HOTLINE

Answers to Readers' Questions About Raising Funds for Staff Salaries, Determining a Charity's Effectiveness, and More

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

Q. We are trying to create a nonprofit arts organization for youth. At this stage, we need an administrator and clerical support. Do you have any information on how to raise funds for the salaries of executive staff members?

A. Your first step should be to look for a grant. To get started, you'll want to look at state and federal government programs that support the arts, as well as foundations and corporations that support the arts in your area, says Julie Parson-Nesbitt, grants director at Young Chicago Authors, which provides creative-writing workshops and also performance and publication opportunities to teenagers. (To learn more about grant makers, check out The Chronicle's Guide to Grants. You might also search the Foundation Center's Web site.) Look for grant makers that will provide either general operating support or organizational development grants, which could be used to pay salaries, Ms. Parson-Nesbitt advises.

Keep in mind, though, that it is often hard to land a grant specifically for staffing costs -- particularly for start-up charities. "Operating support is a much riskier investment for the funder than providing project support, because there is less control over the expenditure of funds by the recipient," says Heather Hallenberg, who directs the grants program at the Fine Arts Fund, in Cincinnati. So expect plenty of scrutiny of your governance and fiscal management, she says, and be prepared to answer questions.

Also, be ready to talk specifically, and eloquently, about your future plans. Since start-ups, by definition, don't have a significant track record, plans for the future become much more important. Spend some time honing your vision for your charity's future, suggests Regan Grusy, development director at the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, in New York. "It's a good idea to highlight in your proposal how you hope to build your organization's infrastructure," she says. "Sometimes it's hard to think past paying the electric bill, but planning ahead is really critical."

If the grant makers that seem your most likely targets don't offer grants for salaries, be creative, urges Ms. Grusy. For example, she suggests, seek grants for projects that include salary support in the project budget. Or try contacting a foundation program officer and making a personal pitch, suggests Ms. Parson-Nesbitt. "If they are impressed with your work, you might be able to get 'discretionary funding,'" she says. Or, you might try raising money from individuals, who might feel more willing to provide you with salary support.

You might find that you can't raise all the money that you need for salaries. So look for ways to keep salary costs as low as possible.

"You could contact a local university and ask about their internship programs," suggests Ms. Parson-Nesbitt. "Often you can find a student intern who will work for college credit and job experience." Read more about how to find and manage interns here. And don't forget about the federal AmeriCorps program, whose members work at charities around the country. Although your organization will need to pay part of such workers' compensation, it will be less than paying an entire salary.

Q. I'd like to learn more about the effectiveness and efficiency of the charity I support. Where should I look?

A. A good place to start is with the charity itself. A nonprofit organization should be glad to show you its annual report (which you can also often find on a charity's Web site), as well as direct you to any additional information on specific programs or services. If you don't find the information that you're looking for in the charity's publications, don't hesitate to call the group and ask. As a donor, you should also be able to get answers to your questions easily.

Of course, you might also want an objective assessment of how your charity performs. Your first stop should be the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. This organization collects data on hundreds of nonprofit organizations that solicit nationally for donations; it tracks information on the group's programs, governance, fund-raising practices, and finances. In addition to its listing of national charities, the site also allows users to search for groups that operate regionally. (Data on regional charities is gathered by local Better Business Bureau offices.)

If you don't see your charity on the Web site, use the inquiry form to ask what information the Wise Giving Alliance has available. The organization will send whatever information they have, and if they have nothing, your inquiry will increase the chance of a report being compiled eventually, since such inquiries influence the Wise Giving Alliance's decisions on which charities to including in its rating service.

Other places to try: Charity Navigator, which keeps detailed financial information on more than 3,700 organizations, including how much a charity spends on fund raising and administration versus how much it spends on programs; and Charity Watch, operated by the American Institute of Philanthropy.

You might also want to check with your state's attorney general's office, particularly if you're concerned that the organization might be doing something unethical. Find a listing of such offices by state here.

Q. I am looking for an entry-level job in nonprofit community relations, but most job openings seem to be geared toward upper-level executives. Any advice for how I can get started?

A. While you might not be seeing many job listings for entry-level positions in community relations, they're definitely out there, says Sara K. Gould, president of the Ms. Foundation for Women, in New York, whose communications staff members take on community-relations tasks, as do its program associates. It may just be that you're skipping over positions that would be considered entry-level in community relations, because they are labeled as administrative, she says. But don't be fooled.

"Many entry-level positions, although listed as administrative in nature, involve significant support activities and tap staff talents," she says. It's worth a phone call to find out whether an administrative position will have any responsibilities in the area of community relations.

There are many ways to get started in community relations. Temping is one route, suggests Ms. Gould. "A temporary position can be an excellent way to get your foot in the door and prove your dedication and drive," she says. And volunteering is another. "In a tight job market, employers often look first to their volunteer base when looking to staff up. After all, these are the folks who have already proved themselves both committed to the organization's mission as well as efficient and effective employees."

Side benefit: Volunteer work in community relations will help you build a portfolio, and an address book filled with contacts, says Mary Koniz Arnold, former associate director of the Dutchess County Arts Council, in New York State, and currently a writer and photographer in the office of community relations at Dutchess Community College. (See this previous edition of Hotline, which discussed turning a volunteer position into a full-time job.)

You also might think about offering your services as a freelancer, says Ms. Arnold.

"Some nonprofits run at a sophisticated level and have a significant budget -- and others are operating on a shoestring," she says. "To either organization, freelancers can be valuable to help with discrete projects or stretch budgets without adding regular staff to their budget lines."

In addition, if you haven't already, think about building experience in an analogous field in the for-profit world, she suggests. "Community relations for a nonprofit can encompass elements of press relations, journalism, graphic design, Web design, bulk-mail procedures, social and fund-raising events, program development, and many areas of financial development, including grant writing, membership solicitations, and capital campaigns. People in charge of not-for-profit hiring will be impressed with expertise and experience in any or all of these fields," she says -- which just might help you land an entry-level spot.

Q. The company I work for wants to form an international charity to benefit Rwanda in a number of ways: We foresee distributing money to humanitarian, microfinance, and educational programs, among others. We want to be able to accept donations from all over the world. Are there other organizations that work in so many different areas in that country? What is the best way to start establishing this program as soon as possible? And how can we find reputable umbrella organizations?

A. The best way to start working in this area as soon as possible is to donate money to an organization that is operating in Rwanda already. While it is certainly admirable to want to create a new charity, many other nongovernmental groups -- such as the Red Cross, Catholic Relief Services, Unicef, and multiple others -- are already doing the work you have in mind, says Robert H. Frank, a fund-raising consultant in Washington who specializes in international nonprofit clients. "It is important to consider what would make your organization stand out from other international organizations already operating there. How will your organization measure up to other NGO's that already have international name recognition and have established relationships with the government, community leaders, and people in Rwanda?"

There's no point in doing all the hard work of setting up a multinational organization if you can support the work of a charity that's already done the legwork, particularly in as volatile an area as Rwanda. Many organizations specifically focus on Rwanda -- check them out to see if they are doing work that your company can support. Find them by searching under "Rwanda" at comprehensive listings of charities such as Idealist.org or Guidestar.org. Also take a look at InterAction, an umbrella organization for 160 international charities. The group's Web site offers a keyword search of its members' sites. To find out whether the organizations your search yields are reputable, see the advice to another reader's question, above.

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