Great post, Deena. The section on staffing really resonates—especially the advice not to start with a full-time hire.
I think the “all-or-nothing” mindset is a huge blocker in this sector. Many non-profits assume they cannot afford a Head of Operations or Chief of Staff, so they hire a junior admin and hope they can build strategy.
I have recently transitioned from the corporate world (ex-EY) to offer exactly this kind of fractional support to mission-driven organisations. It has been eye-opening to see that most groups don’t need a 40-hour/week executive; they just need that level of rigour for 5-10 hours to build the “engine room” you mentioned.
Thanks for championing the fractional model—it is definitely the most efficient way to fix the infrastructure gap without blowing the overhead budget.
Great post, Deena. The section on staffing really resonates—especially the advice not to start with a full-time hire.
I think the “all-or-nothing” mindset is a huge blocker in this sector. Many non-profits assume they cannot afford a Head of Operations or Chief of Staff, so they hire a junior admin and hope they can build strategy.
I have recently transitioned from the corporate world (ex-EY) to offer exactly this kind of fractional support to mission-driven organisations. It has been eye-opening to see that most groups don’t need a 40-hour/week executive; they just need that level of rigour for 5-10 hours to build the “engine room” you mentioned.
Thanks for championing the fractional model—it is definitely the most efficient way to fix the infrastructure gap without blowing the overhead budget.