by Marianne Pelletier

Created on: April 25, 2007   Last Updated: June 11, 2009

All the years that I have worked in non-profits , I have heard staff saying, "If this place were run like a real business...." When I worked for a "real business," I found out the rest of that sentence.

The for-profit world is about profit. That means that staff get Blackberrys and laptops, the project with the highest return gets funded, and people get fired if they do not produce. The non-profit world is about relationships. That means that nobody has a Blackberry except for people with titles (not necessarily the ones who need them most), it can sometimes be hard to come up with enough paper to send out the solicitation mailing, and people are too kind to fire other people (most of the time).

I was once on the phone with a consultant who was trying to determine return on investment. He was practically screaming into the phone, "Ninety-three percent? That's your return on investment?"

I said, "Yep. That's the industry standard, too."

He said, "Well, where I am we'd pour all kinds of money into something that had a return of even thirty percent."

I said, "Yep. You would." And I left him confused.

So here's how to think about your new world if you want to jump from the business to the non-profit:

-Fund raisers and non-profits are not supposed to be swimming in cash. That means that we do not use slick stationery to request gifts because that would look like we are wasting the donor's money on slick stationery. We also leave Rolex watches at home. The guys who are in our office with the pinstripe suits on are the consultants, not the staff.

-The staff's mission is to serve mankind, not make money. Although non-profits are paying larger alaries to lure good fund-raisers to their shops, the aim is for the shop itself to look like a place where people work to make a difference, not to make an early retirement.

-The people you will talk to are passionate about something. The staff who work for a non-profit believe in the cause. Be prepared to field a lot of zeal while keeping an open mind. Donors also believe in the cause and want to talk to fund-raisers who do, too.

-Be prepared to make a contribution. Part of your salary negotiation is to make enough to give back a leadership gift every year. You have to be on the donor list to solicit other donors.

-You can not anger the clients and replace them. Non-profits have a natural constituency - alumni, grateful patients, women who support girls - you lose a lifetime of gifts if you anger a constituent permanently.

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