Rob interviews William Vanderbloemen who shares his experience about starting a cause-based search firm. His firm emphasizes the need for nonprofits to prioritize soft skills when recruiting new staff. He also highlights the significance of clearly articulating the organization’s mission and values to attract the right talent. Additionally, Vanderbloemen emphasizes the role of a healthy organizational culture in recruitment and retention, and suggests using tools like theculturetool.com to assess and improve culture. In this conversation, Rob and William discuss the importance of organizational culture and employee satisfaction in the nonprofit sector. They explore the eight cultural values that shape behavior within an organization and how to assess and improve culture. They also discuss the impact of culture on employee retention and the need for organizations to adapt to the changing expectations of millennials and Gen Z. The conversation highlights the value of feedback and collaboration in creating a positive culture, as well as the importance of balancing professional development with organizational efficiency.
Takeaways:
Recruiting the right people at the right time is crucial for staff retention in nonprofits. Soft skills, or human-to-human skills, are essential for success in the nonprofit sector. Nonprofits should clearly articulate their mission and values to attract the right talent. A healthy organizational culture is key to recruitment and retention in nonprofits. Assessing and improving organizational culture is crucial for nonprofit organizations to create a healthy and effective work environment. Understanding the cultural values that shape behavior within an organization can help identify areas for improvement. Employee satisfaction and well-being are key factors in retaining staff, especially in a generation that values career mobility. Involving staff in the decision-making process and addressing their feedback can lead to a more engaged and committed workforce. Balancing professional development with organizational efficiency requires identifying the right timing and opportunities for growth.
Quotes:
- “Businesses may or may not have a value that drives them. Why do they have a better solution for staffing than the people who are living for a cause?”
- “Soft skills, H2H skills, are the ball game in nonprofit.”
- “The ones that succeed are the ones that say, ‘Here’s the one thing we do that very few people do.’”
- “We’re all the same age or skin color or gender, but we are all the same in our behavior around our eight cultural values.”
- “What is the biggest rock that we’re getting right of these eight areas? What are we just really doing well?”
- “If you focus so much on your culture that you could get six or seven years instead of four or five, because the cost to replace a staff person, it takes time, it takes energy, you lose momentum, it takes money.”
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Chapters:
- 00:00 Introduction and Background
- 03:01 Recruitment and Retention in the Nonprofit Sector
- 06:16 The Importance of Soft Skills in Nonprofits
- 11:56 Articulating Mission and Values to Attract Talent
- 15:22 The Role of Organizational Culture in Recruitment and Retention
- 17:33 Assessing and Improving Culture
- 19:36 The Impact of Culture on Employee Retention
- 22:40 Addressing Employee Satisfaction
- 27:12 Adapting to the Expectations of Millennials and Gen Z
- 29:45 Creating a Feedback-Driven Culture
- 31:45 Balancing Workload and Professional Development
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