Are you intrigued by how other nonprofits do their hiring?
Do you wish you had more information about what compensation looks like across the sector?
Would you like to share how you attract the best staff to your organization?
If you answered, “yes” to the above, and are responsible for decision-making at your organization on topics such as hiring, compensation and staff development, then we invite you to share your experiences in our annual nonprofit HR survey.
Why does your voice matter?
This year’s survey aims to find out more about how you do your job when it comes to finding, developing and keeping staff; frustrations or constraints you face in making your daily work as effective as possible; and where Idealist can help you bridge the gap.
The more data we have from organizations of all sizes, budgets, and areas of focus, the better the snapshot we can deliver to you of where the sector stands now — and where it’s headed.
You’ll also be telling us how we can better support your work and help you further your organization’s mission.
To take this year’s confidential survey, click here.
We couldn’t have done past years’ surveys without you. Thank you for helping us deepen the nonprofit sector’s knowledge base, sharing your best practices, and being an invaluable member of the Idealist community.
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The 2013 HR report is scheduled to be released this spring. Prior year reports are also available here.
Each day, people like you have ideas on how to make the world a better place, but don’t know how to put their ideas into action. To help you take the first step, we’re profiling budding social entrepreneurs who are tackling issues that are important to them, one step at a time.
The idea
Photo of Ryan from ©Neighborhood Notes in Portland, Oregon: www.neighborhoodnotes.com.
Ryan Saari, an Oregon native, knows that Portlanders love their beer as much as they love helping others. But given the amount of nonprofits that already exist in the city, Ryan realized that another nonprofit, while wonderful, may not be needed. “Instead we thought, what can we do to partner with the existing nonprofits?” he says.
Three years ago what started off as a discussion between Ryan and his friends about what good they could do in their communities turned into something bigger: The Oregon Public House—a soon-to-open nonprofit pub that will serve local beer and seasonal, locally sourced food, pay employees fair wages, and donate all its profit to charities.
Ryan foresees The Oregon Public House growing and hopes after a year or two of running successfully they can open another in Portland, eventually with plans to brew their own beer and sell six packs in stores where 100% of the money goes to a charity.
Obstacles
Ryan’s first step was to bring a team on board and find a building to set up the brew pub. To buy an already existing business, the team would need a minimum of $200,000. Instead, they found a fix it up rental attached to a ballroom that was still used as an event space.
Now that they had the building, they took the next steps toward owning the first brew pub of it’s kind. Here are some of the many obstacles they encountered over the past few years to get this unique nonprofit up and running:
Obstacle: Community push back
Solution: Worried about bringing a bar into a community, Ryan didn’t want to contribute to the already existing problem of people abusing alcohol. “At first people questioned what we were doing. People wanted to change the idea into a coffee shop, or take the idea and brew craft root beer instead,” he says. He knew it was important to establish the nonprofit as a public house and not a bar, a place where friends and family can come together to enjoy a beer and food in a friendly environment.
Obstacle: Never been done before
Solution: Without a model to learn from, Ryan knew trust was key when opening a nonprofit like this, which is the first of its kind in the country. “Customers need to know where the money is going,” Ryan says. Their books are public so customers can see where the profits go to help combat any skepticism. With the idea to one day expand and turn the pub into a brewery, The Oregon Public House is continually aware of maintaining the balance between giving to local charities and the operational costs for the pub.
The ballroom. (Photo from ©Neighborhood Notes.)
Obstacle: Opening without debt
Solution: With the largest donation only being $2,500, there needed to be other ways to raise funds. One way was to start a ‘Founders’ program, where people give to the nonprofit and in return receive a free beer each day, or week, depending on their contribution level.
Another way they stayed debt-free was not building until the money was available, a strategy they plan on continuing. While they received a grant from the city of Portland for the store front, they also didn’t take out any loans.
They likewise relied on volunteers to help reconstruct the building: pour the cement, paint the walls, and do whatever they could to help. Opening with zero debt will allow them to immediately begin donating the profits to worthwhile charities and to positively influence the community around them.
Obstacle: Staying profitable
Solution: Ryan says there are lots of questions about how to make a public house a viable business while giving away most of the earnings. He and his team pay rent by renting out the event space attached to their brew pub location for weddings, movie screenings, and more. “An event space is extremely profitable,” he says. They also plan on having the leadership all-volunteer run, with paid staff to cut down costs.
Advice
Future home of The Oregon Public House. (Photo from ©Neighborhood Notes.)
After two years of countless hours from 100 volunteers, The Oregon Public House is in the final stages of officially opening it’s doors to the community.
“We’ve received emails from people all over the country saying they’ve had the same idea, and asking how they can do this where they are to help their own city,” says Ryan. “We want people to steal this idea.”
Whether or not you plan on opening your own brew pub for charity, here’s how Ryan thinks you can move forward on your idea:
“Make a living,” Ryan finally says. “But instead of pocketing the extra cash, why not give back to your city?”
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Want to steal this idea? Feel free to reach out to Ryan at ryan@oregonpublichouse.com.
The idea
Some items people commonly collect include antiques, comic books, bobbleheads, shotglasses, and more. Kevin Boyle and Rick Horan collect ideas.
They stand in places like NYC’s High Line or Times Square with a large sign and ask people to share their ideas, some of which they post on their website or talk about in a podcast. They’ve heard it all: from tax returns that allow you to choose where your tax dollars are spent to a health rating for nail salons to making South America the largest rollerblading rink in the world. Some people even sing to them.
The idea came to Kevin after reading about blogger Andrew Dubber’s project to give 30 ideas in 30 days away for free.
Kevin Boyle and Rick Horan. (Photo via Ideas Improv.)
“His rationale was, If I’m not going to do anything with these ideas, maybe someone else will,” Kevin says. “I started thinking about tweaking and expanding his idea and taking it to a much broader level. Instead of one guy doing it why not ask everyone?”
From solar energy to healthcare to education, most ideas they hear are for the common good.
“Our Ideas Wanted project is all about engagement. And there seems to be a yearning for good old conversation. Sharing ideas seems to us as the ideal way to open up organizations to new people and new ideas,” Kevin says.
Why we’re adding it to the Idea File
How you can replicate it
Since the project launched last September, Kevin and Rick have taken their signs across the country from Miami to Seattle. They’d love nothing more than to go to all 50 states and then some in hopes of making a documentary.
Also in the works is “an ‘ideas’ program to promote idea sharing, brainstorming, collaboration, and creativity in schools.” Eventually they hope to engage civic groups, and given the damage Hurricane Sandy did to their hometown in the Rockaways, they also want to collect suggestions on how to make the area more resilient.
If you’re inspired to solicit strangers where you live, here are some tips to keep in mind:
Under the lights on Broadway. (Photo via Ideas Improv.)
“A lot of people will be stumped. They have ideas all the time but they’re suddenly brain dead when asked for an idea,” Kevin finally says. “Talk to them about the project. Tell them you’ll be there for a while so if they want to come back you’ll be ready. If you have fun with it, people will have fun, too.”
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Interested in promoting idea sharing at your school, nonprofit, or workplace? Feel free to get in touch with Kevin: kevinboyle@ideasimprov.com.
Do you know of other projects that are fun and potentially replicable? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, leave a comment below or email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
From Milserve to Team Rubicon, the opportunities for vets to continue serving after they’ve come home are increasing. According to a recent report by Civic Enterprises, becoming involved with community service can greatly help the transition to civilian life. This is one vet’s story.
During his time with the Air Force in Vietnam, Jeff Hottensen lived on almost every continent in the world. When he returned to NY after a little over two decades, he saw an ad in the paper to volunteer with a blind baseball team in Babylon. Eighteen years later Jeff is still stepping up to the plate.
“All those years in the service, I never had a connection to anything. No place was home,” he says. “I wanted to be part of a community, to do something and not move every two and a half years.”
