HOTLINE

Answering Readers' Questions about Reporting Salary Requirements, Organizing a Volunteerism Day, and More

The Chronicle's Philanthropy Careers asks its readers to submit questions about job hunting, recruitment, and management challenges in the nonprofit world. In our monthly advice column, we respond to some of your inquiries with tips about resources and wisdom from experts in the field.

Q. When a prospective employer requests salary requirements in a cover letter, how should they be listed?

A. That's one of the stickiest questions that you'll face when you're searching for a job. On the one hand, you don't want to price yourself out of a job you want; on the other, you don't want to undersell yourself. When an employer asks for salary requirements, they're usually looking for a way to weed out candidates that they can't afford, says Janet Sellwood, director of human resources at the Children's Aid Society, in New York.

"If your requirement is too high, you may not be selected for an interview and will have no opportunity to sell yourself," she says. "And if it is too low, it will be almost impossible to negotiate upwards."

Since you probably don't know how much is budgeted for the job you want, it's best to tactfully avoid mentioning a number for as long as possible, Ms. Sellwood advises. Obviously, this means that if you're not specifically asked for salary requirements, you shouldn't bring it up yourself. (See this recent Philanthropy Careers story for more advice along these lines.)

But since you were asked specifically for salary requirements, the worst thing you that you can do is simply ignore the request.

"To just say nothing is a black mark against you, because it seems like you didn't read the advertisement carefully," says Ms. Sellwood.

Instead, she suggests that you say something like, "My salary requirements are flexible and I will be happy to discuss them at an interview," or "I will be better able to determine my salary requirement when I have learned more about the position," or "My salary requirements will depend on several factors, such as benefits and future prospects."

The only reason to name your price: if you have a minimum salary that you will not go below under any circumstances, she says, but adds, "if this is the case, you should probably not be applying to a nonprofit organization."

Q. I'd like to celebrate my birthday next month by organizing all my relatives in town to spend a day working for a cause or charity. Where can I find a current list of local charities in the Seattle area?

A. It's a great idea to give a local charity in your area the gift of time on your birthday and, luckily, your birthday "give back" bash shouldn't be too much of a bother to organize. The United Way of King County has a Web site where you can search for charities in need of volunteers by area, or by keyword -- so whether you're interested in labor, legal issues, literacy, or anything else, you can search for just the right charity for you. (For readers who are interested in searching for charities in other regions, click here and enter your ZIP code.)

Organized volunteerism days are not uncommon, and most charities are happy to have the extra help, says Adam Bashaw, spokesman at the United Way of King County. However, he adds, be aware that if you manage to persuade your entire extended family to participate, you might not all be able to volunteer together at the same organization. After all, some charities may only need one or two helpers, others may need many more.

"My suggestion would be to call our volunteer center, explain what you want to do, and see what they can work out with you," he says.

Also, keep in mind that there are organized, large-scale events that your party might be able to piggyback on. For example, on September 26, the United Way of King County will hold its "Day of Caring," when local businesses donate time to various charities. It's just as easy for the United Way to accommodate a family group as a business group, says Mr. Bashaw.

If you don't want to go through the United Way, you can always find links to charities in your area through state umbrella associations. A list of such groups can be found here.

Q. We have been successful at recruiting young, entrepreneurial, passionate board members. They are bringing energy, new ideas, and financial resources to our charity. However, they lack experience in the nonprofit environment, and we are experiencing culture clashes. (For instance, one trustee, a venture capitalist, wants to lower staff pay and institute a bonus system -- he believes workers can only be motivated by money.) Can you direct me to a book or other resource I could share with these board members as part of their orientation?

A. To get the most out of younger board members, it's important to remember that a one-size-fits-all approach won't do, says Kenneth Fischer, president of the University Musical Society, an organization affiliated with the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor that supports local performing-arts groups. Over the past five years, his organization has stepped up efforts to recruit younger board members, he says, and now counts five members younger than 40 on its board of 34.

The secret to success, Mr. Fischer says, is to get to know the young trustees as individuals -- assess their skills, interests, abilities, and limitations, including time constraints. Although the best time to take their measure is when they are being recruited, he says, it's important to keep in touch with them as time goes on. As their circumstances change, he says, you need to make sure that the tasks you're asking board members to perform continue to be appropriate.

It's also important to remember why you've recruited younger board members in the first place. It's part of the University Musical Society's mission to reach Ann Arbor's younger residents, and so it seemed like a natural choice to put one of the organization's younger board members in charge of the major annual fund-raising event, says Mr. Fischer.

