Times Chronicle & Public Spirit
Revitalizing nonprofits with a dynamic team
Being successful in the business world is a tough challenge. Being successful in the nonprofit sector is even tougher.
Typically nonprofits operate on tight budgets with few resources. Forwardthinking nonprofit management must utilize dwindling resources more effectively by taking a closer look at how they operate and manage programs in order to meet the needs of the population they serve and be accountable to their funders.
Many are doing this by enrolling the assistance of skilled volunteers. Today’s volunteers bring significant job skills, insight and expertise to the arena and want to be part of a process to affect change and improvement in their local communities.
RSVP has been helping people interested in volunteering find the right fit for 45 years. Volunteers choose the role they want to have in their communities from among 10 unique impact programs supporting literacy, mentoring, assisting and counseling seniors, offering online tutoring and offering their expertise to local nonprofits. One such program, the Volunteer Executive Consultant (VEC) program offers business executives currently employed or recently retired or those between jobs an opportunity to utilize their professional skills to advise and consult with nonprofits on best practices to enhance growth and sustainability.
“Our volunteers have a variety of professional backgrounds,” RSVP VEC program manager Margaret Brenner said. “Their diverse backgrounds offer a broad range of expertise and perspective for successful strategies that can be utilized by nonprofits. There is never a fee for any of our services.”
The Adoption Center is a current VEC client. It enlisted the expertise of VEC to help create a strategic plan.
Ron Gawel, former RSVP board president and current VEC volunteer, is the liaison with the Adoption Center.
“We helped the agency refine their mission and vision statements, and together we crafted a strategic plan that will help foster their long-term goals,” he said.
“The role of our agency is to help find families for children currently in the foster care system,” Adoption Center Executive Director Ken Mullner said. “We identify prospective families and then arrange for them to see, hear and meet these deserving children and youth.
“Our work with VEC couldn’t have come at a better time. We recently lost one of our major funders and others had changed their guidelines so we were no longer a fit for them.
“What can be better than finding a caring family for a child in need of one?” — Adoption Center Executive Director Ken Mullner
Working together on this strategic plan will help lead us toward balancing our budget with our next session focusing on fundraising.”
“What can be better than finding a caring family for a child in need of one? We have accomplished great things over the years, like earning the Human Rights Campaign’s All Children — All Families Seal of Approval,” Mullner continued. “We want to make sure that we’re poised to keep going strong.”
To learn more about the Adoption Center, visit adopt.org.
VEC volunteers meet monthly to conduct new volunteer orientation, recruitment and training sessions to inform and educate volunteers, keeping their skills sharp and up to date. Each new volunteer is screened and interviewed to assess their level of expertise in a specific area, and they are mentored for a year to become familiar with RSVP operations.
VEC is always looking for new volunteers especially with expertise in social media and fundraising.
“With competition for grants and funding so high, nonprofits must show they have an edge in what they offer the public and have the ability to promote and highlight their programs to the public via social media outlets,” Brenner said.
“We will begin implementing video conferencing capabilities so that working professionals can participate remotely making volunteering for executives even easier,” Brenner continued.
Workshops and seminars are held regularly on hot topics and offered to nonprofit staff. Upcoming sessions include:
• Strategic Planning on Sept. 18
• Successful Fundraising on Oct. 16
• Measurements and Outcomes on Nov. 13
Workshops are held at RSVP headquarters located at 901 E. Eighth Ave., Suite 200, King of Prussia. For additional details, visit rsvpmc.corg or email margaretb@rsvpmc.org.
VEC consultants are also available at the Regional Foundation Center located at the Free Library of Philadelphia, 19th and The Parkway. On the second Wednesday of each month from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., two VEC consultants meet with nonprofit clients for an hour to discuss areas where assistance is needed. Topics may include grant writing, fund raising, board development, marketing, etc. To schedule a session, call 215686-5423.