PLC Newsletter: Meeting the Moment: What Philanthropy is Signaling About Nonprofit Readiness

Our second session in the “Thriving Through Change: The Future of Healthy, Ready & Resilient Nonprofits” series was a fireside chat with Kylee Mitchell Wells, the founding executive director of Ballmer Group’s Southeast Michigan office. Kylee is a force. A systems thinker. A truth teller. A leader who sits at the intersection of philanthropy, policy and community impact. She also brings lived experience across corporate, government and nonprofit sectors, which means she sees things many leaders inside organizations cannot always see for themselves.

If Webinar 1 was about grounding in the realities nonprofits face, Webinar 2 was about widening the aperture. Kylee brought perspective that nonprofits need to hear right now. Not because it is comfortable. But because it is clarifying.

Here is the video. Pardon the antics at the beginning. We got to where we needed to be. You’ll get my point if you watch. 😂

What is keeping funders up at night

We asked participants what was keeping them up at night. Then I asked Kylee the same question. Her answer cut straight to the point. She is thinking about kids and families who will be affected by the massive shifts underway in government funding, social safety nets and nonprofit capacity. She noted the ripple effects of program interruptions like recent SNAP benefit delays and how those gaps show up in food insecurity within days or even hours. Her story about two grantee partners organically coordinating food distribution because their local food bank had run short said it all. Nonprofits are holding the line in real time.

This is not theoretical. It is immediate. And it is personal.

Organizational health, from a funder’s vantage point

I shared PLC’s definition of organizational health. Aligning people with mission and purpose. Strengthening trust. Clarifying roles. Reducing friction. Building readiness. Kylee expanded that frame with two big levers funders watch closely.

1. Financial clarity.
She looks at the numbers, but not just the numbers. She looks at the story behind them. Solvency. Revenue diversification. Expenses directed to mission. Whether salary structures are sustainable. Whether the organization is positioned to withstand volatility. Funders want to know that the dollars they invest reach the community and that the organization is designed to operate with stability.

2. Leadership clarity.
Boards matter. Executive teams matter. Expertise matters. Kylee was candid. Too many nonprofits are so focused on delivering services that they stop looking up. But funders are always looking up. They assess whether boards have the right skill sets and whether executive leaders have the capacity to execute. If an organization wants to thrive, governance is not optional. It is foundational.

And she made one thing unmistakably clear. In her view, every nonprofit board should be a working board. The work may look different based on context. But disengagement at the board level is not an option that leads to resilience.

Storytelling, truth telling and why both matter

When organizations make governance changes or strategic pivots, leaders often fear how those shifts will be perceived. Instability or growth. Weakness or evolution. Kylee’s response was simple. It depends on how you tell your story.

Nonprofits rarely have the resources to communicate effectively, yet story is strategy. Story shapes trust. Story shapes donor confidence. Story shapes whether people understand why change is happening and how it will strengthen impact.

Silence breeds speculation. Clarity breeds stability.

What “thriving” actually looks like

Surviving and thriving are not the same. Surviving means meeting goals but lacking the capacity to adapt, expand or innovate. Thriving means something different. Kylee described thriving across three dimensions.

Financially. Sustainable reserves. Thoughtful scenario planning. Avoiding overextension based on one time funding streams. Several Detroit nonprofits survived the city’s bankruptcy and the pandemic because they planned for uncertainty even when resources were plentiful.

Programmatically. Thriving means helping clients move toward independence, not revisiting the same crisis repeatedly. If clients remain stuck, the organization is stuck too.

Strategically. Thriving requires advocacy. Many nonprofit challenges are rooted in policy barriers that limit client progress. If policy keeps people from moving forward, service delivery alone will not solve the problem.

This aligns deeply with PLC’s perspective. Readiness is a system. If you are not scanning the environment, you cannot adapt to it.

What funders wish nonprofits would say out loud

We talked about trust based philanthropy. Kylee said something that every nonprofit leader should write on a Post-it and keep visible. Funders do not just want to hear what is working. They need to hear what is not.

She reminded us that money is the easiest thing for funders to give. The harder, more transformative support comes from relationships, networks, influence, policy connections and amplification. None of that activates if organizations only showcase their brightest side.

Truth creates possibility. Possibility creates partnership. Partnership creates impact.

The board’s role in fundraising and strategy

Participants asked about the board’s role in fundraising. Kylee’s answer reflected nuance. The right approach depends on the size, structure and life stage of the organization. But the expectation she named was straightforward. If you join a board, be prepared to contribute. Be prepared to raise resources. Be prepared to be visible in the community. And be prepared to understand the actual work so your advocacy is informed and credible.

Title without engagement does not move missions forward.

Making the case for investing in people and systems

Kylee emphasized something that aligns directly with PLC’s organizational health work. Internal systems determine whether organizations can meet their mission. Staff capacity. Operational clarity. Inventory systems. Workflow. The back office is not overhead. It is the engine. And funders notice.

Nonprofits cannot deliver strong programming without strong systems. Full stop.

The mindset shift leaders need now

When I asked her what mindset shift matters most right now, Kylee did not hesitate. Be comfortable with change.

“There is so much opportunity in ambiguity. Change will happen, and successful nonprofits make friends with it.”

Change is inevitable. It is coming whether we prepare for it or not. Resilient organizations learn to partner, plan and adapt forward. They know when to lead and when to lean on others. They look beyond their own walls and act like part of an ecosystem rather than an island.

Possibility lives inside ambiguity. That was her reminder.

What gives her hope

Kylee’s answer to our closing question was powerful in its simplicity. There is opportunity in ambiguity. Even in moments of uncertainty, she sees leaders partnering more intentionally, telling the truth more boldly and designing with more foresight.

Hope is not naïve. Hope is a choice. And it is a strategy.

Final thought

If Webinar 1 was about the real-time strain nonprofits are navigating, Webinar 2 was about the signals philanthropy is sending. The message was clear. Resilient organizations tell the truth. They plan ahead. They invest in people and systems. They build governance that matches their mission. They collaborate widely. They communicate openly. And they adapt forward with intention.

If your organization is wrestling with how to strengthen its readiness, align its board, or build the systems needed to thrive through change, PLC is here to help you think it through.