Mikhael Bornstein is a leadership and management trainer who helps nonprofit organizations develop confident managers and high-performing teams.

Through The Philanthropic Leader, Mikhael delivers practical, research-informed training that nonprofit teams can put to work immediately. His core training tracks include leadership development (authentic, transformational, and servant leadership), new manager foundations (including his popular New Manager Bootcamp), team performance and culture (psychological safety, coaching and mentoring, team building), and managing difficult conversations and change. He works with nonprofit organizations across North America, delivering 60–90 minute workshops, half-day and full-day seminars, keynotes, and custom training programs — both in-person and online.

Recent clients include the David Suzuki Foundation, Sustainability Network, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, Feed Ontario, Fraser Basin Council, CPA Ontario, and the Book & Periodical Council. He has been a top-rated presenter with the Sustainability Network since 2020, where his sessions routinely sell out.

Mikhael's training practice is built on twenty-five years of experience as a professional fundraiser and nonprofit leader across the arts, health, social service, and education sectors. That hands-on experience — leading teams, navigating change, having difficult conversations, and developing the next generation of managers from the inside — is what gives his training its practical edge. Participants consistently note that he brings real examples and working tools rather than theory alone.

As an educator, Mikhael is an AFP Master Trainer and a frequent speaker at conferences across North America. He has previously served as faculty with the Canadian Association of Gift Planners and has taught fundraising and nonprofit management at George Brown College, Fleming College Toronto, and Toronto Metropolitan University. He holds a Master of Arts in Leadership from Royal Roads University.