We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ashley Hufft. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ashley below.
Hi Ashley, thank you so much for joining us today. There are so many topics we could discuss, but perhaps one of the most relevant is empathy because it’s at the core of great leadership and so we’d love to hear about how you developed your empathy?
Growing up as the daughter of a doctor and a teacher, I first learned empathy from my parents. My father was an orthopedic surgeon, but he found his purpose in serving outside of the hospital. He would use his expertise to help people at the federal penitentiary located in my hometown and within a nearby Amish community. He would also donate his services to children who couldn’t afford a doctor in the Springfield, Missouri public school system. I learned there was a culture in our family of serving and thinking about others. Growing up in southwest Missouri, my dad was intentional in making sure I learned about and understood people who were different from me through reading, traveling, and by setting the example.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself? Please tell our readers about anything new (events, service launches, expansion, etc.)?
I am the interim president/CEO at the international nonprofit, Unbound. I am very excited to be given the opportunity to lead an organization with programs across 17 countries that demonstrate a genuine model of beneficiary-led development. We walk in solidarity with families around the world as they decide what’s best for their families. We describe it as 269,000 micro programs because each family has its own needs and they – not Unbound – are the ones best placed to decide what the priorities are for their families that will lead them on a path out of poverty. They decide the best way to use the resources provided to them, mostly in the form of direct cash transfers from our sponsorship program. It is an ultimate privilege to be able to partner with these families.
Unbound has historically focused on one-to-one sponsorship for children and elders, but we’re excited to announce how those sponsorships have expanded into the formation of mothers groups. The mothers and guardians of our sponsored friends have formed small groups as a source of support, networking, and encouragement. In some cases, they’ve created saving and loan programs among each other to help support the community and their entrepreneurial endeavors. We are now looking at ways to connect these mothers groups with funders and donors to help support the work they are doing in their communities. We’re excited to present this as a new way for people to get involved.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three qualities or skills that have impacted my journey the most are an insatiable curiosity, courage to make tough decisions, and listening with empathy and humility.
My advice to people who are early in their journey is to carve out time to learn other aspects of their respective industries. Continue to be a student by learning the subject matter of your work, educating yourself on the functions of your organization, and listening to understand. I never believe that I’m the smartest person in the room, but I always want to be the one who is most prepared. Do the homework, read the information, and show up prepared. I would also recommend listening to good leaders. I’ve benefited greatly from listening to people like Brene Brown and Simon Sinek.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
We see great potential in partnering with other international nonprofits that are doing work in gender equality, water, health, education, and microfinance, to name a few, in the countries where we serve. As one idea, partners in these areas could work alongside us to multiply the impact of our Agents of Change program. Through our AC program, we provide grants to Unbound mothers groups who apply with the idea (and budget) for community-led projects, like building playgrounds, bathrooms in schools, or lighting for health clinics.
We also see a need for connecting with development organizations. We’re in the homes and lives of more than 269,000 families and believe we have a treasure trove of knowledge and information that could be useful to international development organizations seeking to understand families, what their goals are, and how they take steps out of poverty.
Lastly, we invite corporations to join us in supporting the mothers groups as well as our Agents of Change program. We see an opportunity for them to increase their philanthropic footprint while uplifting and empowering people in the 17 countries where we work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.unbound.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/UnboundOrg/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sponsorachild
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/unbound-org/mycompany/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@UnboundOrg
Image Credits
Danika Wolf, Nickson Ateku, Teejay Cabrera, Oscar Tuch
