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The Plight of The American Non-Profit

The Plight of The American Non-Profit
Response to http://ow.ly/1rGc The Steve Case Foundation by Adrienne Wallace-Hayward


All industries are suffering and we should absolutely expect non-profits that have been well funded by corporate enterprises (that are now failing) and their related endowments (many of which have imploded with the failure in the investment markets) to see reductions as a direct result. Yes, indeed non-profits employ more Americans than both the auto and financial industry combined. The question is who are they and the point to be established is what are the talents of those employed in the non-profit space. Are those talents appropriate for our times?

Non-profits have been too comfortable with endowments and legacy donors for far too long. I believe that they can survive the downturn only with for profit -minded leadership and operations teams. I implore non-profits to get on the direct selling band wagon, embrace WOM, and SOCIAL MEDIA. It needs to be done not seasonally or in trend but as standard operating procedure. This means that there needs to be and infusion of Fortune 500 sales, consumer, and marketing minded talent; people who have made their livelihood from relationships, sales, and ongoing delivery. Integration of new engagement marketing techniques with the standard direct mail and other traditional marketing techniques is necessary.

Everything needs to be measured and analyzed to gain a foothold and the notion that that it can't be measured when proven true means that the channel is dead. Developing them , nurturing them and growing them is the focus of profit minded leaders. Profit minded leaders understand ROI and they understand that the more they take in the bigger and more widely recognized; more impactful the organization needs to be. They engage and lead teams that are not just administrative in their expanse, but are actually folks who have both a rich functional, long-term focus and design balance in the jobs that they do. This means that as much as a development director needs to be a strategist so does the webmaster.

In my experience, most NPOs in particular have been spoiled by the financial swells we experienced in past years. This new talent base I mention here requires a couple of things. Dramatic salary increases and an open- minded approach to new technology and social media in particular are a must. Administrative staff that knows little beyond proprietary systems and Raiser's Edge are endangering non-profits as much as the economic downturn is right now. Don't expect to get my money know when you have no appreciation for my systems or how my business generates those funds is what most donors are thinking in addition to what is right to do. Non-profits must become partnership minded now. Funding "partners" that dictate and have their agendas as the main purpose of funding are not partners.WIIFMT = What's in it for me too? "How do I actually grow and sustain my business by financially supporting your (non-profit) organization?" is a question that non-profits must be ready to answer now. Unfortunately the prevalence of grant writers, social workers, city/civic workers and so-called progressives in the non-profit space who don't engage new technology, do not network outside of their comfort zones and have no corporate based ties or interest also lack a partnership minded approach. They make it more difficult for non-profits to make it through these difficult times.

A great example of a non-profit that gets it is Do Something.org lead by Nancy Lublin. By no means is the organization as large as many of the NGOs in question, but what a terrific example of cooking with gas her organization shows in this time. A great example of a business leader that can help lay the building blocks, process and provide introductions is Tai Beauchamp, CEO of The Blue Print Group. Both are Google - worthy, both have presence in social media and therefore are very easy to find. Both of theses executives are also based in the New York Metro area where NPOs have significant footprints. They and others are ready and are truly making it happen...even now.

The old guard ways of doing things must change. Change or die. Looking only to the government and stationary funders alone to survive this time is foolish. It's just another cry for more bailout. Fact is that the leadership of many large NPOs are simply not listening and therefore, a bit stuck. I believe that they are awaiting their NPO bailout as well. I don't recommend it. The traditional singular donor is dying away and the new donor community engages quite differently and often in an integrated fashion. Again one of the biggest tragedies in the non-profit space is not the economy it is how they hire and engage. They seem reluctant to hire from outside the sector. Many are more eager to have someone seek them out for their services or to donate and also have a number of prejudices to engagement mechanics of today that create a systemic risk to their longevity.


Respectfully,

Adrienne Wallace-Hayward
EVP, Fairfield Media Consultancy
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/awallace
Twitter: awallacehayward

Comments

  1. I think this is perfectly true. I was in the non-profit space and left to get a job in the for profit arena. As much and intellectual as I am I had a hard time with the pace in the for profit world. everything was planning an strategy and truth is many and most non-profits were not that way when I was there. I do think the folks from the corporations are smarter. I learned so much about management and projecting for the future. I went back and got my MBA, but ended up teaching math in community college, but what I learned is immeasurable. I actually teach math for business management.

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