In(c)ights | ‘The Nonprofit Sector as a Whole Just Doesn’t Get It’
A coauthor of a new study on the struggle of nonprofits to recruit and retain talented employees — and the leadership crisis this could cause as the current generation of executives prepares to retire — and a New York University nonprofits scholar participated in a Washington Post online chat Monday. Albert Reusga, the coauthor and a vice president at the Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation, and NYU’s Paul C. Light had some very interesting things to say. Some excerpts:
Light: "The nonprofit sector as a whole just doesn’t get it. There is no national movement that I know of that has taken these issues on. But they’re critically important. We take our employees for granted, alas. But my surveys show it is the most highly motivated workforce in the country–more motivated by the chance to make a difference that federal employees or business employees. It’s a first rate organizations that is often given the support in second and third rate settings."
Reusga: "You’re right about bleeding good talent: Meaningful, life-changing work can make up for a lot of deficiencies. We argue that it shouldn’t have to. I think we need to be merciful about our current crop of leaders: Working in an environment of constant scarcity can cloud anybody’s judgment. Some of us who work in the charitable sector have helped perpetuate the myth that it’s possible to use 100% of our charitable dollars to buy food for the hungry or buy shelter for the homeless. This is impossible. Just like there’s no free lunch, there’s no charity without charitable overhead. It takes real people who need and deserve real salaries to fill those bowls with food and make those shelters run well."
Light: "I find very few exemplars who do succession planning, for example. We baby boomers think we’ll live forever — give us the Grammy for album of the year and we just keep patting ourselves on the back for living so long. I’d like to see more funding developed to staff training and development, but who’s willing to pay for it. Donors want every last dollar to go to program. They don’t seem to understand the link between developing leadership and productivity — we can stretch those dollars so much further if we just invest in capacity."
Reusga: "We all share the responsibility for making life better for those who work at charitable organizations. We’re generous as donors, for example, but we do sometimes try to shortchange our charities by refusing to support nonprofit ‘overhead.’ We forget it takes real dollars not only to keep the lights on, but to attract and keep talented nonprofit leaders."
In(c)ights, an interview with a nonprofit professional, appears Wednesdays at the 501(c) Files. | 501(c)
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