The nonprofits that are thriving aren’t simply working harder—they’re becoming more adaptive.

The recently released 2025 Nonprofit Standards Benchmarking Report reinforces many of the same shifts we’ve been observing across our own client work. While every organization is unique, the patterns are remarkably consistent. Strategic planning is becoming more dynamic and collaboration is becoming essential. Technology is improving decision-making rather than simply increasing efficiency. And leaders are thinking differently about what sustainability really means.

None of these trends exist in isolation. Together, they tell a larger story about where the nonprofit sector is headed and what leadership will require in the years ahead.

1. Demand for Services Continues to Grow But So Does the Need for Organizational Sustainability

One of the biggest misconceptions we encounter is that sustainability means slowing growth.

In reality, most nonprofit leaders aren’t trying to do less. They’re trying to figure out how to continue meeting growing community needs without exhausting the people, resources, and systems that make their mission possible. The BDO report confirms exactly that reality, finding that 78% of nonprofits have experienced increased demand for services, while nearly three-quarters anticipate expanding programs over the coming year.

We see this tension in nearly every strategic planning engagement. Leadership teams rarely ask us, “How can we grow?”

Instead, they’re asking more thoughtful questions:

How do we continue growing without overwhelming our staff?

How do we increase our impact while protecting organizational health?

How do we build an organization that can sustain this work for years to come?

Those questions fundamentally change the conversation. They shift the focus away from expansion as a sole priority and toward organizational sustainability; the structures, leadership, processes, and accountability needed to ensure growth remains healthy over time.

2. Strategic Plans Are Becoming Living Documents

For many years, strategic planning followed a familiar rhythm. Organizations invested months developing a thoughtful plan, celebrated its approval, and then often found themselves revisiting it only when it was time to begin the next planning cycle 3-5 years later.

Today’s environment simply doesn’t allow for that approach. According to the BDO report, more than half of nonprofits have already modified their strategic plans in response to changing federal policies and external conditions. We don’t see that as a sign that strategic planning failed. We see it as evidence that organizations are beginning to think differently about strategy itself.

At coLAB, we believe a strategic plan should never be viewed as a finished product. It’s a framework for decision-making that helps organizations remain aligned as priorities shift, opportunities emerge, and communities evolve. The strongest organizations aren’t rewriting their strategy every year. They’re continually reconnecting everyday decisions back to their long-term vision.

Strategy isn’t something you complete.

3. AI Is Supporting Better Strategy—Not Replacing Strategic Thinking

Few topics have generated as much conversation over the past year as artificial intelligence.

The BDO report found that 97% of nonprofits are already using AI in some capacity, an extraordinary level of adoption in a relatively short period of time. What we find encouraging isn’t simply how many organizations are using AI, it’s how they’re using it. Leaders are moving beyond asking whether they should adopt AI and are instead asking more practical questions.

How can AI reduce repetitive work?

How can it strengthen analysis?

How can it improve the quality of decisions?

How do we ensure people remain at the center?

We’ve never believed technology should replace leadership. Instead, it should remove the friction that keeps leaders from leading. AI can summarize information, identify patterns, and accelerate insight, but it cannot replace judgment, relationships, empathy, or the thoughtful conversations that shape great organizations.

The organizations finding the greatest success aren’t replacing strategy with AI. They’re giving leaders more time to focus on strategy.

4. Collaboration Is Becoming a Strategic Capability

One of the most encouraging themes emerging across the nonprofit sector is a renewed commitment to collaboration.

According to the report, 64% of nonprofits are actively pursuing partnerships with other organizations, recognizing that today’s challenges are simply too complex for any one organization to solve alone.

Whether organizations are working in food security, education, healthcare, workforce development, housing, or economic development, the conversation inevitably turns toward partnerships. Community challenges rarely fit neatly within organizational boundaries.

Achieving meaningful progress depends on organizations aligning their strengths, sharing expertise, and working toward common outcomes. From our perspective, collaboration is no longer simply a partnership strategy. It’s becoming a resilience strategy.

Organizations with strong networks are often better equipped to adapt, innovate, and respond when circumstances change because they’re drawing from collective knowledge rather than navigating uncertainty alone.

The future belongs to organizations that understand that impact grows when collaboration becomes part of how they operate.

5. Technology Investments Are Really Investments in Better Decision-Making

Technology continues to be one of the fastest-growing areas of nonprofit investment, with 74% of organizations expecting to increase technology spending over the coming year. But the most important shift isn’t the amount being invested. It’s the reason behind those investments.

