Archive for January, 2016

January, 2016. Traditionally, this is the time of year when many of us write up, or at least mentally note, resolutions that will make us better humans in the coming year. My list typically includes promises to work out more frequently, eat more healthily, read more….that kind of stuff. It’s also an ideal time for us to consider actions that will help our nonprofit organizations flourish. Much like a list of resolutions, I find that checklists can be easy tools for keeping me on task and, in some cases, offer objective evaluations. Those little check boxes don’t provide much room for explanation or excuses…just enough space for a check mark! Checklists are also excellent motivational tools. They help us identify and quantify accomplishments and successes. And, as you probably know, positive reinforcement of jobs already well done can go a long way in the morale department. Since many of us who work at nonprofit organizations find ourselves multi-tasking, we always run the risk of letting little details fall through the cracks – or the possibility that someone may “drop the ball.” The beauty of checklists are their simplicity; at once keeping us honest, accountable and organized. Here are some of…

From late September until mid-April, one of the most frequently asked questions is “Is-all-of the-data-entered-yet?”. It is such an endearing question. Is it in DonorPerfect? Is it in Quickbooks? Is the gala auction balanced? Is our CRM data clean (the most dreaded question of all). Before marketing and before those lovely souls in donor development get giddy about Big Data, before the financial year is closed, before you even know for sure how many program participants accessed how many levels of service, there’s the big, time-sucking task that no one likes to talk about: Data Entry. Don’t diss data entry. You’ve heard the saying “garbage in, garbage out” and it certainly applies here. With data coming from so many different resources it’s hard to keep it clean—and by clean I mean standardized, usable and reliable. It’s also very easy to assign the task of entering (and quality review) to someone who seems to have “spare time”. In today’s economy, however, I don’t see many employees who have “spare time”. “No time” seems more appropriate, especially in the nonprofit sector. Fortunately, there is PNP, specializing in providing temps who not only understand the caffeine laced question, but understand the CRM and…

For starters, you can forget your free-range associations with the word “temp”. These individuals are valuable members of the team. And, in most cases, the time spent in your office—whether it is 20 hours per week or a few months per year—is their career. Just like freelancers and consultants, these individuals have full time jobs working part-time for several companies at a time. According to the Government Accountability Office, temporary workers made up a third of the workforce in 2013. As far back as 2011, TimeOut New York was publishing a list of the Top Temp Agencies in New York City. The list includes PNP Staffing Group (formerly Professionals for Nonprofits) and is the only agency listed solely dedicated to the nonprofit sector. Starting next week, we’re writing a series about the changing face of temporary staffing. We’ll invite you to meet some of the individuals working in the nonprofit temp sector and hear from Kristy Lewis, Temp Services Manager for PNP Staffing Group. Come with us as we explore the new face of temporary staffing for nonprofits, associations, and social good organizations.