People Resources: Staffing and Volunteers

Assessing organizational staffing needs and developing a staffing structure
Organizations should not be in a hurry to rush into the hiring process.  Two things need to be in place before the recruiting and hiring process begins.  First, the organization needs to figure out the specific tasks that need to be performed.  Second, it needs to determine how the tasks can best be distributed among volunteers, salaried staff/employees, independent contractors, and agencies to whom you can outsource.  Determining what balance will work for your organization is a tricky process and is dependent upon a number of different factors including financial resources, skills sets of existing personnel (volunteer or paid), and timing.  It is a balance that needs reassessment on a regular basis.

Overview of staffing options:  paid, volunteer, interns, independent contractors

• Volunteers were your source of manpower when you started and are an ongoing source of “free” labor.  Most nonprofit arts organizations, even the very largest ones, can not exist without a good core of volunteers.  Because volunteers don’t get paid, the organization must be aware of what motivates volunteers to work with them and balance that with the tasks (some of which might be very mundane) that the organization needs to have completed.  It also takes time to recruit, train and retain volunteers for them to be of the greatest benefit for the organization.
• Salaried staff members are individuals who provide ongoing assistance with the organization’s important functions.  Because the organization is paying these individuals it can expect them to meet a certain standard of performance and more control can be exerted with careful supervision.  As mentioned previously, the organization has particular legal obligations to employees that need to be in place to protect both staff and the organization and these should be addressed prior to hiring.
• Independent contractors are individuals who are not members of the regular staff, but are hired for a specific length of time to do specific tasks.  An hourly or flat rate is paid and the organization does not withhold taxes or provide benefits.  Often independent contractors can offer the most cost effective method for a service where a special expertise or set of skills is needed for a discrete job or for a task that is not a continuing need.  Arts organizations might hire actors for a particular play on a contract basis or engage a consultant to help write grants.  Many organizations are tempted to hire independent contractors when their working patterns indicate that they should really be categorized as staff. Governmental agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, have specific attributes that constitute their test of whether a contractor should be been classified otherwise.  If the work that a contractor does is short-term and s/he has more independence than employees, classification as independent contract is likely to be viewed as correct.  If a contractor does not fit the governmental definition of an independent contractor, the organization could be required to pay back taxes and unemployment compensation to the state.  Consulting legal or accounting assistance in hiring contractors is advised if there is any doubt.
• One overlooked source of help is student interns from colleges or universities.  There are a number of colleges that have programs in arts management or nonprofit management in the Chicago area and within the state.  Engaging students can be a win-win situation both for the organization and individual as students are constantly looking for organizations to work with to gain hands-on experience.

There are agencies that work very much like independent contractors to whom an organization might outsource a particular task on a fee basis.  Many of these organizations specialize in a single function or area and because of economies of scale, or access to special equipment, can offer services at competitive prices. Some examples might be in areas where routine functions are the norm – payroll services, financial management, marketing, or cleaning services.

Resource
A toolkit to use outside consultants: "Insider's Guide to Outside Advice" published by the Grand Victoria Foundation.