After years of facilitating strategic planning and stakeholder engagement processes, we’ve learned that organizations rarely suffer from having too little information. More often, they struggle because information lives everywhere.

Survey results sit in one system.

Board notes live in another.

Strategic plans become PDFs.

Progress updates happen in meetings.

Community feedback gets buried in spreadsheets.

Leaders spend more time gathering information than using it.

Technology has the opportunity to change that, not because software is the solution, but because better systems create better conversations and better decisions. The organizations making the greatest progress aren’t simply collecting more data. They’re creating connected systems that help leaders understand what’s happening, recognize emerging trends, measure progress, and confidently decide what comes next.

Technology is valuable because it strengthens leadership. Not because it replaces it.

What These Trends Mean for Nonprofit Leaders

Looking across these five trends, one message stands out.

The nonprofit sector isn’t simply adapting to change—it’s becoming more intentional about how organizations lead through it.

We’re seeing leaders move away from viewing strategic planning as a periodic event and toward embracing it as an ongoing practice. They’re investing in stronger partnerships, using technology more thoughtfully, creating healthier organizational systems, and building the capacity to evolve alongside the communities they serve.

Perhaps most importantly, they’re recognizing that strategy doesn’t end when a plan is approved. That’s when the real work begins.

At coLAB, we’ve always believed strategy should be something organizations live—not something they revisit every few years. VERVE was built around the same philosophy that has guided our consulting work for years.

Organizations don’t need another place to store a strategic plan.

They need a place where strategy stays connected to stakeholder feedback, organizational knowledge, AI-powered insights, measurable progress, and everyday decision-making.

By bringing assessments, stakeholder engagement, strategic priorities, implementation tracking, and AI-supported insights together in one living platform, VERVE helps organizations move from collecting information to creating momentum—from insight to action.

Because the future won’t belong to the organizations with the most impressive strategic plans.

It will belong to the organizations that build the capacity to learn, adapt, collaborate, and move forward, again and again.

First—congratulations. Seriously.

It may sound simple, but many organizations never make it this far. After years of facilitating strategic planning sessions with nonprofits, associations, schools, and community organizations, we’ve learned that getting to a completed, board-approved strategic plan is an accomplishment worth celebrating. It takes honest conversations, difficult decisions, stakeholder engagement, and a willingness to align around a shared future.

Completing a strategic plan is a significant milestone. The challenge is that it’s often treated as the finish line when it’s really the starting point.

Over the years, we’ve watched the same pattern unfold. A board approves the plan. Leadership leaves the room energized and excited about what’s ahead. Then everyone returns to the reality of full calendars, budget meetings, staffing challenges, community needs, and the countless decisions (and emails!) that demand attention each day.

At coLAB, we call this the implementation cliff. It’s the moment when the energy and momentum built during strategic planning collide with the realities of running an organization. Teams don’t stop believing in the strategy; they simply become consumed by the work of delivering on their mission.

The good news is that organizations no longer have to choose between thoughtful planning and practical execution. Technology has fundamentally changed what’s possible. Today, strategy can remain visible, connected, and actionable long after the planning process ends.

Turning a strategic plan into meaningful progress isn’t a one-time event. Strategic plan implementation is an ongoing practice that requires organizations to stay aligned as priorities evolve, opportunities emerge, and everyday responsibilities compete for attention.

We’ve never met a leadership team that wanted their strategic plan to sit and collect dust on a shelf. Yet we’ve worked with many organizations that found themselves in exactly that situation, not because the plan was weak, but because creating alignment is only the beginning. Sustaining alignment is where the real work begins.

Strategy Needs Stewardship

One of the biggest misconceptions about strategic planning is that once the document is finished, the strategy is finished too. In reality, strategy isn’t something you complete. It’s something you steward.

Think of it like a garden. You don’t plant it once and expect it to flourish forever. You revisit it, nurture it, remove the weeds, respond to changing conditions, and continually evaluate what’s thriving and what needs attention. Strategy deserves the same level of stewardship.

When the planning process concludes, priorities have been documented and responsibilities have been assigned. It feels complete. But the most successful organizations continue asking a simple question: ‘Does this decision move us closer to where we’re trying to go?’ That question keeps strategy alive.

Strategy Doesn’t Stand Still

A strategic plan provides direction, but organizations aren’t static.

Leadership changes.
Funding priorities shift.
Community expectations evolve.
New partnerships emerge.

