Who Does The Real Work
I've lived a life that has kept me moving regularly. Anytime I've been some place a couple of years- at the most- I get a hankering to up and move again. It's kept my life interesting and shown me a lot of beautiful places. I've also met a lot of interesting people.
I've gotten to do some interesting work, too. And, I know I bring a lot of skills, perspective and value to places I've been. I'm often thanked and praised for my life and lifestyle.
However, I know that while I may bring a sense of romanticism to places and provide a certain type of inspiration, the real work and importance is provided by people who stay in one place and provide leadership and stability to an organization. They also need to find ways to keep themselves fresh.
For years, the dedicated efforts of nuns, priests and brothers provided an exceptionally talented labor pool at a very low cost to organizations. It's why they could provide so much service and value on such a small budget. If you don't have to pay your staff a real salary, you can really stretch your donations.
A few of the outstanding organizations I've belonged to, LSA Family Health Services, Christian Appalachian Project, Beaches Habitat have all leaned heavily on volunteer and/or religious labor.
The other thing these organizations have in common is worker stability and institutional memory. They have all had several of the same people in key positions for years (10+). This stability at the top seems to send a message to employees and new hires that this could be a great place to work. And, it has shown to be true.
These organizations truly focus on the client and try to provide as much service and value to them as possible. Clearly, the focus is not on inflated salaries; though, they do work hard to provide competitive wages. Instead, it's all about how can we work together to benefit the people coming through our doors
Now, this isn't limited to non-profits, but, it seems difficult to maintain that idea at a for-profit over the long haul.
I've gotten to do some interesting work, too. And, I know I bring a lot of skills, perspective and value to places I've been. I'm often thanked and praised for my life and lifestyle.
However, I know that while I may bring a sense of romanticism to places and provide a certain type of inspiration, the real work and importance is provided by people who stay in one place and provide leadership and stability to an organization. They also need to find ways to keep themselves fresh.
For years, the dedicated efforts of nuns, priests and brothers provided an exceptionally talented labor pool at a very low cost to organizations. It's why they could provide so much service and value on such a small budget. If you don't have to pay your staff a real salary, you can really stretch your donations.
A few of the outstanding organizations I've belonged to, LSA Family Health Services, Christian Appalachian Project, Beaches Habitat have all leaned heavily on volunteer and/or religious labor.
The other thing these organizations have in common is worker stability and institutional memory. They have all had several of the same people in key positions for years (10+). This stability at the top seems to send a message to employees and new hires that this could be a great place to work. And, it has shown to be true.
These organizations truly focus on the client and try to provide as much service and value to them as possible. Clearly, the focus is not on inflated salaries; though, they do work hard to provide competitive wages. Instead, it's all about how can we work together to benefit the people coming through our doors
Now, this isn't limited to non-profits, but, it seems difficult to maintain that idea at a for-profit over the long haul.
posted by Thomas at 6:28 AM
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