Feature Articles • By Robert Egger • January 29, 2010 • Email Print

Robert Egger is mad [and so are we!] about the Supreme Court decision allowing corporations and unions -- but not nonprofits -- to spend unlimited monies on political campaigns. And he has some ideas about what to do about it:

For the last four years, I've been wondering what it would take to unite the nonprofit sector in America.

In 2007, at the start of the first Presidential election in almost 80 years in which there was no incumbent in the race, nonprofits could have used this competitive climate to develop a strategy that compelled all candidates to earn our collective votes. By pushing for a plan for America that included a defined role for our 1.4 million nonprofits, we could have repositioned the sector as a deep well of previously untapped, economic energy. We did not.

In 2008, when 29 states posted over $45 billion in deficits and legislators began to make deep budget cuts, the opportunity was again present. As funding for once sacrosanct programs -- from senior healthcare to education -- was slashed, nonprofits could have joined forces to ensure that vital services and critical needs were met. We remained divided.

And in 2009, when state budget deficits exploded by over 300% and lawmakers began to explore taxing the property of nonprofits or imposing other cash generating fees, I eagerly awaited the moment when enlightened self-interest would spur a sorely-needed, strategic dialogue among organizations in every community. It never came.

And now this: two weeks ago, the Supreme Court handed down a decision in the case of Citizens United v. FEC, which granted political free-speech rights to corporations and unions, but excluded groups granted 501 (c)(3) status by the Internal Revenue Service. This means . . .

Feature Articles • By Tom Battin • December 14, 2009 • Email Print

December is famously a bad month in which to look for a job, and a
bad month in which to bring on someone new. Get a leg up on January with Tom Battin's guide to nonprofit job sites:

In this article, we review 33 websites for people seeking nonprofit jobs, and of course, for nonprofits seeking to hire new staff. Job sites serve two audiences: job seekers and employers. Job seekers can look for potential positions as well as upload their resumes so that employers can seek them out. For employers, such job sites allow them to search posted resumes to find people with specific characteristics.

This is not a complete list. We have focused on sites that are exclusively for nonprofit jobs, or that have a substantial number of nonprofit jobs. We have not included the hundreds of websites such as those of nonprofit associations where members can post openings, nor have we tried to find all the listservs and association newsletters where members post openings. Instead, we focused on sites that are primarily about job seeking: that are updated daily, that have features such as being able to search only for executive jobs, and so forth. Be sure to ask people in your chosen field or geographic region or the sites, listservs and newsletters that they know.

For each of these 33 job sites in this Directory, we include the number of jobs that were posted on our test day as well as the key features . . .

Feature Articles • By Steven Young Lee • October 21, 2009 • Email Print

Few young people answer "Nonprofit Executive Director" when asked what they want to be when they grow up. And most executive directors will admit to not having thought much about such a career, until just the right job happened to land in their path.  Here's how the story unfolded for a young artist from Chicago who one day found himself unexpectedly working as an ED in Montana:

As an artist, the thought of becoming a nonprofit executive director just never occurred to me. My aspirations were always clear: to make my artwork in a stimulating, creative environment. After college I spent a summer as an artist-in-residence at the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts (The Bray) in Helena, Montana, doing sculpture alongside other ceramic artists. After that 1998 summer residency I moved to Chicago and worked as a studio potter for three and a half years while also managing a local ceramic supply company. As much as . . .

Feature Articles • By Edie Boatman • August 24, 2009 • Email Print

Edie Boatman left a for-profit career for fundraising  just as the economy crashed. With irony and humor her First Person Nonprofit essay reflects on her sense of timing and what she's learned so far.

August 4, 2008 - Just one month before the economic meltdown . . . my first day begins on my new job as Director of Fund Development for a small nonprofit focused on arts and literacy with inner city kids. At 43, after a career in corporate marketing and publishing, I had to ask myself: What did I know about raising money? Nothing, outside of managing a few appeal letter projects. What did I know about the economy? Nothing, other than having a belief things would start to change for the better after the election.

If I had known then what I know now, would I have jumped into a job with no experience  during the worst slump in the economy since the 1930s? . . .

Feature Articles • By Sally Carlson • July 11, 2009 • Email Print

Search consultant and volunteer leader Sally Carlson does executive-level searches for both nonprofit and for-profit companies. Sally is known for her straight shooting style: no fluff, no coddling. We asked her to tell us something different about how to find a nonprofit job right now:

Question #1: Are there any jobs out there for someone with my background?

Sally: As a search consultant, I speak to a lot of people looking for jobs; this is one of the most common questions from people seeking both for-profit jobs and nonprofit jobs. The answer is: Yes. And there are people currently in them.

So in this economic environment, your opportunity will be based on . . .