None of these realities invalidate a strategic plan; they simply require leaders to continually reconnect their long-term vision with everyday decisions.

One thing we’ve learned through our work is that organizations rarely need to rewrite their strategy as often as they think. More often, they need better ways to keep it visible as the organization changes around it.

The Signs Are Rarely Dramatic

Organizations rarely wake up one morning and decide to stop executing their strategic plan. Momentum erodes quietly. People are still working hard. Meetings are still happening. The mission is still deeply valued. Yet over time, strategic conversations are replaced by operational updates, accountability becomes less clear, and priorities slowly fade into the background.

Those changes are subtle, which is why they often go unnoticed for months or even years. The organization hasn’t abandoned its strategy. It has simply become disconnected from it.

Closing the Execution Gap

At coLAB, we refer to this challenge as the execution gap—the space between creating a strategy and consistently using it to guide the organization’s work.

The execution gap happens when the systems that keep strategy visible become fragmented. Progress lives in one place. Action items live somewhere else. Institutional knowledge exists in conversations instead of shared systems. Before long, leaders spend more time collecting information than using it to make informed decisions.

Closing the execution gap isn’t about another retreat or another planning session. It’s about creating an operating rhythm that keeps priorities visible, progress transparent, and decisions consistently connected to long-term goals.

From Planning to Practice

Here’s something we’ve noticed after years of working alongside mission-driven organizations: the ones making the greatest progress aren’t necessarily the ones with the longest strategic plans. They’re the ones that have found a way to make strategy part of how they operate.

Rather than wondering where initiatives stand or whether today’s work is advancing tomorrow’s priorities, they have shared visibility, meaningful accountability, and the flexibility to adapt without losing sight of their mission. That’s what sustainable execution looks like.

Strategy Is Meant to Be Lived

At coLAB, we believe strategy is more than a document languishing on Google Drive. It’s a practice. It should shape conversations, guide decisions, create accountability, and build momentum every day.

That’s why we built VERVE. VERVE helps organizations move from insight to strategy—and from strategy to sustained execution—by connecting assessments, stakeholder engagement, strategic priorities, AI-powered insights, organizational knowledge, and real-time progress in one living platform.

Rather than revisiting strategy every few years, organizations can continuously steward it. They can monitor progress, respond to change, celebrate momentum, and ensure every initiative remains connected to the mission they’re working to achieve.

Because the true value of a strategic plan isn’t measured by the day it’s approved. It’s measured by the impact it creates—and the momentum an organization is able to sustain long after the planning process ends.

At this point, most leaders are less interested in predictions and more interested in practical answers. How can AI actually help organizations work more effectively?

For mission-driven organizations, one of the most promising answers isn’t automation. It’s capacity.

Organizations today are being asked to do more with limited time, limited resources, and limited staff. Strategic initiatives compete with daily responsibilities, and long-term priorities often take a back seat to immediate needs. The challenge is rarely a lack of ideas or opportunities. More often, it is finding the time and capacity to pursue them.

This is where AI has the potential to make a meaningful impact.

Rather than replacing employees, AI can help reduce the administrative burden associated with routine tasks and information management. By helping teams work more efficiently, it allows staff and leaders to devote more time to activities that require human judgment, relationship-building, creativity, and strategic thinking.

The value of AI is not simply that it helps organizations work faster. The value is that it creates capacity.

When teams spend less time on administrative work, they gain more time to engage stakeholders, strengthen programs and services, explore new opportunities, and focus on long-term priorities that often get pushed aside by day-to-day demands.

In some cases, that increased capacity can even support organizational growth. Organizations that operate more efficiently may be able to expand programs, serve more people, and pursue new initiatives without increasing administrative workload at the same pace.

Of course, technology alone is not the solution. Organizations still need leaders who can make decisions, teams who understand their communities, and stakeholders who provide valuable perspectives. Human expertise remains at the center of effective planning and organizational leadership.

AI cannot replace those responsibilities. What it can do is help organizations make better use of their most limited resource: time.

As organizations continue exploring AI, the most important question should not be whether technology can replace people. It should be how technology can help people focus more of their energy on the work that matters most.

In mission-driven work, leaders spend their days creating clarity, stability, and forward movement for others. They navigate complexity, hold space for competing needs, and make decisions that ripple across teams and communities. What often gets missed in the midst of all that responsibility is one of the simplest and most grounding practices we have: gratitude.

Gratitude isn’t soft.
It isn’t extra.
And it shouldn’t be a vague feeling reserved for holidays or quiet mornings.

