The NPT Jobs Posting Special

In this tough economy, you need to take advantage of all sources when recruiting new candidates for open positions. That means not only using job boards, but also social media and print advertisements. With the newest jobs posting special from The NonProfit Times, you get all of that and more.

For only $595, your organization will get all the tools it needs to reach a wide audience of job seekers. Here's a look at some of the highlights:

• Online 30 day posting on The Nonprofit Job Seeker.
• Banner ad to run for 30 days that ad is running, SITE WIDE.
• Job tweeted to @nptjobs & @nonprofittimes list 3x each.
• Listing in the print and digital editions of our magazine
• Blog post of your listing on our Jobs Blog 

Does this sound like a deal that would interest your nonprofit? If so, please contact Janice Freedman at 973-401-020 x219 for more details. Happy recruiting!

Nonprofit Recruiting Tips

Nonprofits have plenty of options when choosing where to recruit new employees. The most popular choice these days is online job boards.

Most employers choose to use the Internet for their recruiting because it's easier and it allows them to reach a wider audience. With the rising popularity of social networks, recruiters have even more tools at their disposal. While the Internet is definitely a great tool to use, it's important to remember there are other options at your disposal.

In their book "The Big Book of HR," Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem remind nonprofits of the following recruiting methods to use in addition to the Internet:

• Former Employees: Employees don't always leave their former workplaces on bad terms. If your organization has a good exit interview process, you should be able to determine which individuals left amicably, and whether you would want to bring them back.
• Retirees: It is becoming increasingly difficult for retirees to live without some income. Consider bringing some of these individuals back to do special projects.
• Radio/TV Ads: If you have enough room in your budget, take out an ad on the radio or TV to invite job seekers to your career website.
• State Employment Offices: All states have offices where you can list open positions. These agencies do a great job of linking job seekers to open positions, so don’t discount the amount of help you can get from them.

Nonprofit Job Posting Special

Is your nonprofit looking to reach a new audience of active job seekers? The Nonprofit Job Seeker, the official career center of The NonProfit Times, is offering a job posting special that will expand the reach that your listing will get. Here are the details:

Featured Employer Special $895

What's included:

• Online 30 day posting on our career center.
• Also posted at indeed.com.
• Listed in feature job section of main page of The Nonprofit Job Seeker.
• 30-day banner ad on The Nonprofit Job Seeker, site-wide.
• Job tweeted to @nptjobs & @Nonprofittimes Twitter list 3x each.
• All ads are automatically posted to our Facebook career center page.
• Job listed in the digital and print editions of The NonProfit Times.
• Posting on this blog.
• Banner ad on NPT Jobs eNewsletter.
• BONUS: Ad will be posted in the Job of The Week section in our weekly eNewsletter.

Interested in taking advantage of this opportunity? Register to post on our site, and then contact Janice Freedman at 973-401-0202 x.219 or by e-mail at janice@nptimes.com.

Hire For The Future

Here's a simple question: Why is your nonprofit looking to hire a new employee? The obvious answer would seem to be "Because we have a current need in the position." While hiring for the present is all well and good, nonprofits also need to make sure they are keeping the future in mind.

This can be a difficult idea to sell. After all, the present needs of the organization are much clearer than those years from now, and there is seemingly more to gain by focusing on the here and now. In reality, there is much more to be gained by looking towards the future. One of the best ways to do this is hire employees who have multiple areas of expertise.

Even if you are hiring for a fundraising position, you should make sure this person has more to offer than the proven ability to raise money. For example, a fundraiser with social media savvy will help your nonprofit as new trends emerge. It wasn't too long ago that Twitter and Facebook were the talk of the town. Then, out of seemingly nowhere, Pinterest arrived, bringing a new social media platform for nonprofits to explore. Having the ability to raise money in multiple arenas will be of great help down the road.

Make sure to keep this in mind the next time you review an applicant's resume. Your employees must be able to adapt, especially in an environment that changes as often as the nonprofit sector does.

The Question To Always Ask A Job Reference

It can be very difficult to get any of the information you really want when you question an applicant's job reference.  Modern employment laws make it hard, if not impossible, to ask any specific questions about a former employee.  If you are going to ask one question, however, Jack DeBoer has the perfect one.

