The Nonprofit Insider Podcast · Swim Karim

Getting Fired From a Nonprofit, Part II

·27 min·1 clip

"If the turnover in your organization is high, but not with the leadership team, then chances are the problem is from the top."

1. The Nonprofit Insider Podcast episode "Getting Fired From a Nonprofit, Part II" links nonprofit firing practices to the current wave of federal layoffs. 2. Host Sam Kareem frames the conversation as a follow-up to episode 58 and names the Department of Government Efficiency and roughly 14,000 federal workers as the backdrop. 3. The episode asks what nonprofits should learn from a month of rapid firings and how leaders should handle dismissals differently. 4. Kareem argues nonprofits should "do pretty much the exact opposite" of the way many public-sector layoffs are being handled. 5. He says many nonprofits either let people go "very well" or do it in a way that avoids lawsuits and stays "by the book." 6. Kareem pushes for nonprofit leaders to be "OK with being human" when they terminate staff. 7. He previews a future conversation with Camille Ridley from Phoenix and quotes her line about "Being human." 8. Muhammad, described as a longtime nonprofit insider, worked for a Native American nonprofit organization as a fundraiser. 9. Muhammad says he was fired after a performance review and felt the dismissal was "kind of bullshit." 10. He says he was "cornered in my office after lunch by the COO and my supervisor" and felt like he was "being arrested." 11. His immediate emotions were "anger, confusion, and sadness," and those feelings lasted for weeks. 12. Muhammad says the anger became motivation to find another job with a similar mission and a better team. 13. He says warning signs started with comments about his character and claims that coworkers were offended because he "mansplained something." 14. Muhammad also says he was written up for being behind on his fundraising goals after the accusations. 15. In his final message to nonprofit leaders, he says turnover among non-leaders usually means "the leaders are toxic as fuck." 16. He tells boards to hold the CEO or ED accountable when turnover is high and to talk to employees one by one. 17. Kareem says a nonprofit should have ways for board members to interact with staff, even if they are not close friends. 18. The episode uses a fast-talking, conversational format with repeated asides, profanity, and a mix of personal story and sector critique. 19. People working in nonprofit management or board oversight would get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting a polished leadership interview or a calm tone may skip it.

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