"The event was successful from a fund-raising perspective, but just as significant from our standpoint was the number of, and the quality of, people that she brought to the organization through participation in the committee, people that now can become active in our organization as audience members and donors," he says. So, if you've recruited young trustees for their energy and ideas, it might be best to steer them toward tasks where those assets can be most helpful.

To learn more about board management, your best bet is to go to BoardSource's Web site and look for the resources the organization offers. Check out two BoardSource products in particular: The Board Building Cycle: Nine Steps to Finding, Recruiting, and Engaging Nonprofit Board Members, by Sandra R. Hughes, Berit M. Lakey, and Marla J. Bobowick (2000, $27 for BoardSource members, $36 for nonmembers), and Building a Successful Team: A Video Guide to Nonprofit Board Development, (2002, $46.50 for members, $62 for nonmembers). If you become a BoardSource member, for $139 per year, you'll also have access to the organization's chat rooms, online bulletin boards, and e-mail advice from consultants, which may give you still more ideas.

You can also learn more about preparing new board members in this Philanthropy Careers story from last year.

Q. I am a career fund raiser with more than a dozen years of progressively responsible experience, a history of measurable successes, and a set of glowing but old references. Recently, though, I've had three fund-raising jobs that lasted between 8 and 16 months. The jobs didn't work out for reasons beyond my control -- the last one, for example, I left because the executive director who hired me was unexpectedly fired, and the new boss was verbally abusive. Now I'm looking for a new position, but I feel like a failure. How can I explain my recent job history, and can I honestly commit to stay for years in my next job?

A: First things first: Try not to feel like a failure, because you are certainly not the only one in your situation right now.

"If you're out there working hard, you're going to have some good experiences and some not so good ones. In the late 1990s, when everything was go-go-go, three short-term jobs would really stick out, but in the last two or three years, things have changed," says Mark Roithmayr, senior vice president for revenue development at the March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation in White Plains, N.Y. "We've all become realists. If your circumstances had something to do with the economic downturn or the shakeout from September 11 or even if your boss was let go or the organization was downsizing -- that's real."

Mr. Roithmayr says he has willingly interviewed people with checkered pasts, and is most concerned with the successes and positive experiences in a candidate's track record. "Whatever your past is, I'm looking for a skill set that I can mold within my shop. The most important thing, the holy grail, is to connect your past experiences with the needs of the job."

As we emphasized in January's Hotline, job candidates need to be candid about their experiences without badmouthing previous employers and sounding like habitual complainers. In short, Mr. Roithmayr urges, "Be honest, but don't trash."

When being candid, pay attention to your tone -- try not to vent. Mr. Roithmayr says he has seen "many people come into the interview and begin by saying, 'My other boss was verbally abusive.' I immediately start to worry that if I hire that person, they'll start spinning negative because I looked at them the wrong way in the hallway.

Although your recent past has made you nervous about committing long-term to your next position, you really have no other choice, says Richard J. Geswell, executive vice president of marketing and revenue generation at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, also in White Plains. Job longevity is not much of an issue for a junior-level person, he says, but is important for more senior positions. "When I look at a résumé, I want to see at least five years in one location," Mr. Geswell says. Particularly in major-gifts work, he says, it usually take two to three years to learn the ropes of a particular organization and then bring in and manage larger donations. The longevity expectations may be less in other positions, he notes, such as in special-events fund raising.

Using your network of connections and perhaps even going on a few informational interviews might be your best bet, rather than sending your résumé cold, Mr. Geswell says. If you're still having trouble persuading a prospective employer to overlook your recent string of bad jobs, you may want to offer yourself up for a six-month trial period, or an initial consultancy arrangement that can lead to full-time employment. You may also want to consider taking a step back in responsibility in order to prove that your recent record was an anomaly, he adds.

But whatever you do, he says, you should be very, very careful about the next job offer you accept -- don't let desperation lead you into a bad decision.

"Do some due diligence on the organization and make sure the environment suits you," Mr. Geswell says. "Do they get angry if you come in after 9 o'clock? Are you free to go visit clients on your own schedule? Most people have this kind of information before they take a job, but ignore it."

In your situation, he says, it's crucial to pay attention to any clues that your new job will become your fourth short-term position. If that happens, he warns, "you may end up having to change careers."

Got a question about job hunting, recruiting, or managing in the nonprofit world? Send it to us at hotline@philanthropy.com.