Jeff, now 65-years-old and a customer service rep at AAA, grew up playing stickball in Manhattan and loves that baseball is a sport almost anyone can play. Twist the rules a bit, throw unlikely players on the field, and the game becomes even more high stakes.
Jeff (left) at a recent exhibition game at Citi Field, home of the NY Mets. (Photo via Camille Hottensen.)
“Not only are they beating a disability, but they are beating the system. It’s so much more thrilling,” he says.
Beep baseball works like this: A sighted pitcher throws a beeping ball to a blind or visually impaired batter who is blindfolded to combat any advantage. After hitting the ball, the batter uses their hearing to run to first, even better third base, which is also beeping. No balls are thrown. If the fielder gets the ball before the batter reaches the base, they’re out. The game is over in six innings.
Jeff is currently with Rockville Centre-based Long Island Bombers and has had just about every role from catcher to base judge to umpire at the World Series — in addition to describing items at the gift shop so the players can bring home souvenirs when they travel. He’s suffered bumps and bruises, broken fingers, even a concussion, yet he returns year after year.
“I learned, which I never thought I had, that caring feeling,” he says. “I surprised myself.”
From national service to community service
The first time Jeff met the players he was nervous about how he would act. He’d never been around the blind before.
“I was so scared of saying the wrong things,” he says. “I remember meeting this guy Jack who was running the team. He said ‘Good to see you. Oh wait, I can’t. So maybe it’s good for you to see me.’ ”
The immediate joking made Jeff feel right at home. Eventually he was able to transfer the leadership skills he honed in the Air Force to volunteering. Early on in Vietnam, for example, Jeff was thrown into a role as Branch Chief and had to manage people of all genders, races, and ages.
“I loved seeing young kids come in, teaching them, and watching them grow up,” he says. “Before they ship out you’ve made them into somebody respectful. You saw them build their self-confidence.”
With the Bombers, whose players are increasingly younger, empowering them to not fall into a depression because of blindness is part of teaching them how to swing a bat.
“Her mom said her life has changed so much and that this is the best thing that has happened to her,” Jeff says about a new sixteen-year-old recruit who’d recently gone blind. “How can I quit now? Those things keep me going.”
In later years Jeff has become more involved with organizing. If the weather is bad, he sets up a phone chain. If they’re stuck at the airport on the way to the World Series, he makes sure the players have something to do. Each year Jeff also arranges the LI Classic, a local tournament.
A second family
Above all, being a part of the Bombers reminds Jeff of the tight knit camaraderie he experienced in the Air Force. He and his usual roommate at the World Series, Jim Hughes, have been with each other through marriages, births, career changes, and more.
The Long Island Bombers have been around since 1997. (Photo via the team.)
“The two of us have just grown up together. He was 18, I was 40-something when we both started. Unbelievable,” Jeff says. “You build lifetime relationships over this. You really do.”
It makes occasions like winning a game at the World Series even more special. The year was 2005, the field was Houston’s Meyer Park. Jeff was catching; the Bombers hadn’t won a game yet. It was the last one of the series. Frank Guerra got a hit that tipped the game in their favor. He jumped into Jeff’s arms, and the rest of the team went crazy.
“I just thought it was the greatest moment,” Jeff says. “Without winning a game they might’ve lost a lot of courage and confidence, and not gone to the next World Series.”
Not like the team needed much cheering up to begin with. Jeff is continually struck by is how the players don’t view their blindness as a handicap, a philosophy they spread through local clinics and demonstrations at places like Camp Abilities.
“I never heard one of them complain about something they couldn’t do,” Jeff says. “It’s made me less tolerant about people who whine about nothing.”
The positivity is addicting. Soon, Jeff and his wife are thinking about becoming snowbirds, spending half the time in New York and half the time in Florida. He’s already putting feelers out to see if he could start a team down south and add more years to his umpire uniform.
The question remains: Will he ever strike out with beep baseball? The likely answer is no.
“I’m staying for at least 20 so I can get my retirement pay,” Jeff says, laughing.
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Inspired to volunteer? The Bombers are always looking for extra hands to carry bats, spot bases, and wear blindfolds. Get in touch by emailing beepball@libombers.org.
Each day, people like you have ideas on how to make the world a better place, but don’t know how to put their ideas into action. To help you take the first step, we profile budding social entrepreneurs who are tackling issues that are important to them, one step at a time.
The idea
I’m horrible at improv comedy. If someone were to tell me that I should sign up for a class by myself, with a bunch of random strangers, and perform to a crowd of 700 plus people at the end, I’d tell them they were crazy.
Which is why I probably need to do it. Saya Hillman from Chicago-based Mac ‘n Cheese Productions agrees. After she convinced friends who didn’t know each other to dance a hip-hop routine on stage with her so she could check it off her life to-do list, she saw the immediate bonding that came with shared vulnerability. Fear Experiment, where you perform an art form that terrifies you, was thus born.
Dancers from the first Fear Experiment show at Park West Theater in April 2010. (Photo via Rich Chapman: richchapmanphoto.com/rwc)
There’s no one succinct way to describe Mac ‘n Cheese Productions. Besides Fear Experiment, other offerings include: minglers, an ideas salon, meetups, dinner parties, events for women entrepreneurs, a newsletter of referrals for local businesses, and most recently, retreats. Her long-term dream, though? A summer camp for adults.
“It can be awkward to go to stuff. I try to remove all the “ick” factors in traditional ways of meeting people and getting out there so to speak,” she says.
Saya is also big on giving back. Fear Experiment participants volunteer as pen pals and teachers to an underserved population, and the students are treated to dinner and the show. Folks from her network, called Cheese-Its, also regularly sponsor a Rwandan boy’s education, and she started a Chicago chapter of BC Cares, the volunteering arm of Boston College alum.
Whether it’s providing opportunities for community service or confronting your own perceived limitations, Saya is all about getting others to “Live a life of yes!”
“I’m trying to help people not be paralyzed by fear and low self-esteem. It’s really hard for people to see the positives in themselves often,” she says. “I hope I’m able to bring that out in themselves. And not only recognize it, but to own it and do something good with it as well.”
Obstacles
Eight years ago Saya got laid off from her job as a video producer. She had no plans of being an entrepreneur; the only thing she knew was she didn’t want “boss” in her vocabulary anymore.
Motivated by having to pay rent and the possibility of being forced to move back home, Saya’s first step was to figure out how long $300 in savings and unemployment checks would last. Turns out not long; Saya had to just jump and figure it out along the way.
Here are some of the challenges she faced:
Obstacle: Plan or no plan?
Solution: Saya started out wanting to create her own video company for special events. She didn’t know the first thing about running a business, and people advised to have a plan. But while she loves lists, having a plan wasn’t her thing. So she researched other companies. Shadowed videographers. Contacted a local business development center. Used collaborative tech tools like Creative Cow.
A year into being self-employed Saya was continuing with her tradition of throwing dinner parties for friends who didn’t know each other when strangers began wanting in. It was then Saya realized she could make it into a business. Mac ‘n Cheese soon morphed from a media company to a people connector company. “I didn’t imagine any of it, but that’s what I love about it. There’s always something new and exciting,” she says.
Obstacle: Financial insecurity
Solution: From buying video equipment to coordinating events, Saya continually opted for the most economical ways to get things done. She was careful not to get herself into situations that would cause a huge debt to hang over her head.
She would also occasionally do pro-bono video jobs, and anytime she has given something away for free or low-cost, it has always come back to her in a positive way. “More often than not people say ‘yes’ to my outlandish requests and go above and beyond what I was expecting,” she says.
Obstacle: Working solo
Solution: Saya knew not having co-workers to bounce ideas off of was going to be hard for her, so she immediately started reaching out to her networks. She kept with this trend, and a few years later, began going to events in the city by herself as part of an experiment called the “The Solo Life.”
