Archive for May, 2010

We don’t talk much about non-profits in this space, though they are businesses, too, and growing them is just as difficult as growing a for-profit business. In fact, I would argue that starting and running a non-profit is even more difficult due to the money factor.  You need seed money to get going, but because non-profits are generally un-sustainable, year after year, you must rely on individual donors and grants to ensure your mission can continue.  On the plus side, working in the non-profit world can be really rewarding.  Everyone is committed to the cause, and your work is making the world a better place, whether on the micro level, macro level, or somewhere in between.    

Jillian Poole

I have been lucky to watch an amazing non-profit evolve for the past 8 years.  In 2002, I began working as the assistant for Jillian Poole, founder and CEO of The Fund for Arts and Culture.  I got to do a lot of really interesting work: travel and budget planning, grant writing, correspondence writing, and report editing; I have been their Editor since 2003.  Their mission statement sums up pretty neatly what they do:

The Fund provides assistance to selected major arts and cultural institutions to assist in their adjustment to a free market economy. Our senior consulting experts serve pro bono and share their expertise in administration, management, governance, planning, public relations, marketing and fundraising with visual and performing arts organizations.  We believe that promoting healthy, vibrant and welcoming institutions of art and culture strengthens civil society.

Jillian founded The Fund following her retirement from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, where she had been head of the development (fundraising) department.  “The year was 1991, just after the fall of the Berlin Wall,” said Jillian.  “And like many things in life it came about through pure serendipity.  There was a need, and I knew people who could help fill that need.”

They began their work in Russia and quickly expanded to other former Soviet bloc countries.  Jillian continually recruited senior museum and arts administrators to serve as consultants.  As she said, “A rolodex is an expandable thing.  It grows in unexpected ways, often with unforeseen encounters and certainly with almost every major endeavor.”  Word of their expertise and positive impact traveled quickly.  As the only organization offering hands-on, interactive seminars and workshops, the more than 100 consultants engaged by The Fund traveled to more than 20 countries.   (It is important to note that these consultants worked pro-bono, and many were eager to travel on behalf of The Fund again.  It was an enriching experience for them as well, and many have noted that they learned as much as their seminar participants.) 

The global economic collapse has forced some changes, as fundraising has been negatively impacted in a big way over the past two years.  After 20 year leading The Fund, Jillian has stepped down as CEO.  (A new CEO has not yet been named.)  I asked her if she would have done anything differently, and she replied, “I tend to look forward, not back.  There are many things that could be done, and some that must – and whether they will be remains to be seen.”  Though it seems like an evasive answer, her attitude perfectly reflects that of a leader: keep moving forward and make the changes you need to make to stay viable. 

I asked her for one piece of advice she’d give to someone interested in starting a non-profit, and she said, “Build a strong board to help you, always bearing in mind the essential 3 Ws – Work, Wisdom and Wealth.”