Taking your career to the next level is challenging in any industry, but nonprofit professionals often face an even steeper climb. Many charities — especially small ones — don’t have structured job hierarchies or clear paths for growth, my colleague Lisa Schohl reports. Plus, nonprofit workers are busy.
“I always feel as though nonprofits have to do everything,” says Sara Cole, CEO of the Duluth Area Family YMCA. “We have to achieve like a for-profit, but with fewer resources generally.”
These pressures can become barriers to seeking a promotion, she says. It’s hard to carve out time or energy to focus on career advancement when you’re overwhelmed with your existing work, which at nonprofits often includes doing multiple job functions with one title and addressing urgent needs in the community or world.
To help you advance despite the obstacles, the Chronicle gathered advice from seasoned nonprofit leaders. Here are eight simple strategies they recommend to demonstrate leadership potential, impress your boss, and show you’re ready to move up. For example:
Be a sponge for your industry or job.
Career growth starts from within, says Carlos Lejnieks, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Essex, Hudson, and Union Counties in Newark. Show intellectual curiosity for your work by proactively taking on tasks and projects because you’re genuinely interested in them, Lejnieks says. That might mean taking initiative to learn more about an area of your organization’s operations that isn’t directly related to your position.
Show your value.
Identify the ways your work is helping to advance your nonprofit’s mission or adding value to the organization so you can articulate your worth, says Merv Antonio, senior director of learning and convening at the Center for Nonprofit Excellence, which runs a leadership training program. Make sure the information you share is aligned with your nonprofit’s strategic goals so the value to the organization is clear.
For more tips — including how to tell the story of your work and be willing to take “stretch” assignments — read Lisa’s full article, “Smart Ways to Show You’re Ready for a Promotion — and a Few Things to Avoid.”
Have a productive week,
Emily Haynes
Senior Editor, Nonprofit Intelligence