Gratitude is a leadership strategy.
A tool that lifts us out of urgency and re-centers us in what’s working, what’s meaningful, and what we want to build more of.

Why Gratitude Matters for Leaders

Leaders, especially those serving mission-driven organizations, are constantly pouring themselves out. Their attention is pulled toward what’s next, what’s urgent, what’s broken, or what’s possible. Gratitude interrupts that cycle in three powerful ways:

1. Gratitude shifts perspective from scarcity to strength.

Mission-driven work can feel like a never-ending scan for gaps, needs, and risks. Gratitude brings us back to the strengths, relationships, and progress that are already present.

Harvard Business Review notes that gratitude helps leaders “broaden their thinking and boost resilience,” allowing them to see possibilities rather than just problems.

HBR: “Why Gratitude is good for business”

It doesn’t erase challenges — but it gives us the clarity and calm needed to respond wisely.

2. Gratitude slows the pace just long enough for awareness to catch up.

Leaders rarely stop to honor what they’ve carried or accomplished. Gratitude creates a reflective pause — a moment to acknowledge the work, not just push through it.

“Gratitude helps people feel more grounded, present, and aware of the good in their lives—even when the work is demanding.”

Dr. Robert Emmons, UC Berkeley Greater Good Science Center

This isn’t indulgent; it’s stabilizing.

3. Gratitude reconnects leaders to their purpose.

The energy dips.

Decisions slow.

The work doesn’t stop but it starts to feel heavier.

It’s exhausting.

At coLAB, we’ve seen it across teams of every size. Leaders juggling too much. Staff balancing mission and burnout. Big goals, but limited bandwidth to get there. Sustainability isn’t about holding on tighter, it’s about building systems and leadership that make it possible to breathe again.

A Structural Shift, Not a Short-Term Trend

What started in the private sector as a cost-saving experiment has become a lasting shift in how organizations grow. As Forbes recently observed,

“The question is no longer whether the fractional model will last, it’s how businesses can best leverage this shift to drive growth and innovation.”
(Forbes, 2025)

That same principle applies across mission-driven systems. When used intentionally, fractional leadership helps nonprofits build continuity through transition, strengthen governance, and install systems that support scalable growth. It allows organizations to test new models, pilot strategic initiatives, or fill short-term gaps without losing momentum, all key drivers of long-term resilience.

Building What Lasts

Fractional work isn’t just a staffing trend, it’s a sustainability strategy. It enables organizations to adapt to changing conditions, attract high-level expertise, and maintain focus on their mission, even in lean times.

By pairing flexibility with strategy, organizations can invest in what truly matters: leadership that endures, systems that support growth, and impact that lasts.

Full-time hires can be costly and difficult to sustain, yet the need for specialized expertise remains constant. Fractional roles bridge that gap, offering access to seasoned leaders in areas like operations, marketing, or communications, without compromising capacity or stability.

As Harvard Business Review notes,

“Organizations looking to reinvent themselves often seek to acquire senior talent who can infuse new ideas, skills, and leadership… However, hiring and retaining senior talent is fraught with challenges.”
(Harvard Business Review, 2024)

Fractional leaders meet this challenge head-on. They bring perspective, mentorship, and decision-making experience at a fraction of the cost and commitment—strengthening internal capacity while keeping organizations agile and adaptive.

How We Integrate Fractional Work

Our approach to fractional work is rooted in the same belief that guides all of coLAB’s consulting and technology initiatives: strategy must be sustainable, actionable, and human-centered.

We help organizations identify which roles or functions benefit most from a fractional model while ensuring alignment with broader strategic goals. Whether it’s a fractional CEO, Operations Lead, or Strategic Communications partner, our goal is to strengthen internal rhythm and build capacity that lasts long after the engagement ends.

Let’s Build Sustainable Capacity, Together

Fractional work is more than a new way of hiring; it’s a new way of leading.
If your organization is ready to strengthen systems, align teams, and sustain momentum — without the long-term overhead of traditional hiring — we’d love to help you build what lasts.

At coLAB, we’re building more than just products, we’re building the foundations that power them. One of the most exciting (and challenging) parts of our journey has been starting fresh with our codebase. No shortcuts. No hand-me-downs. Just the opportunity to create something original, scalable, and truly our own.

To give you a look behind the scenes, Patrice Castellano, Director of Support Services, sat down with our Chief Technology Officer, Jakub Pilecki, to talk about what it’s like to write code from scratch, how he approaches problems big and small, and what keeps him motivated along the way.

