I can’t compete with other nonprofits on salary. Now what do I do?

You are right, salary is often a key element on why a candidate applies for a position.  Salary should be listed on all job descriptions all of the time.

But for some organizations, the salary just isn’t going to get higher.  Then what?  Well, creative thinking can really move your organization forward.  Can you hire people looking for their 2nd or 3rd career?  Can you hire young people part-time knowing that you’ll only have them for a short-time?  Can you job-share; hire part-time; offer work-from-home options?  It is only when we get stuck in thinking about our positions in one way that we can’t fill the position.

All of this requires you to think about job descriptions a little differently.  But, you can do it!

Start with the tasks that need to be done.  Does one person have to do them all?  Are there any that can be given to volunteers or outsourced?  There can be cost-savings and efficiencies in working with another organization on back-office support, day-to-day tasks and administrative support.  This lets you focus on relationships and programming.

Needing people with more experience?  Look to recent retirees and people transitioning from other sectors.  Yes, there is a nonprofit learning curve; but there isn’t an experience learning curve.  Bringing in expertise on a part-time or flex-schedule basis can really change opportunities for your organization as well as the individual.