The amount of people she knew in Chicago increased exponentially, and now connecting and collaborating with people from all walks of life is her bread and butter. “When you go into situations where you’re meeting people, I learned the power of listening, and the power of not going into something just thinking about what you need out of the situation,” she says.
Advice
Saya is thrilled that she was fired all those years ago. From meeting her fiancé to inspiring a woman to start a dog walking business, the amount of friendships, partnerships, and startups she has encouraged through her events are numerous and far-ranging.
“I love infecting people with ED, entrepreneurial disease,” Saya says. “It’s the best thing in the world.”
Saya introducing Fear Experiment. (Photo via Rich Chapman.)
Here’s how she thinks you can move forward on your idea:
Starting out
For the ladies
Staying motivated
“You have to figure out what’s good advice and what’s bad advice. What’s good for someone else might not be good for you,” Saya finally says. “Trust your gut.”
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Want to live your own life of yes? Feel free to chat with Saya about entrepreneurism and self-employment through @sayahillman on Twitter. She is also available for speaking engagements.
The idea
After hearing about someone who had written a thank you note a day for a year, Karen Amarotico from Ashland, Oregon felt inspired to do the same. Since waking up in the middle of the night over a year ago with the idea to say thank you with a pie instead, Karen has given over 390 pies to friends, family, and strangers.
Giving a pie a day away was Karen’s gratitude project.
“There is something sensual about the rolling out of the dough, peeling and slicing the fresh fruit, or stirring a rich chocolate pudding. All of these things seem to say ‘It took me awhile to make this pie, and you are worth every single minute,’ “ she says.
Why we’re adding it to the Idea File
Karen isn’t the only one using pie to say thanks. Idealist staff member Ero Gray recently baked a pie a week for friends and family for one year. This is his Gluten-free Blueberry Cream Cheese creation. (Photo by Chris Machuca via pie-curious.blogspot.com.)
How you can replicate it
Karen continues to give away on average a pie a week and doesn’t see an end in sight. “I’m more willing now to go out of my way to thank or recognize someone even if I don’t know them. I think goodness should be recognized and honored in some way and am happy to do it,” she says.
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Inspired to start your own gratitude project? Feel free to reach out to Karen for advice: karen [dot] amarotico [at] gmail [dot] com
Do you know of other projects that are fun and potentially replicable? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, leave a comment below or email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
Meet Alex
Alex Linsker has done a little bit of everything. He studied playwriting and business as an undergrad at NYU, did marketing for an
online T.V. seller, created a software company, interviewed shoppers, and most recently, co-founded and acted as president of the democratic co-working space, Collective Agency in Portland, Oregon.
But one common theme threads his pursuits: the less he knows, the more he wants to do it. So when his time as Community Organizer of the Collective Agency was up, he turned to an issue he knew little about yet would affect any business choice he’d make: taxes.
“As a playwright, I really like figuring out what the false story is and finding what the true story is,” he says. “There’s a lot of mythology about how jobs are created. The truth is that a higher tax rate on people who are the richest grows jobs.”
The idea
Alex wants to introduce a progressive income tax in Oregon through a lobbying group called Tax and Conversation.
He envisions a diverse group that writes an Oregon constitutional amendment, acquires 100,000 signatures to get it on the ballot, and petitions people to vote. He also sees the group building community and promoting education about tax, government, and civics through workshops, meetups, and more. Similar to Collective Agency, the structure will be democratic with membership fees that go to representatives.
The hope of Tax and Conversation is two-fold: On a practical level, getting rid of tax breaks will mean more money for quality K-12 education, healthcare, and other basic services in Oregon. “There’s this scarcity mentality that’s been created and talked about in the news. But there’s more than enough to go around if we choose,” he says.
On a deeper level, Alex believes that a fair tax will help reduce income disparity and therefore generate more trust and empathy in society, a viewpoint he shares with the social researcher Richard Wilkinson.
Obstacles
Alex has been reading, networking, talking, and working with various people and groups such as Tax Fairness Oregon as much as he can. So far he’s created a website that includes a first draft of the amendment.
Here are some current challenges he’s facing:
How you can help
One of many public parks in Oregon Alex hopes more money can go to. (Photo from Ian Sane via Flickr’s Creative Commons.)
Leave a comment below or send him a message through Idealist and if the project progresses, we’ll keep you posted!
Each day, people like you have ideas on how to make the world a better place, but don’t know how to put their ideas into action. To help you take the first step, we profile budding social entrepreneurs who are tackling issues that are important to them, one step at a time.
The idea
Chris Baker first traveled to the Himalayas when he was 18, and hasn’t stopped going back ever since.
Chris Baker spending a day at the office in Nepal. (Photo via Chris Baker.)
In college, Chris researched rock carvings in the area surrounding Mt. Everest, and held the position of President of the Yale Mountaineering Club. Shortly after graduating he became a Kiva fellow in Nepal, working closely with Patan Business and Professional Women (BPW Patan), a micro credit program that provides women with business development resources.
From his experience in Nepal, Chris saw a real opportunity in linking the mindful traveler with local communities and entrepreneurs. Combining his passion for social enterprise and the mountains, he created OneSeed Expeditions.
OneSeed invests 10 cents of every incoming dollar directly into microfinance initiatives that provide capital to women entrepreneurs in Nepal. You take an amazing trip to Everest Base Camp; a local woman launches or expands her business.
Obstacles
Chris’s first step was laying the groundwork. As a teacher with Teach for America, Chris would spend his summers off in Nepal getting to know the people and land even more.
But as with any idea, Chris ran into a few challenges along the way:
Obstacle: Committing to the idea
Solution: After things started rolling, every founder had to make the decision to commit full time, which meant quitting jobs and possibly moving. Once everyone did there was no turning away from OneSeed. “It’s easy to waver and and find reason not to do something, but at a certain point you have to commit and do it wholeheartedly,” Chris says. “There’s a level of momentum that comes with that complete commitment.”
Obstacle: Getting on the same page
Solution: When starting the social enterprise, the other two founding members were from Nepal. It was important to be clear and figure out what OneSeed’s core values were right away. It helped cause less confusion when communicating about the details over many Skype calls and to this day, Chris and his team are careful not to lose sight of their original principles. “The conversations and connections that come from sitting around a stove and drinking tea form the foundation of our company,” he says.
Obstacle: Fear of the unknown
Solution: “It’s easy to be blinded by optimism,” Chris says of being an entrepreneur. He had to become a true realist and take a self-assessment of the projections, which meant sitting down and asking himself and the team if they were going to meet their targets and goals. Once they evaluated their chances of success, Chris said they just had to jump. “When you’re making your idea a reality there is always a high risk and reward,” he says. He now has a thriving social enterprise that’s expanding, and everyday he loves his job. “I get to spend time in beautiful places with amazing people and we do a little bit of good along the way.”
Advice
Discovering the Annapurna trail in Nepal. (Photo via Chris Baker.)
Chris is now busy bringing the OneSeed name to Chile, offering expeditions in Patagonia beginning in January 2013. To date, OneSeed has raised over $16,000 for women entrepreneurs, and has trained and hired more than 30 local guides in Nepal and Chile.
Chris is of the belief that making a plan can’t be overstated enough. “Ideas are plentiful; execution is rare,” he says. “Some things wind up easier than you think.”
Specifically, here’s how he encourages you to move forward on your idea:
Finally, Chris advocates for acting on your idea no matter what. “Remember you’re always going to have people warning you of the constraints, challenges, and impossibles,” he says. “But if you’re willing to follow through, you find that you can do things that seem out of reach.”
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Starting your own social enterprise and need some advice? Feel free to reach out to Chris: chris@oneseedexpeditions.com.
