Archive for January, 2012

Nonprofit Employment Trends

Monday, January 30th, 2012
Bob Cryer

Bob Cryer

The recently published John Hopkins Nonprofit Employment Bulletin #38 gives perspectives on how the nonprofit sector has changed over the last decade.

In 2010, nonprofits employed 10.7 million people, or 10.1% of total national employment in the private sectors. Nonprofits are the third largest sector behind retailing (14.5% of all private employees) and manufacturing (11.5% of all private employees). 57% of nonprofit jobs are in health services, 15% are in educational services and 13% are in social services.

From 2000 to 2010, nonprofit employment grew by an average of 2.1% per year compared to a 0.6% average employment decline in the for profit sectors. More impressively, nonprofits showed an employment growth in every in of those years, including the recession years of 2007-09.

87% of nonprofit employment is in the services sector compared to for-profits having only 9% of their employees in services sectors. Nationwide, employment in services sectors grew by an average of 2.7% per year from 2000 to 2010, whereas all other sectors declined by an average of 0.8% per year.

Because nonprofit employment growth (2.1%) is less that the total growth in services employment (2.7%), nonprofits share of the business in their respective sectors is falling. In health services, their share fell from 45% to 43%. In educational services, nonprofit share dropped from 69% in 2000 to 64% in 2010. And in social services, nonprofit’s share of employees fell from 62% in 2000 to 54% in 2010.

The report mentions several causes for this decline. One was for-profits relative ease of accessing capital to respond to new demands. For example, when Medicare made home health care eligible for reimbursement, for profits raised the capital needed to move into that niche quickly and now dominate this niche that was originally pioneered by nonprofits.

Another competitive advantage of for-profits is their stronger relations with government officials through campaign contributions and lobbying. For-profits also seem more willing to offer their employees lower wages and fewer benefits than nonprofits, enabling them to under-cut nonprofit costs.

In addition to these factors, public funding is under siege and private donation sources are strained. For the first time in decades, nonprofit employment growth seems very uncertain.

Author:  Bob Cryer,  Executive Coaches of Orange County,  www.ECofOC.org

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Nonprofit Hiring Mistakes

Tuesday, January 24th, 2012

Larry Tucker

Research shows that one of the primary characteristics of successful organizations is that they spend more time and money on selecting and onboarding new hires than other organizations. That is, they take the time to find exactly the right fit the first time.  

Sounds simple and reasonable, doesn’t it? 

But sometimes influences like lack of time or lack of candidates interfere with our decision-making processes. You‘ve seen, or been a part of these types of situations. Your program director quit last month and you’ve been doing the work of two people ever since. How can you spend enough time to make the right choice? Or, you stumbled on a good candidate, so you’ll just go ahead and hire her. Or, the talent pool for this type of person is so thin that you’ll just take the first one that meets your minimum requirements. Yet, like any other long-term strategy, the investment of time now to create the right foundation bears great rewards down the road.  

The “costs” of a wrong hire are overwhelming:  

  • Double (or triple or more) effort in orientation and training.
  • Wasted salary costs in your budget. 
  • The negative effects of the wrong hire on staff and clients. 

Curtis Chang’s article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review entitled Three Nonprofit Hiring Mistakes to Avoid is a terrific reminder of things to do and not do in a hiring process.  

Some managers don’t believe that the additional time investment will bear more successful results, so they hire fast. There’s no question that despite a substantial effort, there is still a chance of failure, and managers will often point to such a past failure as a reason to short-change the process. Again, research shows that there is a correlation between a thorough, effective hiring process and a significantly enhanced chance of success.  

So, when you are faced with finding the right person for a role in your organization, step back, take a breath, consider the alternatives, develop a strategy and then execute that strategy. It will be worth it!

 Author: Larry Tucker,  Executive Coaches of orange County,  www.ECofOC.org

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The Importance of Press Releases

Monday, January 16th, 2012

Adrianne DuMond

In the age of electronic media overwhelming us – web sites, blogs, Facebook, Twitter – it is possible to forget about the importance of the traditional media – newspapers, radio and television. I read the other day that 58% of people get their news from television and 38% read the newspaper (http//people-press.org/). There are important reasons to consider promoting your agency with timely press releases and stories to the press.

Reasons for traditional media:  It is more noteworthy to have a press release in a Los Angeles Times or Orange county Register, or any of your top tier newspapers, than to resort to a blog or a twitter for your news. The third party validation is important. But beyond that, there is the opportunity to attract attention to your story or agency from new sources. The blog or Facebook or Twitter often is preaching to the choir – people who already know your story.

Another important factor is that the audience the newspaper or television channel may attract is different. Your serious donors and loyal supporters (many times older) may prefer the newspaper and television and not be ‘trapped’ in the Facebook, Twitter, and blog generation. They probably have the time to consider your worthy cause when it is compellingly presented.

