50 best nonprofits to work for in 2012 - the nonprofit times

APRIL 1, 2012 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.thenonprofittimes.com 1

THENONPROFITTIMESTM

The Leading Business Publication For Nonprofit Management • www.thenonprofittimes.com • $6.00 U.S. April 1, 2012

50 BEST NONPROFITSTO WORK FOR IN 2012

It’s more than money when it comes to recruitment and retentionBY DON MCNAMARA

Darlene Kiyan, executive director of Playworks LosAngeles, believes she knows what doesn’t attractwould-be employees.

“They don’t come here for the pay or the benefits,” saidKiyan, whose organization was number 14 in theSmall Organizations category and 33 overall in The

NonProfit Times’ 50 Best Nonprofits to Work For in2012. It’s all about mission.

For the second year in a row, Wounded WarriorProject was selected the best nonprofit for which to work,as well as being at the top of the Medium Organization list.

This is the third annual NPT best places to work survey.Most 501(c)(3) organizations can apply to be considered.For example, management support organizations were noteligible to participate. Emails were sent to subscribers toThe NonProfit Times’ print and electronic editions. An-

nouncements were also placed in The NonProfit Timesinviting organizations to compete. Best Companies Groupof Harrisburg, Pa., conducted the interviews and compiledthe score sheets. Those with the overall best scores made

the Top 50. Those winners were then subdividedinto three categories, small, medium and large.

So if potential employees are not anywherenear a salary level that would put them in Amer-ica’s famed 1 percent, what draws employees to

nonprofit organizations and, more important, whatkeeps them so happy?

NPT’s BESTNONPROFITSTOWORK FOR★2012★

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That isn’t really much of a surprise.“I got to thinking, and in particular we

see a high level of engagement from em-ployees of nonprofits” compared to otherindustries, said Susan Springer, directorof workplace assessments for Best Com-panies Group. “This particular group(nonprofit employees) is very dedicatedto the mission: helping people, making adifference, whether locally, nationally orinternationally. There’s something that’sintrinsically satisfying about it.”

As in previous years, the 2012 survey in-cluded a questionnaire sent to employersto glean information about policies andpractices, followed by an employee surveythat consisted of approximately 72 state-ments to which employees respondedusing a five-point agreement scale.

Statements/responses were brokendown into subject headings, such asLeadership and Planning, CorporateCulture and Communications, Role Sat-isfaction, Work Environment, Relation-ship with Supervisor, Training andDevelopment, Pay and Benefits, andOverall Employee Engagement.

Regarding questions included underLeadership and Planning, 92 percent of allSmall Organization survey participantshad positive responses, compared to 93percent of those that made the Top 50. Inthe Medium Organization category, 85percent of all respondents gave positiveresponses, compared to 88 percent of Top50 winners. In the Large Organization cat-egory, 81 percent of all respondents gavepositive responses, compared to 85 per-cent of the eventual Top 50 respondents.

Regardless of size, 84 percent of re-spondents gave positive reactions underLeadership and Planning, compared to87 percent for organizations making thetop 50. One statement under this head-ing, for example, was “I understand thelong-term strategy of this organization.”

Under Corporate Culture and Com-munications, 83 percent of all respon-dents gave positive responses, comparedto 87 percent of organizations in the Top50. This category included the statement:“Changes that may affect me are commu-

nicated to me prior to implementation.”Under Role Satisfaction, 87 percent

of all responding organizations gavepositive responses, compared to 89 per-cent for organizations in the Top 50.This category included the statement: “Ilike the type of work that I do.”

Under Work Environment, 91 percentof all respondents gave positive re-sponses, compared to 92 percent of or-ganizations in the Top 50. This category

included the statement “I feel physicallysafe in my work environment.”

Under Relationship with Supervisor,88 percent of all respondents gave posi-tive responses, compared to 92 percentof organizations in the Top 50. An exam-ple of a statement from this category is:“My supervisor treats me fairly.”

Under Training and Development, 73percent of all respondents gave positiveresponses, compared to 76 percent inthe Top 50. This category included ques-tions such as: “I trust that if I do goodwork, my company may consider me fora promotion.”

Under Pay and Benefits, 80 percent ofall respondents gave positive responses,and 83 percent of organizations in theTop 50 gave positive responses. A typicalquestion in the category is: “My pay isfair for the work I perform.”

