Personnel Issues

Hiring Practices for Small Non-Profits

Non-profit literacy organizations need the best employees to do the work of the organization. Attracting the best employees with non-profit wages is not always easy. Once found, hired, and trained, retaining those same employees becomes the priority. When an organization has a small staff, as most literacy organizations do, each member of the staff needs to be versatile with many talents and skills. Often staff members have overlapping responsibilities in addition to fulfilling the responsibilities of their own job description. Whether replacing staff for a vacant position, adding staff for a grant requirement, or hiring an employee for organization expansion, certain steps can make the hiring process less of an ordeal.

The hiring process begins when a position opens because staff is leaving, a grant proposal includes a staff position, or the organization is expanding to include more staff. Do you have a job description for each staff position? List the duties that the person holding the job must fulfill. Consider the qualifications and skills needed for the job. Is there someone already in the organization with the right skills that might fill this position? Have you wished that someone on your staff were better at certain skills? Think about moving positions and hiring the right person with skills that the present staff might not possess. Do you need a staff member with marketing skills, computer skills, or fundraising expertise? When you interview, look for the person with the strongest skills to supplement the skills of the existing staff. Hiring new staff can be a good time to make other changes in job responsibilities for existing staff. With job descriptions in place and an idea of what skills the new employee needs to possess, you are ready to begin the search for the best employee for the job.

The first step in retaining the best person for the job is hiring the best person for the job. Staff selection requires time for thoughtful consideration of applications and time for the interviews. Each applicant should fill out an application and provide a resume. If you need an updated application, several sample applications available on the Internet can be adapted for your organization. Having each applicant complete the same form assures each person is treated consistently. Also the applications can be evaluated and compared easily if the information is on the same form. Include enough space for references and contact information.

Members of the board of directors or an appointed selection committee can help in the selection and interview process. The board or committee can develop a rating sheet. A rating sheet compares all applicants by considering and rating each applicants’ skills, education, experience, and aids in reducing the number of applicants for the actual interviews.

Inform staff and the board of directors of the position opening. Applicants recruited by people familiar with your organization may be some of the best applicants. Don’t wait for applicants to come to you. Ask qualified individuals whom you would like to employ to apply. Consider hiring volunteers, especially if you have a part-time position to fill. Volunteers familiar with your organization may be happy to become more involved and become a staff member. Also consider clients who would be an asset to the organization.

Retired individuals may have a lifetime of experience and skills to offer. Consider hiring seniors, disabled individuals, or displaced homemakers who are re-entering the workforce. The Senior Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) and Senior Texan Employment Program (STEP) are good sources of employable individuals.

The Texas Workforce Network can be a good source for qualified applicants. If you have access to colleges or universities, list a job posting at their placement centers. To save time, use a temporary employee service. The service will interview and screen employees to fit your needs. After the recommended employee works for you temporarily, you can decide if the employee is a good fit for your organization. Look in the resume file of previous applicants to your organization. Perhaps the perfect person for the job is there.

Attracting the best employees with non-profit wages is not always easy. With that said, what are the advantages to working for a literacy organization? Often non-profit agencies can offer flexible work schedules. A four-day workweek may be attractive to an applicant, or a workday that ends at 3:00. On the job training is appealing to many applicants. An entry-level employee will find training especially attractive. In small organizations, every individual’s work is critical to the success of the organization. Every day work takes on a level of importance that may not be apparent in other jobs. The work of literacy organizations is very rewarding. Helping people achieve their goals through literacy is inspiring work. Don’t forget to sell the position to the applicant. Tell them what you enjoy about the work.

Hiring new employees is always a challenge. Preparation before the actual interview will ease the process. Accurate job descriptions, uniform job applications, and applicant rating sheets will contribute to the efficiency of the hiring process. Tap all sources of good applicants. Narrow the field to the best applicants, sell them on your organization, and choose the most enthusiastic, experienced, and qualified person for the job.

Patti Groce has been the Executive director of Midland Need to Read in Midland, Texas for the past 18 years. She has a Masters in Reading from the University of Texas Permian Basin and is a reading specialist. Prior to her adult literacy work, Patti taught secondary English and reading in both public and private high schools.