Have you ever critiqued a coworker because of their overbearing tendencies or their abrasive personality? Don’t worr y; you’re not alone in your frustrations. However, learning to dissect and identify your own and others’ personality traits can actually increase work ethic and strengthen internal relationships—paving the way for a stronger organization overall.
For nonprofits, employees’ collaborative efforts are often the key element to mission advancement. But clashing personalities working toward the same goal can lead to resentment and impatience in the work place.
Learning to recognize and understand others’ personality strengths and weaknesses can help you appreciate the diverse environment you work in. Specifically, nonprofits can take advantage of their diversity when it comes to improving their employment procedures and ensuring ongoing structural soundness.
Basic working styles can often be separated into 4 broad categories:
Whichever working style team members possess doesn’t really matter by itself. What most affects a nonprofit’s success is the compilation of strengths your team brings to the table and your team’s ability to successfully work together as a cohesive unit. As long as you understand and utilize everyone’s unique abilities, pertinent to your team’s progress, your nonprofit will continue to flourish.
UST offers their highest attended webinar- learn more about the unique tax alternative provided to 501(c)(3) nonprofits.
UST, a program dedicated to providing nonprofits with dedicated HR support and educational tools, presents a short on-demand webinar to showcase some of the most common unemployment & HR risks that are costing nonprofits thousands of dollars annually.
UST shares insights into their many service offerings as well as best practices that can help reduce costs and streamline workforce processes.
This educational webinar also teaches nonprofits about:
“Whether your primary focus to protect your assets, ensure compliance, reduce unemployment costs or to simply allocate more time and money to your mission-driven initiatives, this webinar can provide invaluable insight that can help you to refocus your funding and employee bandwidth on the communities you serve,” said Donna Groh, Executive Director of UST.
This webinar will also explore UST’s holistic program, which is already helping more than 2,200 participating nonprofits lower their unemployment and HR liability. If you work for a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with 10 or more full time employees, be sure to watch this webinar today!
Nonprofits play a vital role in society by indirectly boosting the economy. Just like their for-profit counterparts, they have payroll, pay mortgages and utilities and have overhead costs. Unlike for-profits, they rely primarily on grants, donors and the community for financial support – making it all the more important that they understand the financial risks they face.
Earlier this year, the findings from a study put out by SeaChange Capital Partners, Oliver Wyman and GuideStar, “The Financial Health of the United States Nonprofit Sector: Facts and Observations,” were released and the results signaled an urgency for improved risk management to reduce the likelihood of financial distress within the sector.
Some key takeaways from this report include:
If you missed it, download your copy today and learn how you can either put a holistic risk management framework in place or enhance your current risk management practices!
Question: Can we maintain a zero-tolerance marijuana use policy in our workplace if medical marijuana use is legal in the state?
Answer: Yes, you can. Employers have an absolute right to maintain a drug-free workplace and do not have to allow or tolerate drug use or intoxication in the workplace. Although some states permit the use of marijuana for both medicinal and recreational purposes, most state laws provide exemptions for employers to prohibit the use of marijuana in the workplace. If you maintain a drug-free workplace, then your employees may be subject to discipline and/or termination when working under the influence of marijuana (i.e., on-the-job intoxication). In states where marijuana use has been legalized for medical or recreational purposes, employers may elect to establish intoxication standards for marijuana metabolites, rather than imposing discipline for any presence of the drug. However, this standard must be applied consistently and regularly to all employees.
As of February 2016, marijuana continues to be an illegal drug under federal law (which trumps state laws), and employers are not required to permit on-the-job use of or marijuana intoxication by employees or applicants. You may discipline employees who are legally using marijuana under state law but who are in violation of your workplace policy, because under the law, employees are not protected from being fired for failing a drug test.
Alternatively, you may elect to accommodate your employee’s medical marijuana use, but the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) does not require you to reasonably accommodate current unlawful drug use. Employees who claim disability discrimination for their medical marijuana use may attempt to file under the ADA. However, the ADA excludes current illegal drug users from protection; therefore, employers are free to conduct drug tests on employees, subject to certain limitations, to detect the presence of illegal drug use.
Refer to your state’s laws on employer rights and medical marijuana law. Additionally, you may want to update your policies to ensure you are clear about whether you will accommodate marijuana use in the workplace and the subsequent action should an employee be found using marijuana.
Finally, keep in mind that this issue can be complicated. When in doubt, seek legal counsel to ensure compliance.
Q&A provided by ThinkHR, powering the UST HR Workplace for nonprofit HR teams. Have HR questions? Sign your nonprofit up for a free 30-day trial here.
As a nonprofit leader and advocate for your community, staying in front of your audience requires being current and consistent. From producing press releases, scheduling tweets, and putting in countless hours to produce a monthly newsletter, being on top of it all can be overwhelming Regardless of your constant efforts you know, deep down, that your marketing strategy always has room for improvement.
