The cream of the crop?

Great fundraisers are priceless – Tim Holden advises how to recruit and retain them

In these turbulent economic times, high-performing sales people can be the difference in survival of an organisation or its untimely demise.Where skills shortages exist this is a particular concern, and the problems faced by employers in this regard are mirrored in the fundraising community where financial rewards are not traditionally as high as the private sector can provide. So what can be done…?

Retaining talent Some third sector organisations choose to pay their fundraisers on a commission only basis; however the security and stability of a regular monthly pay cheque topped up by a realistic bonus can prove tempting when external offers are
received.We stress the importance of employers getting to know their people inside out in order to adopt a bespoke process to engagement.Only then will it
be possible to identify if increased responsibility, learning and development opportunities, flexible working and/or health and well being initiatives will make the difference in staying put or jumping ship.

Working with a charity for recovering alcoholics and drug addicts,we established
that most of the employees had a strong interest in corporate social responsibility. Whether this related to being green, helping disadvantaged communities overseas or engaging local stakeholders varied on the individuals involved. Providing a link between work and spare time activities the organisation offered time during normal hours for voluntary action to be undertaken, resulting in high levels of engagement which manifested itself in a low attrition rate.

Where individuals involved with revenue generation are regularly resigning froman organisation,we typically analyse the recruitment and interview process with a significant emphasis on numbers such as applications received, time taken for each stage, applicants who withdraw from the process etc.We find that sometimes the best sales people do not make the best managers,where their style of leadership and communication may be less than conducive to minimising staff turnover.

Induction also needs to be reviewed to determine if the process is appropriate and whether it covers the salient points of writing business,whilst appraisals are crucial in re-enforcing what constitutes exceptional, satisfactory or unsatisfactory performance. In addition we normally invest considerable time in the exit interviews completed, evaluating the data and sometimes contacting valued ex-employees months after departure to identify the ‘real’ reasons for leaving.

Hiring the best
Certain commentators believe that the financial crisis has resulted in a higher quantity and quality of applicant seeking employment in the third sector. In our experience this is true to a point, as disenchanted City high-flyers and burnt-out senior executives seek amore fulfilling career that allows them to give something back to society.

The Institute of Fundraising website www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk suggests that the following routes tomarket may be considered:

• Using the Jobs in Fundraising section of their website;
• The Guardian;
• Professional Fundraising;
• Third Sector;
• Voluntary Sector; and
• TheTimes.
  

Like employment agencies the cost of such advertisements can prove prohibitive, and in the last two years we have achieved success by employing a variety of alternative approaches.One housing association found that residents oftenmade great employees, and asmany had no web access sending a text when a vacancy
appeared proved invaluable.Building up contacts that contribute time or donations already and utilising the grapevine to attract new recruits can be very appropriate; however issues around diversity need to be considered when any referral scheme is in place for people tend to know people like themselves.

Employer branding
The use of blogs and social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter is a low-cost route to creating a profile that can be used to convey a positive message
about the organisation. From a human resources perspective we consider this to be ‘employer branding’ in that organisations elevate themselves as one that jobseekers have heard about, and then move to the next level to be amore attractive proposition than similar employers seeking talent from the same pool. A best in class website that is interesting, up to date and lists vacancies in a manner that portrays the organisation as an employer of choice rather than an employer of last resort helps too.

Few interviewers have received any formal training on how to interview, and getting people to take the job when offered without unrealistically raising expectations can prove tricky. Interviews for fundraisers should be seen as a sales pitch to get the best possible individual in the shortest time at the lowest cost, and thereforewe advocate professional project management of the process to achieve this objective. Steps should be taken to maximise the quality and quantity of applications by building lasting relationships with the likes of schools, colleges, universities and Jobcentre Plus.

Retention and attraction of fundraisers is an issue that shows no sign of going away-just try to be creative and cost-effective because exceptional income generators are worth their weight in gold!

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