About
Nancy Kidd, Ph.D., has been helping boards and executives use data to make strategic and effective evidence-based decisions for 25 years. Leveraging her scientific research training, she specializes in envisioning evolving directions for organizations based on systematic internal and external environmental assessments. With a longstanding commitment to mission-driven work, Nancy served in two chief executive roles for professional membership associations over 16 years, most recently leading the 10,000-member American Sociological Association. She has a reputation for kind and compassionate leadership and led the National Communication Association when it won The NonProfit Times 50 Best Nonprofits to Work For. Earlier in her career, Nancy was a program officer at a prominent foundation, and she was responsible for a multimillion-dollar business unit of a company that did strategic research for senior executives at the foremost global corporations. She also launched and ran a strategic management consulting group for a federal government contractor. As the policy director for a regional workforce development board, Nancy was responsible for analyzing organizational programs and processes to improve the efficacy of funds distribution. Nancy currently serves as Treasurer of the board of NAFSA: Association of International Educators and has served on several other boards including the American Council of Learned Societies, the National Humanities Alliance, and the Consortium of Social Science Associations. A skilled presenter and facilitator, Nancy has engaged audiences across varied contexts, such as the National Institutes of Health, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and KPMG. Nancy has a Ph.D. in Sociology from Stanford University and a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania. She lives near Washington, D.C. and serves her local community as a member of Poolesville Fair Access, a committee that advocates for equitable distribution of resources to county residents in sparsely populated rural areas.
Services
All of Nancy Kidd’s engagements involve partnership with nonprofit organizational leaders to strategically advance mission-driven goals. While each engagement is highly customized, Nancy draws consistently on social science research design principles to structure her approach.
Nancy begins by identifying the information needed to deeply understand an organizational challenge. Her subsequent data collection efforts might involve repurposing existing datasets; qualitative investigation through conversations, interviews, focus groups, and facilitated leadership discussions; and quantitative investigation through surveys. Nancy then analyzes the data and develops detailed options for action. If relevant for a particular issue, she offers evaluation of key considerations such as risk, value, and human and financial resource requirements. An experienced facilitator, Nancy works with boards and staff to come to consensus on next steps based on the analysis presented.
Ultimately, nonprofit organizations engage Nancy Kidd to help them make evidence-based, effective organizational decisions. She offers leadership support; strategy development; and strategic organizational assessment, design, and alignment services.
Leadership
Support
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Board development
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Interim chief executive services
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Thought partnership for chief executives
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Change management
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Crisis management
Are you a CEO facing a constantly evolving set of challenges who would like to talk through issues confidentially with someone outside the organization? Nancy serves as an experienced thought partner. Are you a board member facing a chief executive departure? Nancy will provide stable interim executive leadership while you engage in a search for a permanent CEO. Do your board members lack common understanding of their responsibilities and confidence in the quality of their efforts? Nancy offers board orientation training, self-assessment exercises, and facilitated strategic retreats. She also helps leaders navigate through complex organizational change, such as internal restructuring or external merger, and undertake emergency situational analysis in the midst of crisis.
Strategy
Development
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Strategic planning
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Strategic issue analysis
Is your organization’s strategic plan out of date or nonexistent? Are you without consensus on the core mission of your organization and its primary goals? Are you lacking articulated objectives and tasks that align with your strategic goals? Do you need a system for measuring and reporting on progress toward meeting your goals? Nancy will lead you through a comprehensive strategic planning process to ensure there is common understanding of what constitutes organizational success and how to reach it. She facilitates collection of broad stakeholder input and does an environmental scan to feed into construction of a strategic and operational planning document. Nancy will also help you think about how best to use your plan in a meaningful way. In addition, Nancy guides leaders through deep analysis of specific strategic questions.
Strategic Organizational Assessment, Design, and Alignment
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Finance
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Governance
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Operations
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Programs
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Staffing
Are the core elements of your organization designed to ensure maximum efficacy and efficiency? Do they align well with your strategic goals and objectives? Nancy will undertake a comprehensive organizational review to address these questions, or she can focus deeply on one or more specific areas of interest. Do your human resources policies, for example, support the organizational culture you desire and encourage high performance? Are your governance systems current and enabling thoughtful leadership? Does your budget reflect programmatic priorities and responsible stewardship? Are your operational processes appropriately streamlined? Does your staffing structure facilitate advancement of your mission? Nancy provides in-depth analysis of your current state along with corresponding recommendations for redesign and realignment to increase organizational success.