Nonprofit

YOUR OPPORTUNITY

Since the mid-1990s, increasing numbers of individuals from business have retired or otherwise left their positions and have chosen nonprofit service as their next step. Their reasons are as individual as they are, but one thing is clear: the nonprofit sector offers a host of opportunities for meaningful and personal satisfaction.

As with business, there is no one way to categorize nonprofits.

• Some are large; most are smaller
  
• Some are national in scope
  
• Some are national with independent regional affiliates; many are regional or local
  
• Some depend mainly on philanthropy and others on government funding
  
• Some are well-endowed, and others have modest budgets supported by continuous fund raising
  

The people who work in nonprofits are equally varied. In general, you will find the sector most appealing if you are:

• Flexible
  
• Accustomed to working cross-functionally
  
• Enjoy collaborative relationships and influencing colleagues and peers toward action (without necessarily having reporting-line authority)
  
• Find resource-constrained environments a welcome challenge
  

If you want to cultivate a new or lifelong passion for a specific cause, such as reforming the foster care system, protecting the environment, or building affordable housing; or if you simply want to find an opportunity to contribute your skills to make a difference, you may find working in a nonprofit—whether as an employee or on a board—compelling and fulfilling.