October 08 New York NonproÞt Press
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STRENGTHENING NONPROFITS
Good Staff is Hard to Find
What Skills Do NYC Nonprofit Staff Need?
Alarming national data shows that the
US economy suffers from a lack of employ-
ees with the skills needed to help their orga-
nizations thrive. Organizations such as the
American Society for Training and Develop-
ment warn that with skilled workers retiring,
jobs changing to require more technical skills,
and educational achievement by youth lag-
ging, companies will be hard pressed to find
and hire qualified staff in the near future. This
is backed up by a 2006 report by the Confer-
ence Board titled “Are They Really Ready to
Work?” which concluded that the pool of tal-
ented employees is shrinking, as even recent
US college graduates are unable to write ef-
fectively, read critically, or problem-solve.
With abundant national research available,
a group of 2008 Senior Fellows in the United
Way of NYC / Baruch College School of Pub-
lic Affairs Nonprofit Leadership Development
Institute set out to investigate the situation lo-
cally. We knew from the UWNYC / Baruch
“Next Leaders Report” that NYC nonprofits
were facing a development crisis for senior
leadership, but there was no research available
about other staff. To see if the national data ap-
plied to NYC’s nonprofit workforce, we asked
199 nonprofit staffers to rate the severity of spe-
cific skill deficiencies, and to indicate whether
or not particular workplace issues had occurred
as a result. The survey was distributed through
a number of personal and professional networks
and list-serves.
Communications Skills
Our survey found that weak communica-
tion skills were the biggest problem overall.
47.2% of respondents said that poor writing
skills were a problem, with 22.1% calling it a
big or extremely large problem. 36.2% cited
inability to write professional emails as a prob-
lem, with 15.6% calling it a big or extremely
large problem. 31.6% saw poor oral communi-
cation as a problem, with13.5% calling it a big
or extremely large problem.
These skills are often the most difficult to
develop within staff, as they require explicit
instruction over time. College classes can be
a good way to learn these skills thoroughly,
but if time is short, training can at least give
learners the basics. Survey respondents rec-
ommended two organizations specifically for
training on writing – MediaBistro and Gotham
Writers Workshop. Both of these organiza-
tions offer business writing courses, as do Big
Brothers Big Sisters and the American Man-
agement Association.
Interpersonal Skills
Survey respondents reported that poor in-
terpersonal skills also are a big concern. One
The Strengthening Nonprofits column is made possible
through the financial support of United Way of New York
City (UWNYC). The views expressed in the column are
those of the author, and are not necessarily those of
UWNYC. UWNYC does not edit or control the content of
this column.
21
third reported this as a problem with 12.0%
judging it to be a big or extremely large prob-
lem. A quarter of respondents called inability
to work on a team a problem, with 9.5% called
it a big or extremely large problem.
Interpersonal skills and teamwork can also
be difficult to develop, but training can provide
staff with specific techniques that increase both.
These can include active listening, interpersonal
communication, and conflict management. Or-
ganizations recommended by respondents that
provide these types of workshops include the
Support Center for Nonprofit Management, Big
Brothers Big Sisters, and the American Man-
agement Association.
Self Awareness
Our survey found that significant numbers
of staff lack not only professionalism, but also
the ability to self assess, respond positively
to feedback, and follow directions. 31.7% of
respondents called lack of professionalism a
problem, including 15.1% calling it a big or
extremely large problem; 37.2% called lack of
self awareness and self assessment skills a prob-
lem, with 14.6% calling them a big or extremely
large problem; 33.1% called inability to take
feedback and constructive criticism a problem,
with 14.0% calling it a big or extremely large
problem; and 25.6% calling inability to follow
directions a problem, with 9.5% calling it a big
or extremely large problem.
Training staff on these skills is only half of
the puzzle, as supervisors themselves may need
training. This type of training is available at the
Support Center for Nonprofit Management and
the American Management Association.
A Lack of Leadership
Lack of leadership skills was also cited
as an issue. 42.2% of respondents called it a
problem, including 18.1% of respondents call-
ing it a big or extremely large problem. Fortu-
nately, there are many leadership development
programs such as the programs offered by the
United Way of NYC Nonprofit Leadership
Development Institute, The Leading Institute,
Community Resource Exchange, and the Sup-
port Center for Nonprofit Management.
The Impact
Our survey found that the skills gap has sig-
nificantly impacted NYC nonprofits and ham-
pered their ability to function effectively. When
asked to identify specifically how they were
impacted due to staff skills deficiencies, 63.8 %
of respondents indicated that they had to take
time away from other work in order to coach
an employee, 27.1% indicated that an employee
could not be promoted because they lacked the
necessary skills, 26.6% had to lower their hiring
www.unitedwaynyc.org
www.nynp.
standards in order to fill an open
position, 22.6 % said they had to
fire employees that could not do
the job, and 17.6% said they had
been impacted in other ways.
These other impacts includ-
ed having to do work themselves
when coworkers were unable to
do it, team morale and productiv-
ity declining when team members
had to pick up the slack for oth-
ers, losing large amounts of time
completing insufficient work The authors, shown from left, are Shannon Smith, Director of
or correcting errors, putting an Business Development and Philanthropy at the New York
employee on probation pending Center for Child Development; Leta Malloy, Director of Strategic
performance improvement, and Initiatives at Career Gear; Matthea Marquart, Director of
being unable to provide appro- Training at BELL (Building Educated Leaders for Life), and;
priate services to clients. Sherri-Ann Simmons, Director of the Liberty Partnerships
Program Project PRIZE at Queensborough Community College.
NYC Nonprofits Need
Help with Training sional development opportunities for their
employees. The weaknesses identified by
The majority of NYC nonprofits rep- the survey cannot solve themselves without
resented in the survey also face a challenge explicit intervention, and the skills found
when it comes to providing training for miss- most severely deficient are not ones that em-
ing skills, as most of them do not employ full ployees can teach themselves without train-
time trainers. Only 46.2% of respondents ing. Since these problems appear to be so
said that their nonprofit had full time staff widespread throughout the nonprofit work-
dedicated to training. force, our findings suggest that organiza-
tions would do well to invest in the employ-
Conclusions ees they already have. Just as importantly,
In light of the impact which these organizations should make every effort to
skills deficiencies have on their operations, retain their own trained and talented staff.
we urge nonprofits to examine profes- Replacements can be hard to find.
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