September 23, 2026 Leadership

The most important leadership lesson I’ve learned: Mat Tinkler, CEO, Save the Children Australia

What are the leadership lessons that stay with us long after the books have been read and the courses have finished? In this series, we sit down with some of Australia’s most influential NFP leaders to explore the defining moments and insights that have shaped how they lead.

For our third post in this series, we spoke with Mat Tinkler, CEO of Save the Children Australia. Mat has spent almost a decade with Save the Children, championing child rights in Australia and helping grow its work around the world.

Along the way, Mat’s learned that becoming a better leader isn’t always about learning more – sometimes it’s about unlearning what you thought leadership was supposed to look like. Here, he explains why learning to be more vulnerable has made him a better leader.

September 16, 2026 Culture and Values, Organisational Strategy

How to keep purpose front and centre in your NFP

Decades of psychology research show that humans have a deep-seated desire to find meaning in what they do. For many, that desire is what draws them to a workplace or a particular job. They want to contribute to something bigger than themselves – by improving lives, supporting communities or protecting the environment.

But that sense of purpose in NFP workplaces isn’t always guaranteed. When job demands increase, teams evolve and day-to-day responsibilities become more routine, it’s easy for the bigger picture to fade into the background.

So how can NFP leaders and HR teams keep that sense of purpose alive for their employees as the day-to-day work becomes familiar?

September 9, 2026 Organisational Strategy, Risk Management

How to manage risk in your NFP: A practical guide to the essential elements

Risk management essentials for NFP organisations

Are you ready for a cyberattack on your organisation’s website? How about a key staff member resigning and taking years of organisational knowledge with them? Floods? Fires?

Most NFP leaders don’t need to be told that unexpected things can go wrong in their organisation on any given day. But how ready are you for what might go wrong tomorrow?

This post explains the essentials of risk management and how – whatever size your organisation is – you can begin understanding and addressing your biggest risks thoroughly and systematically.

September 2, 2026 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Organisational Strategy, Recruitment

Could your NFP be hiring (more) refugees?

As the Australia debates whether our intake of refugees is the “right” number, ACOSS has noted that “20,000 refugees per year is . . . just three to five per cent of arrivals.”

But the heated debate over numbers obscures the enormous contribution refugees make to our economy – including as employees, often in regional areas or in less popular jobs that can be impossible to fill otherwise.

Refugees often arrive in Australia with valuable skills but without recognised qualifications and sometimes with challenges that are a result of their experiences of displacement.

For organisations looking to fill vacancies or skills gaps – and potentially make an additional impact by helping some of the most vulnerable people in our community – employing refugees might be an option you haven’t fully considered.

August 26, 2026 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, People Analytics, Remuneration

A workplace that works for everyone: How to tackle socioeconomic disadvantage in your workforce

Most people tend to think of the workplace as a meritocracy: if people have the right skills and experience, work hard and perform well, they have the same opportunity to succeed.

But socioeconomic background can shape people’s working lives in ways that are not easily visible – influencing who gets hired, who progresses, who feels they belong and ultimately who reaches senior positions.

In Australia, one in three children born into the lowest 20 per cent of income-earning families will still be in that group by adulthood.

So what can NFP employers do to work out where those barriers are showing up in their workplaces, and how can they remove them?

August 19, 2026 Human Resources, Legal Issues, Remuneration

Big changes to the SCHADS Award: What NFP employers need to know

On 1 June 2026, the Fair Work Commission handed down a significant decision that will reshape pay and classification structures for most of Australia’s social, community, and disability services employers.

Back in June 2024, the Commission launched a review of five modern awards to understand whether they had been undervaluing work because it was done predominantly by women.

The FWC found that the previous system – inherited from older awards – was outdated, overly complex, confusing, and frequently led to misclassifications and workplace pay disputes due to unclear role descriptions.

The result of the review is a complete overhaul of the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services (SCHADS) Award – the most significant reform to the award in more than 15 years. To help unpack the changes, we spoke with Ben McAlpine, director of policy and advocacy at the NSW Council of Social Service (NCOSS).

August 5, 2026 Leadership

The most important leadership lesson I’ve learned: Ronni Kahn AO, OzHarvest founder

What are the leadership lessons that stay with us long after the books have been read and the courses have finished? In this series, we sit down with some of Australia’s most influential NFP leaders to explore the defining moments and insights that have shaped how they lead.

For our second post in this series, we spoke with Ronni Kahn AO, the founder, former CEO and now ‘visionary in residence’ at OzHarvest. Since rescuing her first surplus food in 2004, Ronni has grown OzHarvest into Australia’s leading food rescue organisation, recovering quality food that would otherwise go to waste from supermarkets, restaurants, farmers and businesses, and delivering it to charities that support people experiencing food insecurity. Along the way, she’s built a national team of staff and thousands of volunteers united by a shared purpose.

Here, Ronni shares the leadership principles that have guided her from day one.

July 29, 2026 AI in the Workplace, Making Decisions, Recruitment, Recruitment & HR Technology

Tempted to use AI to shortlist your job applicants? Here are four reasons that’s a bad idea

Four reasons not to use AI to shortlist applicants

Reviewing job applications can be hard, time-consuming work – especially when you have a long list of applicants.

And in the last couple of years, AI large language model (LLM) tools like ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini have become appealing options to cut down the hours and effort of reviewing and shortlisting your job applications.

But while AI can help automate many once-manual processes, should reviewing applications be one of them?

Professor Alysia Blackham from Melbourne Law School is one of the world’s leading experts in age discrimination law. She explains why it’s a bad idea to rely on AI tools to screen your job applicants.

July 22, 2026 Culture and Values, Health & Wellbeing, Legal Issues

The right to disconnect: is your organisation doing enough?

Going above and beyond is often part of the culture in many NFPs. Employees answer messages out of hours because a client is in crisis, stay back because an event needs to run, or volunteer extra hours because they believe deeply in the mission.

But when passion quietly becomes an expectation of being constantly “on”, even the most committed employees can reach their limit. Burnout, resentment and staff turnover can follow – particularly in organisations already stretched by limited resources.

July 15, 2026 Health & Wellbeing, Managing People Well

Supporting employees through grief in the workplace: a guide for NFPs

Every workplace will, at some point, be affected by grief. An employee loses a parent, grandparent, pet or friend. They take compassionate leave and, before long, they’re back at work.

But while workplace policies can determine when someone’s leave is over, they can’t determine how long their grief lasts, or how it affects their work.

Given how prevalent grief is in our lives, the support we receive in the workplace after a loss can make a real difference to how we process it. We spoke to Dr Kelly Gough, president of the Australian Psychological Society, about the different ways grief can affect employees, and what managers can do to help them feel seen and supported.

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