What Does It Mean to Work in the Nonprofit Sector? For many people new to the whole concept of the nonprofit sector, there is a great deal of misunderstanding of what it means to be a nonprofit. Some think it means the organization can’t operate in the black, because it then becomes a “for profit.” Many people think that nonprofit staff should be paid less than standard wages because they are working for a “charity.” For clarification purposes, let’s start with what it means to be a nonprofit organization. A charitable nonprofit is usually a 501(c)(3) agency, a designation received from the Internal Revenue Service after meeting certain requirements, most importantly that the organization serves a charitable, education, scientific, or community service purpose. Individuals can deduct donations to approved nonprofit organizations when filing their federal tax returns. Most government agencies and foundations will only make grants to nonprofit organizations. Contrary to popular opinion, being a nonprofit does not mean that the organization must operate in the red or that it cannot have a fund surplus. Actually, the main characteristic that separates a nonprofit from a profit-making entity is that no individual or group of individuals can benefit financially from the profits of the agency. By receiving nonprofit status, these organizations are exempt from paying most federal and state taxes. Sometimes the nonprofit community is called the third sector (as opposed to government or the business sector) the independent sector, or the voluntary sector. All these terms are appropriate and accurate. Some nonprofits are thought of as charities, while some are huge operations such as major universities and health care systems, but they still share the commonality of being a nonprofit entity since no individual or group of individuals benefit from the surplus revenues of the organization. Volunteering and Charitable Giving One of the things that makes the nonprofit sector different from other sectors is the fact that so many people volunteer not only their money, but their time, to help these organizations succeed. While it is difficult to unearth statistics showing how many fundraising professionals there actually are, if just twenty percent of the public charities in the United States employ just one fundraising professional, that makes almost 200,000 professional fundraisers in the United States alone. And, of course, many of these charities are large ones that may have a development staff of dozens of people (universities for example) and even mid-sized organizations often employ two to ten development staff persons. I would safely estimate, therefore, that there are close to half million individuals in the United States that list their profession as fundraising, development, advancement, philanthropy or some term that involves the obtaining of funds for a charitable organization. Who are these people and how do they find their paths leading to a career in fundraising? The professional fundraiser usually enters the field from one of these possible avenues:

Options in Fundraising Careers Once you’ve made the decision that “fundraising is for me!” what types of options are available to you? You will have to start by making a few decisions. Some questions you should ask yourself might include: “Would I like working for a large organization or a smaller one? For what type of organization would I like to work? Would I like being a generalist or a specialist?” The first decision should be what type of organization you would want to work for. What are your interests: children, animals, the arts, education, the environment, etc.? It is essential that a fundraiser work for an organization about whose mission he or she is passionate. There will be many options within your area of interest once that is determined. For someone with varied interests the field is even broader. For example, if you love reading, a library is an option, but perhaps you also love the outdoors, so that opens another realm of possibilities in recreation areas or environmental agencies. If you are also an animal lover you could look at various animal rescue groups or shelters. A music lover? You could look for a position with a symphony or a music festival, but you may also enjoy the arts in general so a position in a museum or a dance company might be another option for you. If social justice is your hot button, you could seek a position in an activist or advocacy agency or an organization that deals directly with an issue such as fair housing or feeding the hungry. Another decision that must be made, although this decision may change during your career in fundraising, is whether working for a large organization or a smaller one is more appealing to you. Some advantages or working with a larger organization include: · A larger organization may have a more stable financial position and a larger budget for fundraising. · The larger organization may be better known in the community. · There is usually more access to support staff in a larger organization.

I’m at the nonprofit storytelling conference, checking out all the vendors. What are your favorite products and services you utilize for your nonprofit?

Hi all, I am looking for stories about heroes in small nonprofits, for a project called Unsung and Unstoppable, which will first feature video clips of heroes who are changing the world or a corner of it, and late 2026,we will be turning this into a book, if anyone has any great stories to share, email me at Linda@LindaLysakowski.com for more details.