Each day, people like you have ideas on how to make the world a better place, but don’t know how to put their ideas into action. To help you take the first step, we profile budding social entrepreneurs who are tackling issues that are important to them, one step at a time.
The idea
In 2011, a series of sexual assaults occurred in Brooklyn’s Park Slope and surrounding neighborhoods. Sensing a general feeling of vulnerability and disillusionment, a group of neighbors stepped up to create a safety alternative.
“I just felt like something more had to be done,” says Jessica Silk. “Having the police on every block isn’t going to help. It’s a community long-term effort that is going to make the community safer.”
Safe Slope was thus born. In addition to escorting female and LGBTQ-identified locals home at night, the all-volunteer group promotes anti-violence education and advocacy, as well as partners with local organizations and coalitions such as New Yorkers for Safer Transit. “Getting people to be aware and feel they can take action is our big picture goal,” Jessica says.
Obstacles
Jessica’s first step was to ask around the community to gauge interest. After hosting a meeting to get the ball rolling, Jessica spoke to the executive director of RightRides, who happened to live in the neighborhood. She had volunteered with RightRides previously and knew that although the focus was driving people home rather than walking, it was a model the group could learn from.
Armed with good advice and knowledge about everything from dispatch systems to volunteer vests, Jessica and her neighbors started getting more of the community on board. Still, they encountered challenges:
Obstacle: Volunteer burnout
Solution: A lot of volunteers signed up at first in the spirit of helping neighbors, but then the number declined. Jessica thinks a big reason for this was because volunteers had to stay up late waiting for a call, which often didn’t come. A longer-term solution they created was a reservation system where people can call in advance so volunteers know if they are expected ahead of time.
After marching through the streets of Brooklyn, Jessica Silk and other members of Safe Slope welcome the community to a rally featuring speeches from local advocates, activists, and elected officials. (Photo via Jessica Silk.)
Obstacle: Ensuring safety for everyone
Solution: The initial screening process weeds out potentially violent vigilantes and/or disrespectful volunteers through extensive essay questions. The volunteers also walk in pairs, and the group is working on obtaining a grant that would give volunteers money for a cab home at the end of the night.
Obstacle: Establishing legitimacy
Solution: People hesitated calling because they were unsure of how the system worked, and collaborators were leery about engaging with such a grassroots group. Wanting to advertise their program and build general anti-violence awareness, they organized a neighborhood rally that thousands of people attended. It garnered Safe Slope widespread media attention but more importantly, embedded them at a local level. “We were able to meet some people who were doing anti-violence work for a long time,” says Jessica. “It was good to be connected to a larger movement but also to realize that there are already so many people doing amazing things in our community.”
Obstacle: Fear of being culturally insensitive
Solution: With a large percentage of the Park Slope area Spanish-speaking, the group translated the materials into Spanish for the rally, which is one reason Jessica thinks the event had such diverse attendance. Post-rally, however, they realized they didn’t have the capacity to attend to the full community on a longer-term basis. Currently they are working on recruiting more Spanish-speaking volunteers in addition to the two they have, and continually take into account the varying perspectives on police involvement from culture to culture. Safe Slope also just recently expanded to the Sunset Park area, which means recruiting Mandarin-speaking volunteers, and are hoping to leverage their existing partnerships to counter violence affecting communities of color, such as stop-and-frisk practices by police.
Advice
Since Safe Slope has been in existence, attacks have declined and neighbors are constantly on the lookout for one another. The group continues to evolve and always keeps in mind the the most important lesson they learned when first starting out.
“Part of why we were successful is that we were willing to take the risk to do something. We were willing to fail,” Jessica says. “We went in with the attitude that if this is not what the community wants, we won’t do it.”
Besides getting community buy-in, here’s how Jessica thinks you can move forward on your idea:
“Be bold. Allow yourself to be the person to start something,” Jessica finally says. “Even if it doesn’t work out, at least you tried.”
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Interested in starting a similar program in your community? Feel free to reach out to Jessica for advice: safeslope@gmail.com.
An ongoing experiment: can our community’s collective brainpower help an idea become reality?
Meet Tamara
Tamara Turner follows the beat of her own drum – literally and figuratively. Her passion with music began when she was five years old composing piano pieces in her hometown of Fort Collins, Colorado. Tamara hasn’t skipped a beat as an adult, dabbling in everything from film scoring to music journalism, and studying a wide range of musical styles from West African drumming in Ghana to tin whistle in Ireland to Gnawa music in Morocco.
Most recently, Tamara graduated from Boston’s Tufts University with a masters degree in ethnomusicology. There, she helped organize a “Music and Islam” symposium where, by connecting with the local Moroccan community, she brought in a Moroccan band to host workshops that culminated in a big concert. For Tamara, music plays a critical role in challenging the Islamophobia she often comes across in the U.S.
“Because music has the ability to build connections artistically, creatively, and emotionally, it gives us an opportunity to lead with the heart, transcending the medium of ‘discourse’ and offering a different kind of relationship with which to understand others,” she says.
The intention
Broadly speaking, Tamara envisions an organization that utilizes music for cultural advocacy, outreach, and education, starting with but not limited to the music and cultures of North Africa. One of the first issues she would like to address through musical bridges is Islamophobia.
The idea is two-fold: Similar to the program she helped organize at Tufts, she wants to connect with local immigrant communities in the U.S. to help share their music through concerts, education, and more. Travel is also key, as she’d like to work in North Africa to help record and archive musical traditions.
Besides fostering cross-cultural understanding, and of course, celebrating the inherent joy that music brings, Tamara also hopes to counter the exotification of non-Western music cultures that can sometimes result, however well-intentioned.
“That’s part of the vision, too. Not just piecemealing and romanticizing certain elements of other cultures, but allowing ourselves to be challenged by and uncomfortable with differences as well,” she says.
Tamara learning the guimbri with her teacher, Abdellatif El Makhzoumi, in Marrakech, Morocco. (Photo via Tamara Turner.)
Obstacles
So far, Tamara has been researching similar organizations around the world and is in the process of refining her idea.
Here are some challenges she has identified:
How you can help
Leave a comment below or send her a message through Idealist and if the project progresses, we’ll keep you posted!
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Do you have an idea that’s just starting to brew? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
You have an idea to make your community better. But you’re feeling overwhelmed, afraid, unsure, and more. Now what?
Idealist can help.
All you need to do is share your story with us: what you want to do and why, the challenges you’re facing, the help you’re seeking. We’ll post it on this blog for our extremely knowledgeable and friendly community to name resources, give advice, and perhaps most importantly, cheer you on.
Sharing your idea with others can help it bloom. (Photo from Zaggy J via Flickr/Creative Commons.)
I know it can be scary to put your idea out there. But chances are, people will think it’s awesome too. Don’t believe me?
No matter what stage you’re at, a small push can go a long way. Let us help you take your next step.
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Do you have an idea that’s just starting to brew? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
Hark! A lark! (Photo credit: Meghan Kearney/USFWS, Creative Commons/Flickr)
With all the awesome organizations and people in the Idealist community, there’s no end to the variety of exciting opportunities to get involved. Whether you’re into birds or boards, tech or taxes, we’ve got something for you. Check out this sampling of great upcoming events:
On September 9th, join the Golden Gate Audubon Society for bird spotting in San Francisco’s Presidio. In the afternoon, young participants will have the opportunity to present their tallies. Last year, over 50 kinds of birds were recorded. The event is totally free and includes a “binocular bootcamp and birding basics” class for those who arrive early.
Every year, thousands of nonprofit organizations in the U.S. lose their 501(c)(3) status because they don’t file with the IRS or don’t file correctly. This one-day workshop on September 25th in Portland, Oregon will help you navigate tax compliance and regulations to keep your organization exempt.
