Most Environmental-Group Leaders Would Take Executive Role Again, Survey Says

JOB MARKET

By Lara L. McDavit

The majority of people who lead environmental organizations in the western United States and Canada report that they would serve as executive directors again despite work-related stresses, according to a new survey of 148 environmental-group leaders conducted by Training Resources for the Environmental Community, a management-consulting group in Seattle.

The researchers, aided by CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, a management-consulting group in San Francisco, investigated how the weakened economy and other financial constraints are affecting the professional responsibilities of nonprofit leaders in the environmental field. The study gathered salary, benefit, and demographic data about respondents, along with their chief sources of job satisfaction and dissatisfaction. The survey was conducted during the last two months of 2001.

The environmental groups surveyed appear to be relatively young and small: of the total, 101 were founded after 1980, and the majority, or 112 organizations, operate with annual budgets under $500,000. Most respondents — 107 — reported they have served in the executive-director role for fewer than five years. Moreover, 58 said they were heading environmental groups for the first time, and 78 felt unprepared when they took over the leadership of their organizations.

Eighty-three executives said they would remain in their post for three years or more, while 57 plan to leave their job within two years. Ninety-two respondents said they would strongly consider leading another nonprofit environmental organization in the future, which contrasts with last year’s CompassPoint survey of more than 1,000 charity leaders, which found that most respondents would not take another executive-director job.

Salaries and Budgets

Of the 137 organizations that gave executive-salary information, the survey found that the groups with larger budgets pay their leaders higher median salaries than groups with fewer resources, although that rule did not hold for one segment of the field (a median figure indicates that half of the data in the survey is higher than that amount, and half is lower). The 20 heads of groups with budgets of $500,000 to $999,999 receive a median salary of $50,000. The 88 organizations with budgets of $249,999 or less pay their executive directors a median salary of $40,000.

Organizations whose budgets fall between $250,000 and $499,999, however, pay their leaders the least. The 16 executives in the group said they earn a median salary of just $37,500. The directors earn less, the report concludes, because their groups allocate more funds to personnel needs, such as hiring more staff members.

The survey found more men than women running environmental nonprofit groups — of the 147 executives who reported their gender, 84 were male. Men were more likely to run the larger organizations: Of the 36 organizations with budgets of $500,000 and higher, 26 were run by men. The median salaries for men and women also reflected a gap: $46,250 for male executives, compared with $42,500 for females. The amount of professional experience might help explain the discrepancy between the salaries of men and women in the survey: Of those executives who had 15 or more years’ experience in the nonprofit field, 21 were male and nine were female.

Satisfaction and Burnout

Regarding job satisfaction, executives most commonly cited their sense of passion for their organization’s mission, indicating that they felt their roles matched their personal values. Other areas that enhanced job satisfaction include the opportunity for leadership, the challenges and diversity of the work, and working with staff members and constituents. Fourteen respondents, however, said they plan to leave their positions within the next year. They said job-related stress, caused by high tension and long hours, fund raising, and anxiety about their organization’s finances, overshadows the positive aspects of their work.

To address stress on the job, executives most frequently recommended organizational and strategic planning, followed by maintaining open communications with board and staff members, and delegating work.

“Stressed but Steadfast: Executive Directors of Western Environmental Organizations, 2002″ is available free at the Training Resources for the Environment Community Web site.