Nonprofit Leader and Expert
Erik Hanberg is the author of four books for nonprofits — The Little Book of Boards, The Little Book of Gold, The Little Book of Nonprofit Leadership, and The Little Book of Likes — which have collectively sold more than 75,000 copies. Named to Forbes’ “Top 12 Must-Read Books for Nonprofit Leaders,” his work has been praised by Kirkus Reviews, LinkedIn for Nonprofits, and nonprofit leaders across the country.
The second edition of his book on board governance, The Little Book of Boards, will be published in June 2026 by Harriman House, an imprint of Macmillan International.
Erik consults with nonprofit boards and executive directors across the country and has worked with organizations on four continents. He has facilitated board retreats in Washington D.C., Atlanta, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and across Western Washington, and speaks regularly as a keynote at national nonprofit and association conferences on fundraising, governance, and leadership.
He runs For Small Nonprofits, a site dedicated to providing practical, accessible advice for leaders of small and very small nonprofits.
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Elected Experience and Civic Voice
Erik Hanberg served more than 12 years as an elected commissioner on the board of Parks Tacoma (2010–2022), one of five commissioners overseeing the park district on behalf of the public. During that time, Parks Tacoma operated with an annual budget of more than $50 million, and the voters showed their support for the work by passing a levy lid lift and a capital bond.
Erik was first appointed in 2010 to fill a vacancy on the board. In 2011, he won a competitive citywide election with 19,500 votes, defeating an opponent with eighteen years of previous elected experience on the board. He was re-elected unopposed in 2017 and served as president of the board in 2016 and 2021. His time in elected office gave Erik deep experience in public administration, public process, capital planning, and the intersection of community voice and institutional governance.
Erik is a Senior Fellow of the American Leadership Forum, Tacoma/Pierce County Chapter, and has served on numerous boards and committees in the community. He routinely consults with local nonprofit, business, and elected leaders, formally through programs such as Spaceworks Tacoma and his ForSmallNonprofits.com business, and informally over coffee meetups and phone calls.
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Media Innovator
Erik Hanberg is the Director of Marketing, Communications, and Government Relations at KNKX Public Radio, which serves Western Washington with jazz, blues, and NPR news. He has led communications during periods of significant change in public media, including the national debate over public media funding. At KNKX, he has spearheaded large marketing campaigns, and behind-the-scenes initiatives to improve the brand and profile of the station.
In 2017, Erik co-founded Channel 253 with Marguerite Martin and Doug Mackey — a hyperlocal podcast network covering Tacoma civic life, local government, arts, education, and business. Channel 253 has produced hundreds of episodes across multiple shows and has been featured in regional and national media.
Erik is an early adopter of many media technologies. He was an early blogger on his own site and as a partner with Exit133.com (2006–2008), and an early podcaster, and has hosted several podcasts about media, culture, Tacoma, and nonprofits.
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Fiction Writer and Storyteller
Erik Hanberg has published more than ten books of fiction, including the science fiction novels in The Lattice Trilogy (The Lead Cloak, The Iron Harvest, The Tin Whistle), the high-tech heist Semi/Human, the time-loop novella 1999, and more. His fiction has been praised by Kirkus Reviews as “staggeringly smart” and his books have been translated into Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Arabic.
Across all titles — fiction and nonfiction — Erik Hanberg has sold more than 140,000 books.
Erik’s theater writing has been featured in several playwriting festivals (Pierce County Playwright Festival, the Double-Shot Theater Festival, Carleton College) and in a stage reading at Tacoma Little Theater. He also wrote and created the escape room drama The Scorpion Extraction for Adventures by appointment. And his play #writingretreat is available for purchase online.
As creator of the Horatio Theater project (2006–2009), he produced several well-reviewed plays, musicals, and cabarets, and wrote. After running the Grand Cinema and creating the 72 Hour Film Competition (now the 253 Short Film Competition), he wrote and directed two short films for the competition, both of which won awards.
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