Non-Profit Crisis: It’s More than Leadership

With baby boomers approaching retirement, I have come across many articles offering advice on what to do to prepare for the next generation leaders. The advice focuses on ways to make the field more appealing to young people: offer more mentorships, allow for the usage of social media, create more opportunities for advancement, and encourage a laid back environment. However, all of this ignores that nonprofits face an even greater crisis aside from the impending shift in leadership: its public perception.

Even though I am entering the world of fundraising I find it odd that the existence of a sector that provides vital necessities to the public is predicated on whether or not people deem their cause worthy that year. The money issue is remarkably complex yet the lack of funding to support the people who bring services to the public (i.e. non profit employees) is appalling especially when we realize that the conditions many employees endure funders would not tolerate for themselves.

Additionally, a hierarchy of needs is constantly being made by the public in a way that inadvertently puts people and issues against each other: how can we worry about the environment when there are children to feed? How can we worry about children in Harlem when there are children in Africa that need an education? Why spend money on HIV/AIDs when child birth is a major killer? As a result nonprofits have to constantly prove their worth to a society that doesn’t realize where they would be without nonprofits in the first place. Even though I believe that is plenty of money to go around and fund every cause, increasing pressure for nonprofits to have a quantifiable bottom line results in a competition for sources.

To make matters worse, the work done by nonprofits is simply not taken seriously. For example, throughout my time last year as program coordinator where I provided leadership training to teens, I can’t tell you how many times people said, “Awww that’s nice.” As I have vented here, not only am I professional trying to master my work but also the work I do is vital to this country’s well being. Is not education the great equalizer? Do we not believe that education in addition to caring and concerned adults can change the life of a troubled teen? Then why, when I explain what I do I get “Awww, that’s nice.” You would never say that to a doctor, a lawyer, a journalist, or any other profession because they command respect. Why is education any different?

The belief the nonprofits are easy or not as important as for profits is seen in people’s approach to the field in general. Why do people believe that starting a nonprofit is easier than starting a for-profit? Why do people switch to nonprofit careers because they want something that isn’t stressful? Even last year when I asked my peers what they wanted to do, too many said they would teach or work at a nonprofit until “they found something real to do.” And finally, why aren’t the trends of the nonprofit field–with over $600 billion in assets and over 7.1% of the population employed– featured prominently in the pages of our newspapers? I’ll learn all about real estate, cars, and art in the New York Times, but you won’t tell me trends in volunteering and donating? We are taken for granted and this is evident in how many of us are funded, treated, and discussed.

The ultimate goal of non profits should be to attract as many people as possible to social justice work. However, this cannot be done if we aren’t respected or funded adequately. Many nonprofits were created by young people with a passion for change, helping those in need and enhancing the cultural, spiritual, and political life of this country. In order to continue with this we need to reevaluate how we do business.

1. We must generate our own revenue: Museums do this via membership and entry fees, for example. However, we may need to go a step farther. Social entrepreneurship–described by someone as the ability to harness the markets to achieve a social mission–is growing as a viable way to help the community, while generating a profit.

2. We must get our voices into mainstream media: We can’t allow the work we do to be put on the back burner. Organizations like the Red Cross may have national attention because their involvement in crisis assistance, yet many organizations never receive attention (unless it’s a scandal). Supplements in newspapers about local organizations or TV segments that show the work these organizations do will not only give them more attention (and probably more clients), but it will also get people thinking about the nonprofit world perhaps sparking discussions and making it clear what role this organizations play in people’s lives.

3. We must create a stronger culture of philanthropy: While I am unsettled by a reliance on others to give, I still recognize the importance of having a nation in which giving back to your community is fostered.  However, philanthropy must extend beyond the giving and receiving of funds–when this happens, a serious disconnection forms.  For example, often times, fundraising exists in a bubble with the people leading fundraising initiatives having no connection to the neighborhood in which the organization is located and sometimes, the organization itself.  The push should be in terms of community investment in the well being of an organization rather than money controlling the mission.

We need a makeover, not only to attract young workers but to increase public investment in our work.  Perhaps this is another issue for the new generation of leaders to take on.