Are Your Hiring
Practices Working?Identifying and Securing the Talent
You Need for Today and Tomorrow
April 24, 2012
Dennis M. Sawyers, SPHR
Nonprofit HR Solutions
Senior HR Consultant & Talent Management
Practice Leader
About Our Presenter
Dennis M. Sawyers, SPHR - Senior HR Consultant and
Talent Management Practice Leader, brings more
than 20 years of human resources experience to
the Nonprofit HR Solutions (NPHRS). Before joining
the firm, he held the position of senior human
resources manager at Booz Allen Hamilton,
providing leadership on the full scope of human
resources functions for the entire infrastructure of
the firm. Dennis brings significant strength in the
broad range of talent management, including
recruitment and retention strategy development,
performance management and employee
development.
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About NPHRS
Nonprofit HR Solutions (NPHRS) is the nation's only full-service consulting firm
dedicated exclusively to meeting the human resources needs of nonprofit
organizations. Since 2000, NPHRS has worked exclusively with the nonprofit sector,
generating results for organizations supporting advocacy, health and human services,
arts and culture, education, the environment, faith-based missions and more.
NPHRS has three divisions that include human resources consulting, staffing services
and executive search. NPHRS contributes to the sector through original programs such
as the Nonprofit Employment Trends Survey, the Nonprofit Human Resources
Conference, and the NPHRS Scholarship Fund.
Our team has more than 100 years of combined experience working with nonprofits.
Demonstrated expertise makes us uniquely suited to help the sector face challenges
long endemic to nonprofit human resources--limited budgets, stretched resources
and overworked staff. This experience also gives us the knowledge to develop
innovative responses to workplace issues such as managing performance,
organizational growth and leadership sustainability.
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The Cost of Ineffective Hiring
� According to the U.S. Department of
Labor, the cost of replacing an
employee can be as great as 1/3 of the
annual salary for the employee’s
position.
� Example: Average salary $50,000 x 33.3%
= $16,650 (for a poor hiring decision)
The Cost of Ineffective Hiring
� Costs that add up to that $16,650 (for a
poor hiring decision):
� % of your salary/benefits (or recruiter’s, hiring
manager, etc.)
� Re-advertising costs or possible placement fees
� Training costs
� Employee morale
� Unemployment costs
� Hassle for you!
Agenda
� Review Nonprofit Sector Stats
� Consider the Broad Scope of Work
� Discuss Current Needs
� Locate the Talent
� Who’s Likely to Respond?
� Secure Talent for Today
� Retain Talent for Tomorrow
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Review Nonprofit Sector Stats
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Current State of Nonprofit Sector
� Recent data from Johns Hopkins Nonprofit Employment Bulletin indicates the sector is the 3rd largest workforce in the US
�10.7 million employees in the nonprofit sector
�More than 10% of the total US workforce
�Only smaller than retail and manufacturing; larger than construction, finance, trade, transportation and agriculture
� Within the sector, 57% are employed in health (hospitals, ambulatory care, nursing homes), 15% in education and 13% in social service
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Current State of Nonprofit Sector (con’t)
� From 2000-2010, the nonprofit sector had average growth of 2.1% annually while the
for-profit sector had an average 0.6% shrinkage annually
� The 2012 NPHRS ETS indicates 43% of nonprofits surveyed realized growth in staff size in 2011 and 43% anticipate staff size growth in 2012
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Consider the Broad Scope of Work
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Growth is Timely Because Impact is Crucial
� In his 2012 State of the Union Address, President Obama asserted that, “this nation
is great because we get each other’s backs.” The nonprofit sector is a prime mover
in the nation’s mechanisms for people taking care of one other…(Rick Cohen, April
2012 Nonprofit Quarterly)
� The sector is actively engaged in strategies that are integral to the growth and
sustainability of our nation:
� Andrew Wolk wrote, “We need to make the most of the nearly $1 trillion of annual
government and philanthropy funding going to the millions of nonprofit and
government programs that address social issues today.” (Stanford Social Innovation
Review – Winter 2012)11
Health Education Associations
Science Arts Foundations
Social Services Environment Trade Organizations
Current Needs
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Real Talent Needs
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What We Need
Today
Administrative Business Partners
Collaborative Subject Matter
Experts focusing broader than