Since marketing is always a popular topic of discussion in the nonprofit world, the same question comes to mind—what more can we do to make people aware of our mission? How about an easier tool to promote our non –profit? Like a blog.
Don’t think you need a blog? You’re not alone. While many nonprofits put blogging way down on their priority list, it could be a tremendously effective marketing tool for any organization. Here are four good reasons why your nonprofit should start a blog:
1. Create personal conversations
Like most nonprofits, you’re probably utilizing social media as a way to reach your audience and to display content to properly convey your mission. Social media has great value; however, it can be difficult to break through the noise. With a blog, you can focus more on developing content that will resonate with your specific audience without feeling the need to compete to be seen or heard.
2. Provide press coverage on newsworthy topics
Press releases are a great source of communication and a great way to get the word out about your programs and offerings. However, press releases can require fact checking, approvals and asking journalists to cover your work— which is often extremely time-consuming. With a blog, you’re the journalist. You can funnel the efforts of a press release into a post and then track its performance with analytics. Even with a small readership, your blog will be better received by your dedicated followers than a mass media audience who may tune you out.
3. Produce content that organically attracts donors
While mailing newsletters can still spark some attention, they tend to be glanced at and tossed in the recycling bin. We live in an age where if certain content can’t be emailed, posted or texted, it could be considered irrelevant. Here’s where a blog can do the job for you. Your posts can be found forever on search engines and repeatedly promoted through multiple online channels. As your blog content gains traction, donors can share posts again and again via social media to attract new donors to your cause.
4. Connect with people on a more intimate level
Using short bits of content are great for social media and an easy way to share current events happening in the nonprofit sector. A blog, on the other hand, allows you to share stories of how your organization was able to make a difference. It provides an opportunity to tell in-depth stories that will create a deeper connection between you and your future donors.
A blog can become an essential part of your marketing strategy. Not only will blogs allow you to create content that is shareable, but it will also help you drive your marketing efforts. Plus, building a blog full of engaging content can make a world of difference in boosting your number of supporters and donations.
Board members are the driving force of any nonprofit and lead the organization towards a sustainable future by adopting sound, ethical and legal governance – ensuring the nonprofit is able to advance its mission. One of the fundamental challenges that board members face is the lack of understanding of their roles and responsibilities.
Join Barbara O’Reilly, CFRE, Principal of Windmill Hill Consulting, to learn how to strengthen your leadership team and determine the roles every board member can—and should—play in creating a strong culture within your organization.
This webinar will teach you how to:
Want access to more learning opportunities, tips and legal updates just for nonprofits, sign up for our monthly eNews today!
The Unemployment Services Trust (UST) has been acknowledged by GoToWebinar as being a great source of business content for the nonprofit community.
Santa Barbara, CA (December 14, 2017) – The Unemployment Services Trust (UST), a program focused on helping nonprofits save money and strengthen their missions, announces that their webinar, “New Accounting Standards Nonprofits Need to Know,” hosted by Lindquist LLP, has made it on GoToWebinar’s list of Top 100 Webinars of 2017.
UST is a one-stop-shop to find HR best practices, workforce solutions and unemployment risk management tips exclusively for nonprofits. UST has created a variety of webinars catering to both nonprofit executives and HR employees. These webinars cover topics ranging from Retirement Planning and Common Financial Reporting Errors to Emergency Succession Planning and Best Practices in Outplacement and Career Transition Services.
“We are thrilled to be recognized for our efforts and to partner with Lindquist LLP to create content that educates the nonprofit sector,” says Donna Groh, Executive Director of UST. “We look forward to continue providing a robust resource library for the nonprofit community.”
To view the most popular on-demand webinars, UST has launched a dedicated webinar channel on GoToWebinar’s new platform—GoToStage. This all-access video platform is designed to deliver relevant and easily accessible content that the nonprofit community craves. Visit UST’s GoToStage Channel today to keep up-to-date on the important legal changes and trends that may impact a nonprofit organization.
To receive the latest updates on free webinars and how-to guides exclusively for nonprofit organizations, make sure to sign-up for UST’s Monthly e-Newsletter.
Jessica joined the Unemployment Services Trust in late July as a Sales Specialist. As an avid volunteer with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the American Cancer Society, she was excited to get involved at a much deeper level and start helping nonprofits save money for their missions.
At the age of nine, Jessica was first recognized for her love of helping others when she was interviewed by the local newspaper and appeared on the front page for feeding the seagulls at the harbor. Outside of her love for volunteering, Jessica enjoys the great outdoors and spending as much time as possible with her family. She also has a love for cooking and states that her friends and family have said that she makes the best of everything…we’re looking forward to tasting some of her food soon.