Helping Hacks: The Goodnik Hackathon
Have a nonprofit tech project that needs help? Are you a hacker, developer, database genius, or project manager? Or do you just want to help connect some techie folks with the organizations that need their expertise? Then get involved in Goodnik’s Hackathon. For one weekend, August 24th – 26th, New York’s best developers and designers will team up with the city’s nonprofits to create innovative solutions to real technological challenges. Neat, huh?
Board service is a great way to get involved with causes you care about. If you live in Boulder County, Colorado and want to learn more about participating on a board, or if you’re looking to build your own org’s board, head over to to the Boulder County Board Match on September 19th. You’ll be able to make connections with local organizations, gain professional development, and learn everything you could want to know about nonprofit board service. There’ll even be childcare available if you can’t find a babysitter that day.
Is your organization throwing a party, offering a workshop, or launching a project? Add it to our event listings! Just log in and click on “Post a Listing” to get started.
An ongoing experiment: can our community’s collective brainpower help an idea become reality?
Meet Melanie
For Melanie Lockert, who grew up singing in the choir and performing high school plays in Los Angeles, theatre is the one place where she can really be herself. But the business side — auditioning, networking, etc. — has left Melanie feeling increasingly disenchanted as an adult. “I don’t believe the system functions in a way that is conducive to self-esteem and communication,” she says.
Animal exercises with third graders at Harlem's PS 175. (Photo via Melanie Lockert.)
So when she began practicing Theatre of the Oppressed with youth at Brooklyn’s Falconworks Artists Group, she knew the focus on individual experiences as a catalyst for social change would restore her faith in the art form.
“Theatre of the oppressed doesn’t shut out anyone. It doesn’t say your experience is wrong and my experience is right. Everyone can be an actor,” she says. “ It’’s a mobilizing tool for people who have never spoken in public and who have never expressed issues in a safe environment where they can feel comfortable playing.”
The intention
Melanie recently relocated to Portland, Oregon after getting a Masters in Performance Studies at NYU. While in New York, she taught theatre at PS 175 in Harlem with the New York City Mission Society and before that, managed art programs for underserved youth in Los Angeles. She wants to draw from her experiences teaching and work with this same population to create plays based on issues they or their communities face.
“It’s a way to open up a dialogue about what these young people want, and what they want out of their lives, addressing some of the things they want to see change in their community,” she says.
Obstacles
Melanie is currently in the planning stage. Here are some challenges she has identified:
How you can help
Leave a comment below or send her a message through Idealist and if the project progresses, we’ll keep you posted!
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Do you have an idea that’s just starting to brew? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
The idea
A female firefighter who rappels out of helicopters and slogs through swamps to help people in distress. A woman who has provided foster care to over 200 troubled teens in her lifetime. A young Somali man who escaped his country’s civil war, won a scholarship to a Canadian university, and now helps refugees.
They, along with others, have volunteered to be on loan at Surrey Libraries in British Columbia as part of the Human Library, an event where people become living books.
A family listens attentively to Marya talk about charming audiences with magic, fire dancing, puppetry and more. (Photo via Ravi Basi.)
The Human Library is as straightforward as it sounds: instead of grabbing a book off the shelf, you sign out a person and listen to them tell tales for a couple of hours. Think audio book, but with a handshake (or better yet, hug) at the end.
This notion of bringing books to life began twelve years ago with a Denmark youth organization that wanted to challenge prejudices. The idea has since been adapted around the world, and can now be found in over 45 countries.
Why we’re adding it to the Idea File
How you can replicate it
The folks who created the first Human Library want nothing more than for you to borrow their idea. They’ve already done a lot of the initial legwork for you; their website has a guide for organizers in eight different languages, sample evaluation reports and forms, tips for readers, and more.
Interesting fact: the first Human Library took place at a music festival in Denmark. (Photo via Ravi Basi.)
We also reached out to Ravi Basi, one of the organizers at Surrey Libraries, to hear her advice for people looking to start a Human Library where they live. Here’s what she had to say:
Finding living books
Organizing the event
“Anyone who plans or participates in the Human Library will find it to be a valuable, even profound experience,” says Ravi. “It’s worth doing.”
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If you’re inspired to bring the Human Library to your community, feel free to email Ravi for more advice: rkbasi@surrey.ca.
Do you know of other projects that are fun and potentially replicable? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, leave a comment below or email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
The idea
A female firefighter who rappels out of helicopters and slogs through swamps to help people in distress. A woman who has provided foster care to over 200 troubled teens in her lifetime. A young Somali man who escaped his country’s civil war, won a scholarship to a Canadian university, and now helps refugees.
They, along with others, have volunteered to be on loan at Surrey Libraries in British Columbia as part of the Human Library, an event where people become living books.
A family listens attentively to Marya talk about charming audiences with magic, fire dancing, puppetry and more. (Photo via Ravi Basi.)
The Human Library is as straightforward as it sounds: instead of grabbing a book off the shelf, you sign out a person and listen to them tell tales for a couple of hours. Think audio book, but with a handshake (or better yet, hug) at the end.
This notion of bringing books to life began twelve years ago with a Denmark youth organization that wanted to challenge prejudices. The idea has since been adapted around the world, and can now be found in over 45 countries.
Why we’re adding it to the Idea File
How you can replicate it
The folks who created the first Human Library want nothing more than for you to borrow their idea. They’ve already done a lot of the initial legwork for you; their website has a guide for organizers in eight different languages, sample evaluation reports and forms, tips for readers, and more.
Interesting fact: the first Human Library took place at a music festival in Denmark. (Photo via Ravi Basi.)
We also reached out to Ravi Basi, one of the organizers at Surrey Libraries, to hear her advice for people looking to start a Human Library where they live. Here’s what she had to say:
Finding living books
Organizing the event
“Anyone who plans or participates in the Human Library will find it to be a valuable, even profound experience,” says Ravi. “It’s worth doing.”
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If you’re inspired to bring the Human Library to your community, feel free to email Ravi for more advice: rkbasi@surrey.ca.
Do you know of other projects that are fun and potentially replicable? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, leave a comment below or email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
You can see the world as a volunteer on your own; just think carefully before you go (Photo credit: Fr Antunes, Creative Commons/Flickr)
With summer in full swing, many people are looking to use their vacation time to give back by volunteering abroad. Fortunately, there are a ton of organizations that can help you find a great volunteer opportunity overseas. But what if you want to volunteer abroad on your own? Perhaps none of the programs you see match your interest or availability. Or maybe you’re excited by the idea of exploring a new country on your own. Before you book a plane ticket, think about the following pros and cons to volunteering alone in another country:
Pros:
You have greater control over your time and money: When you set out to volunteer abroad on your own, you control your budget, what kind of work you do, how long you stay, and whatever criteria are important to you when selecting a volunteer opportunity.
You can integrate volunteering overseas with travel and study: Because you are in control of your schedule, it’s easier to fit your volunteer experience in with other events like studying abroad and travel.
You can immerse yourself in the community: While many volunteer-sending organizations do encourage you to get to know the community you are helping, when you are abroad on your own you are more likely to interact frequently with local citizens and organizations instead of with program staff who may be from your country.
[Already set on volunteering abroad? Check out this list of questions you should ask before you go.]
Cons:
You have to face challenges on your own: Sick? Lost? Problems with your visa? Not happy with the experience? Unfortunately, when you volunteer solo, you’ll have to deal with these issues — along with other risks — alone.
You have to do much more research: You can lower the risks you encounter by doing as much research as possible before you go. However, even this can be challenging: while volunteer-sending organizations build relationships with local NGOs and have websites where you can explore opportunities, if you’re going on your own, you’ll have to find a way to get in touch with local organizations who might not be easily accessible.
You might be a drain on local organizations: If you aren’t fluent in the language, you’ll likely need more support to complete tasks. And for organizations that don’t have many volunteers, there is no guarantee that someone will be able to fill your role once you’ve moved on, resulting in much of the work you started being left unfinished.