their expertise
Flexible and Adaptable Teams
Strategic, Flexible and Creative
Resource Developers
Mission-Minded / Business Savvy
Workforce
Traditional
Perspective
Administrative Professionals
Functional Experts
Program Staff
Fundraisers
Mission-minded workforce
Profile of the Ideal CandidateRelevant education and experience is given
� Alignment with organizational values
� Ability to lead, drive, and/or navigate change
� Ability to enable teams
� Collaborative style; openness to diverse
perspectives
� Engagement with a relevant network/learning
community
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Profile of the Ideal Candidate (Con’t)
Relevant education and experience is given
� Commitment to creativity and innovation
� Ability to deliver sustainable results
� Commitment to effective communications
� Understanding of financial implications
� Understanding of the individual role in the broader
context
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Must haves for every position at every career level; even junior staff must
demonstrate capacity to deliver in these areas
Locate the Talent
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The Best Places To Find the Talent You Need
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OUTLET PERCENT USING SOME OR EVERYTIME
Informal networks of colleagues/friends 81%
Formal networks of colleagues/nonprofits 80%
Newspaper (local online edition) 59%
Newspaper (local print edition) 52%
Craigslist 52%
LinkedIn * 40%
Idealist.org 39%
Monster.com 38%
CareerBuilder.com 33%
Facebook.com 30%
TOP 10 MOST FREQUENTLY USED RECRUITMENT RESOURCES
* Resources reflect that ASAE’s CareerHQ.org site is on par with LinkedIn
Incorporating Social Media Into Your
Recruitment Strategy
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Q&A Break
Who’s Likely to Respond?
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Who Is Likely to Respond?Internal Prospects
� Those looking for career mobility and advancement
� Those looking for a change of any kind/facing burn-out
� Those looking for an “escape”:
�From what they perceive to be bad management
�From their own past professional mistakes
�From work that is no longer interesting or rewarding
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Who Is Likely to Respond?External Prospects
Generation Baby Boomers(born 1946-1964)
May be transitioning out
Generation X(born 1965-1980)
In the height of their career
Generation Y(born 1980-2000)
Values Loyalty, financial security,
stability, and positive work
ethics
Stability, flexible work
arrangements, creative
benefits (i.e., child and
elder care), respect for
work/life balance
Individual recognition,
meaningful work,
advancement, titles
Expectations Respect for their years of
experience, impact, and
deep knowledge; looking
to be leveraged as mentors
Market-competitive/
market-leading
compensation, benefits,
and incentives
Meaningful and productive
work, leading-edge,
innovative technology,
continuing education,
opportunity to be heard,
workplace flexibility
(schedule, attire, and work
arrangements), career
growth opportunities; not
seeking longevity
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Who Is Likely to Respond?External Prospects
� With all of these differences to consider, the
recruiting effort is a challenging one.
� Pay and benefits—although basic recruiting tools—
are not the only resources that will attract and retain
employees.
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Securing Talent for Today
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Efficiency and Consistency are Key
in Securing Stellar Talent
� Recruiting Strategy Development and Implementation —establish your organization’s “way”
� Review current internal practices and processes
� Review current resources
� Do what’s necessary to establish appropriate Rigor and Efficiency (RAE) within your process
� Assist in the change management process
� Value each engagement with each candidate
� Demonstrate the standards that you expect employees to demonstrate when they are hired – practice what you preach
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RAE = Practices and processes that bring needs, resources, accountabilities, and results into full
alignment, while ensuring appropriate synchronization with related practices, processes,
and functions
Common Interviewing Mistakes
What Not To Do
� Talking more than listening � Not defining needs and
requirements up front
� Not allowing the candidate to
answer questions
� Not involving others in the
process
� Failing to gather real examples � Not being fully “present” for
candidate during interview
� Relying on gut reaction or
likeability
� Treating candidates
inconsistently (more/less time,
different questions,
attention/interest)
Tried and True Strategies
Plan The Work & Work The Plan� What is the cost of the position
being vacant?� Review current job description and
revise as necessary
� Is there a viable internal candidate to fill it?