Under Overall Employee Engage-ment, 88 percent of all respondents and91 percent of organizations in the Top50 gave positive responses. This cate-

gory included the statement: “I am will-ing to give extra effort to help my com-pany succeed.”

Altogether, 84 percent of all the or-ganizations that participated had posi-tive responses to the statements,compared to 87 percent of the organiza-tions that made the Top 50 list.

There were also two open-endedquestions. “The open-ended questionsare meant to give us more insight into thenumbers,” Springer said. “We’re justlooking to see if they validate those scoresand see if there was any funny business

going on. So if the numerical surveys in-dicated satisfaction with, just for exam-ple, the 401(k) plan but the open-endedquestions indicated something different,we would look further into that.”

But, it isn’t a 401(k) that inspiresnon profit employees. “The mission isamazing, bringing play to inner-cityschools, as well as conflict resolutionand leadership, and for me that’s ex-traordinary, the difference we make on adaily basis,” said Kiyan. “That really res-onates with our staff, seeing the impactthey make every day.”

According to Steven Nardizzi, execu-tive director of Wounded Warrior Projectin Jacksonville, Fla., which led the overallsurvey and the Medium Size Organizationcategory for the second straight year, “It’sthe culture here: mission, then values.”

Nardizzi said that being selected Num-ber One last year was a source of joy aswell as satisfaction for the organization. “Itreally validated what we’re doing,” he said.

Validation is encouraging, but onceagain it goes back to the source. “We havestaff on board who are committed to whatwe’re doing,” Nardizzi said. “We make ahuge effort to keep employees across theorganization engaged in the mission.”

Still, Springer said, employees are notgoing to be completely happy if their ef-forts are not appreciated.

“Employers on this list have been verymuch active with having employees in theforefront of the focus of their operations,”Springer said. “Even with budget cuts andthe bad economy, they still have that em-ployee focus on less tangible things. Theysee value in taking the extra time, theextra step, to say they really appreciatewhat their employees are doing.” NPT

2 APRIL 1, 2012 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.thenonprofittimes.com

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1 Wounded Warrior Project 209 2 Brighton Center 93 3 DoSomething.org 31 4 SightLife 80 5 Alzheimer's Association 307 6 Grand Rapids Community Foundation 22 7 New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants 40 8 Animal Legal Defense Fund 23 9 Natural Resources Defense Council 400 10 Make-A-Wish Foundation of Metro New York 38 and Western New York Inc. 11 NOLS 15812 Parents as Teachers National Center, Inc. 4313 IREX 9614 Make-A-Wish Foundation of America 11915 Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona 11916 Early Learning Coalition of Pasco and Hernando Counties, Inc. 3617 Home Start, Inc. 7318 Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida 9519 PRS, Inc. 6520 AHC Inc 6221 Solar Energy Industries Association 3922 Arts Midwest 2123 Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Midlands 2224 Mayo Clinic Health System - Chippewa Valley 30125 Year Up 25526 LiveStrong 9027 The National Society of Collegiate Scholars 2328 San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind 49229 Cross Cultral 5030 Bayaud Enterprises, Inc. 4231 Masonic Homes of Kentucky, Inc. 54332 Keep America Beautiful, Inc 3233 Playworks Los Angeles 3034 National Institute of Aerospace 9135 Mayo Clinic Health System - Northland in Barron 38336 Child Guidance & Family Solutions 18737 Better Business Bureau serving Central, Coastal, 57 Southwest Texas and the Permian Basin

39 American Heart Association 2,69440 Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse 7341 Caring Voice Coalition, Inc 5742 Palm Beach Habilitation Center, Inc. 8343 Silicon Valley Community Foundation 9244 Hammer Residences, Inc. 42845 Pathway Homes, Inc. 9546 The Mission Continues 2747 PENCIL Foundation 2148 Mayo Clinic Health System - Eau Claire Clinic, Inc. 1,51249 Century Housing 5850 The Children's Home of Cincinnati 256

38 Global Kids, Inc. 44

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Grand Rapids Community Foundation

Make-A-Wish Foundation

Masonic Homes of Kentucky, Inc.



“We have flexible work hours de-pending on the work they do,” Dyle-Palmer said. “We help them make plansso they can work around their personalschedules. We strive to have a work-home, work-life balance. ”

Parents as Teachers has a staff devel-opment committee, she added.

