Giving Compass' Take:

• Writing for The Bridgespan Group, Citi Performing Arts' Sue Dahling Sullivan discusses how there needs to be more creativity and innovation at the executive level in nonprofit work in order for philanthropic missions to thrive.

• If you need to sharpen the creative side of your brain a bit, there are some resources and thought exercises in this piece to put to use, including challenging yourself to take more risks.

• Through nonprofit leadership training, we can achieve the most impact. Here's how.

In today’s world, creativity and leadership have quickly become a popular class couple in both for-profit and nonprofit schools of thought. And nonprofits, especially, desperately need creative thinkers, doers, and leaders to meet the increasing demands for their programs and services.

Today's innovation economy represents a future that values innovative thinking and inspired problem solving, as reinforced in a 2010 global IBM study1 where CEOs revealed that the most valuable C-level skill was "creativity." The general public agrees as evidenced by a 2011 Adobe survey2 where 80 percent of people felt unlocking creativity is critical to economic growth. And no doubt many nonprofit leaders would readily agree as they struggle to balance double bottom lines (mission and financial), leverage limited resources, and achieve measurable impacts. Across the board, creative leadership is in high demand.

If you are part of a mission-driven organization that is striving to achieve break-through results, creative leadership is essential to success. The good news is that every person has untapped creative potential and that creativity can and should be nurtured, coached, and cultivated in school, business, and life. The world, and especially nonprofits, desperately needs creative thinkers, doers, and leaders to explore the possibilities. A future without them is simply unimaginable.

Read the full article about creative leadership at nonprofits by Sue Dahling Sullivan at The Bridgespan Group.