Working Hard—and Working Well
Secrets from the Social Sector’s “Performance Whisperer”
In Working Hard—and Working Well, Dr. David E.K. Hunter shares the secret formula behind the intensive, tough-love workshops that have sparked transformation for many of the country’s top nonprofit organizations. You can download a copy now.
The book is highly relevant for:
- Nonprofit leaders who know that guesswork is not enough when lives are on the line
- Board members and advisors who are brave enough to ensure that their organizations do what they say they do
- Consultants who want to help nonprofits develop performance cultures and systems
- Funders who demand performance from their grantees—and are willing to invest in it!
About Working Hard—and Working Well
Working Hard—and Working Well is a sleeves-rolled-up companion to Leap of Reason. The book is a resolutely practical guide to developing the discipline and culture of performance management.
Even as performance management has gained prominence in conferences and publications, it is still widely underappreciated and misunderstood. David decodes and defangs performance management, providing history, context, and concrete guidance for those who want to do more to improve the lives of those they serve.
David's approach to improving performance is the product of more than three decades of experience leading and advising organizations that serve families and children, including as the director of assessment and knowledge development at the renowned Edna McConnell Clark Foundation.
David’s passion for performance management can be traced to the time he was named the head of a psychiatric hospital for high-risk, often violent patients in Connecticut. On the first day of his tenure, he saw that the hospital was far from living up to its mission of providing high-quality care to patients. Specifically, patients received less active treatment than national standards called for, stayed hospitalized far longer than national data supported, and frequently were violent
The hospital’s lack of performance was not an abstract or academic concern. It was a life-and-death challenge. Instead of sprinting for the hills, David ran into the breach. He led an intensive, intentional, and sustained effort that turned the hospital around, despite every imaginable organizational challenge, with fearless leadership and the discipline of performance management.
In the years since, David Hunter has developed unequalled skill at helping other leaders to take a hard look at their own results. He helps them find the courage to clarify what they’re trying to achieve and then develop the capacity to know whether they’re on track to get there and the drive to keep improving over time.
David is now getting ready to hang up his spurs and head into retirement. He is leaving behind this invaluable guide for all leaders who grasp the mission-critical importance of ensuring that their hard work translates into high-quality, efficient, effective services.