� Determine knowledge, skills and
competencies needed/level of job
� Why is the position open? Any issues to fix?
� Identify behaviors necessary for
success
� What is the purpose of the position? Is it necessary? At what level?
� Create job posting
� With whom does the incumbent
interact?
� Determine where to advertise
� Conduct outreach � Identify interview team – don’t go it
alone!
Screening Resumes
� Review candidate’s materials (resume, cover letter, etc.)
� Note written communications, form, consistency, grammar,
punctuation, etc. (requesting a writing sample is a best
practice)
� Determine if there is any specific information to address
� Information that appears to match a needed competency
� Gaps in employment
� Jobs/experience you are unclear about
� Perceived “job hopping”
Effective Interview Questions
� Identify:
�Competencies – does the candidate have the knowledge, technical skills, and capacity to do the job?
�Behaviors – can the candidate perform in the job, and how will they perform?
�Motivation - will the candidate perform the job?
� Should be used consistently for all candidates
� Interview guides help to ensure consistency and provide opportunity to effectively evaluate candidates
Behavioral Based Interviews
� Recognize that past performance is a good indicator of future performance
� Focus on job-related factors vs. likeability
� Allow interviewers make good decisions based on facts
� Eliminate misunderstanding about a candidate’s capabilities
� Limit the possibility of candidates “faking it” with vague generalizations
� Require a minimum of 45 minutes
Sample Behavioral-Based
Interview Questions
Strategic Area Sample QuestionsStrategic Thinking/Job
Knowledge
� How are you currently keeping up with your
profession? Give me an example of how you have
contributed to your profession?
Developing
Others/Management Skills
� Give me an example of a time when you delegated
projects or activities to an employee based on
their developmental needs.
� Tell me about a specific instance where you
provided feedback to an employee whose
performance was below par.
Leadership � Provide me an example of a time when you
needed to sell a group on a new vision. How did
you create the vision? How did you get buy-in
from the staff? What were the results?
Avoiding Risk in the Interview Process
� Any information not routinely requested of all
candidates, and in particular in the following topics
areas:
Age Marital Status Pregnancy
Race Drug/Alcohol Use Dates of Education
Gender Emergency Contacts (can relate to race or national origin)
Type of Military
Discharge
National Origin Number of Children Health Status
Citizenship Childcare Criminal Record
Religion Residence Sexual Orientation
Avoiding Risk in the Interview Process
� What if a candidate brings up something that falls
into a protected area?
� Interesting but irrelevant
� Gracefully move conversation back to safe
water – “I would really like to review your job
at XYZ organization, and the work you did on
the abc project.”
Retaining Talent for Tomorrow
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Delivering on Your Value Proposition
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Attracting Engaging Motivating Developing Rewarding Retaining
Employer brand Communications
through multiple
media
Performance
management
Shadowing Celebrations Policies
Value proposition Social gatherings Feedback Orientation, peer
coaching
Certain benefits Visible
dedication to
talent
Testimonials Exposure to
leadership
Positive
reinforcement
Formal coaching Casual days Transparent
decision-making
What’s important
to the candidates
Informal
conversations
Flexibility Stretch
assignments
Flexibility Communications
Flexibility Stretch
assignments
Clear directions /
expectations
Internal SMEs
develop others
Positive
reinforcement
Flexibility
Clear paths of
progression
Performance
management
Work / life
balance
Compensation
Celebration of
successes
Q&A Break
Contact Info
Dennis M. Sawyers, SPHR
Nonprofit HR Solutions
(202) 785-2060
www.nonprofithr.com
Thank you!
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