This year marks a personal milestone for me: 30 years working in the social sector. Three decades of learning from nonprofit leaders, students, board members, volunteers and communities have shaped how I think about what it takes to build organizations that last.
And this National Nonprofit Day feels like perfect timing to share our biggest news.
After three years of writing, research, testing and plenty of help from many of you, The Nonprofit Flywheel: A Playbook for Sustainable Growth, Smarter Strategy and Lasting Impact arrives Oct. 1, 2026.
In many ways, this is my love letter to nonprofits – bringing together what I have learned, what I believe we need now and what I hope can help us build stronger, more resilient organizations for the future.
I’m especially excited to share that the digital edition will be free to the nonprofit sector. Paperback and hardcover editions will also be available on Amazon at cost.
Want to be among the first to read it? Join the launch list on MeetSuzanne.com/nonprofitflywheel. We’ll send the free digital edition directly to subscribers when it launches Oct. 1.
One early reader described it as a book to “take notes in, reference, revisit and rip pages out to share with others.” (And, yes, upload it to AI if your heart desires.)
My hope is that this becomes more than a book people read. I hope it becomes a catalyst for conversation, connection and collective momentum.
We are creating book chats, book clubs and an online toolkit to help teams, boards, leadership cohorts, funders and nonprofit communities learn together. I hope you will consider bringing the Nonprofit Flywheel into your own organization and community conversations.
Texas-Size Gratitude
Twenty-eight early readers pressure-tested the book, challenged my thinking and made it better: Dr. Steve Birch, Kim Guarino Bulger, Wende Burton, David Claps, Janna R. Gardner, John Gillespie, Yadira Gonzalez, Dr. Stacy Grau, Rebecca Helterbrand, Mahsa Imani, Emily Ironside, Rebecca LaVenture, Alex Minter McCann, Darryl McMillon, Yvette Medina, Gilbert Montez, Sommer Neff, Kate Newman, Dr. Nicola Paugh, Nancy Pollard, Kimberly Richards, Emilie Samandi, David Schermerhorn, Brent Seelmeyer, Dr. Yoram Solomon, Alyssa Studer, Brandi Tanaka and Kate Welch.
I am especially gratified by the range of perspectives represented – from my home state of Texas to Canada, the United Kingdom, Iran, Bermuda and beyond.
Here are a few snippets from their early reviews:
“The Nonprofit Flywheel is refreshingly different.”
— Yoram Solomon, Ph.D. | Texas
“We built our TACA Arts Accelerator around the Nonprofit Flywheel … [it] has helped arts leaders think differently about their future.”
— Maura Sheffler | Texas
“The Nonprofit Flywheel turns complex nonprofit management challenges into a practical and connected system.”
— Mahsa Imani | Iran
“Suzanne not only shows how learning should be applied but does it in a way that is practical and easy to understand.”
— Kate Welch | United Kingdom
“For anyone committed to doing good, better, this is a timely and important guide.”
— Allyson Hewitt | Canada
“You can leave all other nonprofit management books on the shelf — this is the one to read.”
— Emily Ironside | Arkansas
“After three years of applying the Flywheel framework within our own organisation and through our consulting work with nonprofits, I can say firsthand: the model works.”
— Nicola Paugh, Ph.D. | Bermuda
For me, this moment is equal parts celebration, recalibration and recommitment to a sector that has given me an extraordinary career.
Thirty years in, I still believe deeply in what nonprofits make possible. Now, I want to help make the organizations behind those missions even stronger.
I cannot wait to share The Nonprofit Flywheel with each of you Oct. 1. Until then, I hope you’ll join the launch list at MeetSuzanne.com/nonprofitflywheel.
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