On the market: 20 opportunities to flip the script

Changing fortunes and flipped scripts are the stuff of memorable and highly entertaining narratives.

In real life having a global pandemic flip the script for us — while still memorable — is anything but entertaining.

The nonprofit sector has been in survival mode for a year — which on the employment front has often meant job loss or radically retooled staffing needs. Now, in the early stages of what we are calling “post-pandemic,” we are seeing more job stability — but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t choose to flip some scripts ourselves.

The trend

The nonprofit sector gained 63,000 jobs in May, according to a report by the Center for Civil Society Studies. Leading the pack were jobs in education (28,872) and — surprise! — arts, entertainment and recreation (11,126), which was the segment of the nonprofit sector most grievously impacted by the pandemic closures and social distancing strictures, and which had been predicted to take the longest to recover.

So, let’s take a moment to 🎉  and 🙌🏼 .

The sector saw increased growth rates overall last month, according to the The NonProfit Times, with the arts/entertainment/recreation segment topping out the growth rate at 11.5%. Educational nonprofits came in a strong second at  11.4%; social assistance had a 10.2% growth rate; healthcare, 4.2%; religious & grantmaking, 1.4%; and other unspecified segments, 9.8%.

So, while things aren’t yet back to where they were before COVID, the employment outlook is moving in the right direction.

And challenges remain for both job seekers and employers.

The news

The Chronicle of Philanthropy takes on the issues of returning to offices from remote work, noting that “nonprofit associations across the nation are hosting webinars and posting guidance on their websites to help charities navigate the minefield of legal and ethical issues in play as they plan for full or partial transitions from remote work to being back in the office.” Among some of those ethical issues? The inequity inherent in how employers deal with remote workers and those onsite.

The New York Times article posits that the post-pandemic jobs market overall is exceedingly weird — with more open jobs than candidates willing to fill them. While the situation demands a much needed conversation about how many of the available jobs are low-pay, low-benefits, it also points to a shift in what employers are looking for (and therefore what job seekers should be highlighting), namely  “soft skills” like teamwork, communication and the willingness to learn new things.

ERE Recruiting offers advice on making the most of virtual job interviews.

And speaking of interviews, read Nonprofit AF founder Vu Le on the need for late-stage interviewees who are asked to create presentations and/or formulate organizational plans as part of the interview process be paid for their time, as a matter of equity.

Harvard Business Review offers a five-step framework that helps people make better decisions about their careers. While this framework may be designed for folks who are early in their careers, it is a worthwhile exercise for those further along in their careers who are contemplating a significant shift.

The jobs

Ride the trend of nonprofit arts/recreation growth by applying for these openings detailed in the Generocity jobs bank (where you can find full descriptions and specifics):

Mural Arts Philadelphia

• Assistant to the Chief Operating Officer/Office Manager

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

• Manager of Membership & Annual Giving

Starfinder Foundation

• Program & Events Coordinator

If your soft skills set is stellar, these positions may be in your wheelhouse:

Breastcancer.org

• Fundraising Events Manager

Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger

• Communications Coordinator

The Lenfest Institute for Journalism

• Program Manager, The Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund

The Philadelphia Inquirer

• Senior Communities & Engagement Editor

The Presser Foundation

• Grants & Communications Manager

If, rather than adjusting to a flipped script, you want to be part of the team actually flipping the script, check out these posts:

City Year Philadelphia

• Individual Giving/Donor Engagement Manager
• Corporate Partnerships Director

Council for Relationships

• Director of Development

Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Philadelphia

• Deputy Director

If you are further in your career path than associate-level posts — be a leader and a mentor, and seed the sector with successors. Widely share these associate-level openings:

Fairmount Ventures

• Associate

SteegeThomson Communications

• Associate

The Urban Land Institute

• Associate, ULI Philadelphia

Some other jobs we’ve seen elsewhere that you might be interested in looking into:

• Lead PA is looking for an executive director
• Pennsylvania Voice is seeking a reflective democracy associate
• Please Touch Museum is looking to fill positions of director of marketing and communications and director of corporate and foundations relations
• Women Against Abuse is hiring an executive director/president

The end (but not really)

We’ll be back with another edition of “On the Market” next week, but please let us know if you like our new format (stolen outright from Technically Media‘s  “This Week in Jobs” newsletter) before then.

Also a reminder that no matter how busy your job-seeking interviewing and meeting schedule becomes …

… take time to breathe and enjoy the sunshine.

☀️