She Went From Making Decisions in a Vacuum to Growing Her Nonprofit $600K

After 9 years leading a substance abuse recovery nonprofit, this CEO was tired of operating systems that felt robotic. She needed a framework that connected human relationship with strategic growth. One year later, her revenue grew from $3.4M to $4M and funding dependency dropped from 50% to 15%.

Most nonprofit leaders think they have to choose: either focus on the mission or focus on the money. Evita Morin, CEO of Rise Recovery, proved that's a false choice—and transformed her organization by finding a system that honored both.

After nearly a decade leading a San Antonio-based substance abuse recovery nonprofit, Evita had implemented operating systems before. She'd tried EOS. She'd worked with facilitators who pushed her through the steps. But when her organization started to shift—staff turnover increasing, financial stress mounting, funding sources becoming precarious—she felt completely alone.

The system she was using felt robotic. Disconnected. Like she was making critical decisions in a vacuum while nobody truly listened.

Then she met Coach Kenny from System & Soul. Within one year, Rise Recovery grew revenue by $600K, diversified their funding base, built a unified leadership team, and shifted from survival mode to strategic growth.

Here's exactly how she did it—and what it means for mission-driven leaders trying to build sustainable organizations without sacrificing their values.

Hello! Who are you and what's your organization?

I'm Evita Morin, CEO of Rise Recovery. We're a nonprofit based in San Antonio focused on helping people recover from substance use and live healthier lives. We're not trying to drive profit in the traditional sense. We're trying to connect the human element, the interest in saving lives and supporting people, with our strategic plan to grow so we can do more of that.

Revenue is part of our model, but it's not the end-all, be-all. We needed a way to be both mission-oriented and financially sustainable. That balance has always been the challenge.

Evita with her Rise Recovery team at an executive leadership retreat. 

What was happening before you switched to System & Soul?

I came to Rise almost 10 years ago, and within my second or third year, I implemented EOS. It worked for a while, but then the people facilitating it decided to change their licensing model and created their own proprietary system. I felt kind of shoved into it, honestly.

It was a variation on a theme, but what I didn't get out of it was real support when our organization started to shift. We could feel the rumbling under our feet. Staff retention was a problem. Financially, we were in trouble. And the system just felt... robotic.

I felt like I was continuing to make these steps in a vacuum and that I wasn't really being listened to. It was just the status quo. No human relationship component. No acknowledgment of what we were actually going through.

So I realized I needed to change both the partner I was using and the system I was using, because neither were working for me.

How did you find System & Soul?

I met coach Kenny through Vistage, an executive coaching circle where he was presenting. I really loved the way System & Soul worked. I was familiar with the cadence, the general operating system structure, but something different about it was the relational aspect.

Kenny, as a coach, is so human, so authentic, so well-versed. It felt like System & Soul brought all of the best pieces of not just a traditional operating system, but also the best pieces of business thinking and culture thinking, and put it in a package.

I didn't flinch or need to think about the decision to move. I connected with him, and we onboarded and transitioned fairly quickly. It just clicked with me.

What made System & Soul different from what you'd used before?

Kenny was an exceptionally astute coach. He was knowledgeable, insightful, and it just felt right.

But more than that, System & Soul really works well in an environment where we're trying to be mission and servant-oriented while also running a business that needs to earn revenue to support that mission. It wasn't about sacrificing one for the other—it was about integrating both.

The other operating systems I used stayed at the executive level. I couldn't seem to drill it down into other departments. Now, with the right leaders and the right focus on data, and because we had this great infrastructure to demonstrate what we're looking for, we're starting to see it drill down into every department.

Our work is now data-driven from top to bottom. I've been waiting for that.

What specific changes did you make?

Built an Aligned Leadership Team
We went from having a season of turnover in leadership and really making hard calls on the kind of leaders we needed, to now having an incredibly excellent leadership team. I feel very good about where we are there.

Introduced KPIs Across Every Department
We now have key performance indicators and data tracking at every level. It's not just the executive team looking at numbers—everyone understands what drives our impact and our sustainability.

Diversified Our Funding Sources
This was critical. We used to rely on one funding source for 50% of our budget. Now it's 15%. That diversification meant when we did experience some funding loss, we could be nimble. We could weather the storm.

We're now using S2 Sync to run our quarterly refuels and strategic sessions, which helps translate my vision into quarterly tasks the whole team can execute on.

