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Headwaters Foundation for Justice is embracing a new chapter in its leadership and organizational growth. As we explore the values driving our work and vision, we’re excited to share our staff’s perspectives on shifting organizational cultures, innovative philanthropy, and community-rooted leadership.

As Headwaters enters this new era, Communications Director Ewan sat down with Giving Project Program Officer Sierra and People and Culture Manager Veronica to gather their insights into what makes co-leadership not only possible but powerful for organizations practicing justice and liberation.

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Ewan: What excites you most about this new chapter in leadership? Why are you eager to move to this model?

Veronica: I think I am most excited to try something new. We put a lot of thought and intentionality behind this change. That’s what makes it exciting; we carefully considered what would make this kind of relationship work.

Sierra: For me, it’s a way to continue stepping into our values of shared leadership. We have exercised shared leadership across the organization in a variety of ways, but this will be one of the most visible examples of practicing shared responsibility. I am also excited to humanize the executive positions. We did a lot of work to right-size executive positions,, while sharing the responsibility with a partner. It’s an exciting role, and a big responsibility, particularly for EDs of color. I’m most looking forward to putting our values into practice and seeing how our partnership model shapes the entire organization.

You were saying this is an extension of Headwaters’ commitment to shared leadership and decision-making. How does that look in your day-to-day work?

Sierra: In my role, one of Headwaters’ most explicit approaches to shared leadership shows up in the Giving Project. Over the past decade, the Giving Project has shifted from being very insular to the program team, to an organization-wide initiative. Chris and I co-lead this project, representing both the program and development teams. It’s one of our best examples of shared leadership in action. We also have staff involvement throughout the whole process, from coaching participants to supporting site visits to reviewing grant applications. We approach it in a collaborative-minded way, so everyone on staff is part of a program that represents Headwaters as a funder, both locally and nationally.

Veronica: That’s interesting. I didn’t realize that when you created new roles within the Giving Project that there was that intention. It makes complete sense. I have seen how the Giving Project has pulled the rest of staff in and broadened this idea of a leaderful organization. 

As the People and Culture Manager, shared decision-making is a big part of the Organizational Development Committee (ODC) and our liberatory HR work. These committees help us build and maintain decision-making processes across the organization, and we’ve developed tools to involve the right people. Shared leadership has become our practice; it’s ingrained in us now.

Sierra: I agree, and I think the last point I’ll add is that I think it has become first nature for us to involve folks and not make unilateral decisions. Community-led grant making has always been our focus in terms of getting money out the door, but I see that showing up in the way that we’re engaging with the community through our narrative work and communications, through our events, through our social media engagement.That, to me, is also shared leadership. 

Why is now the right time to shift to a shared leadership model? 

Veronica: On a practical level, it’s time to establish a more long term structure. We’re ready to get into a regular flow and determine “normalcy” for us as an organization. But it’s more than that—we’ve spent the last two years focused internally, doing deep organizational culture work, building trust, and rebuilding policies. We’ve done all the work we’ve needed to do to get here. Now is the time. Let’s get this show on the road! 

Sierra: Absolutely. It’s the culmination of years of internal work. We’re finally ready to put our deep, intentional effort into the public sphere. For some, it might seem like a sudden change, but that’s far from the truth. We’ve built a strong foundation, and we’re ready for someone to step into this co-director role. And, while we know this model has failed elsewhere, we’re setting ourselves up with the right tools and support for the health of our organization and our staff as a whole. We’re not setting ourselves up for success or failure; we’re setting ourselves up to try. This is an opportunity to model an approach that prioritizes well-being and sustainability to other foundations and organizations in the social justice ecosystem. 

And how might co-leadership at Headwaters affect Minnesota’s social justice ecosystem?

Sierra: No foundation should put itself on a pedestal. And we, as a foundation, are mindful of that. Money is powerful, and foundations can impact justice-centered practices by setting examples. If we have the resources to make significant changes that reflect our values, why not do it? Foundations like ours can demonstrate how to align structures with values by taking risks for the sake of justice-centered practices. 

We want to encourage and empower other organizations in Minnesota’s social justice ecosystem to resource their leadership in ways that are sustainable and values-driven. I’m hopeful this new leadership will cement Headwaters as a reliable, transparent funder, committed to creating an organizational structure that will persist beyond any individual staff; that it will set Headwaters up for a strong future of trying new things for the sake of liberation. 

Veronica: Sierra put it so eloquently; it’s about being able to say, “Here’s what we tried; take what resonates.” We’ve had the resources to get ourselves here, and I hope that our journey can support other organizations that might not have the same financial resources. I look forward to seeing our co-leaders engage with the community. Building relationships in the Minnesota ecosystem is something I’m excited to see strengthen, and co-leadership gives us more capacity to do that.

Sierra: The stronger and more aligned we are internally, the bigger our impact. Our ability to organize, engage the field, and be in relationship with the community – that gets stronger when we’re stronger inside.

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For updates, information, and news related to Headwater’s transition to shared leadership and Co-Executive Directors, visit our Shared Leadership webpage.