Wanted: nonprofit leaders
Charities seek to deliver results – and fill top jobs.
from the August 13, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
Jesse Wolff, a corporate finance officer in Denver, decided to make the switch about four years ago. He has since led the revitalization of Community Shares of Colorado, a coalition that raises funds for 115 nonprofits in the state.
"I was getting a lot of excitement from my volunteer work in the community, but my [corporate] job was taking me out of that realm," Mr. Wolff says. So he sought out the nonprofit CEO job, and found the experience "life-changing – I'll never go back."
Just recently he was named to head the Kempe Foundation for the Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect. Wolff is making this latest move so he can work directly on a single critical issue.
It's harder to run a nonprofit than a private company, says Mr. Tierney, who was chief executive of Bain & Company in Boston before founding Bridgespan. Heading a large service organization, for instance, demands constant fundraising, and strategies for social change are much more complicated.
"You don't have the resources you are used to, you have the extra layer of a board of directors ... and you're wearing a lot of different hats – I enjoy that, but it's where a lot of burnout happens," Wolff explains.
But it also brings rewards – work that offers more meaning and an opportunity to make a difference for others. Surveys show thousands of Americans are pining for jobs with more meaning and often want second careers to fulfill that desire. The 2005 "New Face of Work" survey found half of all adults between ages 50 and 70 want jobs that help improve the quality of life in their communities.
"There's a pool rich in experience, education, and talent" to draw on, says Marc Freedman, founder of Civic Ventures and author of "Encore: Finding Work that Matters in the Second Half of Life."
Unlike the business world, though, entry points and internal career paths are far from clear. And nonprofits haven't looked to older people to fill leadership posts, he says. "When I see people trying to make this transition, they remind me of folks who used to build TVs from Heathkits: You have to put it together by yourself!"
In the for-profit sector, from 10 to 15 percent of GDP involves business-to-business services – including executive search firms, says Tierney. That kind of infrastructure still has to be built for nonprofits. Only the largest charities can afford executive search services, with most jobs hired through personal networks.
Leaders developed on campus
Some in the nonprofit world are beginning to confront this need head on – either to bring more young people into the field or to aid experienced individuals in making the transition.
Millas's strong start, she says, is due to the program of American Humanics (AH), which she entered her sophomore year in college. AH is a national program offering nonprofit management certification that complements a bachelor's degree. Students complete a core-competency curriculum and at least 300 hours of intensive internships.
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