Translated Vision Into Quarterly Goals
I'm a visionary leader. I'm looking 10 years ahead. The problem with that is I often miss the language my team needs strategically. System & Soul helps me translate where I want us to go, down to the quarterly tasks that need to be done for us to move there.

That's been the most useful tool for me, because I'm not a naturally detail-oriented, map-laying-out person. I'm running at a hundred miles an hour.

What were the results after one year?

In just the last year alone:

Revenue Growth
We increased our revenue from about $3.4 million to almost $4 million. That's a significant trajectory move.

Financial Stability
Because of our strategic growth plans and diversity of funding, we were able to weather financial instability in the whole sector. What was once 50% of our budget was now 15%, so we could move, we could be nimble.

Cultural Transformation
We shifted from survival mode to strategic growth. The challenges I face now are about deciding: Do we go for this major funding stream that might grow programs? Is this aligned with our vision? We get to choose where we go.

The challenges never end, but they're more based on growth and strategy and less on "Oh my gosh, how do we keep the lights on?"

Leadership Alignment
Every department now has the infrastructure and the right leaders who know how to drive data, track performance, and execute on our strategic plan. It's cascading through the entire organization.

What's been the most valuable part of working with System & Soul?

For visionary leaders, especially, this framework translates where you want to go into the quarterly tasks that need to happen. Our quarterly refuels, our rhythms, all those components help us create the map so that everyone's rowing in the same direction.

I needed that. And System & Soul does that for me.

It's also been critical for my leadership personally. I don't feel isolated anymore. I have a coach who listens, who understands both the business side and the human side of what we're trying to accomplish.

How would you describe the shift from your old system to System & Soul?

The old system felt robotic. Disconnected. Like I was following steps but nobody was really present for what we were experiencing.

System & Soul feels human. It connects the mission with the strategy. It brings the relational component back into business operations without losing the rigor, the data, or the accountability.

I'm in a sector where a lot of people are focused on keeping the lights on, making payroll. There's often a lack of investment or awareness around the importance of business infrastructure. But because we built that infrastructure with System & Soul, we're now financially healthy enough to make strategic choices instead of reactive decisions.

What would you say to nonprofit leaders considering this kind of framework?

What are you waiting for?

For Rise, it's been pivotal. Critical for my leadership and for the organization.

If you're a visionary leader—if you're looking 10 years ahead but struggling to translate that into actionable plans your team can execute—this is an incredible way to do it. If you need your team to be rowing in sync with you, this framework makes that possible.

I would never move away from having this kind of system in our organization. It's been the core engine driving Rise Recovery.

What's your vision for Rise Recovery now?

Now we're at a place where we get to decide our next moves from a position of strength, not desperation. We can evaluate opportunities based on alignment with our mission and vision, not just survival.

We're financially stable. We have the right leadership team in place. We have data flowing through every department. And we have a framework that keeps us aligned and accountable.

The work never gets easier—but the challenges are different. They're about growth, strategy, and impact. And that's exactly where I want to be.

Where can people learn more?

If you're leading a mission-driven organization—nonprofit or otherwise—and you're tired of feeling isolated, struggling with systems that don't fit, or choosing between mission and money, there are a few ways System & Soul can help:

Work with a certified coach who understands both the human and business sides of leadership.

Train your internal leaders to implement the System & Soul framework inside your organization.

Train as a business coach yourself to bring these tools to other mission-driven leaders.

Explore which path makes sense for your organization.

The Bottom Line:

You don't have to choose between mission and money, between human relationships and strategic rigor, between survival and growth. The right operating system connects all of it, and gives you the structure to lead with clarity instead of isolation.

If a nonprofit can grow $600K in one year, diversify funding, build a unified leadership team, and shift from survival to strategic growth, your organization can too.

Personally, I find that leading a mission-driven organization can be incredibly fulfilling when you have the right structure in place. But without it, it's isolating, exhausting, and unsustainable.

Because let's be honest—when you're leading a nonprofit, everyone expects you to balance the mission with the money, to have all the answers, to keep the lights on while changing lives.

But what about the difficult questions you face as you grow? The funding decisions that keep you up at night? The feeling that you're the only one who can see where the organization needs to go?

This is where System & Soul comes in.

Leading a nonprofit means everyone expects you to choose between mission and sustainability. But what if you didn't have to? System & Soul helps mission-driven leaders build frameworks that connect vision with execution—without losing the human element.

Work with a coach • Train your leaders • Become certified • Free resources