Some advice for young non-profit workers

I just finished reading an article on the Chronicle of Philanthropy entitle “Young Workers Seek Ways to Improve Nonprofit Work Force“. I thought it was a great article for young people like myself who are interested in a non-profit career but are afraid I won’t be able to make ends meet if I get a non-profit job due to low salaries, especially for people just starting out.

The article talked about how in a survey showed that most young professionals interested in non-profit are also afraid of the low wages and feel that things to to change so that non-profit organizations are more competitive with for profit companies. The article said that in reality, if you are comparing the salaries of non-profit organizations with those of companies of similar size, there is not a huge difference. It also suggested that non-profits need to make up the salary gap in other ways such as with professional-development opportunities that many young professionals are looking for.

I also thought it was interesting that the article had a quote from Robert Eggar in it, when we had just talked about him in class not very long ago. In the article, Eggar says:

“You all have completely got to redesign charity in America, 100 percent, top to bottom,” he said, adding, “There’s no big pot of money out there that’s going to allow you all to get paid a good wage unless you go out and develop it. What I see in your generation is a desire to see your spirituality, your income, and your lifestyle mesh. It doesn’t exist yet, and I think a lot of people come to the nonprofit sector thinking, I’ll find it there, and can be a little discouraged.”

I like this quote because we always talk about what is wrong with the non-profit sector in class, and what needs to change. Eggar says that everyone knows there needs to be changes, and the young generation has to be the one to start these changes. We have to be the ones to change non-profits so they meet the standards we want and these organizations can be even more successful.

K-State Proud

I’m a little disappointed with the K-State Proud campaign this year. Don’t misunderstand me, I think it’s a great idea. I’ve donated both years and I think that t-shirts really entice students to donate. I also think it’s a great idea that it’s students helping students. Overall, it’s a great campaign and helps a lot of students in need.

However, this year I don’t think it was a good idea to put those huge banners all over campus. They could have told us how great the campaign did by putting it in the collegian or maybe putting posters all over campus. Instead, they put HUGE banners on several buildings on campus. In the last two weeks I’ve noticed a few more as I’ve been on campus. While this is a great idea for letting us know how well the campaign did, I don’t agree with it. I know those banners couldn’t have been cheap and I don’t think that it was a good idea to spend the money on them. I don’t think that getting the message out that way is the best route. Even if the banners were donated I think the money from those donations should have gone towards the cause instead of advertising how well the campaign did. I know I’m not the only one who thinks this because last week I saw a message in the fourum asking how much the banners cost the campaign. Obviously, at least one other student thinks the banners were a waste of funds. I know that when I saw them my first thought was how much money it took from the scholarships for students. I know the campaign is new and getting the message out is important but I don’t think this helped the campaign for those people who are wondering where the money went to. The banners say where the money went but they don’t say how much was spent on advertising and things like that. Now I’m wondering how much money was really raised and where ALL of it went?

E-mail Campaign

I thought I’d add to my presentation by giving part 3 of 6 from the echoinggreen.org/blog/putting-the-fun-back-in-fundraising about E-mail campaigns.  I didn’t really like the idea of sending e-mails and asking for money but this blog gives some good advice to fundraisers about e-mail campaigns.  Here are a few highlights:

It’s also a way to build relationships

It suggests using something in the news to create the subject of the e-mail.  That way readers know that the e-mail and subject are also current.

It emphasizes keeping a privacy a priority.  Everyone is concerned about their privacy and if you guarantee privacy your potential donors then they’re more likely to have confidence in your organization.

The blog gives great suggestions for when to send the e-mails as well.  It recommends times when people are more likely to check their e-mails.

I think the most important part is the last point in the blog: don’t ask for money in the first e-mail! “ You wouldn’t ask for money the first time you met someone, and you shouldn’t in the first time you email someone either.”  I agree with this and I think that non-profits should follow this suggestion as well.  I also believe it ruins the relationship you’re trying to build when all you do is ask for money.  That’s not a very good relationship if all you want is money.  You should build the relationship and build in trust and confidence before you start asking for money

Searching for Ideas

This blog post might be a little week. Considering we had no class Friday, and no presentations, my brain is working slow to think of something to blog about.

While I was Google searching some news stories of non-profit or philanthropy I came across an online newspaper for the non-profit world. I thought I might blog about this, just so I could share this with everyone.  It’s interesting for several reasons, I think it might give people an idea of what is going on out there, (give them something to clog about), also gives organizations ideas of what other people are trying for fundraising-lets them know whats working and what is not.

The website is called:   http://www.philanthropy.com/    The Newspaper of the non-profit world.  I am sure a lot of people have heard about  it, but I don’t really know if they realize how great of a tool this is.  It covers everything from, grant tips, celebrity philanthropy, philanthropy careers to suggestions on where to donate.

