Your resume is really the story of your career. Nonprofit hiring managers want to see more than just your pedigree and previous jobs. Focus on your areas of expertise and specific accomplishments. Demonstrate how you have tackled challenges and opportunities to build fiscal health for other companies. Don’t be afraid to address the good and the bad—the hard decisions—that those in finance sometimes have to make. You want the employer to immediately grasp the scope of your experience—and to see the traits of leadership in all that you have done. Sell, but don’t oversell. Be honest about your training, education, certifications and licenses. Remember, these are all verifiable facts. This also applies to the scope of your role with your previous employer. Hyperbole, for an accountant, will get you nowhere. Details speak volumes. The attention to detail in spelling and grammar is critical—and it is especially true for you. After all, you are to be entrusted with the role of reporting numbers accurately. If you can’t get your own details correct, why should someone else trust you with theirs? Optimize your resume. Your resume will most likely be filtered through software, so make sure you use strong keywords: financial and…

Hiring a staff accountant, finance director, or even a bookkeeper can give the best Executive Director a severe case of hives. Accounting is not a skill set in which most Directors excel. So how do you know if you are hiring the right person? Here are four tips to help avoid costly errors. 1. Financial expertise is not the only talent you need A good financial person should have keen insight and strong analytical capabilities. You want this person to see liabilities and pitfalls before they occur. But don’t stop there. Can they communicate financials to non-financial folks? Can you envision them presenting not only to you but to the staff or to your board? Look for leadership and communication skills just like you would with any other candidate. 2. You do need experience with nonprofit financials There are over 22 leading database/financial software programs serving nonprofits with about 5 industry leaders. The candidate either knows your software or not. If not, lean in on questions about their “learning curve” habits. It’s not just the software that matters. You already know that nonprofits have unique rules regarding the recording, handling and application of funds. Ask your candidate a lot of…

The greatest expense for any nonprofit generally tends to be the cost of its staff. Staff salaries combined with benefits can easily reach 50% to 80% of an organization’s budget. Although the cost of its workforce is the cost of doing business for any organization fulfilling its mission, keeping those costs under control is the key to an organization’s success. The following are ways that nonprofit managers can avoid added costs and improve management of their workforce as well as their ability to serve their constituents. 1. Hiring the Right Staff Organizations that have clear and consistent hiring processes will have more productive interviews and a better chance at hiring the right employees Since 30% of resumes contain misleading or inaccurate information, it is important that managers do not hire based on resume information only, with little else Offering salaries in the right range for the position is critical to attracting top talent Organizations that know how to brand and sell their organizations will compete more effectively in the marketplace 2. Cost of Poor Performance Nonprofits that demand high employee performance throughout their organization, build value and quality throughout their organization Organizations that reward top performance hold on to their…

It’s no secret that having a job while looking for a new one is widely regarded as a plus. Employers want good hires, and one of the best ways to do that is to hire an individual considered a good hire by someone else. Almost 73% of employees search for new jobs while they currently have a job. But there are risks in job hunting while employed. Most employers work hard to retain talented staff, and losing someone without knowledge or notice can really hurt a nonprofit organization. It can also hurt your career. If you have decided it’s time to move on, take these tips to heart: Time the news. In most cases, it is not a good idea to immediately share the news that you are looking for a new job with your boss. It’s generally more productive to give your boss as much notice as possible once you get another job, and then to leave in an organized and professional manner. If you feel comfortable, allow your boss (or the person who replaces you) to contact you if there are questions.Leaving a job this way speaks volumes about your integrity and professionalism, and creates an opportunity for…