HOW TO WOW
EMPLOYEES
What it takes to be one of the
100 Best Nonprofits to Work For in
Oregon
Brandon Sawyer
Research Editor, Oregon Business
What Are the 100 Best
Nonprofits?
 Based on Oregon Business magazine’s
comprehensive four-year-old survey, first
conducted in spring 2009
 Inspired by our 19-year-old 100 Best
Companies to Work For in Oregon survey
 Published in our October issue
 Celebrated at dinner event in late September
 Promoted through use of our logo, on our
website,in other media, etc.
Survey Components
 Employee survey
 Counts for 5/6 of an organization’s overall score,
based on satisfaction ratings
 35 scaled questions and two open-ended
questions, taking bout 10 minutes to complete
 Subjective
 Employer Benefits survey
 Counts for 1/6 of an organization’s overall score
 About 50 questions, taking a half hour or so to
complete
 Objective
The Employee Survey
 Five statements in each of the following
sections:





Work Environment
Management & Communications
Mission & Goals
Career Development & Learning
Benefits & Compensation
Green Employee Survey
 Ten statements in Sustainable Practices
 Not counted in 100 Best Nonprofits scoring
 Used only for our 100 Best Green
Companies to Work for in Oregon,
published in the June issue of Oregon
Business
 Scored along with 15 Sustainable
Practices questions from the Employer
Survey
Volunteers & Employee
Survey
 Unpaid volunteers may also take the survey at the
discretion of participating nonprofits
 Must work a minimum of 20 hours on average per
month
 Omitted from Benefits & Compensation section
 A minimum of 10 paid employees and/or qualified
volunteers is required
 10 or more employee surveys must be completed by
the end of the survey in order to qualify for
consideration in the list
Employee Survey
Components
 For each survey statement employees rate two
things:
 How satisfied they are with the performance of
their organization in that area
 How important that particular item is to their
overall satisfaction with their organization
 Statements rated on scale of -3 (not at all) to +3
(very)
 Entirely subjective
 Counts for 500 points of 100 Best Nonprofits score
 Scored based on average satisfaction ratings of all
responding employees and volunteers
The Employer Benefits Survey
 A single employer representative, usually the HR
director, completes this
 Questionnaire on health, time off, retirement, work/life
balance, career development and other benefits
 Answers are objective; yes/no and numbers or
percentages
 Includes 15 Sustainable Practices questions used
only for the 100 Best Green Companies to Work For
scoring
 Counts for 100 points of 100 Best Nonprofits score
Dynamic Between Satisfaction
and Importance
 Importance indicates expectations of
employees within the workplace
 Satisfaction indicates whether workplace is
meeting those expectations
 Gap between importance and satisfaction
shows areas where employee morale may be
most improved
Statements most important to Oregon
nonprofit employees, 2011
Imp. Survey Statement
Ran
k
1
Treatment by supervisors and
management
Sat.
Ran
k
7
Avg.
Scor
e
2.68
2
2
2.65
3
2.64
8
2.59
20
2.56
3
4
5
Pride and belief in the
organization
Flexibility to balance family,
community and job obligations
Teamwork, cooperation and fun at
work
Open and clear communications
Statements Oregon nonprofit employees
are most satisfied with, 2011
Sat. Survey Statement
Ran
k
1
Fairness for differing racial,
gender, sexual-orientation,
disability, age and economic
groups
2
Pride and belief in the organization
3
Flexibility to balance family,
community and job obligations
4
Progress of mission and purpose
5
Paid time off and leave benefits
Imp.
Ran
k
6
Avg.
Scor
e
2.30
2
3
2.23
2.17
9
7
2.07
2.07
Statements with biggest gaps between
importance and satisfaction, 2011
1 Opportunities for increases in pay and
benefits
2 Adequacy and fairness of compensation
across organization
1.63
3 Open and clear communications within
organization
4 Opportunities for promotion and
advancement
1.21
5 Timely discipline and termination for
poor performance
1.06
1.22
1.07
What employees are saying
 “My boss allows me to run my project as
I wish. He is always available to listen
or offer suggestions. He is an
extremely positive person.”
What employees are saying
 “ I would like more interaction with my
supervisor. I feel like much of the
information about my role is filtered then
communicated through a team member
to me. This filtering can cause a break
in the sense of teamwork.”
What employees are saying
 “There is a sense of pride among the
people with whom I work, and a genuine
sense of caring for one another. We do
emotionally difficult work and thus need
a large degree of trust with each other.”
What employees are saying
 “There is a lack of confidence and
support in enabling a staff person to
make decisions and execute a program
without micromanagement from the
top.”
What employees are saying
 “I love that we can bring our dogs and
babies to work with us! It makes the
work place so much less stressful. I also
love all of the different ethnic foods and
treats that employees bring in to
share..”
What employees are saying
 “Obviously being a non-profit
organization budget issues are always a
concern However, employees should be
rewarded with annual raises for doing
such an amazing job.
What employees are saying
 “We support our clients to be
independent in the ways that they can in
a playful loving and respectful way that
brings most days full of laughter and
smiles!!! Our managers facilitate our
(caregivers) ability to sustainably give
care by supporting us with care!!”