How to get coverage: The best entree into good coverage is to do some homework. 1) Who in your contact area writes about subjects you have? 2) Make contact with a reporter, know his/her area of interest, and compliment him/her on an article you have read. 3) Find a personal interest tie-in to what your agency does, a compelling story from a client, customer, case. 4) Call the reporter and make yourself known, ask how he/she selects stories, and seek advice. Reporters are human and like stories provided to them, sources who value their wisdom, and may become a valued contact for future endeavors.

Where to pitch: We often tend to forget the ethnic media or regional/neighborhood papers that may be looking for a good story. I recently had a story printed first in a neighborhood paper that was picked up by the mainstream press. There is also the option of ‘letters to the editor’. Key audiences like politicians, government executives, and corporate leaders may browse this source when they often don’t read more of the paper.

This is just a reminder that the old, slow way sometimes presents opportunities that may be overlooked in the rush to stay current with modern trends. I am indebted to the media expert, Holly Minch who educated me to this way of thinking when she wrote an article for the blueavocado.org website. Thank you, Holly.

Author: Adrianne DuMond, Executive Coaches of Orange County,  www.ECofOC.org

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Is Social Networking an Investment in the Future?

Monday, January 9th, 2012

Robin Noah

Sarah DiJulio and Marc Ruben co-authored a chapter in the book, People to People Fundraising: Social Networking and Web 2.0 for Charities, where they provide information from a guide to the “lingo” of social sites, to an approach to planning your entry into social networking. This book is still one of the most interesting books addressing the issue.

DiJulio and Ruben point out that one of the most important things to do is to pick the right social networks: You may need an “expert” to help you map out a strategy for moving forward … and …the expert may be someone in your organization who is already savvy re the social networks. How about an internship program that highlights the development of your social media networks?

DiJulio and Ruben also recommend that you extend your reach. Select a social network and then use a ’scattershot’ approach. That is, don’t just set up a profile. Create a group as well and attract more supporters that way.

Protect yourself legally regarding the control of your networking group. Get your legal adviser involved.

Look for your supporters that are already on social networks. Send them an e-mail inviting them to become your friend or to join your group. You may have to assign a staff person to accept friend requests, post comments on other people’s pages, and invite others to become friends. Social networking requires activity.

Eventually you will want to start turning your ‘friends’ into activists, donors, and volunteers. You want to make sure your social networking pages always feature lots of opportunities to get involved; include donation opportunities. Even if you do not raise much in the short run, it helps to set expectations for the future. Setting up shop and collecting “Likes,” “Friends” or “Followers” will not necessarily result in donors and supporters. You have to “work” the network. Communicate with your social network friends on a regular basis.

Update your pages with new content. Use MySpace ‘bulletins’ and Facebook ‘notes’ on other users’ profiles to get the word out on important issues and drive people to your page. Create interesting content.

Social networking is an investment in the future. The mostly young people you will be dealing with are your donors and supporters of tomorrow. Get into the game now and learn how to use social media or you might be left behind for good.

Note: There are many websites with lists of words and terms for social media. Oxford University Press commissioned a list that you can access at www.pcworld.com/article/.

Author:  Robin Noah,  Executive Coaches of Orange County,  www.ECofOC.org

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The Nonprofit Growth Dilemma

Monday, January 2nd, 2012
Bob Cryer

Bob Cryer

Growing a for-profit is relatively easy. Just demonstrate, in a credible test market, that customers will buy your product, and that you can deliver it at a cost that enables you to make a profit. Then venture capitalists, bank loans and your retained earnings will give you all the cash you need to expand at a pretty good clip.

A charitable nonprofit donates its services to the needy. If the nonprofit services increasing demands, its costs increase, but not its revenue, and its retained earnings available for further expansion declines. And there is no venture capital or bank loans to fund the nonprofit’s need to grow.

The government is a major funder of nonprofits, but local government agencies that disperse the funds have little influence on how much they have to disperse. Nonprofits that need to grow to meet rising needs must either find other government agencies with funds available for their mission or invest in a lobbying activity to increase the government funds available for their particular cause. The most likely outcome neither option, and being forced to underserve the need.

Growing a privately funded nonprofit is just as challenging. Foundations have a reputation of only wanting to fund a small portion of a new program for a few years, but not the growth of an established program. Corporations are typically interested in how much publicity they can get from sponsoring a nonprofit’s event, rather than funding where the needs are greatest. Individual donors tend to be attracted to unique causes and relationships that resonate with their particular values, rather than the cold realities of what volumes of what services are most needed in our community.

Given the nature of the funding sources available to nonprofits, it may be easier to fund a new program or nonprofit to serve a growing need rather than trying to get more funding for an established nonprofit program. Perhaps this is one reason why we have so many small nonprofits in our community.

Author:  Bob Cryer,  Executive Coaches of Orange County,  www.ECofOC.org

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