There are more pros and cons to volunteering abroad on your own and we encourage you to explore them. However, the best way to get a sense of whether or not you should go alone is by talking to other volunteers. What did they love? What did they struggle with? And what, if anything, would they do differently?
Have you volunteered abroad on your own? Tell us about your experience!
Just about everyone with an interest in nonprofits wishes for greater information about their effectiveness. Unfortunately, with millions of nonprofits around the world addressing everything from advanced cancer research to preschool enrichment programs, it’s been challenging developing metrics and processes that provide reliable measures of their successes.
How are you measuring your organization's success? (Photo credit: Ms. Tea, Creative Commons/Flickr)
Of course, various groups have been pushing for ways to solve this problem: Foundations ask for progress reports; government contractors ask for tallies of service units; academic researchers design double-blind studies and look for control groups. Yet a challenge with these approaches is that they are designed to give outsiders – funders, government agencies, the general public – tools to evaluate a nonprofit’s work, or even compare performance among nonprofits. We are still left wondering: are these approaches making it easier for board members and staff to develop a thoughtful and ongoing way to assess the impact of the organization’s work? Do they understand their role in the organization’s challenges and successes?
A project developed by the BBB Wise Giving Alliance, GuideStar USA, and Independent Sector is looking to address these questions by helping nonprofits evaluate themselves, starting with their leaders. Charting Impact challenges board members and key staff members of nonprofits to ask themselves five questions, and to be candid when publishing the results. The questions are general enough to work no matter what the goal and to fit organizations of any size. Already groups as diverse as the Food Bank for the Heartland [PDF] in Omaha, Nebraska, and the American National Red Cross [PDF] have completed the process and have their Charting Impact Reports online for anyone to see.
The five questions are:
While there’s certainly value in answering these questions, the real innovation in Charting Impact comes in the setup and sharing: organizations answer the questions online and can share their initial responses with up to 10 stakeholders who give anonymous feedback. The result is a personalized report that crystalizes your work, goals, and impact and includes the input of your community. Organizations that have adopted the Charting Impact approach say that some of that feedback has been really useful in sharpening the descriptions of their work and refining the measures they use to track their own progress.
Because Charting Impact is co-sponsored by Independent Sector, Guidestar, and the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance, organizations that complete the Charting Impact process can have their finished report published on-line at various websites that are often used by donors, foundation staff, and people interested in the program.
What do you think? Will this change the way nonprofits examine and share their effectiveness? Has your organization tried this? Share your thoughts below.
An ongoing experiment: can our community’s collective brainpower help an idea become reality?
Meet Shannon
Shannon Mouillesseaux is from a town in upstate NY that has one traffic light, one gas station, one grocery store, and one bank. “It is a rural community that, when I was growing up, was primarily inhabited by farmers and blue collar workers,” she says.
With few opportunities for high school graduates, Shannon had a fleeting moment when she considered joining the military in high school after being repeatedly targeted by recruiters. While some of her classmates opted to don camo, she realized the military wasn’t for her.
Faced with increasing college costs and decreasing economic opportunities, more and more teens are considering military service after high school: http://to.pbs.org/teensmilitary. Photo via Creative Commons (Flickr user Frank Juarez).
Wanting desperately to study anthropology, Shannon instead attended university and spent her junior year in Nepal. There, she was exposed to the trafficking of women and girls, an eye-opening experience that was the catalyst for her eventual work with refugees at the United Nations.
Her experiences with displaced communities around the world have exposed her to the plight of those most affected by war. Yet, back home, she was struck by the (mis) perception that violence is the only answer to violence. After 9/11, Shannon frequently heard variations of the phrase “Let’s blow them off the map” in her hometown. When she would suggest engaging in dialogue as an alternative response, she often felt inaccurately viewed as anti-American.
“The fear that has arisen within our culture, leaving many people afraid to experience other countries and cultures for fear of falling victim to a terrorist attack is, for me, worrying,” she says.
The intention
Her solution to alleviating some of that fear and violence? Pen pals for the digital age.
Specifically, Shannon envisions a two-fold project for youth in the U.S. and overseas who may not have the opportunity to travel. The first component, which she would pilot in her hometown and in Afghanistan, would connect “at-risk American students of all ages via video conference with displaced communities abroad” throughout the school year. The second would send high school students to safe, developing countries during thesummer to help out with humanitarian projects. Ideally, this would happen after the children have established relationships.
Sometimes her work takes her to IDP (internally displaced persons') camps like this one in Kabul, where she hopes to pilot the program. (Photo via Shannon Mouillesseaux.)
By creating a link between communities affected by war, Shannon hopes this type of cross-cultural exchange will help young people understand each other’s lives better and ultimately contribute to promoting peace on an individual level – even when governments are at odds.
Obstacles
S
hannon is still refining her idea. Here are some challenges she has identified:
How you can help
Shannon would love to see this idea grow and succeed. Can you offer her any advice?
Leave a comment below or send her a message through Idealist and if the project progresses, we’ll keep you posted!
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Do you have an idea that’s just starting to brew? If you’d like us to consider posting it as part of this series, email celeste [at] idealist [dot] org.
School’s out for summer! But that doesn’t mean ideas are on break. Help the creative kid in your life dive headfirst into entrepreneurship.
Caine built a sweet arcade and is inspiring kids to be entrepreneurs. How can you support them? (Photo credit: Caine's Arcade)
You probably already know the story of Caine’s Arcade thanks to this Internet film that I’m sure left tears of joy all over your keyboard.
If you didn’t see it, the story goes a little something like this: Caine is a nine-year-old boy who built a DIY cardboard arcade in his father’s used auto parts shop in Los Angeles. The games went unplayed until one day, a filmmaker named Nirvan happened to need a car door handle. He bought the first Fun Pass. Then made a film.
Fast forward a few months later and Nirvan’s film has garnered Caine thousands of fans from around the world, inspired countless kids to make arcades of their own, generated a theme song, and get this, raised $500,000 for Caine’s college scholarship fund.
But not every little kid is as lucky as Caine.
Caine’s Arcade has made me more aware of the fact that there are budding entrepreneurs running around us everywhere — even though we might think they’re just listening to Justin Bieber and making awkward jokes.
So how we can help them bring their ideas to life? Besides heaps of encouragement, patience, and knowledge, here are some ways to get that creative kid in your life some dough to play with:
It’s not just money that’s needed; we also need a shift in thinking. “If we can get kids to embrace the idea of being entrepreneurial at a young age, we can change everything in the world that’s a problem today,” says Cameron Herold in a TED talk about raising kids to be entrepreneurs.
He’s got a point: they might just be the ones with the brilliant ideas to help the needy or save animals from extinction.
So think about the Caines in your life. Are you game to help him or her succeed?
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For fun: Check out 10 Things 80s Kids TV Taught Me About Being a Social Entrepreneur on Pinterest.
Don't make it hard for candidates to find your listing on Idealist. A few tweaks can make a huge difference! (Photo credit: Will Valnue via Flickr/Creative Commons)
Organizations post hundreds of jobs on Idealist.org every day, and we often hear from job posters who want to make sure they get the best applicants for the job. But why do some job listings attract a flood of high-quality applications while others seem to get overlooked?
We recently explored how organizations can craft job listings that stand out. Now we’ll dive into something equally important: making sure your job listing shows up when candidates start searching! If more people see your job, more people will apply for it, so it’s important to make your listing as searchable as possible.
So before you hit “publish” on your listing, here are a few tips to keep in mind:
1. Broaden your area of focus.
Your job listing includes the areas of focus listed on your organization’s page (youth, the environment, poverty, etc.). The more categories you select, the more candidates are likely to see your listing when they search. To add more areas of focus to your organization’s page, log in and go to your organization’s page by clicking on its name on the left side of your homepage. Then click on the blue Edit button. Select as many areas of focus as possible that relate to your organization. You can choose multiple items by holding down the “control” key and clicking on a PC or by holding down the “command” key and clicking on a Mac.