DeBoer wrote in his book "Risk Only Money" that many employers these days don't really want to shoot straight with you when it comes to discussing employees who were not that great.  They don't want to face the possibility of a lawsuit if their answers costs that person the job, even if it's hard to prove it.  If you are going to get the information you need, DeBoer wrote that you should ask the following question: "If you needed the skills of this employee, would you rehire this person?"  This is a great question to ask because it's a simple yes or no answer that requires no further explanation, and it allows the employer to tell the truth without violating any laws.

DeBoer also suggested that hiring managers should learn to read between the lines when listening to an answer.  For example, if you ask how trustworthy the former employee is, listen for any hesitation in the answer.  Anything less than "Oh, absolutely!" can be a signal that you aren't getting the whole truth.  You can also try asking about the employee's performance rather than their character, as DeBoer wrote that there are fewer laws restricting those kinds of questions.

Employee screening can sure be difficult, but the tips above should make it a little easier to get the information you really need.

Make Your Job Candidates Say "I Do"

After what seemed like an eternity of reviewing resumés and conducting job interviews, you've finally decided which candidate you want to hire. Now it's time to offer them the job.
Before you get too excited there's something you need to remember: Just because you want this person for the job, doesn't mean they want you. When crafting your job offer, you have to make sure to give them every reason to say yes.

Since you have presumably dealt with this applicant for a while, you should have a pretty good idea of what it he/she wants. With that in mind, Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem, in their book "The Big Book of HR," present 10 issues that are most important to job seekers:

• Commute;
• Salary;
• Incentive compensation;
• Time off benefits;
• Flexible schedule;
• Opportunity for work/life balance;
• Health and other benefits;
• Ability to progress in the organization;
• Training and development opportunities; and,
• Availability of coaching and/or mentoring opportunities.

It's not likely that all of these issues will be important to your preferred candidate but a good number of them probably will. It's up to you to determine which of these issues, if they are not met, would be the biggest deal-breaker. If this is someone you really want to work at your nonprofit, then you should do your best to accommodate them, or at least point out which issues you are most willing to be flexible about.

Finally, Mitchell and Gamlem suggest you include the following information in your job offer e-mail:

• State your enthusiasm for this candidate to join your firm;
• The start date for the job;
• Starting salary; 
• Additional compensation, if applicable;
• Contingencies, such as the candidate's references must check out, or he/she must pass the drug screen;
• Benefits summary;
• Reporting relationships;
• Date when offer expires; and,
• Place for candidate to sign if he/she accepts.

This Valentine's Day, Make Job Seekers Love You

Cross-Posted From Nonprofit Jobs

As every one who is currently conscious is aware, today is Valentine's Day.  That means you have (or at least you better have) bought gifts for your significant other, and are preparing for a romantic evening together.  Nonprofit employers also have designs to woo someone.  In this case, it's job seekers.

There are many ways to make a job seeker fall in love with your organization, but one of the best ways is to write a strong job description.  At its core, a job description is a marketing tool: It must captivate potential job applicants by communicating the opportunities the position provides.  It must also outline all the requirements necessary so there is no confusion should there be an interview.

In "Nonprofit Management 101," James Weinberg and Cassie Scarano of Commongood Careers provide eight components that make up a strong nonprofit job description:

• Title: Your job title should be short, concise, and widely recognizable.
• Organizational Overview: Introduce your nonprofit through a succinct and enthusiastic paragraph that outlines your mission and programs, success to date, growth plans and future opportunities, and culture.  Remember to include your organization's website.
• Position Overview: Use one well-written paragraph to describe the overall function of the position and highlight the opportunities for impact and leadership.
• Responsibilities: Us five to seven bullet points to provide detail about the responsibilities of the position.  Avoid the use of organizational jargon.
• Qualifications: This section should outline the experience and competencies required for success in the position and your organization, without being overly prescriptive.
• Compensation Range: Despite popular believe, disclosing specific compensation information is not required and in fact, is not recommended, as it limits the candidates you will see.  If you do plan to include compensation information, put it at the end of the posting.
• Application Instructions: Be very specific about how you want candidates to apply for the position.  Keep the application process simple, as you do not want strong candidates to remove themselves from the process.
• Equal Opportunity Statement: It is good practice to have an equal opportunity employer policy and to include that in your job description.  In most cases, a simple "XYZ is an equal opportunity employer" should suffice.

If you follow these eight best practices for job descriptions, you should have some of the best applicants out there falling in love with you.  Who knows, maybe they'll even buy you some chocolate.