What employees are saying
 “There are too many people in charge
and they have a hard time trying not to
step on each others toes and the direct
workers can kind of be seen as lessthan.”
What employees are saying
 “I work with the best people, producing
great art, in a beautiful place. I feel
supported and nurtured by the
organization and my boss.”
100 Best Nonprofit Reports
 Huge benefit of participation: Available to all
participants that meet survey qualification
requirements
 Minimum of 10 employee/volunteer surveys
 At least 10% of employees responding
 Completed employer survey
 Free Basic report available
 Employee write-in comments and Comprehensive
reports available for a fee
 Easy and valuable way to pinpoint areas of strength
and weakness
Average Category Scores, All Participating
Nonprofits, 2011
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
91.5
90.8
88.6
82.6
80.9
72.4
Work
Management and
environment communications
Satisfcation
Mission and
goals
Importance
89.4
88.2
74.7
Career
development
and learning
72.9
Benefits and
compensation
Work Environment, All Participating Nonprofits,
Satisfaction vs. Importance 2011
Flexibility to balance family, community and
job obligations
2.2
Fairness for differing racial, gender, sexualorientation, disability, age and economic
2.6
2.5
2.3
Teamwork, cooperation and fun at work
2.6
1.9
Quality and efficiency of physical
workspace, tools and equipment
1.7
Clearly defined policies and procedures
1.7
0
0.5
Satisfaction
1
1.5
2
Importance
2.3
2.4
2.5
3
Management & Communications, All
Participating Nonprofits, Satisfaction vs.
Importance 2011
Treatment by supervisors and management
2.7
1.9
Regular feedback from supervisors on job
performance
2.4
1.5
Open and clear communications within
organization
2.6
1.3
Timely discipline and termination for poor
performance
1.8
0.8
Rewards and acknowledgement for top
performance
2.1
1.2
0
0.5
1
1.5
Satisfaction
2
2.5
Importance
3
Mission & Goals, All Participating Nonprofits,
Satisfaction vs. Importance 2011
Progress of mission and purpose
2.5
2.1
Trust in management and/or Board
decisions
Employee involvement in decisionmaking
2.5
1.6
2.3
1.3
2.3
2.1
Support for the broader community
Pride and belief in the organization
2.2
0
0.5
1
Satisfaction
1.5
2
Importance
2.5
2.6
3
Career Development & Learning, All
Participating Nonprofits, Satisfaction vs.
Importance 2011
On-the-job training
2.3
1.6
Support for off-site education and
training
Opportunities to grow and stay
challenged
Opportunities for promotion and
advancement
Clear goals and expectations for a
given job
2.1
1.5
2.5
1.7
2.1
1
2.5
1.7
0
0.5
1
Satisfaction
1.5
2
Importance
2.5
3
Benefits & Compensation, All Participating
Nonprofits, Satisfaction vs. Importance 2011
Adequacy and fairness of compensation
across organization
2.4
1.1
Health and wellness plan quality, options
and cost
2.4
1.6
Retirement plan options and employer
contribution
2.2
1.4
Paid time off and leave benefits
2.1
Opportunities for increases in pay and
benefits
2.3
0.7
0
0.5
Satisfaction
2.5
1
1.5
2
Importance
2.5
3
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General conclusions
 Satisfying nonprofit employees in terms
of pay, benefits and promotion remains
a challenge
 Clear, effective and regular
communication by management with
employees, as well as involving them in
decisions, provides an opportunity to
boost morale with less fiscal impact
General conclusions
 Team-building, acknowledgement and
rewarding top workplace performers,
and discipline of poor performers may
also improve morale
 Nonprofit employees value Work
Environment highly so maintaining
flexibility, work/life balance, familyfriendly policies and sufficient time off is
critical
General conclusions
 Employees also value Mission & Goals
and are more satisfied with their
organizations in this area; they take
pride in their workplace and advancing
the mission
 Providing constructive feedback and
being proactive in helping employees
build skills and develop careers inspires
great loyalty and strengthens the overall
organization
Benefits of survey
participation
 It’s free
 Easy and convenient: accessible online from any
computer or mobile device or on paper in English and
Spanish
 Dialogue with employees: Employees get a unique
chance to voice their opinions confidentially
 Honest feedback: Employers gain valuable insight
about the business from those on the front lines.
 Higher morale and efficiency
 The List
 Event and promotion
 Employee attraction and retention
100 Best Nonprofits schedule
 Sign up: April 23 to June 15
 Survey: April 23 through June 22
 Scoring and ranking: Qualified nonprofits are
informed in late July if they rank (though not where)
among the top 100 nonprofits
 Survey results: Participants may order a free
overview of survey results or a more detailed report
for a fee August through November
 Event and list: The 100 Best Nonprofits will be
honored Sept. 27 at a dinner event in Portland
 List will be published in the October issue of Oregon
Business and online at www.oregonbusiness.com
Participating in our survey
 The 2012 100 Best Nonprofits survey opens
today!
 At least 10 Oregon employees and/or
qualified volunteers required
 Sign up at www.oregon100best.com
 Questions: Contact me at 503-445-8828 or
100best@oregonbusiness.com