Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Recruiting The Next Generation of Nonprofit Professionals

The Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University recently collaborated with the Alliance for Nonprofit Management and the National Council of Nonprofit Associations to create a report on recruitment, focused specifically on the hiring of "Millennials," the generation now entering the workforce. Professionals in the nonprofit community are familiar with the difficulties of recruiting and retaining staff, so instead of discussing these problems, the report highlights positive strategies for overcoming them.

Some key strategies for recruiting qualified young people include establishing internships (allowing you to provide potential employees with the skills that your organization needs), using online job postings and participating in job fairs. "Re-thinking positions" might also be an option. For example, if your organization is having trouble hiring for an upper-level position, it may be possible to hire a younger person for a lower position and then train them for the higher position over time. Check out the report for more information and ideas.