irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024
What they reported doing
- #1 primary $978KLEADING PLACES TO WORK: WE HELP TO CREATE GREAT WORKPLACE CULTURES THAT RECRUIT, RETAIN, AND SUPPORT EXCELLENT PEOPLE.
- #2 $1.02MSURVEY & DATA PROGRAM: WE HELP ORGANIZATIONS UNDERSTAND AND IMPROVE HOW THEIR EMPLOYEES ARE EXPERIENCING WORK AT A PARTICULAR MOMENT IN TIME. THIS ANNUAL RESOURCE HELPS JEWISH NONPROFIT LEADERS INVEST IN THEIR ORGANIZATIONAL STRENGTHS AND IDENTIFY GROWTH AREAS TO ENHANCE THEIR WORKPLACE CULTURE.
named programs · 4 · from sources
What they call their work
Board Leadership Accelerator
A multi-year, field-wide initiative engaging over 60 Jewish nonprofits and 1,500+ board members in cohort-based learning, assessments, coaching, and board development planning to strengthen governance and CEO-board partnerships.
Board Member Institute (BMI)
Signature board leadership program originally developed by Boardified and now integrated into Leading Edge, providing training and development for board members in Jewish communal organizations.
CEO Onboarding Program
Leadership development program designed to support new CEOs in Jewish organizations through structured onboarding, coaching, and peer learning.
Employee Experience Survey
Annual survey measuring workplace culture across Jewish nonprofits, having reached over 53,000 employees at 375+ organizations; results inform organizational improvements and sector-wide benchmarks.
activities · 5 groups
What they do
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Nonprofit Capacity Building Services 2 activities
- Board leadership development and governance supportProvides comprehensive board development services including the Board Member Institute, 360° board health assessments, Board Workshop Series, and the Board Leadership Accelerator pilot. Offers practical guides for board members and chairs, and has engaged over 1,500 board members in multi-year initiatives to strengthen governance culture and board-CEO partnerships.
- Organizational capacity building and resource developmentDevelops and distributes practical tools, guides, and resources to improve talent management, leadership practices, and organizational culture in Jewish nonprofits. This includes original research, technical assistance collaboratives, and toolkits for governance and ethical leadership, supporting over 1,000 organizations and tens of thousands of individuals.
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Jewish Leadership Development 1 activity
- Leadership and talent development programs for Jewish nonprofit professionalsOffers cohort-based development programs spanning the entire career lifecycle of professionals in the Jewish nonprofit sector, from early-career onboarding to executive leadership, including skill-building, networking, and retreats. These programs include the Onboarding Intensive, which features virtual sessions and an in-person retreat, and Leadership Lab experiences for professionals working with boards.
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Nonprofit Sector Research & Data Analysis 1 activity
- Research on the Jewish nonprofit workforce and leadershipConducts large-scale research studies on talent, leadership, and employee experience in the Jewish nonprofit sector, including surveys of over 53,000 employees across 375 organizations since 2016. Recent studies in 2025 involved data from over 200 CEOs, 3,000 non-sector individuals, and 13,000 employees, with findings highlighting meaningful work as a key driver of motivation and a 30% increase in interest among Jewish talent in sector careers.
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Nonprofit Organizational Mergers and Integrations 1 activity
- Strategic organizational expansion through unification and acquisitionExpanded organizational reach and capacity through the 2022 acquisition of Boardified to strengthen board leadership development and the 2025 unification with JPro to combine expertise and support all Jewish professionals. The unified organization continues all prior programming and aims to enhance sector-wide leadership development.
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Uncategorized 1 activity
- Advocacy for talent investment in the Jewish nonprofit sectorAdvocates for a sector-wide shift in mindset by promoting talent in Jewish nonprofits as a strategic investment rather than a cost, influencing organizational priorities and funding decisions.
