January 14, 2009 | Read Time: 1 minute
With businesses shedding jobs daily, a large number of former corporate employees want to find work with nonprofit groups.
Thanks, but no thanks, says one charity leader.
Nancy Lublin, chief executive of Do Something, in New York, writes that many “refugees from the for-profit world” are knocking on her door, but too many are poorly prepared to join charities.
“I ask, ‘What kind of thing are you looking to do?’ They reply, ‘Oh, anything in the not-for-profit sector. I just want to make the world a better place.’ This is like me saying, ‘Oh, anything in the for-profit world would be fine. I just want to make money,’” she writes on a Fast Company blog.
“News flash: We’re not a bunch of dummies in Birkenstocks who sit around watching Oprah all day. Your résumé‘s expensive paper stock does not tell me anything about your office abilities. Your matchy-matchy suit and accessories don’t tell me that you understand our business model. Your Harvard MBA won’t make me drool,” she writes.
Read The Chronicle’s article about the myths and realities of switching from the corporate to the nonprofit world.
What do you think? Are more business workers seeking employment at nonprofit organizations? What is the most common mistake these job-seekers make? Click on the comment button to share your views.
