Articles - Org Development

Staying on my gardening theme with this blog today I wanted to speak about a conversation regarding the work of Non Profits in the field of Human Services, but United Way in particular.

Let me say straight away that I am a passionate proponent of the values and mission of United Way and many of those agencies’. They do God’s work in horribly under resourced circumstances. Many unpaid volunteers doing significant work in their own time.

That is what brings me to tell you the story. I am personally highly engaged in the work we do. That’s why I ask the question. There are only limited resources so it is crucial we put it to good work.

What is it that we (United Way) really do? ADVOCATE – GIVE – VOLUNTEER does not get it, I asked and was told.

There is much good that goes on because of the fund raising efforts of United Way. Indeed many small volunteer agencies’ would not exist if it were not for the funding they receive each year. They depend on it!  So it has to go on! Yet the pot of money is getting smaller and more want to eat from it!

And yet, what more can United Way do – Fund Raise?  Are we simply the “Band Aid” for many of the social issues serviced by wonderful agencies and the work of thousands of volunteers?

Over the last few years, I ask, how much of our monies has been resourcing the consequences of social issues like poverty, teenage pregnancy, broken families, battered women, and so on, the list is long.  The answer is MOST OF IT.

So what do we need to do?

Plant the seeds of change and be the change!

Yes, we need to continue to fund the consequences of the current state of society. AND be the catalyst and voice of change, AND find the solutions with out partners AND make it happen!  AND do so with our network of agencies and social and human services teams, AND be RELENTLESS.

When do we do it?

The time is now.

How do we do it?

We will work with our agency partners, combine resources and talents and focus on what our aspirations are. Lets talk about our future state AND what we WILL do, not plan to do.

By channeling more of what we do on tackling the causes.

By uniting our individual strengths, characters, resources and passions and moving from process to outcomes.

By being more than a fundraiser and an advocate for change. We need to be the change that we wish to see in the world.  (Ghandi)

The Result?

Spend less on consequences and more on the causes – making a real and lasting difference. Planting perennials and not annuals.

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BIOGRAPHY

It is an oft-repeated principle that an organization is only as strong as its people, and this holds true whether the organization is a profit-based multinational or a community-focused non-profit agency. But it is not enough to attract and retain top caliber talent. The organization must have the business fundamentals, the culture, the structure and the leadership to ensure that quantifiable, bottom-line results can be delivered now and over the long term.

That is where I come in. I have helped organizations in a wide range of sectors become more competitive, more productive, more creative, and more client-focused, by building teams that are strategic, value-driven, business-savvy and partnership-modelled. I am a passionate believer that a company that lives and breathes its vision, mission and values is not only stronger and more agile on a business level, but is a place where people and teams are naturally inclined to deliver to their maximum potential. My strength as an HR Executive is my ability to recognize and challenge ingrained assumptions and patterns of operation that aren’t productive, and offer practical, cost-effective and value-based solutions.

I have steered hundreds of organizational changes, from small procedural shifts that immediately improve efficiency, to the complete build-out of a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that not only required all new equipment and workflows, but called for a complete re-engineering of employees’ ways of thinking about their work. As such, I know what it takes to rally employees and stakeholders around an innovative concept or vision, and to translate it into a pragmatic, workable on-the-ground solution that makes good business sense.

Peter is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development, Has a master degree in Human Resources and a Bachelors in Business Administration and Human Resources.

Peter is working on leadership and engagement projects and is available for relocation.

You can find Peter on

His blog : http://hrmexplorer.wordpress.com/

Linkedin:  http://www.linkedin.com/in/peterlanc

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