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financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$1.95M
Contributions & grants$1.76M90%
Program service revenue$93K5%
Investment income$97K5%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$5.91M
Program expenses67%
Admin / overhead27%
Fundraising6%
Salaries & benefits$3.43M
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineCompensation
balance sheet
Total assets$9.45M
Cash$750K
Investments$2.82M
Liabilities$109K
Net assets$9.34M
Liquid reserves7.3 mo
5 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue -76.8%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024
Who runs it
paid leadership · 8
| Name | Title | Hours/wk | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| GALI COOKS | PRESIDENT & CEO | 40 | $369K |
| MORDECAI WALFISH | CHIEF ADVANCEMENT OFFICER | 40 | $257K |
| DENA SCHOENFELD | CHIEF PROGRAM OFFICER | 40 | $238K |
| DANA CHILDRESS | VP, LEADING PLACES TO WORK | 40 | $174K |
| ABBY CRAWFORD | VICE PRESIDENT, LEADERSHIP | 40 | $170K |
| SETH CHALMER | SENIOR DIRECTOR OF COMMUNI | 40 | $156K |
| CHRISTOPHER HARRISON | DIRECTOR, BUSINESS OPERATIONS | 40 | $144K |
| DANIELLE NATELSON | DIRECTOR, PROGRAMS | 40 | $138K |
board members · 17
- ALISA DOCTOROFF — BOARD MEMBER
- DARIN MCKEEVER — BOARD MEMBER
- DARYL MESSINGER — CHAIR
- GABRIELLE SIRNER-COHEN — BOARD MEMBER
- ILANA KAUFMAN — BOARD MEMBER
- JOE KANFER — VICE CHAIR
- KIMBERLY MILLER RUBENFELD — TREASURER
- LAURIE BLITZER — BOARD MEMBER
- LISA EISEN — SECRETARY
- MARC BAKER — BOARD MEMBER
- MIMI KRAVETZ — BOARD MEMBER
- RACHEL KAY — BOARD MEMBER
- RANDALL KAPLAN — VICE CHAIR
- ROBERT BANK — BOARD MEMBER
- SCOTT KAUFMAN — BOARD MEMBER
- WENDY PLATT NEWBERGER — BOARD MEMBER
- YOLANDA SAVAGE-NARVA — BOARD MEMBER
relationships · 13
Who they work with
- Boardified Partner — Acquired by Leading Edge in 2022 to strengthen focus on Jewish communal Board leadership.
- Boardified Partner — Acquired by Leading Edge to integrate board development programming into its existing leadership and culture initiatives.
- Bridgespan Group Partner — Engaged to study leadership gaps and develop strategies for strengthening the leadership pipeline in Jewish nonprofits.
- Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies Funder — Provides financial support for the Onboarding Intensive program.
- Harvard Business Review Partner — Collaborates on publishing leadership insights
- JPro Partner — Integrated JPro into Leading Edge as of January 1, 2025, forming a unified organization to serve Jewish communal professionals and leaders.
- JPro Partner — Unified with Leading Edge in 2025 to broaden reach to all Jewish professionals in the nonprofit field.
- JUF Funder — Provides financial support for the Onboarding Intensive program.
- Jewish Federations of North America Partner — Partnered with Jewish Federations of North America for the JPro25 conference and ongoing field-building initiatives.
- Jim Joseph Foundation Funder — Provides financial support for the Onboarding Intensive program.
- Marcus Foundation Funder — Supports the Board Leadership Accelerator program
- PSB Insights Partner — Research partner that co-produced the "Talent Unlocked" report with Leading Edge.
- Schaffer Consulting Partner — Professional affiliation of coauthor Ron Ashkenas in published leadership article
strategies · 5
How they approach the work
Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.
- Excellence as a Driver of Organizational Impactmethodology: excellence_as_obligationBy uniting Jewish nonprofits around a shared standard of excellence in talent, culture, and leadership, the field increases accountability and alignment because high standards grounded in data and lived experience create the conditions for continuous improvement and meaningful change.
- Integrated Leadership Development Across Boards and Staffmethodology: integrated_leadership_developmentBy fostering joint development of professional and board leadership through shared learning and aligned culture, Jewish nonprofits achieve greater strategic coherence and governance effectiveness because siloed leadership undermines organizational performance.
- Research-Driven Systemic Improvementmethodology: research-driven talent developmentBy conducting original research to identify barriers to talent optimization, the organization informs field-wide interventions because data grounded in sector-specific challenges enables targeted, scalable solutions.
- Talent as the Core Product in Service Organizationsmethodology: people-as-productBy treating talent as the central determinant of service quality, leadership development efforts directly improve organizational effectiveness because in mission-driven service sectors, staff performance is the primary delivery mechanism.
- Whole-System Talent and Leadership Developmentmethodology: whole-system approach to talent and leadershipBy creating a centralized, field-wide organization to support talent, leadership, and culture, the Jewish nonprofit sector can overcome fragmentation, reduce redundancy, and amplify collective impact because systemic change requires coordinated infrastructure and shared standards.