When asked what TV show her life emulates, she said Full House. As she explained, “This show represents everything I believe in when it comes to raising your children. There’s lots of communication, and you see their family always being supportive in all situations.” When you take into consideration that the holiday season is all about joy, family and the traditions we grow to love, it’s no wonder Christmas is Jessica’s favorite holiday.
A favorite quote of hers by Mother Teresa is a beautiful one…“Be faithful in the small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”
Help us in welcoming Jessica to the team via Twitter @USTTrust or Facebook @ChooseUST with the hashtag #MeetUSTMondays!
Many human resources professionals enthusiastically say yes.
Now, more than ever, when employee pools are glutted with workers it is difficult for employees who have left a nonprofit- even if they know they were highly valued- to ask for a job back, even if it’s only been a few weeks and they know that no one has been hired or promoted to replace them.
By extending an informal verbal invitation to the employee in their exit interview – during which you can learn some of the most valuable feedback about how your organization treats employees and how that affects employee retention – you can create an open door policy that shelters your employee (and you!) if their new position doesn’t work out.
While not every employee should be offered your agency’s open door policy, employees who have excelled and successfully propelled your agency forward are an asset you worked hard to develop, and they should be treated as such. Because it takes time and resources to develop a new employee, which can hurt your overall mission if the match doesn’t work out, it is always easiest to keep the employees you have.
When extending the invitation, make sure to keep certain criteria in mind:
Does this employee have a proven track record of productivity?
Are they dependable?
Will it be hard for you to fill their position after they leave?
Have they developed strong working relationships with other people throughout your nonprofit?
Would their return be welcome?
For employees who leave a job and then find that their new position isn’t nearly as satisfying as their old position, an open door policy and a personal invitation to come back if it doesn’t work out creates a strong sense of community that, even if they don’t come back to your agency, they will reflect back on your agency in the way they talk about you.
Read more about how one organization’s open door policy has benefited them here.
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Further, our website may contain links to other sites. Anytime you connect to another website, their respective privacy policy will apply and UST is not responsible for the privacy practices of others.
This Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use for our site is subject to change.
UST maintains a secure site. This means that information we obtain from you in the process of enrolling is protected and cannot be viewed by others. Information about your agency is provided to our various service providers once you enroll in UST for the purpose of providing you with the best possible service. Your information will never be sold or rented to other entities that are not affiliated with UST. Agencies that are actively enrolled in UST are listed for review by other agencies, UST’s sponsors and potential participants, but no information specific to your agency can be reviewed by anyone not affiliated with UST and not otherwise engaged in providing services to you except as required by law or valid legal process.
Your use of this site and the provision of basic information constitute your consent for UST to use the information supplied.
UST may collect generic information about overall website traffic, and use other analytical information and tools to help us improve our website and provide the best possible information and service. As you browse UST’s website, cookies may also be placed on your computer so that we can better understand what information our visitors are most interested in, and to help direct you to other relevant information. These cookies do not collect personal information such as your name, email, postal address or phone number. To opt out of some of these cookies, click here. If you are a Twitter user, and prefer not to have Twitter ad content tailored to you, learn more here.
Further, our website may contain links to other sites. Anytime you connect to another website, their respective privacy policy will apply and UST is not responsible for the privacy practices of others.
This Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use for our site is subject to change.
Taking the time to alter employee handbook policies at least once a year can mitigate employment related lawsuits and ensure your nonprofit’s overall progression.
As milestone employment laws change, even laws not directly impacting employment– including state-by-state changes in regulations regarding medical marijuana and gun carry permits– your employee handbook must clearly identify and address your organization’s policies regarding legal changes that impact your organization.
If you don’t help keep your staff properly informed, you can’t expect them to decipher what’s work appropriate and what’s not. And if you do leave it up to individual employees to decipher what is an isn’t appropriate, your organization is left open to employment related lawsuits and expensive, improperly collected unemployment benefit claims.
Some of the most important policies you should re-examine, if you haven’t done so in the past 6 months are:
Remember, you need to be consistent and effective with employee handbook updates. Rather than completely changing everything, learn how to simplify wording and tweak pre-existing policies. (There’s no need to reinvent the wheel if you don’t absolutely need to.)
But the most important thing that you must do is educate your employees on their behavior and rights at the workplace; it’s beneficial to all parties involved.
Whenever the Handbook is updated, take the time to double check that you have proof of receipt from everyone since it’s imperative that you keep these easily accessible at all times. Without proof of receipt, your organization is open to improper unemployment claims, lawsuits, and all sorts of other slippery slopes.
When everyone at your organization shares the same views on organizational rules and expectations, you lessen the risk of confusion and unintended misconduct. An updated handbook leads to a consensus on expected behavior and attitude—paving the way for a more harmonious work experience for everyone.
Learn more about how to update your Employee Handbook here.