They have a specific section of careers, and they list over 650 avalible positions.  You can type in your zip code and find a non-profit job near you. And I remind you this is ALL free. It will even break it down into fundraising positions, administrative, executive etc…

One of my favorite sections was the “suggested books” section: It has a list of books about non-profit, and fund raising that are good. You can click on the title and get a review of that book.

This is a great site, and people should take advantage of it!

Obama Tax Credit

I really enjoyed reading up on last week’s management dilemma about Obama’s Tax Credit. I believe this is a good idea, especially for college students who are trying to make it on their own. It’s difficult taking classes, staying involved, and juggling a part-time job. And trying to pay as you go is practically impossible, so students are left with few options, which are primarily loans. Having a second option for financial assistance is great. This credit will definitely give an incentive for students to give part of their time to the community. I think a lot of students would like to volunteer, but are unable to due to their need to dedicate free time to their job in order to make the rent. This would provide the opportunity to do both.

Pay it Forward?

All the talk in class about Oprah’s Big Give and the concept of changing lives, I couldn’t resist making a post about something interesting I saw on Craig’s List today.

If you’ll take a look at post ID# 611591357 , you will find a good Samaritan wanting to pay forward generous donations from strangers.  To save you the time of visiting the site I will quote:

“I am wanting to try an experiment, I am asking anyone wishing to make donations to me, I will pay it forward to those in need. I don’t know how many will respond, but I think a lot of money could be raised. Thanks for your support.”

This sounds like a good idea, but doesn’t it sound a little fish-y?  I don’t mean to be a pessimist, but I’m not going to send money to a random person on Craig’s List and hope for the best.  It does bring up another issue: do non-profits have a place on social networking sites?  I love when I see non-profits on Facebook, but where is the line?  Is Craig’s List appropriate?  Or does it only seem inappropriate because this specific link seems so… untrustworthy?

Incentive to Volunteer

Our management dilemma came at the perfect time for me.  I’m giving a speech in my PR writing class about trying to get people more involved with the Manhattan Arts Center.  I’ve come up with a list of incentives to try to convince people to help.  I think that if people knew more ways to get involved they’d be more likely to do so.  Many people don’t realize that it doesn’t take a lot of time or effort to volunteer or to just help non-profits.

Classes:  People can volunteer to teach a class (and even get paid).  Many people took classes through arts and humanities councils and this is one way to ensure the tradition continues.  It also helps kids encourage their creativity, especially if their schools don’t offer classes in art, dance, music, and specific physical education like karate, archery, etc.  Many classes like this aren’t offered in schools and it helps our future generations.

Arts: Schools are taking away art programs and the arts center allows children to learn about different types of arts through the exhibits.  People can help the exhibits by volunteering to help set them up, donating money, and attending gallery openings to show support.

Theatre: People can help in the theatre by acting, helping with designing and making sets, and even attending the performances.  The money from tickets helps support the shows and to support the MAC.

If other organizations give several possibilities for how to get involved then maybe more people will help non-profits.

http://www.idealist.org/en/career/guide/index.html

The above site has a complete career guide to the nonprofit sector. It’s really great!

Job crunch in the non-profits

I especially enjoyed reading Harvey’s posted article from the Washington post about the struggle of recruiting and mantaining quality employees in the non-profit sector. The long hours and strenuous work along with low salaries can steer them away after a few years of work. I know for me personally, I am a little hesistant while searching for non-profit jobs after graduation. Why take a lower paid job, with less benefits when a for-profit business will compensate me more for my qualifications? Also, with the social entreprenuership movement on a rise, you CAN work for a company and still fulfill your needs of philanthropy without having to work for non-profit these days.
I would suggest that non-profits may need to up their standards to be more competitive with the for-profit sector. This would help eliminate the high turnover rate amongst entry level employees and secure a stronger, more long-term staff.

A Void in Kansas

The below excerpt is from an article in Earth News. At the National Conference for The National Council of Nonprofit Associations the focus will be in part employing one in 10 Americans in the nonprofit sector. I think this is really interesting. According to http://www.nonprofitcongress.org/?q=localefforts#KS Kansas has no state coordinator or town hall meetings that would help facilitate Kansans receiving such employment. Why is this? Is Kansas inherently slow on the green movement? Would this be because we are not located on a coast and so there for the trend hasn’t fully hit? Now there are those who would say Kansas has many activities and this is just one instance where someone hasn’t stepped up yet. That may be so but I see a void here, and that’s troublesome.

The National Council of Nonprofit Associations, in conjunction with State Coordinators in 36 states and the District of Columbia, will host Town Halls throughout the country during March and April 2008. The Town Hall meetings provide a forum for local nonprofit leaders to identify challenges facing their communities and organizations, exchange ideas, and help set the agenda for the Nonprofit Congress National Meeting in Washington, DC this June. In addition, the Town Hall meetings will reveal strategies and programs developed in various states to address the three priorities identified by the Nonprofit Congress in 2006: public awareness and support of the sector; advocacy and grassroots community organizing; and nonprofit organizational effectiveness. http://www.nonprofitcongress.org/