Ask a Nonprofit Expert
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** Ask a Nonprofit Expert: Raises We Can’t Afford
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August 14, 2025
Welcome to Ask a Nonprofit Expert, the nonprofit sector’s go-to advice column where seasoned nonprofit leaders offer advice and answers about how to build thriving, equitable organizations.
In this issue, NPQ’s interim CEO and editor-in-chief, Sara Hudson, answers a reader’s question about juggling nonprofit staff wellbeing and organization finances.
Got a question of your own? Submit it here ([link removed]) .
What Do You Do When Your Nonprofit Staff Want Raises We Can’t Afford?
By Sara Hudson
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Dear AANE,
During its formative years, our organization prioritized equity over expansion and made decisions to positively impact the compensation and work-life balance of our staff. There seems to now be a culture, if you will, among us wherein the enhancements have now raised the expectations.
Some of us simultaneously pride ourselves on working outside of (and often against) societal power structures and corporate mindsets, while expecting retirement plans, guaranteed cost-of-living raises, and an overabundance of transparency in the employment/compensation arrangements of our coworkers.
While we are making efforts to raise and diversify our development capacity, much of our funding is level, public, and predictable. We want to provide for our staff to the degree that we can, but without risking negative impact on the sustainability of our mission. It can be challenging, at times, to see these priorities as congruent (which they are), as even the most dedicated professionals among us must prioritize our own personal needs and goals as well.
The question, then, is: What are some ideas on how to frame or lead conversations surrounding this issue?
…
Dear Committed But Conflicted,
Honey, congratulations. Every leader who raises the bar for staff expectations eventually faces this moment—the one when you look around and realize you’ve built a team that believes they deserve more, and they’re absolutely right.
(But you don’t have more.)
This isn’t a failure of leadership—it’s success that’s gotten messy. Your people are asking for retirement plans and cost-of-living raises? Bless your heart, you’ve done something most nonprofits never manage. You’ve dismantled that old “take one for the cause” mindset that’s kept our sector underpaying good people for decades.
Now comes the harder part: learning how to sustain what you’ve built without breaking your budget—or your heart.
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Ask a Nonprofit Expert is the sector’s go-to advice column by civic leaders, for nonprofit readers. In this new series, NPQ Leading Edge members can submit pressing questions about navigating nonprofit challenges. Our cohort of seasoned nonprofit leaders will publish thoughtful, actionable answers to pressing organizational challenges and leadership dilemmas. Ready to get unstuck? Submit your question anonymously here ([link removed]) !
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