Conference Workshops

Nationally recognized motivational speaker, Dr. Steve Sobel, presents his uniquely designed lesson plan for living fully, resiliently, and enjoyably as life’s challenges test you every day. Join us for Dr. Sobel’s inspiring thoughts and strategies that encourage you to receive every day as a gift. Join us to experience Steve’s unique brand of compassion and humor. Dr. Sobel is the author of “The Good Times Handbook – Your Guide To Positive Living.”

Leading nonprofit teams in today’s culture is intense. In this trauma-informed workshop, we will talk about how to put passion in its place to work with a feeling of connection to the mission. This presentation will include time to talk with other leaders to share best practices, strategies for leadership health and wellness, and a special focus on how to manage staff who want to be strong voices for change online, while they simultaneously serve as representatives of their nonprofit organizations.

Compassion Fatigue and Burnout are states of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. They occur when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet constant demands and can leave you feeling devoid of motivation and beyond caring. In this workshop, participants will identify specific signs of Compassion Fatigue and Burnout and explore the role that connection (to self, to others, and to something greater) can make in recharging their energy reserves.

Leading nonprofit teams in today’s culture is intense. In this trauma-informed workshop, we will talk about how to put passion in its place to work with a feeling of connection to the mission. This presentation will include time to talk with other leaders to share best practices, strategies for leadership health and wellness, and a special focus on how to manage staff who want to be strong voices for change online, while they simultaneously serve as representatives of their nonprofit organizations.

In this workshop, we will discuss the importance of Development staff and Program & Service staff working together. The productive partnership between these two teams can lead to fruitful returns – both financially and organizationally.Participants will come away with an understanding of the importance of collaboration between Development and Program & Services teams. Fundraisers will come away with ideas on how to enhance their fundraising strategies and abilities by building relationships with programs & services teams. 

FOCUS Center for Autism and The Fresh Start School are proud to present their panel of experts. Panelists are articulate, open, and honest about their lived experiences.

Join us to find out what works and what doesn’t with this population, learn about the importance of relationships and about about anxiety management. We will also discuss the importance of understanding sensory needs & the Circle of Anxiety. In this workshop we’ll find out what this population’s strengths and challenges are and what works best to support them.

Through The Alliance, nonprofits have been advocating for increased funding from the state budget for years. But recently, the state’s restrictive budgetary controls, often referred to as “fiscal guardrails,” have made progress slower than nonprofits need, often blocking the way for bigger increases. Now, the guardrails have to change if nonprofits want their funding to continue to increase.

The Alliance is fighting for this change. What can you do to help? Join a panel of experts, advocates and nonprofit legislative champions to learn more about the guardrails – what they are and how they came to be. We will plan for how you can help make this change happen in 2025 and beyond.

As the traditional fundraising landscape shifts, finding creative ways to generate unrestricted revenue plays a critical role in providing financial flexibility and stability for your nonprofit. This dynamic workshop is designed to equip nonprofits with an introduction to creating a sustainable and impactful social enterprise. Discover the essential aspects of building a social enterprise and how it can drive your nonprofit’s mission forward with resilience and innovation.

This workshop will explore strategies you can deploy to develop and execute a DEI effort that not just a social justice initiative but an organizational performance imperative.Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) initiatives are all about change. Organizations in the United States spend $8 billion on diversity and inclusion training each year. Yet DEI initiatives are failing or being abandoned. The results simply aren’t there: 45% of US workers report experiencing discrimination in the past year and 75% of employees in underrepresented groups do not feel they have personally benefited from their company’s DEI programs.

What strategies could you employ to manage your manager more effectively? Managing your boss is a skill you need, regardless of your relationship or how effective your boss is at doing their job. Your professional effectiveness can directly result from how well you “manage up.”

In this workshop, you will learn how to tap into the strengths and talents of both you and your boss, the power of building mentoring relationships, and the impact of professional networking. Manage Up! will help you enhance and elevate your performance and your professional standing. With the easy-to-apply tips and highly practical strategies shared in this program, you learn important skills and increase your overall personal sense of job satisfaction and engagement.

This workshop is designed specifically for experienced executive leaders in the nonprofit sector, focusing on critical areas essential for organizational success and long-term viability. The workshop will cover topics such as building an internal talent pipeline, implementing innovative donor engagement strategies, understanding financial reporting and compliance, and effectively selecting and evaluating vendors. Participants will enhance their critical thinking skills and transformative leadership practices and gain a comprehensive understanding of emergency management to navigate crises effectively.

Does your organization have a plan to transition leaders and other key talent when it is “time” for them to leave? Traditionally, we’ve thought of succession planning only in relation to retirements but in today’s job market, key employees are leaving for a variety of reasons. Preparing for these departures is critical to your organization’s sustainability. Join us to learn important insights and strategies to ensure that your organization has a succession plan in place for each of your key team members.

This interactive workshop provides practical strategies to foster a work environment where teamwork and communication are improved across generations. We’ll look at the best ways to leverage unique communication strengths of each generation, to strengthen cohesiveness and teamwork at work. Through interactive discussions and role-play scenarios participants will gain ways to find common ground and shared goals; and to foster an environment where all generations feel valued.