From Nonprofit Leader to Business Owner and Author: LaTresse Snead’s Career Relaunch

Real-Life Relaunch Story

LaTresse Snead, Founder, Bonsai Leadership Group:

“I witnessed firsthand the lack of racial diversity in leadership roles within the nonprofit space, particularly in the conservation and environmental sectors.

I deeply wanted to empower individuals from all backgrounds, and leadership and executive coaching seemed like the perfect intersection of my interests and gifts.”

Throughout her career in nonprofit leadership, LaTresse Snead had a hint of what her next chapter could be. As the only Black woman in a leadership role, LaTresse was frequently sought out by staff for help navigating issues they faced at the predominantly white-led organizations. This informal role helped ignite her love of one-on-one coaching.

After training as an executive coach, LaTresse launched Bonsai Leadership Group, a fast-growing firm that provides coaching, consulting, and talent recruitment to help nonprofit leaders to grow passionate and powerful organizations. 

Recently, LaTresse also became an author. Her new book, When Black Women Rise is available for sale now.

Q: What was your background before launching your own business?  

I started off as a hospitality major, then psychology, then international business, and finally I ended up getting my degree in Black Studies. It’s helped me understand myself beyond the version of history that’s usually taught.  

I’ve worked in community relations, fundraising and more. My career led me to some of the largest nonprofits in the United States, including Boys & Girls Clubs of America, American Red Cross, The Nature Conservancy and the National Park Foundation. 

As one of the only Black women in a leadership role at previous positions in my career, staff would often seek me out for confidential advice to navigate the predictable issues they faced at predominantly white-led nonprofits. This led me to becoming certified as an executive coach and greatly influenced my decision to start my own consulting firm. 

Q: How did you decide to launch Bonsai Leadership Group? 

It was a combination of factors that encouraged me to start my own business. Firstly, my own experiences as a Black woman navigating the nonprofit world inspired me to create a space where leadership development was approached holistically. I witnessed firsthand the lack of racial diversity in leadership roles within the nonprofit space, particularly in the conservation and environmental sectors. I deeply wanted to empower individuals from all backgrounds and leadership and executive coaching seemed like the perfect intersection of my interests and gifts.

In fact, coaching Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) nonprofit leaders will always be my first love. In just a year, Bonsai Leadership Group has expanded to work with nonprofit organizations to create racially diverse candidate pools as they consider new talent for leadership positions within their organizations. I still—and will always—have such a deep passion for one-to-one coaching, particularly for Black women.  

Today, Bonsai Leadership Group provides coaching, consulting and talent recruitment to help nonprofit leaders to grow passionate and powerful organizations. 

Q: What do you love about what you do now? 

There are so many things I love! I love witnessing the transformative impact that my coaching and my team’s work has on individuals and organizations. Guiding emerging leaders, particularly those from historically excluded and marginalized communities, to cultivate their unique strengths and become catalysts for change is necessary and fulfilling work. It's about fostering a sense of purpose, igniting passion and helping clients identify the tools within them to lead authentically. 

I love bringing people together. I have assembled a brilliant team of coaches, consultants, speakers, contractors and recruiters who are excited about this work. I know most of them from previous work experiences and it’s been a joy to work with them again and to see the work they produce together.

And of course, I love the flexibility of running my own business. From determining my own schedule to having my own solo retreats, I’m discovering that there are many effective ways to work beyond the traditional 9 to 5. 

Q: What surprised you the most about launching your own business?

I started by offering coaching and was surprised when a client asked if I could source candidates to fill openings in her business. I told her that I couldn't because I’m not a recruiter. I didn’t think I had any experience. She helped me realize that I already had the tools I needed to be successful. After all, I had been assembling my own teams within nonprofit organizations for years.  

I made the decision to believe her. I hired a stellar team of recruiters to support our clients who recognize the value of taking the time to ensure that they have racially diverse candidate pools to choose from. We have placed more than 20 talented candidates in one year. Demand keeps growing and we keep delivering. 

I was surprised that my business has found another way to help nonprofits become more equitable for everyone, particularly in a way that I hadn’t considered at the beginning. Sometimes you need a friend to help you identify your way forward. And that’s a wonderful gift to receive.
 

Q: What other wisdom do you have to share with someone who's thinking about going off on their own and creating a consulting business?  

When I started my business, I had a dream of working from anywhere I wanted. And it came true! I spent weeks on the road with everything I needed to run Bonsai Leadership Group from wherever I happened to be, whether that was a national park or a beautiful beach. To be honest, it was fabulous! And it also helped me learn that boundaries are more important than ever in this stage of my life.  

While I love having friends and family members join me on trips, it’s just less stressful when I’m on my own. It’s hard to focus when you’re tending to the needs of your visiting loved ones. It taught me what systems and guardrails I needed to put in place for myself. That might mean saying no more often or managing expectations earlier or addressing a change in the way things used to be done. 

And that’s okay! Boundaries are something we all need to strengthen in different areas over the long haul, based on our stage of life and what we know about ourselves. So now, just like I used to time block my calendar as a nonprofit executive, I time block my calendar for deep work, relationship-building phone calls, and even time spent on LinkedIn. 

That way, I can be fully present with my family members when I’m not working. And it feels fabulous.  

For more wisdom from LaTresse, follow her on LinkedIn and subscribe to the Bonsai Leadership Group newsletter.