2. Include additional job responsibilities.
The site also allows job seekers to search by the responsibilities of the job. Like areas of focus, the more job functions you select, the more job seekers will likely see your listing when they search, so be sure to include as many selections from the job functions list (writing, management, fundraising) as you can in your listing. You don’t want to miss out on someone because they’re searching for “public policy” and you listed your job only under “advocacy.”
These last two bits of advice may seem counterintuitive: don’t you want to narrow the categories you select so you only get people truly interested in your work and mission? This makes sense in terms of hiring, however when it comes to searching, being too narrow can actually eliminate candidates who aren’t using the same terms you’re using. And remember, while the categories you select will bring more people to your job listing, a well-written job listing is what will encourage great candidates to apply!
3. Add your own search terms.
You’ll also want to make your job searchable by including related keywords. Think of your perfect candidate, and imagine that person is searching for a job on Idealist. What kind of words would they use? Make sure that your job’s description includes those words and phrases. You can also add keywords in the additional keywords field near the bottom of the form for any words that don’t fit organically into your description. You can add as many additional search terms as you’d like to help people find your job.
4. Pretty please: include a salary range.
Users sometimes search by salary range, and many prefer to apply to jobs that list one. We’ve found that job postings that include a salary range get a much higher response, even if the range listed is relatively low. Including a salary range will also help narrow your applicant pool to those who are more likely to accept an offer at your organization.
5. Choose the best location.
Most job seekers are looking for jobs in a specific location, and it’s the first item they enter when searching. The most common reason why no one responds to a job listing is because there’s a typo in the location field, so make sure that you enter your city and state correctly. You’ll also want to make sure you use the most common name of your city – a job in “Foggy Bottom, DC” is harder to find than one in “Washington, DC.”
Also, if you’re in a small town very close to a larger city, you also might want to consider using that city as your location. For instance, let’s say your organization is located in Darien, CT, which is an eight minute drive from Stamford, CT (according to Google Maps). While you might choose Darien, CT, there are five times as many registered users in Stamford as we have in Darien. Though we do have the option to search with a radius, if a job seeker searches only in Stamford, he won’t see a job just eight minutes away in Darien.
When it comes to optimizing your listing for a search, a few small tweaks go a long way.
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Do you have more tips? Questions about the site? Leave a comment below. And thanks for posting jobs on Idealist!
Hi, everyone. I’m Julia Smith and I’ve been lucky to edit this blog over the past few years, working with our team to shed light on everything from idea-sharing potlucks to New Year’s resolutions for job seekers to tips for making the most of any conference you attend. Now it’s time for me to hand over the reins, and I’m thrilled to welcome Allison Jones, a longtime member of our community and one of the newest members of our staff. Read on to meet the communications champ who will be bringing you all kinds of blog goodness from now on!
Welcome Allison, our new blog editor!
Q. When did you first know you wanted to have a career with social impact? Is there a moment in your life you can pinpoint?
A. In high school I lived in a poor part of Brooklyn but attended school in a wealthy part of Brooklyn. The differences were shocking and upsetting; who knew the impact a zip code could have on someone’s opportunities? I loved my time in school yet always thought, “Why can’t my brothers and sisters at home have this too?” And so began my commitment to education equality.
Q. Almost all of your jobs have been at nonprofits, right? What have you found most challenging and most rewarding about working in the nonprofit sector?
A. Yep (aside from an after-school gig I had in high school where I worked in the home office of a retired investment banker!). I have been a nonprofiteer for much of my career. I arrived at the sector by cause: I have always been passionate about education equality and this passion somewhat naturally led me to the nonprofit sector. I stayed in the sector because of community: nothing beats having a network of nonprofit geeks and folks audacious enough to think they can change the world.
I am also excited by the changes in the sector. There is so much movement and conversation around what change looks like, what role nonprofits play in facilitating that change, and the potential of cross-sector work to bring that change to life.
Q. Do you remember when you first set up your old blog, Entry Level Living? What prompted that and how did it feel to click “publish” on your first post?
A. I started Entry Level Living because I wanted to write about my experiences as a nonprofit newbie. It was exciting but I honestly didn’t think anyone would read it. I had been blogging on LiveJournal and Yahoo!360 (service was shut down a few years ago – am I dating myself?) and the communities I built there were mainly of classmates and other casual/personal bloggers. I assumed my current blog would be the same thing; to be honest I was (and still am!) surprised by its growth since I started in 2007.
Q. Your blog has morphed over the years and is no longer quite so “entry level.” Can you share a little about how and when you decided to rebrand?
A. When Rosetta Thurman and Trista Harris were writing their book How to be a Nonprofit Rockstar they wanted to include my blog and a post I had written. When they checked in to confirm how my blog and name should be credited, it dawned on me that while I was sharing advice on starting a career, I wanted my blog to reflect my professional growth; I wasn’t entry level anymore and had a growing network of peers which lead to a variety of experiences in what it means to make a difference. I didn’t want a huge departure from my original approach but I did want to tighten up my writing and vision, hence my tagline “Helping Millennials put their passions into practice.” Although simple, it acts as a launching pad when producing content. Some of the most popular posts since then have covered the role of college in your career, social entrepreneurship, and nitty gritty job searching tips.
Q. In this new role at Idealist you’re going to be eating and breathing a lot of online networking. Can you share one of your social media “lightbulb moments”?
A. I have had many lightbulb moments, most of them offline, in particular working with parents and students in schools. My work in education has taught me the importance of the phrase “meet people where they are.” Though the phrase is often used to encourage people to adopt social media to connect with new staff, donors, allies, and organizations, it is really reminding us to put people first and to communicate with them on their terms, online and offline.
Q. What made you decide to apply for this job? What are you most excited about now that orientation is underway?
A. [Idealist's Executive Director] Ami once called me an “accidental techie”: I kind of fell into social media and technology through my love of blogging and the excitement I feel from connecting with people and learning about the world around me. But there is something amazing about being able to focus intently on how social media and tech are being used to make the world a better place and being able to throw myself into that conversation. And I just love Idealist.org. Seriously – the service it provides, the message it sends, and its plan for world domination really appeal to me. Plus, I truly believe that writing and editing are art forms. You can make magic happen with words.
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See why we feel lucky to have Allison on board? Leave a comment below to welcome her! She’ll also be the human behind our Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest accounts, so feel free to introduce yourself.
Citizen Schools made a few changes to their job listing and saw amazing results! What can we learn from them? (Photo: Citizen Schools)
Organizations post hundreds of jobs on Idealist.org every day, and we often hear from job posters who want to make sure they get the best applicants. But why do some job listings attract a flood of high-quality applications while others seem to get overlooked?
The answer is twofold. The most successful job listings on Idealist are ones in which the job is 1. appealing to job seekers and 2. easy to find. In this two part series, we’ll give you some tips to make sure your job listing attracts more of the right candidates.
Today, let’s tackle the first challenge: appealing to job seekers. We’ll start with the story of a recruitment team, a marketing team, and a “less is more” philosophy. Let’s call it “Extreme Makeover: Job Listing Edition.”
Citizen Schools has been posting jobs on Idealist for years and this winter they posted an AmeriCorps fellowship position. While the response rate was steady, they weren’t getting the kind of applications they wanted.
Here’s the original description of the 2012-2014 National Teaching Fellowship position at Citizen Schools:
For those of you keeping track at home, that’s three pages and 1,100 words.
The reason why I didn’t include the full text is because you won’t read it. And neither will potential candidates.