“It’s a very important group in this or-ganization because they plan for allkinds of things that are over and above,but related to the work that goes onhere,” she added. She cited, for exam-ple, professional development sessionswith brown bag lunches, at which anytopic from the personal to the profes-sional can be aired.

In addition to the serious stuff, theorganization schedules fun activities,such as tailgate parties in the parking lotto which community neighbors are in-vited. Employees get a chance to relax,dress down and even wear sports para-phernalia, Dyle-Palmer said.

Having fun, balancing play and ac-countability helped Playworks Los Ange-les, a local office of a national operation,reach 14 in the Small Organization cate-gory and 33 overall.

Coaches go to at-risk schools togather children in out-of-classroom activ-ities. “They get to play, and who doesn’tlike to play?” said Darlene Kiyan, execu-tive director of the Los Angeles office.

According to Kiyan, the organization’scurrent retention rate is 77 percent. Ofthose who left, 60 percent left to acceptfull-time teaching jobs at the schools atwhich they had been working, and 20percent left to pursue advanced degrees.

Kiyan said applicants commonly askwhy staffers love their positions.

As for the work itself, “Coaches, whenthey are at the schools, have a lot of flex-ibility, but they also have accountabilityand are responsible for results,” Kiyansaid. “That contributes to staff morale.”

Kiyan said that play is built into staffmeetings, and there is recess, for staff,every day. NPT

BY DON MCNAMARA

Listen. That’s what Diana Sieger,president of the Grand RapidsCommunity Foundation inMichigan does, and it’s proba-

bly why the foundation ranked secondon the list of Small Organizations andsixth overall in The NonProfit Times’ 50Best Nonprofits to Work For in 2012.

“We’re not a huge organization. Oneof the keys is that we’re very intentionalin listening to what people are tellingus,” Sieger said. “For example, I make ita point once a day of walking around thebuilding and talking to people. I thinkthat has helped us in creating an envi-ronment in which our staff feel asthough, regardless of what their positionis, their opinion has value,” said Sieger.“All ideas are welcome, and not immedi-ately dismissed as ‘That will never work.’Everyone is essential.”

The foundation has weathered eco-nomic troubles in a state hit especiallyhard, even before the recession. Siegerwas proud to note that her organizationdid not lay off any employees when therecession hit and, although professionaldevelopment funds were very tight in2008-09, medical benefits, for example,stayed intact.

The personal touch is important toTrina Owens, an accountant for the Parentsas Teachers National Center in St. Louis,which finished sixth in the Small Organiza-tions category and number 12 overall.

“The organization is very supportiveas far as my goals and getting where Iwant to be,” Owens said, adding the or-ganization is able to mesh her aims withits own. Helping her hone her abilitiesmight make her more marketable else-where, but Owens said, “I love it here. Idon’t see myself going anywhere else.”

Owens has a 6-year-old child and theorganization has been flexible when shehas scheduling conflicts, she said. Thatflexibility is open to all employees, saidCheryle Dyle-Palmer, executive vicepresident/COO of Parents as Teachers.

1 Wounded Warrior Project 209

1 DoSomething.org 31 2 Grand Rapids Community Foundation 22 3 New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants 40 4 Animal Legal Defense Fund 23 5 Make-A-Wish Foundation of Metro New York 38 and Western New York Inc.6 Parents as Teachers National Center, Inc. 437 Early Learning Coalition of Pasco and Hernando Counties, Inc. 368 Solar Energy Industries Association 399 Arts Midwest 2110 Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Midlands 2211 The National Society of Collegiate Scholars 2312 Bayaud Enterprises, Inc. 4213 Keep America Beautiful, Inc 3214 Playworks Los Angeles 30

16 The Mission Continues 2717 PENCIL Foundation 21

15 Global Kids, Inc. 44

Small Employers (15 – 49 Employees)

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Above: Grand Rapids Community Foundation. Below: Playworks Los Angeles

Create FuntimeTailgating, brown bag lunches help build team


4 APRIL 1, 2012 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.thenonprofittimes.com


“We make sure that once a year everyemployee gets involved with at least oneevent,” Nardizzi said. “They get to seefirsthand the results of what we’redoing. It keeps them aware, but it alsore-energizes them.”

