Last May John Rathman found himself out of work. So, he got into the business of volunteering.
After being laid off from his job as an accountant for a local fast food franchisee, Rathman heard about a unique volunteer service organization: the Blue Ash-based
Executive Service Corps of Cincinnati. It is a nonprofit that helps other nonprofits. He signed up as the ESCC bookkeeper.
“I knew I couldn’t sit still,” says Rathman, 40, of Cleves. “It interested me that this group sends volunteers out to use their skills to consult with nonprofit organizations. I liked the idea of keeping my skills finely tuned. When you are out of a job in this type of a market, you need as many networks as you can find. I knew I could help them and in return they might help me.”
Randy Mosteller, ESCC executive director says he has signed up a couple dozen volunteers in recent months who are “between jobs,” anxious to still use their skills and do some good while conducting their job search.
Rathman said he was not aware of the little known organization until he read about another unemployed man who volunteered. But those in the nonprofit world are well aware of ESCC. It has a reputation for being the best deal in town for budget-strapped organizations looking for sophisticated managerial assistance.
It was a group of retired executives, mainly from Procter & Gamble who founded ESCC 14 years ago with a straightforward mission. “We help other nonprofits succeed by providing high quality, affordable consulting services,” says Mosteller, one of just two paid staffers. “We help them run more like a business.”
ESCC has 112 volunteers about half retired business people. Hosteller says it is the retirees that are the heart and soul of the organization. “They are folks who have been there and done that.”
Every conceivable business management skill is offered by ESCC volunteers, including board development and succession, strategic planning, marketing, fundraising strategies, staff training, volunteer management and recruitment. ESCC has helped over 500 Greater Cincinnati organizations since it’s founding. It has completed up to 90 consulting projects in some years.
The ESCC model is to assign a team of two-four volunteers to a project overseen by a project manager. It usually pairs retirees with those currently in the work force, providing clients a unique mix of old school and cutting edge ideas.
ESCC charges a modest fee that tops out at $3,000, but is usually adjusted down based on a nonprofit’s ability to pay as well as other grants or donations that may be obtained. Mosteller says the average fee is $200-$500.
“It’s a real value. At $3,000 I couldn’t afford not to use them,” says Neil Tillow, president/CEO of Talbert House, who has partnered with ESCC on a number of projects. The latest involved marketing the organization’s drug treatment and rehabilitation services to a wider income group. While Talbert House is designed to serve low-income clients through contracts with courts, schools and mental health agencies, Tillow sensed there was a large potential client base in need of treatment, but unable to qualify for low-income care, or with health insurance that did not cover drug intervention.
An ESCC team spent six months on market research looking at private pay options, financial analysis and a business plan. The result was Gateways, launched in July, a private pay commercial outpatient program which was acquired by Talbert House from Christ Hospital.
“Hiring a firm might have cost ten times what we paid,” says Tillow, who became such a fan of ESCC he now serves on its board and even volunteers himself. “The advantage of ESC is they are proven business folks and understand how things work. Even if you hire a regular consulting firm, it may not have all the skill sets you need.”
Other recent ESCC projects include:
--A team acted as the owner’s rep overseeing construction of the $7.7 million, 27,0000 sq. foot headquarters for the Dan Beard Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Scout leaders estimate the project came in $200,000 under budget thanks to the ESSC consultation and opened on time.
--With a grant from P&G, ESCC is partnering with Cincinnati Public Schools on up to 15 consulting projects. It helped CPS negotiate new bus contracts that officials estimate will save the district $2 million a year over the five-year contracts. It’s also involved with creating efficiencies in security, energy usage, record storage and a CPS call center.
--ESCC helped Children, Inc., which operates child development centers and preschools, set up a for-profit business within its nonprofit structure to more effectively market its growing line of CDs and videos featuring children’s music and educational materials.
Other clients include the Red Cross, Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and Free Store Food Bank. And there are plenty more who would like the help. In fact, a recent Northern Kentucky University Survey found there are 10,731 nonprofit agencies in the tri-state. A national study found 52 percent of charities saw a drop in spring donations and many are struggling as demand soars and donations fall.
“Right now we are running at capacity,” said Mosteller. “But our volunteers are stepping up to meet the needs.”
Another example of a nonprofit helping nonprofits is the year old
Institute for Nonprofit Capacity (INC) at Northern Kentucky University. It has quickly become one of the region’s most ambitious academic efforts to help nonprofit organizations.
“We marshal the intellectual capacity of the university to work for nonprofits through service learning classes,” says John Vissman, INC director. “Students provide some service or product to a nonprofit within the curriculum of the classroom. It reaches into every discipline on campus.
For example, Vissman says, an anthropology class is trying to help a cemetery locate a pauper’s field believed to be on the property. Other classes have designed Web sites, written grants, done marketing plans and crunched data. Vissman says as of last spring some fifty NKU classes were involved in service learning classes helping a nonprofit.
Given their similar missions it’s not surprising that ESCC and INC are partnering to offer a series of October workshops aimed at specialized training for officers of nonprofit boards. Dubbed the
Officers Club, the workshops will cover everything from parliamentary procedure to strategic planning. Vissman says the conference was put together when they realized many board officers might not have the specific skill sets to effectively govern a nonprofit.
Meanwhile, John Rathman did land a new job this month as the CFO for a regional trucking company. But he says he plans to keep up his volunteer work with the Executive Service Corps enjoying the networking and camaraderie of often working with seasoned business leaders. As he puts it:
“The quality of the professionals on the projects is amazing. I have enjoyed the older guys. They love volunteering to keep involved in the business world.”
Photography by Scott BeselerJohn RathmanRandy MostellerThe Talbert HouseESCC missionJohn Rathman at Baylor Trucking