Ask a Nonprofit Expert
Real Questions. Practical Solutions.
[link removed]
NPQ Logo
** Reconciling Future-Back and Present-Forward in Strategy
------------------------------------------------------------
November 20, 2025
Welcome back to Ask a Nonprofit Expert, the nonprofit sector’s go-to advice column where seasoned nonprofit leaders offer advice and answers about how to build thriving, equitable organizations.
In today’s issue, Nick Takamine answers a reader’s question about bridging vision and execution in strategic planning.
Got a question of your own? Submit it here ([link removed]) .
Reconciling Future-Back and Present-Forward in Strategy
By Nick Takamine
Dear Ask a Nonprofit Expert,
In the nonprofit strategic planning process, how critical is capability and capacity planning to assess how ready an organization is to bridge strategy and execution?
Sincerely,
Pragmatic Planner
Dear Pragmatic Planner,
I can imagine where you might be coming from with this question. Like so many of us, you may have seen strategy processes consumed by envisioning what could be, heavy on big-picture vision but light on what it might take to get there. The resulting strategies can struggle to offer practical guidance.
On the flip side, I have also seen strategy processes cling too tightly to what we’re comfortable committing to, inadvertently reinforcing organizational inertia. This approach can produce strategies that are more like glorified budget narratives, coordinating incremental change without confronting an organization’s deeper strategic questions.
The greatest incoherence seems to occur when the juxtaposition of the terms strategic and planning is taken too far. This happens when strategy dreams up a big, hairy, audacious goal, then proceeds to take the form of a concrete plan. The SMART goals and methodical, multiyear timelines that result can often have little bearing on reality. These are the processes that get mocked as “strategy theater.”
Is it even possible to reconcile our dreams of what could be with the present realities of what we’re comfortable committing to in strategy? I think so. These orientations can make sense together if we think of them as living in separate but entangled planes of organizational life.
Continue Reading ([link removed])
Sponsored Content
Stop Losing Institutional Knowledge ([link removed])
Staff turnover drains time and memory. Learn how to plan training that captures and shares essential knowledge across your nonprofit team.
Access Free Workbook ([link removed])
** Latest Articles
------------------------------------------------------------
[link removed]
How to Fund Like a Narrative Strategist
by Chiara K. Cattaneo, Jody Myrum, Mandy Van Deven, and Erin Lynn Williams
Adopting funding frameworks designed by narrative strategists can build the movement infrastructure that makes progress toward a liberatory future possible.
Read Article ([link removed])
[link removed]
Nonprofit Budgeting in a Maelstrom
by Isaiah Thompson
How should organizations plan for stability while navigating political hostility, economic turbulence, and a once-in-a-generation test of the sector’s resilience?
Read Article ([link removed])
[link removed]
How New York City Mayor-Elect Mamdani Is Bridging Climate Preparedness to Kitchen Table Concerns
by Rajeev Tyagi
New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is reframing how the city thinks about livability and climate change.
Read Article ([link removed])
[link removed]
Confronting the Private Equity Menace to Restore Housing Affordability
by Dr. Seumalu Elora Raymond
Private equity has become a leading driver of affordable housing shortages. But advocates have many tools available that they can use to establish housing as a human right.
Read Article ([link removed])
Sponsored Content
Research-Backed Solutions for Nonprofit Leaders ([link removed])
The Nonprofit Science Review delivers FREE weekly articles translating academic research into actionable strategies. This month: donor psychology tactics proven to boost year-end giving.
Start reading for free today ([link removed])
** Check out our upcoming webinars.
------------------------------------------------------------
**
------------------------------------------------------------
As a Leading Edge member, you get exclusive access to all our upcoming webinars—deep dives into the issues that matter, led by movement leaders and experts.
[link removed]
Become a Member ([link removed])
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]
Sponsored Content
Financial Solutions for Mission-Driven Teams ([link removed])
For 35 years, JMT Consulting has supported nonprofits with leading financial solutions and expert guidance, delivering smarter reporting, stronger compliance, and clarity to drive mission impact.
Learn More Today ([link removed])
Ask a Nonprofit Expert is the sector’s go-to advice column by civic leaders, for nonprofit readers. In this new series, NPQ Leading Edge members can submit pressing questions about navigating nonprofit challenges. Our cohort of seasoned nonprofit leaders will publish thoughtful, actionable answers to pressing organizational challenges and leadership dilemmas. Ready to get unstuck? Submit your question anonymously here ([link removed]) !
Copyright (C) 2025. All rights reserved.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences ([link removed]) or unsubscribe ([link removed])
