Achieving Excellence is a performance-driven organizational investment program for seasoned executive directors and senior staff in community development.
Through NeighborWorks America's collaboration with Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and program architect Douglas K. Smith, organizational performance and learning expert and author of Make Success Measurable!, you will be privileged to take part in a performance program unlike any other — one that assists you in taking your skills and knowledge to a level you may not have thought possible.
At the beginning of this intensive program, you will select a specific and significant challenge facing your organization — a challenge whose solutions can dramatically change not only how your organization operates, but also provide the impetus for change in the overall field of community development.
 A recent participant in the Achieving Excellence program achieved great success and helped his organization dramatically change its community by applying what he learned through Achieving Excellence. Read more . . . .
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Information on the Achieving Excellence program:
The AE Community:
All focused around your specific performance challenge, the interdependent components of the Achieving Excellence program include:
Curriculum ›› Three cutting edge sessions led by faculty of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government that will open your mind to new ideas and approaches
The multi-disciplinary approach of the academic curriculum concentrates on the issues of leadership in community development. Augmented by resources from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and other well-known thought-leaders, the coursework is case-based and focuses on your issues – those on your plate right now, those on the horizon, and the ever-present challenge of how to increase the community impact of the work you do. Faculty will lead a critical exploration of emerging issues in strategic analysis and planning, leadership and organizational alignment, performance measurement, community building, alliances and partnerships, and other relevant topics. Their approach will allow you to learn from the best and most recent work in the field, and apply it within your own environment.
Intensive One-on-One Executive Coaching ›› Personalized guidance on performance-driven change by innovative leaders in the field
To assist you in achieving performance, learning and change, the program provides significant consulting resources as well. One of a team of leadership coaches will guide you through the 18-month program and help you identify the outcome-based goals to achieve success. You can expect to work on your performance challenge regularly through conference calls, online chats, and one-on-one conversations with your coach and your peer group of colleagues several times each month.
Peer Group Work ›› Structured peer group learning and best practice sharing with colleagues of equal experience and sophistication
A select group of approximately 50 executive directors and senior staff with significant scope of authority and resources who lead sophisticated nonprofit organizations within the field of community development will be chosen to participate.
To assist you in achieving performance, learning and change, the program also provides structured peer group collaboration among this talented cohort. Working with a group of approximately nine other senior leaders and executive directors, you will work to achieve your own performance challenges — being accountable to each other while also being accountable to yourselves, your organizations and your communities. This group will provide support when you face obstacles and honest feedback to keep you on track when you begin to fall short — and you will do the same for each of them. The combination of consulting, coaching and peer group collaboration will maximize your efforts to apply what you have learned to the challenges that matter most to your organization's success.
Approximately 50 experienced leaders who direct sophisticated community development corporations will be selected to participate in this highly innovative and challenging program. Apply today!
For additional information about Achieving Excellence, call (800) 438-5547 or (202) 220-2454, or e-mail training@nw.org.