One such event is the Soldier Ride, athree- to four-day event that utilizes a va-riety of adaptive cycling equipment toget wounded veterans out and on theroad.

“I just came off one down in Key Westand I was re-energized myself,” Nardizzisaid. He mentioned one wounded war-rior who told him after the event howmuch better he felt about himself.

For fiscal year 2011, voluntary turnoverwas 5 percent. The stability index, whichmeasures employees who have been with

the organization for more than one year,is 80 percent. The time to fill a position isbetween 60 and 90 days, depending onthe level of the position. Nardizzi con-ducts all final interviews.

The idea of getting everyone involvedalso has worked well for Caring VoiceCoalition (CVC) of Mechanicsville, Va.,which finished at 18 in the Medium Or-ganization category and 41 overall.

“All of the leadership know about ourteam partners personally as well as pro-fessionally,” said Pamela Harris, founderand president of CVC, which brings aidand comfort to chronically ill patients.“We even know their family members byname. The piece that really sets us apartis a servant-leadership environment. Thepyramid is upside-down, and the bosses

are at the bottom.”Harris said the organization is “bla-

tantly honest” with employees about de-velopment and about helping themgrow, even maintaining an e-library ofmore than 600 files, on topics rangingfrom managing the workplace to manag-ing a Word document.

CVC expects employees to have a pas-sion for the type of work it does, becommitted to lifelong learning and bewilling to go above and beyond each dayfor patients.

In return, employees get to relax, al-though much of that relaxation still in-volves patients, said Samantha Harris,vice president of CVC. For example, inOctober employees join patients on aWeekend Wellness Retreat, which in2011 was held at the Jefferson Hotel inRichmond, Va. Employees sponsor pa-tients they have been tracking.

“The employee eats dinner with thepatient, goes to sessions, makes surethey are served,” Harris said. “(Staffers)learn what patients go through every sin-gle day with their diseases. It is one ofthe most incredible weekends.”

Of 57 staffers with the organization in2011, four are no longer there. The re-tention rate for 2011 was 92.9 percent.

Applicants typically ask about organi-zational culture and environment, theability to grow within the organization,benefits, and how the CVC affects thecommunity. There is no standard time tofill an opening, Harris said, because thehiring focus is on people who are pas-sionate about the cause.

For WWP and CVC, passion counts,and fun activities are just part of thepackage that makes the weekdays fulfill-ing, even enjoyable. NPT

BY DON MCNAMARA

It is amazing what you can discoverwhen you’re trying to learn some-thing. What the leaders ofWounded Warrior Project (WWP)

in Jacksonville, Fla., learned a year agowas that they provide a pretty goodplace to work. “The first year we partici-pated (in The NonProfit Times’ 50 BestNonprofits to Work For 2011), we hadno special goal, just to get positive feed-back about the organization,” saidSteven Nardizzi, executive director ofWWP. “And, we thought that rather thantrying to reinvent the wheel, we wouldgo with the survey being done by TheNonProfit Times and Best CompaniesGroup.”

The result the first time aroundlanded WWP as rated Number One over-all and Number One in the Medium Or-ganizations category a year ago. Theorganization must be doing somethingright, because it followed by taking thetop spot again in both categories in The

NonProfit Times’ 50 Best Nonprofits toWork For 2012.

Nardizzi confirmed that, as with anynonprofit, the basis of employee satisfac-tion is the mission. After that, it is a mat-ter of nurturing the commitment thatpeople bring to the job.

“We make a huge effort to keep em-ployees across the organization engagedin the mission,” Nardizzi said.

The mission is to raise awareness andenlist public aid to help injured servicemembers. Nardizzi said that programstaff members are routinely workingwith wounded warriors and their fami-lies but that employees, such asfundraisers and IT people for example,do not see them on a day-to-day basis.


