Dr. Audrey Alvarado on Next Generation Leaders and the Importance of Listening

Dr. Audrey Alvarado is one of the most motivating nonprofit leaders of color that I know. She is the Executive Director of the National Council of Nonprofit Associations (NCNA) headquartered in Washington, DC and co-founder of the Nonprofit Congress. I know Audrey because fortunately we run in some of the same nonprofit circles in DC and one thing I know for sure is that she strongly supports the next generation of nonprofit leaders. Audrey is committed to strengthening the sector, and with a small staff of 6, she gets incredible things done through the way she can bring people together and motivate others to action. I wanted to interview her because she’s always been one of those women I just sit back and try to watch, taking notes the whole time on how I should act when I’m in that kind of leadership role. Audrey was generous enough to take time out of her schedule to give away some valuable advice for next generation leaders.

RT: How did you make your way into the nonprofit sector?

AA: I had completed my PhD in social psychology and was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Denver. I got involved with a local nonprofit by volunteering to do an evaluation for one of their programs. I really enjoyed working with the staff and the clients. The director of the organization was masterful at getting folks like me to volunteer time and talent and there was such a strong sense of community, it was easy to get hooked. After I completed my fellowship, I moved to Boston and held my first nonprofit job as project director for the Hispanic Office of Planning and Evaluation’s Talent Search program. I loved the fact that I was able to apply my academic and analytical skills to something I was passionate about – encouraging and supporting low income minority students to enroll in college. After that “first” job I continued to find that the nonprofit sector was the place where I could really make a difference and work on issues that were (and are) important to me, like social justice, community-building, and working from a place of construction (as opposed to destruction).

RT: What do you like about being Executive Director of your organization?

AA: I really enjoy spending time talking and encouraging the professional growth of my staff and interns. Talking about ideas and how things fit (or don’t fit) together. Challenging each of us to think differently and how we go about doing our work. I also like to work with my board on strategizing how we go about building our organization, coming up with ideas and trying to figure a way to make things happen.

RT: What does your average day consist of?

AA: There really is no “average day”, which I like because I don’t like to be routine in my daily work. Most days I find that I am “reacting” to something; usually issues or questions that staff bring to my attention. Because we are so small, I have a role in almost everything that goes on in our office, from the financials to the planning and evaluation to the board relations to the member relations. You name it and I am involved in some way. I like having the broad view of what we are working on as well as keep us all moving in the right direction which is set by our strategic plan.

RT: Do you think Generations X and Y are stepping up to lead in the nonprofit sector?

AA: From what I have seen and experienced YES they are. There is an energy that they bring to our work environment that is very exciting. They want to get things done quickly and innovate, finding alternative solutions that might work better for us all. The growth and interest in entrepreneurial activities is just one example of some of the creative thinking they bring to the sector. However, because they want to move at a faster pace they may not take the necessary time to understand the full context of the problems they are trying to address. What I would challenge the Gen X and Y’s to do is to be a bit more patient to work on aspects of how we can go about changing our work and approach and not toss everything out but take what works and improve on it. Many times I see a strong disregard for what we (older ones) have created and no recognition or appreciation for the context that led to the practice. Let’s work on improvements together.

RT: What one piece of advice would you give aspiring nonprofit leaders? What skills and qualifications will Generations X & Y need to take on future leadership vacancies?

AA: The one skill that I have found that works in almost every situation is to LISTEN before you speak and withhold judgment until you get the full story or try to understand where a person is coming from. If we dismiss people because they don’t understand how to hyperlink to a webpage (this may be way too self-revealing!) you may lose the opportunity to learn something from them because you discount them altogether. Look for ways to learn from them and appreciate what they may teach you (because I sure appreciated learning how to hyperlink).

I have a great example that occurred recently. My nephew, an aspiring artist seeking his BFA, was telling me about one of his professors. It was obvious to me by the tone of his voice that he did not hold this professor’s skills and “boring” assignments in high regard. He deliberately did not ask for her advice on a major assignment while other students in the class were “kissing up” to her for advice. I suggested that it may serve him better and achieve his desired goal of getting a passing grade if he were to find ways to seek out his professor’s assistance. There were obvious elements of commonality between him and his professor because she was doing exactly what he hoped to be doing after graduation. He promised he would give it a try and get back to me about the results. I eagerly await his report.