Have you ever wanted to be part of a community of like-minded leaders who you can talk with honestly about the challenges and issues of leading organizations and addressing complex problems?
What if you had an opportunity to build authentic relationships with a diverse, committed group of leaders serving East, Far East, and Central Contra Costa County through reflection and peer learning?
What if you had access to innovative leadership and management practices that foster resiliency, sustainability, and adaptability in you and in your organization?
Contra Costa Leadership Institute is a 2-year, team-based leadership development program focused on participants’ ability to lead from a place of passion, skill, and collaboration. Through trainings, retreats, team coaching, and peer learning, LeaderSpring offers teams of nonprofit leaders the opportunities to strengthen leadership and management competencies; apply new practices on-the-job; and develop lasting, meaningful relationships across the cohort so they may increase their organizational effectiveness and improve their impact for the communities they serve.
Our goals are to:
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Enhance nonprofit performance and sustainability by ensuring that participating executive directors and both senior and emerging leaders achieve their personal and organizational goals.
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Strengthen leaders and managers' confidence, resilience and personal well-being.
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Foster partnerships and collaborations that increase and/or improve services to low income communities in Contra Costa County.
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Promote a network of peer-to-peer learning and reflection among community leaders.
Determine your eligibility
To complete our eligibility survey, please click the link below.
Participants in the program will:
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Increase confidence in your leadership and management skills;
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Increase self-awareness, interpersonal, and group skills;
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Gain fundamental competencies of effective team work and collaboration;
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Develop practices that foster self-care and resilience;
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Examine how identity and power shape your leadership style;
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Learn frameworks that strengthen and improve your organization’s needs: board governance, financial management, supervision, and strategic planning; and
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Expand your access to a diverse, long-standing network of social sector leaders in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area.
Contra Costa
Leadership
Institute
Frequently Asked Questions
Have questions? Follow the link below to see what some of our frequently asked questions are the answers to them.
Contra Costa Leadership Institute
Participant Criteria and Selection
The program will competitively select 10 organizations that are based in and/or serve East, Far East, and Central Contra Costa County.
The program is designed to support the strength of a team of three individuals in an organization. This team must include the Executive Director and the remaining two members shall be selected to represent those who are positioned to most benefit from and have relevant application of the curriculum during the 2 year program. We recommend:
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Champion: a leadership staff member who has formal authority and influence to champion the content and skills at an organizational level
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Emerging Leader: a staff member who has shown high potential to be a leader and/or move into a critical position of authority in the organization
Additionally, the board chair and/or other lead member of the board is expected to participate up to 2 day-long gatherings focused on board governance.
If your organization is a multi-county agency that serves East, Far East, or Central Contra Costa but is not headquartered in the area, the executive director may designate a leader from the East, Far East, or Central county office as his/her representative.
Tenure in position (Minimum):
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Executive Director: 18 months at the start of the program
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Additional two team members: 12 months at the start of the program
Organizational Status: (you are encouraged to inquire with LeaderSpring staff if you have questions about your eligibility)
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5+ FTE including executive director
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501(c)(3) or has a fiscal agent that is a 501(c)(3)
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Budget minimally $500K
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Organization is not a start-up (at least 2-3 years old and financially stable)
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Board that meets with executive director regularly
About the program
Potential Leader Circle Topics
Topics will be selected based on needs identified through the organization assessment and by the needs of the participants.
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Fund development
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Board development
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Talent recruitment and development
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Finance/business skills
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Strengthening organizational systems and infrastructure
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Collaboration, coalitions, and collective action
Oakland-based LeaderSpring has a 19-year proven track record of strengthening leadership and management skills for veteran and emerging leaders. We offer a rare, comprehensive support system of coaching, peer learning, seminars, and experiential opportunities. We have primarily served social sector leaders in San Francisco and the East Bay, and in the last 6 years we have broadened outreach statewide.
LeaderSpring's mission is to foster a powerful, equity-driven social sector by strengthening leaders and organizations; developing communities of leaders; and transforming the systems in which they work.
Click here for a summary of LeaderSpring's impact and here for LeaderSpring's website.
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Leader resiliency and self-care
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Goal setting and action planning
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Power, privilege, and identity
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How to achieve transformation
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Leading equity-driven change
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Roadmap to reaching a common vision
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Human resources and supervision
Program Components
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In-depth organizational assessment to identify strengths and areas of growth for your organization;
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Professional team coaching to increase effectiveness of your leadership team;
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Two 3-day annual retreats that build a strong bond of trust, confidentiality, and mutual respect with one another;
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Up to 13 daylong leader circles to create space for peer learning, cohort based leadership and management training, and deepening relationships with co-workers and peers; and
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Affinity groups to anchor the learning and to offer ongoing support and relationship building throughout the program.
Contra Costa Leadership Institute is designed to develop leadership and management skills for teams across 10 organizations that are serving vulnerable populations in East, Far East, and Central Contra Costa County. A cohort of 30 leaders will meet together over a period of 2 years to engage in deep learning on relevant topics that strengthen their skills in leading organizations effectively, working collaboratively, and building sustainability for the work.
Meet our Network
We have over 230 Executive Directors who have completed the LeaderSpring Fellowship Program. Click the link below to search our alumni list.
"Building Futures with Women and Children was the lead agency for the Mid-County Housing Resource Center when I was a fellow. We worked with three partners and five funders on this $3 million project over three years. I could not have brought on such a large program without the support of LeaderSpring! I used the monthly meetings, both to inform our organizational practices and for moral support. LeaderSpring helped us develop our staff, work more effectively in partnerships, and better manage our finances - all crucial practices for this collaboration that prevented and ended homelessness for 2,000 Alameda County residents."
Liz Varela
Executive Director
Building Futures with Women and Children