Patrice: What’s the very first thing you do when starting a new coding project from scratch?

Jakub: I start by stepping back and looking at the big picture. That usually means reading documentation, meeting with people, brainstorming, and trying to get a feel for what’s really needed. Before I write a single line of code, I want to understand the ultimate goal and the broader context.

Patrice: How do you decide which programming language or tools to use?

Jakub: In general, I lean on a tech stack I know and trust, built around .NET. Some tools are just industry standards like Redis for caching, RabbitMQ for queues, PostgreSQL or MSSQL for databases, Docker for containerization. These are so common and reliable that you can grab them off the shelf.
But sometimes a particular problem calls for a different approach. For example, a lot of cutting-edge AI work is happening in Python, and .NET often follows by embedding or backporting those solutions. At that point, it’s a judgment call: introduce something “odd” to the usual stack, or solve it within what’s already standard. There’s no single right answer, it’s always case by case.

Patrice: When you’re looking at a huge project, how do you break it into smaller steps?

Jakub: First I identify the key points. Then I think about the pipelines needed to solve each smaller problem — almost like moves in a game, getting from input to output. The goal is to keep things simple, organized, and direct.

Patrice: What keeps you motivated when progress feels slow?

Jakub: Addressing customer pain points with something we built is a huge motivator. In the end, it comes down to promises made and the responsibility to deliver. For me, not succeeding just isn’t an option.

Patrice: How do you make sure your code is easy for other developers to understand?

Jakub: Conventions are huge. If everyone knows the “why” and the “how” behind certain choices, it keeps things consistent. Clear naming, modular code, and comments where needed are also key.
What also really helps is the trust within our team. Many of us have worked together for a decade or more, from college days to different startups. We operate in what I call “fire and forget” mode — we agree on priorities, distribute tasks, and everyone knows what to do. There’s constant communication, of course, but no hand-holding. That trust is powerful.

Patrice: How do you explain your technical work to people who aren’t developers?

Jakub: Lots of drawing. I even bought a tablet just so I could sketch things out on a virtual whiteboard during meetings. A simple diagram usually makes more sense than a long explanation.

Patrice: What’s the most rewarding part of coding from scratch?

Jakub:

For me, the reward isn’t just in starting from scratch, it’s in solving problems elegantly.

When I’m deep into something interesting, I get what I call an “itch.” Finishing the solution and putting those last touches on it scratches that itch. It’s a great feeling.

Patrice: Can you share a time when you had to scrap your first idea and start over?

Jakub: It happens all the time, especially in R&D. You go in with one idea, then refine, adjust, sometimes even start fresh once you learn more.
For example, with Verve’s reporting service, we initially used Apache Superset, a third-party tool. Over time, we realized we needed something built in-house to compliment our product development. So we  built our own reporting-as-code system. Now we have an in-house tool that’s easier for us to use, works across multiple data sources, and runs asynchronously. It’s stronger because we weren’t afraid to reset and rebuild.

Patrice: What advice would you give someone writing code from scratch for the first time?

Jakub: Don’t overthink it. Understand the big picture and the key building blocks, but don’t try to nail every detail right away. Break the problem down, and solve it step by step. Keep your code elegant and flexible. And remember: design patterns are there to help you, not to lock you in.

Patrice: How do you balance writing “perfect” code versus just getting something working?

Jakub: That’s one of the hardest lessons. When I started coding 25 years ago, I wanted to do everything myself, perfectly and completely. Great for learning — not great for business.
There’s no shame in using third-party libraries or boilerplate. In fact, that’s what separates a seasoned developer from a junior. The trick is not to overengineer. Don’t plan for 10,000 scenarios that may never happen. Write your code so that if one of those scenarios does show up, you can add it easily. I’ve seen startups fail because they polished their product for months, only to find customers wanted something else entirely.

Patrice: In your opinion, what makes good code stand the test of time?

Jakub: Stability is big — I love seeing servers with months of uninterrupted uptime. Flexibility is another — if a stakeholder asks for a feature and you can add it quickly, that’s a sign of a solid codebase.
At the same time, experience changes how you see things. I look back at code I was proud of years ago and see ways I’d do it differently today. That’s part of the journey, evolving along with the technology.

Talking with Jakub makes it clear that writing code from scratch isn’t just a technical exercise — it’s a creative process rooted in vision, discipline, and trust. Starting from zero gives us the freedom to build systems that reflect who we are today and where we’re headed tomorrow. At coLAB, that’s exactly the point: no shortcuts, just fresh foundations designed to evolve, scale, and stand the test of time.