Picking Your Next Major Gifts Officer

Cross-Posted From Nonprofit Jobs

Earlier today, job seekers learned about the qualities they need to become a Major Gifts Officer.  Now let's take a look at what types of people employers should look at when they are hiring one.

Let's face it: If you don't hire the right person, all of your organization's fundraising efforts will be for naught.  When picking a candidate to be your next Major Gifts Officer, the temptation will be to go for someone who already has a strong background in fundraising.  That is definitely an important characteristic, but you will be well-served to go after individuals with more diverse backgrounds.

At a recent Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP) International Conference, Holly Duncan, president and CEO of the Morton Plant Mease Health Care Foundation in Clearwater, Fla., outlined the qualities she looks for in a Major Gifts Officer.  Consider using her tips the next time you have an opening for this important position.

• Techies: People who have a lot of experience with technology will be able to use this knowledge to better connect with major gift prospects.  They might also have qualifications to research, schedule, communicate, and document gifts efficiently.
• Intellectual Capacity: You don't just want someone with traditional book smarts.  Seek out a candidate who is a problem solver and can think quickly on their feet.
• Communication: A Major Gifts Officer will have to talk to many different people frequently.  Therefore, it is essential that the individual can express themselves clearly.  This includes both written and verbal communications.  The ability to ask open-ended questions will be key to performing their tasks.
• Team Player: A lot of the work in this position is independent, but you still want someone who can work effectively with all different types of people.  There needs to be transparency and an attempt to engage co-workers.  Remember: No one owns a donor.

Managing Nonprofit Diversity Conflict

Diversity has become the goal at every level of American life. Efforts to promote it have been rightfully applauded. Here's the real question: Are organizations correctly handling these efforts?

One reason people flock toward nonprofit jobs is the diversity in culture and the working backgrounds they support. There is a bigger lesson organizations missed if they are only promoting diversity for diversity's sake. In his book "The End of Diversity as We Know It," Martin R. Davidson argues that a better aim is to embrace and build upon differences among employees.

Davidson, who was a chief development officer at the University of Virginia, also acknowledges that diversity initiatives can cause resistance and even conflict among employees. This can manifest itself in what Davidson calls "identity abrasions," feelings of resentment or defensiveness that come up when people are criticized for being insensitive or ignorant. He wrote that to make these teachable moments positive experiences for all parties involved, he recommends human resources officers implement five "principles of behavior." They are:

• Pausing: There is a natural tendency to react, but taking time to identify feelings and consider options helps in responding effectively to criticism.
• Connecting to larger goals: Meaningful goals make it easier to remember why it is worth engaging with another.
• Questioning yourself: This will help you come to a realistic and accurate understanding of what is happening in the exchange.
• Seeking out balanced support: Rather than just complaining to your friends who will have your back, seek out the counsel of trusted colleagues.
• Shifting mindset towards opportunity: It takes persistent willingness to be introspective.

Planning The Hiring Process

After much debate, your organization has identified the area that needs help and has posted the corresponding advertisement to an online job board.  Now what?

There's a lot of work ahead of you while you wait for qualified applicants to apply.  One of the things you can do to make this work a little less painful is to lay out a hiring process.  In his book "Nonprofit Management 101," Darian Rodriguez Heyman says having such a plan is essential to evaluate candidates.  He stresses that any hiring process should allow applicants multiple opportunities to provide evidence of their past success.

Heyman recommends the following process to successfully narrow down your nonprofit's pool of applicants:

• Job application review
• Phone screen
• Initial in-person job interview
• Follow-up interview (as many as you deem necessary)
• Reference and background checks
• Negotiation and hiring

Each of these stages should involve what Heyman calls the "four tenets" of an effective hiring process:

• Clarity: Everyone involved knows exactly what you want.
• Consistency: Every candidate participates in the same process.
• Equity: Every candidate is treated equally.
• Legality: The process is nondiscriminatory.

Conducing A Job Analysis

Cross-Posted from Nonprofit Jobs

How well do you know the jobs at your nonprofit? Even if you think you have it all covered, it's important to undergo a thorough analysis of the positions at your organization.

 

A job analysis identifies and describes what is happening in the jobs at a nonprofit. All organizations must undergo this process, as it helps to differentiate job and performance requirements based on job content, specifications, and working conditions. All of this information will be crucial when developing a job description.

 

In "The Big Book Of HR," Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem describe the information your organization should obtain in a job analysis:

• A job's context or its purpose, its work environment, and its place in the organization.
• The duties and responsibilities that employees carry out in the position.
• How people in the job are expected to act while accomplishing their work.

