Relief Groups Seek Workers With Language Skills, Overseas Experience, and a High Tolerance for Chaos
JOB MARKET By Marilyn Dickey As the war in Iraq began to wind down, the phone lines at the American Red Cross, in Washington, started lighting up. “People were saying, ‘I’m on the next plane over there to help you guys, '" says Amber Campbell, the charity’s spokeswoman. But that’s not how relief…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Grant Makers Reveal the Most Common Reasons Grant Proposals Get Rejected
Eighty percent of the grant applications that cross Debbie Rey’s desk are immediately rejected. Ms. Rey supervises the central proposals-processing office at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, in Battle Creek, Mich., where the bulk of the proposals to the foundation are first vetted. The reason so many…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Learn from the Most Common Mistakes Charities Make When Upgrading Their Technology
TOOLS AND TRAINING By Marilyn Dickey Three years ago, Children’s Services of Roxbury had no e-mail, no Web access, and a computer system that was inefficient and suffered frequent breakdowns. Many employees of the Massachusetts child-welfare organization worked at homeless shelters and would fax…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Shy Student Finds Her Niche as Seamstress for the Homeless
A teacher inspired Shifra Mincer, 16, to start volunteering in a New York soup kitchen, ALSO SEE:Charity’s Youth MovementThe Young and the Generous: Related articles but it was Shifra who carved her own niche there. The granddaughter of a seamstress, Shifra went to the soup kitchen to help set the…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Like For-Profit Managers, Charity Leaders Turn to Career Coaches for Fresh Perspective and Support
JOB MARKET By Marilyn Dickey At age 30, Leigh Marecek became executive director of Physicians for a Violence-Free Society, in San Francisco, a nonprofit organization with a staff of five. Her 10 years of experience working at crisis centers as an advocate, fund raiser, public speaker, and manager…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Tips for Making a Leadership Transition Run Smoothly
IN THE TRENCHES By Marilyn Dickey A lot of people would have been too daunted to try to fill the shoes of Elizabeth Fox as executive director of Iona Senior Services. When Ms. Fox decided to step down four years ago, many people considered her an icon. In her 16 years with Iona, she had led the…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Tips for Getting the Most from Hiring a Consultant
JOB MARKET By Marilyn Dickey When the executive director of a Pennsylvania nonprofit group needed to devise a strategic plan, she hired a consulting company. Two months later, she knew she had made a big mistake. What Leeann R. Younger, head of Summerbridge Pittsburgh, got was a plan that was “full…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Once hard for charities to find amid the dot-com boom, technology workers are now available -- in drovesTwo years ago, when CompuMentor advertised to hire a technology consultant, the San ALSO SEE:Hard Times Force Some Organizations to Scale Back on Technology Plans Francisco charity was lucky to…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Research, Money, Personal Support Are Key to Successful Charity Start-Ups
IN THE TRENCHES By Marilyn Dickey In the past five years, tens of thousands of Somali immigrants have poured into Minnesota seeking housing, jobs, and an escape from the ravages of war in their country. ALSO SEE:Resources for Starting a Charity As the state’s Somali population has grown, and its…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy
Helping Employees Get Through a Charity Merger
When the American Cancer Society’s New England offices merged to form one regional division in the ALSO SEE:Rethinking Nonprofit PartnershipsCharity Partnerships: Sources of Information mid-1990s, every employee except the chief executive officer had to reapply for a job in the new organization.…
By Marilyn Dickey
Senior Editor, Copy