Looking ahead,

Patrice Castellano, Director of Support Services

When it comes to blending strategy, product ownership, and the human side of tech, few do it with as much creativity and energy as Bree Gillespie, Vice President of Client Engagement. Bree has helped countless organizations turn big-picture visions into real-world results, always keeping things approachable, inclusive, and fun.

For this conversation, Bree sat down with her colleague Patrice Castellano, Director of Support Services, to talk leadership, women in tech, and what it really takes to make strategy stick. Their candid Q&A touches on everything from bold ideas and product ownership to coffee, playlists (PRINCE!), and the future of women in leadership.

Patrice: Let’s start light. What’s one word your team would use to describe your leadership style?

Bree: Ha, maybe not so light! But I’d say “direct.” I’ve learned that honesty and clarity go a long way, especially for women in leadership roles where it’s easy to second guess. I also think “growth mindset” is part of my style, it’s not one word, but it matters in both sports and leadership.

Patrice: You’ve worn many hats including strategist, product owner, and consultant. How do you know when to zoom out to the big picture and when to dive into details?

Bree: It’s really about the process. You have to evaluate where you are and what will have the biggest impact. Sometimes that means big picture visioning, sometimes it means narrowing in on details. I think of it as convergent and divergent thinking, a funnel that expands and contracts depending on the stage of the work.

Patrice: Strategic planning can sound a little stiff. What’s your favorite way to make strategy feel alive and fun?

Bree:

I think of strategy as creative problem solving. At its heart, that’s exciting. When you keep people at the center, making sure it’s interactive, human, and focused on real change, it becomes inspiring instead of overwhelming. Strategy should be about making lives better, not just creating a list of tasks.

Patrice: Product ownership is a balancing act with features, bugs, deadlines, and big ideas. What’s your secret sauce for keeping it all moving without losing the human side?

Bree: Teamwork. None of it happens without a strong team. I see myself as one cog in a bigger wheel, and when it comes to the human side, I always try to see through the lens of real world impact, how the product actually helps organizations and the people doing the hard, important work in their communities.

Patrice: As a woman in tech, what’s been the most surprising or funniest moment you’ve had breaking into the space?

Bree: Honestly, just learning with open eyes. Tech is one of those areas where you never “arrive,” there’s always more to learn. Staying humble and open has been the biggest key to success.

Patrice: If you could rewrite the rules of leadership for the next generation of women, what would you toss out and what would you keep?

Bree: Toss out doubt. Take up space, speak up, and don’t be afraid to push. Everyone deserves a seat at the table, and we can set the example by showing up fully every day.

Patrice: What’s the boldest idea you’ve ever pitched in a strategy session or product meeting? Did it land or flop?

Bree: Oh, plenty of flops! That’s the nature of innovation, you have to be willing to let go of a lot of ideas, even ones you love. Every so often, one sticks. Recently I pitched a product extension idea, how to add more value for clients through tech that makes life easier for end users. That’s the kind of impact that lasts.

Patrice: Everyone talks about innovation, but what does it actually look like in your daily work?

Bree: For me, it’s constant rethinking, what can be better, what’s next, how do we improve? It’s fun to chase the big idea, but a lot of innovation comes from revisiting the plan, iterating, and making sure the small details line up so the big impact can happen.

Patrice: Coffee, playlists, post-its… What’s your non-negotiable tool when you’re deep in planning mode?

Bree: A homemade latte with honey from my Aunt Dot’s bee farm. Nothing else compares.

Patrice: Last one, what advice would you give young women who want to lead in tech or strategy but don’t see many role models who look like them?

Bree: If the elevator tries to bring you down, go crazy and punch a higher floor. (Thanks, Prince!) Don’t stop until you get what you want and deserve.

Interviewing Bree reminded me that leadership isn’t just about strategy or great products, it’s about staying human, curious, and open to possibility. Bree embodies all of that and more. My hope is that readers leave with the reminder that women in leadership are shaping the future of tech and strategy in ways that are both bold and approachable.

Until next time,

Patrice Castellano, Director of Support Services

There’s this moment that happens again and again when someone asks, “So, what do you do?” And I pause because the answer is, “I’m in tech… but not in the way most people think.” I often find myself navigating the explanation behind that because while my work lives in the world of platforms, data systems, and digital infrastructure, it doesn’t always match the image people have in mind when they hear “tech.”

