Sharing Knowledge: Looking for Talent? Avoid These Common Pitfalls!


Sharing Knowledge

A newsletter dedicated to increasing the capacity of nonprofits · May 2009


Quick Links Recently Closed Searches Executive Director The Tiny Miracles Foundation Darien, Connecticut Chief Executive Officer Experience Corps Washington, DC Chief Executive Officer Hands On Hartford Hartford, Connecticut Director of Center Based Programs Horizons for Homeless Children Boston, Massachusetts Executive Director Higher Achievement Baltimore Baltimore City, Maryland Executive Director Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence Boston, Massachusetts Director of Marketing and Communications Colby College Waterville, Maine Executive Director LAYC YouthBuild Public Charter School Washington, DC Chief Financial Officer Innovations for Poverty Action New Haven, Connecticut Director Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors New York, New York Executive Director The House of the Seven Gables Salem, Massachusetts Vice President of Policy Center for Clean Air Policy Washington, DC Director of Policy Nellie Mae Education Foundation Quincy (Boston), Massachusetts Vice President of Programs Nellie Mae Education Foundation Quincy (Boston), Massachusetts Director of Communications Nellie Mae Education Foundation Quincy (Boston), Massachusetts Current Searches These are just a few of our current searches... Associate Program Officer Nellie Mae Education Foundation Quincy (Boston), Massachusetts Executive Director Brit Tzedek v'Shalom Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace Chicago, Illinois and Washington, DC Dean of Admissions Massachusetts College of Art and Design Boston, Massachusetts Manager of Housing Programs hopeFound Boston, Massachusetts WorkFirst Employment Services Manager hopeFound Boston, Massachusetts Executive Director Northeast Document Conservation Center Andover, Massachusetts President The Carroll Center for the Blind Newton, Massachusetts Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships Camp Starfish Waltham, Massachusetts Executive Director State-Boston Retirement System Boston, Massachusetts Research and Policy Associate Nellie Mae Education Foundation Quincy (Boston), Massachusetts Coming Soon! Communications Associate Nellie Mae Education Foundation Quincy (Boston), Massachusetts Program Director Everyday Democracy East Hartford, Connecticut Vice President for Finance and Operations Everyday Democracy East Hartford, Connecticut The Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group is constantly launching new searches. To hear about them first, sign up for our newsletter here. Services for Nonprofits We offer unbundled search services to those nonprofits that need highly tailored services or cannot afford fully retained search. Most of our clients choose a la carte from our offerings as their needs demand. We provide packaged or hourly consulting in: job description preparation, outreach, resume screening, interviewing, reference checking, search committee management, and negotiation. We are also available to train board and staff in any or all of these areas. Our Commitment to Diversity We make every effort to present diverse pools of qualified candidates for each search. Since 2007, we closed more than two thirds of our searches with women or minorities and close to a quarter with female minorities. Learn More About Our Search Services. Join Us on Facebook! Become a fan and stay on top of the latest news from the NPAG team. Check out information on our new searches, read our monthly spotlight articles, keep up with NPAGU webinar series updates, and post your thoughts to our "Just Fans" section about hot topics in nonprofit search. Join Us on Facebook!

Hello!

Thank you for your interest in our employer newsletter.

In this edition, you'll find helpful tips, a feature article covering a topic central to hiring for nonprofits, as well as information regarding our consulting services. This newsletter is meant to help you in your hiring processes.

To that end, your feedback is appreciated so that we may continue to improve what we offer.

Looking for Talent?
Avoid These Common Pitfalls!

Leadership transitions in organizations both large and small typically spark waves of panic, sending even logical managers into mad races to fill open positions as quickly as possible. Whether you are losing a beloved executive director or terminating a chief development officer, you can expect that these temporary gaps in leadership can leave an institution feeling debilitated. Yet, leadership transitions are also important natural catalysts for organizational change and advancement and, if orchestrated correctly, can help institutions reach new heights. During our more than 40 years of combined search experience, we have had many clients come to us with searches that have unfortunately collapsed due to very avoidable missteps or oversights. These blunders seriously and negatively impact morale and can lead to feelings of mistrust in organizational decision making, both internally in the staff and externally in the community.

While many of these pitfalls can sneak up on you right away, others can simmer beneath the surface benignly until they explode. Either way, most of them can be avoided with a little foresight and planning.

Click here to learn about pitfall themes that we have identified, tools we have used to fix searches which have been brought to us already collapsed, and strategies we have used to help our clients avoid them in the future.

Don't Get Left at the Altar.
Getting to a Favorite Candidate, and Getting Them to Yes!
Tune in to Our Next NPAG-U Webinar on May 13 to Learn More!

Ever gotten to the end of a search only to have your favorite candidate turn down your offer? Ever get tripped up by a late entry of an internal and unqualified candidate? Ever find yourself throwing a life jacket to a candidate drowning in third party reference gossip? Executive searches are landmines ready to explode; with candidate pools larger than ever, search committees need to work harder to navigate the minefields. Join Laura Gassner Otting, President, and Alison Falk, Vice President, on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 at 12 noon (EST) for a can't miss webinar filled with stories and solutions for when good searches go bad.

The third webinar in our series runs on May 13 to learn the most common pitfalls in search, and how to avoid them!

This webinar will be hosted for free for participants but will have limited seats. Advance RSVPs will be required.

Click here to RSVP for one of our free upcoming webinars.

Staying on Track During Your Next Talent Search

Ever wonder how long a search takes and when key decisions will need to be made? Staying on track ensures that all parties will be ready to launch the search, network it broadly, meet candidates, and make decisions.

Many searches fail because they lose momentum along the way. Don't let this happen in your search! We've developed a search schedule template you can use to guide your staff, board, or search committee during your next important hire.

Click here to download the sample search schedule template.

Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group Awarded Certification as a Women's Business Enterprise!

Our firm has also received national certification as a Women's Business Enterprise from the Center for Women in Enterprise, a regional certifying partner of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council.

By including women-owned businesses among their vendors, nonprofits, universities, and governments demonstrate their commitment to developing diversity in every area of the sector.

Save the Dates!

The Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group is bringing its expertise to a conference near you!

Join us in Palm Springs at the Alliance for Nonprofit Management Annual Conference on July 15- 17, and in Providence at the Association of Fundraising Professionals Rhode Island Annual Conference on May 19.

Laura Gassner Otting, President and Founder, Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group, will be joined by Todd Owens of Dewey and Kaye at the Alliance conference to discuss growing consulting practices during tough economic times, and will be joined by Ellen Sibley, Vice President of Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group, at the AFP RI conference where they will present a seminar on hiring the best fundraisers.

Click here to see our upcoming appearances.

The Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group is dedicated to strengthening the capacity of nonprofits and their staff, and is available for search consulting projects on an hourly or per project basis for nonprofits, or to discuss the individual resumes, cover letters, and job search strategies of job seekers.

Sincerely,

Laura Gassner Otting, President

Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group LLC

email: lgo@nonprofitprofessionals.com
phone: 617-527-9661
web: http://www.NonprofitProfessionals.com