1 Wounded Warrior Project 209 2 Brighton Center 93 3 SightLife 80 4 NOLS 158

7 Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona 1196 Make-A-Wish Foundation of America 1195 IREX 96

8 Home Start, Inc. 73

10 PRS, Inc. 659 Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida 95

11 AHC Inc 6212 LiveStrong 9013 Cross Cultral 5014 National Institute of Aerospace 9115 Child Guidance & Family Solutions 187

17 Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse 7318 Caring Voice Coalition, Inc 5719 Palm Beach Habilitation Center, Inc. 83

20 Pathway Homes, Inc. 9520 Silicon Valley Community Foundation 92

22 Century Housing 58

16 Better Business Bureau serving Central, Coastal, 57 Southwest Texas and the Permian Basin

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Provide Room To GrowOpportunity to move up in the organization keeps employees

Lance Armstrong and his Livestrong staff

NASCAR racerTony Stewart

makes onefan’s wishcome true.



as being important to care, no matterwhat their job title is,” Wittrock said. “Webelieve in transparency in the organiza-tion. I just sent an email telling employ-ees ‘Here’s what we did this month.’We’re also working hard to enhance em-ployee involvement in the process of im-provement, so they can improve theirwork day-to-day. That makes sense toemployees, if they see they can fix it.”

The voluntary turnover rate forChippewa Valley in 2011 was 6.9 percentand for Eau Claire 5.2 percent. Reten-tion rates for the same time period were94 and 92 percent, respectively.

An emphasis on first-rate customer serv-ice also shows up at Masonic Homes ofKentucky, which finished at 6 in the LargeOrganization category and 31 overall.

“It doesn’t have anything to do withour company, it has to do with our resi-dents,” said CJ Parrish, chief communi-cations officer for Masonic Homes ofKentucky. “Our mission is to make a dif-ference in the lives of people, and ouremployees have a passion for that. “Weare resident-focused,” Parrish contin-ued. “That’s what makes us all get out ofbed and come here every day.”

The Masonic Homes, which began as

shelters for the widows and orphans ofMasons, now offer a full continuum ofcare from health care to independent liv-ing, to anyone, not just Masons. For em-ployees, there are Employee of theMonth and Employee of the Year awardswith cash payments and recognition cer-emonies. Parrish said those initiativesserve to honor an ongoing employeecommitment to quality care.

Preliminary figures from 2011 showan increase in retention of key positions,such as caregiver, from 64.15 percent to68.9 percent, according to TraseeWhitaker, senior vice president/humanresources. Whitaker added that most ofthe turnover comes as a result of regula-tory concerns and resulting companypolicies, which cover such areas asproper care, sanitation, safety, dietarysupplements and therapy.

In 2011, Masonic Homes of Kentuckystarted an application system online thatallows for prescreening applicants to en-sure a good fit.

“The mission is it,” Parrish emphasized.“This is a great place to work for a lot ofreasons, but it’s an outstanding experiencebecause you have a chance to make a dif-ference in people’s lives every day.” NPT

NPT’s BESTNONPROFITSTOWORK FOR★2012★Having Their Pick

Using technology to find the correct fit with employees

BY DON MCNAMARA

Whether it’s in Wisconsin, orKentucky, or anywhere else,working for a nonprofit ismuch more than just a job.

“We see the patients in our communityas our output -- for nursing, hospital careor rehabilitation -- and all our employeessee a connection with the community,”said Ed Wittrock, vice president of re-gional systems for Mayo Clinic Health Sys-tems in Wisconsin. “It’s not just peoplecoming to work. It’s people coming towork taking care of the community.”

The organization is taking care ofmore than one community, in fact. MayoClinic has the distinction of placing twoseparate units in The NonProfit Times’Top 50 Nonprofits to Work For in 2012.Mayo Clinic Health System – ChippewaValley, where Wittrock has his office, wasranked number three in the Large Or-ganization Category and 24 overall, andMayo Clinic Health System – Eau ClaireClinic finished at 10 in the Large Organi-zation category and 48 overall.

A committed workforce is fine, butsimply relying on employees to lovetheir jobs isn’t enough. It takes more,anywhere. “We look at every employee


1 Alzheimer's Association 307 2 Natural Resources Defense Council 400 3 Mayo Clinic Health System - Chippewa Valley 301 4 Year Up 255

7 Mayo Clinic Health System - Northland in Barron 3836 Masonic Homes of Kentucky, Inc. 5435 San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind 492

8 American Heart Association 2,694

10 Mayo Clinic Health System - Eau Claire Clinic, Inc. 1,5129 Hammer Residences, Inc. 428

11 The Children's Home of Cincinnati 256

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Top Row: The Mayo Clinic Health System. Bottom Row: Masonic Homes of Kentucky, Inc.


50 best nonprofits to work for in 2012 - the nonprofit times

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