I don’t write code. I’m not the person building infrastructure from scratch or running servers. But I am helping build something else entirely: systems that hold complexity, platforms that connect people and purpose, and teams that move forward because someone is thinking five steps ahead.

And that is tech.

Over the years, I’ve come to realize that being a woman in tech doesn’t always mean fitting the mold. It can mean being the one who understands the process behind the product, who translates between stakeholders and software, and who builds not just for functionality, but for impact, equity, and longevity. Strategy isn’t a soft skill in this context. It’s a technical one.

And yet, so many women I admire hesitate to claim space in this world because their work doesn’t fit the stereotypical version of a “tech leader.” We downplay the value of systems thinking, of facilitation, of implementation planning because we’ve been taught to see those things as invisible labor, not innovation.

Here’s what I want to say instead:

Strategy is execution.
Translation is technology.
Leadership is technical.

When we give ourselves permission to be strategic, we unlock a different kind of power not just for ourselves, but for the teams and communities we serve. We make room for nuance, we hold space for conflict, and we design with intention. That work may be quiet, complex, and unglamorous but it’s the backbone of every successful tech-driven initiative I’ve seen.

And I want more women to feel like they belong here not in spite of their approach, but because of it.

So if you’re someone who’s built your role at the intersection of systems, people, and possibility: you’re not “just” anything. You’re in tech. You’re strategic. And your work deserves to be seen.

At coLAB, when we partner with organizations, we begin by helping them assess their readiness for strategic planning. Here are some of the signals we look for to determine if it’s the right moment to embark on the journey. In each of these phases, we make pointed recommendations to ensure your team is set up for a successful strategic planning process, one that results in a meaningful and well-crafted plan you can act on with confidence.

Board Curiosity?

Do board members express confusion about where the organization is headed? Do conversations keep circling back to questions like: What’s our long-term direction? How do we prioritize among so many competing needs?

How coLAB helps: We listen for these pain points in board conversations and use facilitated dialogue to clarify where the uncertainty lies. Our team then designs a readiness framework that pinpoints whether the board needs deeper alignment before entering into full strategic planning.

Can You Show Impact?

Funders and donors increasingly want to see measurable outcomes, not just compelling stories. If your organization struggles to show how programs create real impact or if your team lacks the tools to track it, fundraising and credibility may be at risk.

How coLAB helps: We begin by assessing your current data systems, reporting practices, and evaluation culture. From there, we recommend tools and approaches to strengthen outcome tracking, ensuring you’re ready to link strategy to measurable impact.

Is Leadership Aligned on the Path Forward?

When executive teams aren’t aligned on the future, energy gets scattered. Some leaders may pursue funding opportunities that don’t quite fit. Others may push initiatives that compete for limited resources. A strategic plan creates shared clarity, ensuring everyone is pulling in the same direction.

How coLAB helps: We use structured interviews and alignment sessions to uncover where leadership perspectives converge, and where they diverge. This assessment allows us to build a roadmap that creates consensus, so planning starts from a place of unity.

Do Staff Have the Capacity to Succeed?

Does your board ask staff to deliver on new priorities without the time, people, or resources to succeed? Do your staff feel like they’re constantly reacting instead of proactively shaping their work? Strategic planning can bridge these gaps, aligning ambitions with capacity.

How coLAB helps: We engage staff at all levels to understand real capacity constraints and resource challenges. This input ensures the planning process is grounded in reality and positions the organization to set achievable goals.

Are Your Community’s Needs Outpacing the Resources You Have?

Sometimes the community’s needs don’t match what the organization currently has to offer. Other times, an organization simply doesn’t have a clear picture of the community’s most urgent priorities. In both cases, strategic planning provides the space to step back, gather input, and chart a sustainable path forward.

How coLAB helps: We conduct stakeholder interviews, focus groups, and community assessments to provide a clearer picture of needs. This gives leaders the confidence that their strategy is not only aspirational but also responsive to the community they serve.

Is Your Executive Director or CEO Prepared to Lead This Strategic Change?

Finally, much depends on the executive leader. If the Executive Director or CEO  is open to reflection, committed to honest conversations, and eager to build alignment, strategic planning can become a transformative process, not just for them, but for the entire organization.

How coLAB helps: We work closely with the executive leader as a thought partner, providing coaching and guidance through the readiness phase. This ensures the leader is equipped to champion the process and sustain momentum once the plan is in motion.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

Strategic planning is more than a retreat or a document, it’s a chance to create clarity, strengthen alignment, and unlock your nonprofit’s potential. If any of these signals sound familiar, it may be the right time to begin.

