew how much he valued them. “I hand picked you because of your expertise,” Jarrett recalls the president saying. “If you’re not speaking up, I won’t make as good a decision.”
Encourage the leadership team to change course when needed. At a recent meeting of her executive team, Jarrett says President Obama urged her colleagues to think hard about how things have changed since he created his foundation in 2014. It’s a sentiment Jarrett embraces. “Just because we’ve done it this way doesn’t mean we always have to,” she reminded her team. “In fact institutions that really sustain and replenish themselves are the ones that are willing to be courageous enough to look beyond what we already do.”
Delegate everything you can to others. Jarrett works hard to make sure she has time to focus on the big picture, always asking whether a meeting or task advances the foundation’s impact. To ensure she stays true to that goal, she asked her staff to develop a tool that shows her how she spends her time — and she said that scorecard has led her to make changes to her schedule.
Ask people how you can make their jobs easier. People who work for a CEO won’t offer ideas unless you ask them, Jarrett says. But they have a very good idea of what you can do that would help them achieve more and balance their workloads. Just as important, tap their ideas for how you can become a more effective leader. Jarrett says, “I always say to my team, what can I do better?”
For more advice on recruiting, see these article from the Chronicle:
And for more leadership insights, turn to our special report, Leadership at the Crossroads.
Nonprofits Now: Leading Today is produced by Emily Haynes and Reasonable Volume, with editorial direction from Margie Fleming Glennon and support from Kyle Johnson.
