Tom Adams
Too many organizations underperform because they fail to pay sufficient attention to leader transitions. As a result, the mission, those served, and the employees suffer. In my work with more than 300 organizations facing leader transitions, I’ve identified many factors that influence the outcome of a leader transition.
The power of leader transitions to advance, weaken or destroy organizations and the power of a planned and well-executed transition to strengthen and transform organizations.
Unfortunately, not every leader transition goes so well. Think for a moment about organizations you might know that were weakened or destroyed by a flawed leader transition. Arts organizations, charter schools, food banks, group homes for people with developmental disabilities, neighborhood development initiatives and community health clinics of all sizes have felt the pain of failed or flawed transitions.
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Mom and Dad were incredible living examples of turning injustice into action. Our family moved to Los Angles in the late 60s after several years in Morocco where my dad was finishing his Fulbright work in Fez. He had just been hired in his first role as a professor of Political Science specializing in Middle East Studies at UCLA.
“Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose.” I have been haunted by these words from the Kris Kristofferson/Fred Foster song that Janis Joplin popularized with Me and Bobby McGee in 1971. When I feel stuck or confused these words come back. I ponder, “What is Janis saying?”
Recently I was asked by the Racial Justice ministry at my church to co-facilitate a Book Group. Fortunately for me, I said yes, as it turned out to be a great learning experience.
In May 2021, the remains of 215 children were discovered on the grounds of a former residential school near Kamloops, British Columbia. The gruesome discovery shocked many Canadians and confirmed what many indigenous leaders and people had been telling Canadians for decades-namely, that residential schools, many of which were operated by Christian denominations were and remain a tragedy of misplaced policies that sought to bring indigenous communities within the mainstream of Canadian life. Instead, residential schools removed children from their homes and parents and became a mechanism for discouraging the culture and language of indigenous communities. The Truth and Reconciliation Committee of Canada labeled the whole history of residential schools a form of cultural genocide. The treatment of indigenous people in subjecting them to the trauma of residential schools that started in 1879 and lasted until the mid 1990s is a deep stain upon the Canadian psyche.
Last week I wrote about Lois Wilson as an example of an amazing little-known woman leader. I hadn’t planned to have more to say about women leaders in the month celebrating women in history and our daily lives. Then, a friend of mine, Lois Rosado, wrote an article for our local Greenbelt News Review (March 17, 2022) entitled Names Not Frequently Mentioned as part of the paper’s series on Women History. Lois moved to Greenbelt from New York where she had the opportunity to be involved with Bayard Rustin and other civil rights leaders and serves as a leader of numerous efforts both to educate about racial disparities and to work for change.
Addictions continue to negatively impact and destroy families. There are lots of possible explanations for the lack of progress in addressing addictions. The consistent reality is that the combination of individual denial and community and societal pressures...
A video and a year of attention made possible what previously seemed impossible – holding police officers accountable for deaths of Black people caught in a racially biased society and criminal justice system.
The first such area that comes to mind is the idea of the role of government. We have a government because there are things that only a government of all the people can do. Think of national defense, a national currency or national rules regulating commerce between different areas.
I have explored in these posts what I consider some of the big issues blocking our communities and nation from living in more peace, love and equity. This week and next I am delighted to share with you another perspective on the challenges facing America.
This week we are continuing to explore the many ways to advance racial equity and justice. I have invited a colleague and friend, Bob Francis, to share the kind of discussions and actions he is taking and seeing others take to advance deeper and lasting change in America. Bob is the retired executive of a regional youth-serving organization in Connecticut. He began this work as a civil rights activist in the 60’s and is a life-long advocate for change.
Tom Adams writes and speaks on topics vital to the intersection of our personal lives with our community and global lives. He has for decades been engaged in and written about nonprofit leadership and transitions, spirituality and spiritual growth, how we each contribute to a more just and equitable world and recovery from addictions and the Twelve Step recovery movement.