Boost your team morale

Your team is (understandably) dragging.

You can feel them losing sight of your “why” amidst the chaos and changing priorities.

Team meetings are downbeat and everything feels… hard.

You’re not alone. We’re hearing it from organizations just like yours across the country.

That’s why we designed a special menu of 2026 trainings that naturally foster team connection and positivity.

The ultimate success metric is that your team walks away feeling energized, hopeful, and clear on their priorities and vital role in the organization’s future.

Here are a few options for a morale-boosting team training. (Psst – don’t worry, if these don’t feel quite right for your particular team, we can design a custom training just for you.)

Nonprofit Communications, Hiring and People, About Forthright, School District MarketingKatie Test DavisFebruary 27, 2026team training, morale, burnout, nonprofit leadership, team-culture, burnout-prevention, staff-training, morale-boosters, nonprofit-leadership, team-building, productivity, professional-development

3 steps to hire amazing comms leaders

We know how hard you work to keep your mission moving. Most of you are running on lean teams with zero capacity to spare.

The search for a comms leader is super high-stakes…

When you don’t have the right teammates, progress stalls. You miss opportunities to connect with funders or supporters. You lose momentum on critical advocacy campaigns. And the burnout on your existing team starts to creep up.

Here’s how to get those birds chirping peacefully again.

Hiring and People, Nonprofit CommunicationsKatie Test DavisDecember 16, 2025communications director, nonprofit leadership, hiring, equity, mission alignment, staff retention, interview questions, communications strategy, how to hire, how to hire for nonprofit jobs, how to hire a good communications director

Plan smarter in 2026 🚀

I’m not the first person to tell you that more change is coming.

We need to take all the skills we’ve developed over the past few years and be nimble.

Right now, we’re telling most of our clients to create a three-month communications plan instead of an annual plan.

Simplify by breaking the work into quarters and be honest about what’s realistic with your capacity.

Here’s how to make it happen.

Communications Campaigns, Nonprofit Communications, Hiring and PeopleKatie Test DavisDecember 10, 2025strategic planning, communications plan, request for proposal, hiring consultants, nonprofit marketing, quarterly planning, capacity building, 2026 planning, agile methodology, nonprofit leadership

The real secret to coalition success

Coalitions are often powered by passionate people squeezing this work in on top of demanding jobs.

This brings me to the real secret of coalition building. A coalition is only as effective as its internal communications. How we communicate *internally* creates the trust and alignment needed to win *externally.* Here are our tips for communicating well within coalitions.

Writing and Messaging, Communications Campaigns, Nonprofit CommunicationsKatie Test DavisNovember 17, 2025internal communications, coalition communications, nonprofit coalition, communication strategy, meeting facilitation, email strategies, nonprofit leadership

From a not-for-profit to a yes-we-profit!

Lately, we’ve seen an influx of nonprofit clients who are coming to us ready to turn their beloved programs into profit centers for their organization. Clients who are taking programs that have historically been paid for by foundations, and instead of solely relying on funding, figuring out ways to make them replicable, accessible and cheaper.

They are rethinking their income streams. While doing that, they are reclaiming their own self-sufficiency.

Ready to reclaim your non-profit’s power and become a yes-for-profit? Here are four phases and some questions to get you started.

Brand/Materials Creation, Communications Campaigns, Nonprofit CommunicationsKatie Test DavisNovember 12, 2025nonprofit revenue, earned income for nonprofits, nonprofit sustainability, how to generate revenue for a nonprofit, nonprofit business models, fee for service nonprofit, social enterprise, nonprofit leadership, nonprofit mindset shift

We dare you to say less

Starting my career in policy, I loved the long and winding wonky road. I believed more detail meant more credibility, and my early training taught me to love a 10-dollar word instead of a perfectly perfect 10-cent word. Our most important job, especially in 2025, is to be generous with our audience's time. That means doing the hard work of making our message simple. Here’s how to make it happen.

Digital and Social Media, Brand/Materials Creation, Writing and Messaging, Media Relations, Storytelling, Communications Campaigns, Nonprofit CommunicationsKatie Test DavisOctober 15, 2025nonprofit communications, advocacy, clear messaging, jargon, storytelling, call to action, strategic communications, simple writing, core messages, nonprofit leadership

How to get your board's buy-in

We’ve all been there. You and your team have poured endless hours into crafting the perfect communications strategy or advocacy plan. You’re proud, you’re excited… but there’s one last step: bringing it to your board.

As a leader at a foundation or nonprofit, you know that board buy-in is so much more than a rubber stamp or a vote of approval. You want early, sustained trust and partnership that turns a great plan into a smashing success. Getting to that feeling of being "all in" together is the result of a thoughtful, ongoing process.

Here are four simple shifts in the way you work to get that process in motion and earn that buy-in… every time.

Communications Campaigns, Nonprofit CommunicationsKatie Test DavisJuly 17, 2025nonprofit communications, nonprofit board, board members, communications planning, communication goals, strategic communications, getting buy-in, nonprofit leadership

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Smart communication strategies for organizations that love kids.