Compass

• Nonprofit Status: Lead a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in good standing, including current IRS Form 990 filings.
• Organizational Budget: Serve an organization with an annual operating revenue of $1 million or greater and a recent independent financial audit.
• Board Governance: Work alongside an active, engaged governing Board of Directors that provides strategic oversight and accountability.
• Internal Infrastructure: Have an established internal leadership team with key management functions already in place (e.g., operations, finance, programs, development).

Leading a growing nonprofit can be inherently isolating. COMPASS is right for you if you are looking for a trusted, confidential space where other seasoned leaders simply "get it." It is an environment designed for peers to sharpen each other through shared challenges and high-level problem-solving.

Beyond the peer network, the program is built on time-tested tools and innovative learning approaches. These frameworks are specifically designed to help you get clear on your strategies, accelerate your impact, improve your decision-making confidence, and empower your teams to prioritize the work that matters most.

Transformational change requires dedicated time and organizational alignment. The program commitment includes:

• In-Person Workshops: Attendance at six full-day workshops (9:00 AM – 3:00 PM), which include a 1-hour block during lunch for free time and organic networking.

• Executive Coaching: Up to 4 hours per month of dedicated 1-on-1 work with your assigned COMPASS Guide to apply the curriculum directly to your organization.

• Team Integration: Leaders are strongly encouraged to bring key staff members to relevant workshops to distribute the learning and build internal capacity.

• Board Alignment: Formal sign-off from your organization's Board of Directors is required to participate.

• Cost: Participation in this inaugural cohort is fully underwritten, meaning there is no financial cost to your organization. The estimated value of the program—including expert workshops, dedicated 1-on-1 coaching, and time-bank resources—is between $15,000 and $20,000 per participant.

Space in the inaugural COMPASS cohort is intentionally limited to 6 to 8 participants to ensure a high level of trust, focus, and peer engagement. We use a thoughtful, multi-step selection process guided by an internal review committee:

1. Requirement Check: Confirm your organization meets the baseline criteria ($1M+ revenue, audit, board structure, 501(c)(3) status).

2. Discovery Call: Participate in a brief "learn more" conversation designed as a mutual fit assessment for both you and our team.

3. Full Application: Submit a formal application and organizational assessment for final committee review.

We recognize that power dynamics naturally exist when a funding partner hosts a program like COMPASS. We maintain strict boundaries around this dynamic:

• Zero Impact on Grantmaking: Participating in COMPASS—or choosing not to—has zero impact, positive or negative, on your organization’s current or future grant applications, awards, or funding status. Selection and program delivery are kept completely separate from grant decisions.

• No Direct Cash Grant: Participation does not include a direct cash award. Instead, the investment is delivered entirely through the $15,000 to $20,000 in fully underwritten program value.

• A Safe, Non-Evaluative Space: COMPASS is strictly a leadership and organizational development space, not an evaluation or monitoring tool. You can candidly discuss operational challenges or financial stressors without affecting funding decisions.

Yes. We operate under a strict "what happens in the room stays in the room" policy to ensure a safe, trusting environment where leaders can speak openly about real organizational challenges.

Note: To highlight the broader community impact of the program, we reserve the right to share high-level, anonymized themes that emerge from the cohort. We will also capture photography and video during specific workshop sessions to document our collaborative
work.

The majority of our in-person workshops will be hosted at the Community Foundation office. We may occasionally host one or two sessions at another local offsite location to best support specific curriculum modules or cohort experiences.

Our Guides are vetted, seasoned executive coaches who bring deep strategic expertise across organizational design, leadership, and social sector management. We will provide a complete directory featuring their bios, backgrounds, and areas of specialization, working collaboratively with you to select the Guide whose coaching style best matches your organizational goals.

To keep the core peer group intimate and confidential, staff participation is limited strictly to instructional workshop blocks rather than private peer circles.

You are encouraged to bring 1 to 2 key team members whose specific responsibilities align directly with that session’s topic:

• Board Governance: Bring your Board Chair or Vice Chair.

• Marketing & Development: Bring your Communications Lead or Development Director.

• Financial Strategy: Bring your Finance Director or COO.