Talent Development

With a focus on keeping costs aslow as possible in the non-profit sector, there are a number of functions that fall into the realm of “nice to have if only we had the funds”.

Included in that category is human resources management. For most organizations, an investment in the management and development of employees is, unfortunately, considered a luxury they just can’t afford. So, most find themselves cobbling together bits and pieces of an HR strategy or,more often,simply hoping that the people side of things will simply take care of itself.

Yet,there is a growing refrain among leaders in the sector who say that in reality, a focus on people and talent is something that organizations can ill-afford NOT to do, suggesting in fact that this lack of attention may be keeping organizations and their fundraising aspirationsfrom reaching their full potential. A recentseries by the Stanford Social Innovation Review shone the light on this very issue. The Talent Matters series makes the case that the non-profit sector is known for underinvesting in talent, suggesting that “from low compensation to lack of training, the pursuit of minimal overhead has resulted in anemic spending on human capital”.