Leading up to the Center for Nonprofit Advancement’s Annual Celebration on October 18, we are delighted to share with you insights from the finalists for the Gelman, Rosenberg & Freedman 2011 EXCEL Award. This award recognizes and spotlights outstanding leadership among Washington-area nonprofit chief executives.

Mobilize.org empowers and invests in Millennials to create and implement solutions to social problems. Mobilize.org believes that in order to create long-term, sustainable and community based solutions to the challenges facing our generation, Millennials (young adults born between the years 1976 and 1996) must authentically engage their peers in identifying  problems, proposing solutions, and most importantly, must work together to implement these solutions on their campuses and in their communities.

Meet finalist Maya Enista Smith, chief executive officer of Mobilize.org.

Tell us about your leadership style and how this contributes to your organization’s success.

I am a collaborative leader, and rely a great deal on my talented team and our Board of Directors to help me guide the vision and mission of Mobilize.org. This ability to collect the best possible information from diverse stakeholders and integrate it into my leadership benefits Mobilize.org in many ways; most importantly, many people feel part of the success, growth and set backs of Mobilize.org. That collective ownership and investment is the most important ingredient in building not just an organization, but a movement.

What advice would you offer for other nonprofit leaders?

Even when I'm tired, or have been traveling non-stop, I am so grateful for the opportunity to lead this organization, and do this work and I would encourage leaders to remain grateful, and appreciate the opportunities that we're given but also to take seriously the responsibility that comes with those opportunities. Like Spiderman, what we do with our opportunities is the true test for how deserving we were of them.

What does this award mean for you and your organization?

It would be an immense honor to win this award, and it would be a reaffirmation not only of my hard work but more importantly, of the hard work of my staff. I firmly believe that when a CEO is able to be a good leader, it's because of the team that he or she has and I am thrilled that this award is structured in a way that not only recognizes my dedication to Mobilize.org, but also the passion and tireless efforts of our staff.