Many Charities Would Hire Professionals Who Have Worked Outside Nonprofit World

By Suzanne Perry

Half of nonprofit employers say people who decide they want to work for charities late in their careers or after they have retired are highly appealing job candidates, while 39 percent say they are somewhat appealing, according to a new survey.

Almost 70 percent said that such workers would bring valuable experience to the job, 67 percent that they would bring commitment and reliability, and 62 percent that they would be effective mentors for younger people.

When asked which serious concerns they had about older workers, 25 percent of employers said that such workers might require higher salaries, 23 percent that they might be reluctant to learn new technology, and 20 percent that they might lack the necessary technical or professional skills.

The survey — sponsored by Civic Ventures, a think tank in San Francisco that promotes what it calls “encore careers” for older workers, and the MetLife Foundation, in New York — polled 427 nonprofit employers last spring in fields including social services, education, health care, and the environment.

It sought to assess views toward job candidates who decide to change the type of work they do in later life because they want to contribute to the public good.

Among other findings:

• Seventy percent said they had employed late-career or previously retired workers in the past few years.

  Those nonprofit organizations were more likely to find such employees highly appealing (53 percent) than were other employers (40 percent).

• Forty-two percent said recruiting and hiring talent was a top human-resources concern, and 45 percent thought that challenge would get harder in the future.
• Ninety percent of charities said they offer part-time work and 86 percent offer flexible schedules, but only 40 precent allow employees to work from home or from mobile offices.

The full results of the survey, “Tapping Encore Talent,” are available on the Civic Ventures Web site.