In one of the sessions in the Fellowship for Emerging Leaders in Public Service, Dean Schall of NYU Wagner cautioned us not to focus on the sector we are in and instead think of the change we want to see and pick the best path to make it happen. The reality is that each sector—government, for-profit, and non-profit—is instrumental for a society to thrive and they all work together more often than we realize.
This advice made me wonder: does public service require one to work at a nonprofit, or does it mean dedicating one’s work to the greater good, regardless of the sector? For example, in The Triple Bottom Line, Savitz argues that sustainable for-profits won’t need to have corporate philanthropy or volunteer programs because the way in which they do business will be shaped to support the communities in which they are located. Another book, The Idealist.org Handbook to Building a Better World, offers tangible tips on creating change no matter what sector you are in.
I think many of us who work in nonprofits find ourselves in the sector because of the causes we are passionate about. We may view our employment at a nonprofit as secondary to our identities as educators, lawyers, health care providers, social workers, etc. In other words, some of us just happen to be in the sector unless you are in a position that is fairly nonprofit specific (i.e. fundraising or executive director) or are making a transition from for-profit to nonprofit.
But this also makes me wonder if this attitude hurts the sector. I find that people will discuss their commonalities as nonprofit employees if it is related to something bad as opposed to wanting to harness the commonalities that make the sector unique. It is easier to focus on your subfield—education, health, law, etc—than to think of yourself as part of larger field and work on collaborating and strengthening the whole.
In my view, the sectors are fundamentally different, have different social roles, and therefore mean different things to the public. So while you should choose the path that allows you to do your best work, not acknowledging how your sector interacts with the public, other sectors, and the state of its employees may actually weaken your ability to fully engage your cause.
What are your thoughts? Are you part of a cause or part of a sector or both?
It is definitely about the cause for me. I have been involved in pro-migrant and immigration reform action for some time before I started working at NSC! I am lucky enough to have my personal social justice values align with what I do professionally! If I ever left NSC, it would be for a cause that I am equally passionate about.
I also feel connected to the mission and values of the sector as a whole. I spent many (unhappy) years in the corporate sector. I was frustrated because the values of the sector were not in alignment with my own. Now, with that being said, there are many corporations that value social justice and philanthropy, but the overall corporate culture is fundamentally different than the independent sector culture.
Thanks for the great questions and dialogue!
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ajlovesya Reply:
May 8th, 2009 at 11:26 pm
Thanks for sharing Kathrin! The corporate philanthropy approach is interesting and as I stated before, wouldnt real social change come when these side-arm programs are not necessary?
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Great post! I think this is definitely a good and important question to ask. I feel like most people who work at nonprofits, and ESPECIALLY those who work in fundraising or as an Executive Director, feel themselves committed to the cause. Otherwise, they wouldn’t do it necessarily if they could make more money in a similar position at a for-profit company. Personally, I’d do it for the cause, but the more important question you ask is whether you can achieve your goals related to your cause in any sector. I think here’s where the important idea of social enterprise is going to be vital, because social business allows you to make an impact while also pursuing profit, allowing your company to be sustainable without having to rely on donations or charity as a method of survival. It allows you to be more effective and scale up. I think, definitely, working in a social enterprise is a good alternative to achieving social change through a nonprofit.
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ajlovesya Reply:
May 8th, 2009 at 11:32 pm
Thanks Akhila! Allison Fine made an interesting comment in a recent post of hers how “doing well by doing good” will be inevitably a for-profit as the nonprofit status is not conducive to that. And some examples I have seen look like for-profits with side-arm philanthropy projects. Meanwhile more nonprofits are beginning to generate their own revenue. How is social enterprise different from these models?
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This is an interesting question! I think Dean Schall’s point is a good one. However, I would also tend to agree with Allison that there are fundamental differences between the sectors that are difficult to ignore. What I take from this is that I should look beyond the sector divisions when developing my end goal; define it independently of the concepts of “non-profit,” “for-profit” or “government.” Then, in determining how to achieve that goal, I might pay closer attention to things like the stability of working in (western) government, the idealism of nonprofit organizations and the innovation that social enterprises often embrace.
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ajlovesya Reply:
May 8th, 2009 at 11:17 pm
Thanks for sharing Shawn and welcome to my blog! Your comment really captures my main point: Define the change you wish to see and the life you want based on your own values then choose a path that best fits that vision.
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