In order to get this information, you should:  

• Get direct employee and supervisor input.
• Gather data from multiple incumbents and supervisors.
• Use techniques that yield data that is concise, easy to update, and limits bias.

Recruiting From Outside The Organization

Cross-Posted From The Nonprofit Job Seeker

It's probably a safe assumption that your nonprofit is looking to find that great employee who will bring their organization to the next level. Too bad everyone else is, too.

 

Many nonprofits are turning to the Internet for their recruiting. Organizations are finding it much easier to find new employees by using social media sites and online job boards. These are all great recruiting tools, but it's important to remember they aren't your only options.

 

In “The Big Book of HR,” Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem remind organizations of the following recruiting methods to use in addition to the Internet:

• Former Employees: Not every employee that left went out on bad terms. If you have a good exiting process, it will be easy to identify the reasons they left, and which ones you would like to have back.
• Retirees: It is becoming increasingly difficult for retirees to live without some income. Consider bringing some of these individuals back to do special projects.
• Radio/TV Ads: If you have enough room in your budget, take out an ad on the radio or TV to invite job seekers to your career Website.
• State Employment Offices: All states have offices where you can list open positions. These agencies do a great job of linking job seekers to open positions, so don't discount the amount of help you can get from them.

Writing A Great Nonprofit Job Description

Is your nonprofit interested in posting a job with our online career center?  Great!  But before you get started, you must know how to write a nonprofit job description that will attract potential candidates.

Some employers make the mistake of believing that describing a job is as simple as saying what the position entails.  That's part of the equation, but the best job descriptions offer a lot more than that.  If you are going to attract the top job seekers, you are going to have to get way more in-depth about your job.  Before you start writing, gather some employees in the organization who are familiar with the position in question.  They will be able to best tell you the kinds of characteristics that an ideal candidate should possess.  The biggest mistake you can make is assuming the applicant knows the kind of personality they need to possess for the job.  Information like this should go in the "requirements" section of your job posting.

Finally, there is the issue of length.  How long is too long?  It's a hard question to answer, but it's a balance you are going to have to strike.  If you submit a job posting that is too long, you run the risk of job seekers missing important information.  Your description must be concise and easy to read.  Consider using bullet points to highlight the most important information, or bolding important words.  Whatever you do, avoid what I like to call "walls of text."  You've probably seen what I'm referring to: It's those really long paragraphs that never seem to have any breaks.  Make sure you are including paragraph breaks in your posting!

To view samples of typical nonprofit job posting, visit our job search page and see what other organizations have done.

Five Important Hiring Tips

Cross Posted From The Nonprofit Job Seeker

Although jobs may be scarce in this economy, this doesn't mean that job candidates are going to take the first position that is offered to them. This economy could make people more picky than normal. Because times are tough, they are going to not only want a position that pays well, but also one in which they feel comfortable. If you are going to attract the best candidates for your nonprofit job, you would do well to follow these five hiring tips:

• As I have mentioned in the past, make sure the description in your job listing is informative yet concise. This is a hard balance to strike, but it can be done. The key to reaching this balance is to use specifics. The more the applicant knows about the position, the less chance you will get resumes from unqualified candidates.
• When you conduct an interview, make sure you allow time for the person to say what they want out of the position. It's all well and good to explain what you are looking for in an ideal employee, but you should make sure that the candidate can express their expectations as well. This is helpful because it establishes that this will be a job where the employee's views are important. And that is an important factor when people decide where they want to work.
• Just because someone performs well in an interview doesn't mean they will be the right fit for your organization. Test your applicant's skills to see if they are up to the task. How you do this depends on the type of job you are looking to fill. If you are looking to hire a web content editor, for example, you can have them take a writing test after the interview. If you mention that you will be performing writing tests in your application, this has the added benefit of weeding out less serious candidates.
• Your office should be tidy at all times, but make sure it is especially presentable during the interview. And I'm not just referring to your desk; the entire office should look as impressive as possible. A relaxing workplace makes for a better working environment, and that will be on the top of the list of things top candidates will be looking for.

Interviews can be very tiresome, especially if you have already been through many that day. Still, you are going to have to find some way to remain engaging to your prospective employee. There is no bigger turn off than an interviewer who seems uninterested. So even if you have to take an extra shot of coffee, make sure you are friendly and lively when you interview a job candidate.