At coLAB, we specialize in helping nonprofits assess their readiness and guide them through people-centered, data-informed planning processes that set them up for long-term impact.

When I first stepped into the nonprofit sector right out of college, I witnessed both the beauty and the burden of mission-driven work. Organizations were doing incredible things, but often under intense pressure: scarce resources, boards with good intentions but little clarity, leaders stretched thin, and communities whose needs were greater than any single organization could meet.

I started my career at CASA, advocating for children and families, and quickly realized that passion alone wasn’t enough. Nonprofits needed structure. They needed strategy. They needed boards and leaders with tools, systems, and clear direction to match their commitment. That realization set me on a journey that has defined my career.

Building the Foundation

My early experiences inspired me to pursue a Master’s in Nonprofit Management at Regis University, in Denver, Colorado. That program opened the world to me, through coursework, fieldwork with nonprofits and NGOs across the United States and a capstone project in South Africa where I saw firsthand how vision and systems could transform entire communities.

After graduate school, I applied my learning with a national consulting firm, OP3. I had the privilege of working on large-scale campaigns, national fundraising strategies, corporate partnerships, and volunteer engagement initiatives that became models of excellence. I loved the energy, the creativity, and the scale,but when I moved back to Lancaster to raise my family, I knew I wanted to bring that same impact closer to home.

The Birth of coLAB

In 2014, I launched coLAB 1.0 with a simple conviction: our community deserves strong, sustainable nonprofits that have the clarity and confidence to lead lasting change. Since then, along with an incredible team, I’ve worked alongside organizations of every size, helping them pause, think differently, and design strategies that not only fulfill their mission but also build resilience and long-term impact.

Along the way, I’ve been inspired by mentors and thought leaders like Hildy Gottlieb, whose visioning frameworks I still use today, and colleagues across the country and beyond who model collaboration, courage, and innovation.

Why Strategic Planning?

At its heart, strategic planning is about slowing down so you can move forward with purpose.

Too often, nonprofits are caught in the whirlwind of daily demands,program delivery, fundraising events, staffing needs. The urgent overtakes the important. But when an organization takes the time to step back, reimagine its future, and design the systems to get there, something powerful happens:

• Leaders are empowered. Boards and staff gain clarity on where they’re going and how to get there.
• Resources align. Fundraising and staffing strategies flow from clear goals, making organizations more attractive to donors, employees, and partners.
• Impact deepens. With systems to measure outcomes and demonstrate success, organizations can build credibility, accelerate results, and tell a more powerful story.
• Communities benefit. When nonprofits thrive, the ripple effects strengthen the very communities they serve.

Nonprofits exist to solve problems bigger than any one of us. Strategic planning gives them the tools to do that well,not just for today, but for the long haul.

A recent example is our work with the Lancaster Conservancy, where strategic planning brought together staff, board members, and community stakeholders to look five years (and beyond!) at the role of the Conservancy’s preserves and education programs, among many other critical components of their work in both York and Lancaster County. By aligning priorities, clarifying staffing structures, and building a roadmap for organizational sustainability, the Conservancy not only strengthened its capacity but also positioned itself to expand its impact on conservation and education across the region. This is the power of strategy in action, when vision meets structure, organizations unlock new potential to serve their communities.

Why I Love It

For me, this isn’t just work, it’s a calling. Strategic planning allows me to blend everything I care about: empowering people, building systems that last, and creating space for bold visions that feel possible. Every planning process is a chance to listen deeply, to lift up voices that aren’t always heard, and to help organizations see that they can achieve more than they imagined.

And I don’t do it alone. The incredible coLAB team brings together expertise in strategy, data, implementation, and community engagement,and their brilliance, heart, and commitment inspire me daily. Strategic planning is not a solo endeavor; it requires a multidisciplinary team to create the greatest impact. My business partners and colleagues at coLAB are the reason this work is possible.

That same spirit of collaboration is what led us to develop VERVE, our software platform designed to make sustainability and strategic planning more accessible and equitable for nonprofits everywhere. We know that many organizations struggle with cost and capacity when it comes to planning, and VERVE is our way of putting affordable, practical tools directly into their hands,so every nonprofit, no matter its size or resources, can thrive.

I believe that when leaders take time to imagine the future, align around it, and chart a clear path forward, our communities are stronger, more equitable, and more resilient. That’s why I do this work, and why, after more than a decade of coLAB, I still love it.

With purpose + possibility, 

Kate