People-First Leadership for Nonprofits with Marisa Tran and Maria Rio

Small Nonprofit: Fundraising Tips, Leadership Strategies, and Community-Centric Solutions

Send us a text

Ever tried to juggle visionary ideas, tight budgets, and a team that spans every learning style under the sun? In this episode of The Small Nonprofit, Maria sits down with management coach and EDI powerhouse Marisa Tran (they/them) to unpack what “people-first, consent-based leadership” really looks like when you’re running a small shop.

Marisa is an autistic, gender-queer, Irish-Vietnamese settler with 15 years of experience helping organizations clean up their HR, embed equity, and grow managers into actual leaders. Their superpowers: workplace harm reduction, accessibility audits, and coaching folks who were promoted for being great at their job...but never shown how to lead.

Managing People – The Highlights

• Performance talks should be boringly routine
  Make goals and feedback part of every weekly or bi-weekly check-in so “the big scary review” never sneaks up on anyone.
• Consent in management
  LONG before performance reviews, work with the staffer to create a work plan and a check in cadence. Autonomy = trust.
• Recognition isn’t one-size-fits-all
  Annual raises matter, but some staff love public shout-outs while others want quiet affirmation or extra learning budgets. Ask, don’t assume.
• Leaders own the misses; teams own the wins
  When targets slip, step up and shield your crew. When they soar, hand them the mic and the credit.
• Diversity of thought strengthens strategy
  Pair big-idea generators with detail-oriented implementers and professional problem-spotters. Different brains, stronger outcomes.

3 Actionable Tips for Managing People:

• Bake goals into your meeting agenda
  Create a living doc or dashboard you revisit every check-in. Progress, blockers, next steps; nothing fancy, just visible.
• Run a “How do you like to be celebrated?” survey
  Five quick questions (think love-languages-at-work) will save you from that pizza-party flop and show staff you actually listen.
• Track turnover like a KPI
  Note tenure, role, and identities (where shared). Spikes in departures—especially among marginalized staff—are flashing red lights for culture repair.

Resources and Links

• Connect with our host, Maria Rio
• Connect with our guest, Marisa Tran
• Marisa’s website
• Support our show. We are fully self-funded!
• Watch this episode on YouTube
• Need help with your fundraising?
• Liked this episode? Have an idea? Send us a text HERE :)

Support the show