Facts About Fundraising Staff

Cross-Posted From The Nonprofit Jobseeker

Staff turnover is a fact of life for any nonprofit manager. A very costly fact of life. This is even more of an issue when it comes to fundraising staff. Not only is the work they do very valuable, but finding a replacement can be very difficult and expensive. And to add insult to injury, the time spent finding a replacement can be a prime period for fundraising opportunities. That's why it's so important to improve the retention of your fundraisers.

The NonProfit Times attended this year's Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) International Conference on Fundraising where Penelope Burk, president of Cygnus Applied Research, Inc., spoke on the topic of staff turnover. She said the key to retaining great fundraisers lies in knowing more about them. She shared some facts gathered through a survey of fundraising employees of nonprofits:

• Why they chose a fundraising career. Most fundraisers entered the profession “accidentally” (i.e., through other work they were hired to do), rather than intentionally. Some take an opportunistic view, coming into the field as leverage to other jobs in the sector.
• The profile of a loyal fundraiser (one who intends to stay). Key characteristics include a belief in the mission, having personal/family needs accommodated, being included/respected as an active participant in planning, creative discussion, working with a team.
• Why fundraisers left their last position. Salary or increase in salary is always the primary reason why fundraisers left their last jobs or intend to leave the current one. Flexibility on salary plus offering benefits that fit the times is a first practical step to lengthening their tenure.

NPT Jobs: Improving Fundraiser Retention

Cross-Posted From The Nonprofit Jobseeker

It's increasingly rare these days to find people who are not only successful at fundraising, but also have enthusiasm for it. That's why, if you hired someone with those traits, it's so important to do everything in your power to keep them. How do you go about improving fundraiser retention? It's a difficult task, no doubt, but it can be done.

The NonProfit Times attended this year's AFP International Conference on Fundraising. Speaking at that conference was Penelope Burke, president of Cygnus Applied Research, Inc. She had some ideas on how you can best go about keeping your most valuable fundraisers:

• Be flexible on your salary and benefits. If they are that good at what they do, they deserve to be rewarded. Doing this also means you can be even more insistent on bottom-line results.
• Allow your fundraisers to work independently. You should check in on them from time to time get updates on their progress, but make sure you are not breathing down their necks.
• Value their input. Taking a suggestion to heart is one of the best things a nonprofit manager can do to show your employees that they are being listened to. It's also a great way to make them want to continue to work for you.
• On a related note, make sure to publicly credit staff when they come up with a good idea.
• Looking for a new senior fundraiser? Consider promoting from within rather than hiring a brand new employee. This will improve employee morale and eliminates the need for extensive orientation periods.

Nonprofit Hiring Tips

Cross posted from The Nonprofit Jobseeker

Although jobs may be scarce in this economy, this doesn't mean that job candidates are going to take the first position that is offered to them. This economy could make people more picky than normal. Because times are tough, they are going to not only want a position that pays well, but also one in which they feel comfortable. If you are going to attract the best candidates for your nonprofit job, you would do well to follow these five hiring tips:

 

• Make sure the description in your job listing is informative yet concise. This is a hard balance to strike, but it can be done. The key to reaching this balance is to use specifics. The more the applicant knows about the position, the less chance you will get resumes from unqualified candidates.

• When you conduct an interview, make sure you allow time for the person to say what they want out of the position. It's all well and good to explain what you are looking for in an ideal employee, but you should make sure that the candidate can express their expectations as well. This is helpful because it establishes that this will be a job where the employee's views are important. And that is an important factor when people decide where they want to work.

• Just because someone performs well in an interview doesn't mean they will be the right fit for your organization. Test your applicant's skills to see if they are up to the task. How you do this depends on the type of job you are looking to fill. If you are looking to hire a web content editor, for example, you can have them take a writing test after the interview. If you mention that you will be performing writing tests in your application, this has the added benefit of weeding out less serious candidates.

• Your office should be tidy at all times, but make sure it is especially presentable during the interview. And I'm not just referring to your desk; the entire office should look as impressive as possible. A relaxing workplace makes for a better working environment, and that will be on the top of the list of things top candidates will be looking for.

• Interviews can be very tiresome, especially if you have already been through many that day. Still, you are going to have to find some way to remain engaging to your prospective employee. There is no bigger turn off than an interviewer who seems uninterested. So even if you have to take an extra shot of coffee, make sure you are friendly and lively when you interview a job candidate.