3 ways leadership development strengthens social movements

Across the country, Americans are struggling to put dinner on the table and see a doctor without breaking the bank. Social movement organizations—groups that organize people and resources to drive social, political, or economic change—are working harder than ever to support communities in this time of great need by helping people build power and shape their lives for the better. 

But to do so, whether that’s helping tenants secure better housing conditions, ensuring immigrant communities know their rights, or empowering workers to unionize their workplace, they have to level up the skills of the organizers—with strategies for long-term organizing (and when to employ it over short-term mobilization), assessing the changing political conditions that impact organizing, and mitigating burnout.

By investing in training, mentorship, and resources for their organizers, social movement organizations can achieve better outcomes for the communities they serve and improve an organization’s overall health. And the returns on investment are clear—studies have shown that employers earn back $7 for every $1 spent on leadership programs, and leadership development can also help reduce turnover. Critically, about 40% of nonprofit staff leave because they lack career growth opportunities. Beyond improving retention, these investments can also improve crisis response and build organizational resilience in the face of external political threats and internal challenges.

What does leadership development for organizers look like? 

1. Teaching organizers how to build strategic campaign plans that go beyond just reacting to the crisis of the moment and proactively articulating a vision for justice—and the steps it will take to get there.   
2. Providing organizers with both mentors to guide them and a community of peers to collaborate alongside.  
3. Equipping organizers with the resources they need to do this work sustainably, strategically, and across changing political conditions and communities.

Why should organizations invest in leadership development? 

1. Reduces turnover

Especially in today’s political climate, many organizers report feeling burnt out. As a result, they leave the field. High turnover doesn’t just mean instability for organizations—it also means there are fewer seasoned organizers doing the work and passing on their knowledge to the next generation of leaders. 

When we give organizers the resources and mentorship they need to do the work, they do it in a more sustainable way, reducing turnover and keeping leaders in the field for the long haul. Say an organizer wants to run a get-out-the-vote campaign in their city. This requires building relationships with community members and leaders, creating an outreach plan, developing compelling messaging, recruiting volunteers, and more. For one person, that’s a daunting task. It’s not hard to imagine this lone organizer suffering burnout before moving on to a less taxing venture. But if this same organizer has mentors who can share best practices with them and the resources to create strategic plans and content, not only can they run a more effective campaign—they can get to Election Day with the energy and resolve to build on their success in the next campaign cycle. 

2. Improves crisis management

Many organizers feel like they’re bouncing from one crisis to the next. And in politically charged environments, that’s sometimes true. But when everything else feels uncertain, we want leaders who can hold steady. When we give organizers the time and resources to develop long-term strategic plans, they’ll know what to do when things go wrong. They can more effectively respond to crises and continue toward their longer-term goals, and learn the skills needed to prevent the next crisis. 

3. Builds power inside and outside of organizations

One of the most important skills organizers need is the ability to articulate a vision and design campaigns that build toward it. Calls to lower the cost of living are common, but they raise a deeper question: What would it actually mean for people to be able to afford dignified lives? Increasing the minimum wage is an important short-term goal—but to comprehensively tackle the affordability crisis, organizers need to create a long-term structural agenda that integrates affordability into everyday life, beyond short-term fixes. 

When we teach organizers how to build strategic, long-term campaigns, we increase the chances of creating lasting, positive change in our communities—such as helping people afford what they need with dignity.  

Investing in leadership development for lasting change

It’s natural that movement organizations are often quick to allocate resources toward programmatic work. But for their campaigns to be effective, it’s critical that they allocate resources toward leadership development for their organizers. If we want to change outcomes for vulnerable communities, we have to ensure that the people doing that work have the knowledge, resources, and bandwidth to actually build strategic and effective campaigns.

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