But one sunny morning in March, the Citizen Schools marketing team stepped in to help. Working with the recruitment team, they trimmed that very detailed listing down to a clear and concise one, focusing on the most important information and referring applicants to the website for more information. In half an hour, they crafted this delicious piece of recruitment splendor:
Short and sweet at one page and 330 words.
Yum. But did the change produce better results?
It did! Of the 59 applications received, 30.5% of the candidates have been hired or are currently being interviewed. Additionally, the Citizen Schools website received 1,500 more visits from Idealist.org than it had during the same three month period in 2011, indicating that people wanted to learn more about the organization and its opportunities.
In short: a concise yet compelling job listing increases both the quality and quantity of applications.
Each organization has its own needs and challenges when it comes to recruitment. However, based on the Citizen Schools example and our own experience talking with hiring managers and job seekers, here’s how to create a job listing that gets the results you want.
1. Briefly describe your organization.
A sentence or three should do it. You want your applicant to have an idea of your organization’s work, but you don’t need to go into too much detail. They can go to your organization’s page on Idealist for more information, or you can refer them to your organization’s website.
2. Make sure the description of the work is clear and concise.
Job seekers prefer to apply to jobs that they understand. When crafting a description of the work:
Not only will a clear description of the work attract more eyes, it will also help candidates tailor their resumes so that you’ll be better able to see how their experiences match what you’re looking for.
3. Be thoughtful about the qualifications you list.
When you list the qualifications of a job, you’re telling the applicant what’s important to you. Think about your deal-breakers versus what would just be extra helpful. If you won’t consider anyone without a Masters degree, say so. If you’d prefer your new teammate speak a certain language, but you’re willing to hire someone who doesn’t, include something like “Fluency in Cantonese a plus.” Candidates don’t want to spend time applying for jobs they’re not qualified for any more than you want to spend time sifting through their resumes.
4. Talk about the benefits of the job.
And no, we don’t just mean health care and vacation days (although it’s cool to include those in the listing as well!). What makes Citizen Schools’ new job description so popular is that they talk about what the candidate will get out of the experience. Besides the gratifying work (“inspire children,” “build the school of the future,” “connect education to kids’ dreams”), the listing also emphasizes how the fellow will benefit professionally (“learn how to make lessons,” “get real-world experience,” “unlock your potential”).
Sell your opportunity to job seekers. Why should they be excited about this? Will they work with interesting people or learn a lot about the charter school system or develop a new skill? Whether the position is on the front lines of your organization’s work or is back in the office making sure the lights stay on, every employee at the organization has an important part to play; make it clear to applicants what their part would be.
5. Be yourself.
Treat this as a PR piece. Your job listing might be as public and widely read as your organization’s newsletters, and it could be the first impression your applicant ever gets of your work and culture. So choose a tone that reflects your organization’s culture, whether youthful and trendy or thoughtful and welcoming.
Citizen Schools’ marketing department did a great job of promoting the mission, emphasizing the importance of the work, and making it sound overall like an organization full of passionate, driven people. Even if a job seeker chooses not to apply, it never hurts to leave a good impression.
At Idealist we’re out to help you connect with the people and resources you need to make great things happen. We hope this helps you find fantastic candidates to join you in your work.
But creating a strong listing is just the first step in attracting those folks; you also have to make sure they actually see the listing once you post it on Idealist! Stay tuned for the second half of this series, where we’ll offer tips on how to do that.
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Special thanks to Sara Kelleher, Talent Recruitment Specialist at Citizen Schools, for all of her help with this post.
Have a story about how you’ve used Idealist to connect with stellar candidates? Leave a comment below and maybe we’ll blog about your story, too!
Photo via iMentor. Click to visit their org page on Idealist – they currently have five jobs, two internships, and a volunteer opportunity listed on the site!
In the latest issue of HR Connections, our monthly newsletter for the nonprofit human resources community, Kim Hendler writes:
At iMentor, we’ve been faced with an age-old question: When a management position opens up in our organization, do we promote an individual contributor who is great at their job, eager for next steps, and overall a high potential employee but lacks supervisory experience and training and whom we may not be able to adequately support? Or do we hire externally, facing the significant challenge of hiring great middle managers who are a sure fit with our management culture?
As Managing Director of Talent at iMentor, Kim worked with her team and with support from the American Express Foundation to create a formal program to invest in leadership development. Her goal is to train “high performing, high potential staff…to build a strong bench for future roles requiring leadership and management skills.” Curious how they did it? Find the full article here.
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Our thanks to Heather Jarvis for this post. Heather is a former capital defense attorney and long-time public service advocate who provides free tools and information for student loan borrowers and the people who love them.
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Congratulations to the Class of 2012! It’s time to get a grip on those student loans you’ve been pushing to the back of your mind. Update your contact information with your lender, read every piece of mail you get about your loans so that you can figure out a plan that works for you, and check out my five top suggestions.
It's a lot to think about, but you can do it! (Photo: Scot Campbell, Flickr/Creative Commons)
1. Pull together a list of your loans and see what you’ve got.
Your options will depend on what kind of loans you have so the first step is getting a clear idea of what you owe. Use the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) to learn your balance, your loan “servicer”, and your “repayment status”. Private student loans won’t be listed on NSLDS, but you should be able to find them on your credit report.
2. Figure out when your first payment will be due.
Federal Stafford loans have a six month grace period before your first payment is due. The grace period for federal Perkins loans is nine months. The grace periods for federal PLUS loans and private student loans vary and will be listed on your paperwork or you can contact your lender for that information. Know when your first payment is due.
3. Decide whether to consolidate your student loans.
A consolidation loan combines multiple loans into one. You can consolidate your federal student loans through the Direct Loan program, but NEVER consolidate federal loans into a private student loan. You’ll lose the flexible repayment options and borrower benefits like loan programs.
Consolidation typically makes sense when:
4. Determine which repayment plan is best for you.
Federal loan payments will automatically be based on a standard 10-year repayment plan unless you choose a different option. If payments under a standard 10-year repayment term are not affordable for you, find out about your other options.
Income-Based Repayment caps your monthly payments at a reasonable percentage of your income each year, and forgives any debt remaining after 25 years of affordable payments, or after just 10 years of these payments for borrowers who work in public service. Beware of relying on forbearance to postpone your student loan payments. Interest continues to accrue on student loans during forbearance, and many borrowers should consider Income-Based Repayment instead.
Private loans are a different story. Read all the paperwork carefully and ask your lender about your repayment options. They vary between private loans.
5. Learn more about how to handle your student loans.
A member of the Idealist team offers a personal reflection for Mother’s Day.
I’m a new mom to a daughter named Hattie who has the most irresistible cheeks. During my three months of parental leave—yes, Idealist is an awesome place to work—I got to kiss, nibble, and lightly squeeze those cheeks all day long. As our twelve weeks drew to a close, I grappled with the internal conflict so many professional moms experience: How would my relationship with Hattie change once I returned to the office? Did I have it in me to not look the pictures on her Facebook page (yes, we’re those parents) every second? How was I going to balance working, taking care of a baby, and maintaining a sense of self?
So I did what most people do these days when they need guidance: I Googled. The stories of working moms ran the gamut, but guilt was a central theme, as was the expectation that I was going to do neither job well. I had to shut my computer off. Ultimately, my manager and I agreed that it would make sense for me to return to work part-time. I figured I’d slip right back in and pick up where I’d left off a few months earlier.
Not so much. I’ve of course encountered challenges since returning:
It’s not easy.
"What's an inbox, Mom?" (Family photo of Hattie)
But there are lots of benefits. Here’s why I think being a mom has made me a better employee:
All in all, it’s a daily balancing act. Some days Chaos and I bring out the best in each other; other days we’re enemies who can’t seem to find a compromise. I’m learning to make peace with the fact that there is no such thing as true balance, to accept that things shift all the time.
What about you? Has parenting changed the way you approach your work? How do you balance everything? Leave a comment below to share your story.
