Picturing Yourself in Nonprofit Leadership Michael Tullier, APR CAHS 2700 February 22, 2012

Zoom in on your interests • Before you job hunt

• Start gaining experience now by deepening your volunteer experiences

• Beginning your job hunt • Seek to advance a mission, not just find a job

• Broaden your career aspirations / cast a wide net

• Make interviewing a hobby

• Research prospective employers

• As you job hunt • Manage your brand before asking to manage the organization’s

• Always accept the invitation to ask a question

• Remember that a leader is a leader no matter the job title

Go for the wide angle • Travel outside your box

• Get to know all areas of the operation

• Seek opportunities outside your primary job duties

• Make your passion infectious • Support the organization personally

• Look for volunteers and donors who share your passion

• Turn others’ passion into an investment in your organization

• Embrace ethics • Understand the rules and regulations that affect your organization

• Seek out codes of ethics for your practice area

Vary your lenses • Be a joiner

• Volunteer outside your organization (learn how others work)

• Diversity your experience

• Expand your network (civic/professional organizations)

• Broaden your toolkit • Request support for professional development, continuing education

• Search for free resources

• Identify a mentor or mentors

Focus on success • Measurement, measurement, measurement

• Define outcomes, not just job duties

• Quantify your work output and outcomes

• Demonstrate your significance in the organization

• Be a loyalist • Find a cause you could focus on throughout your career

• Make a personal commitment to organization for at least 3 years

• Be patient as you await the opportunities that lead to quality career experience

Consider different poses • Business-focused job functions

• Operations and management

• Revenue generation/sales

• Human resources

• Communication-focused job functions • Public relations, government relations, board relations, community relations,

volunteer relations

• Recruitment/retention: members, clients, constituents, alumni, students

• Fundraising/development and donor relations

• Grantwriting, corporate/foundation relations

• Social media and online content management

• Education, training, outreach