These were Governor General David Johnston‘s words of advice to the nearly 500 delegates at the National Summit for the Charitable and Nonprofit Sector. While the anecdote recalled his own experience as a child playing hockey, His Excellency set the stage for discussions that would take place around the four priority areas for action. This sentiment seemed most appropriate for the area focusing on improving conditions for the attraction and retention of paid staff in the nonprofit sector.

Setting the context

In 2004, a pan-Canadian consultation confirmed a strong desire for the creation of what would eventually become the HR Council for the Nonprofit Sector (HR Council), an organization incorporated in 2005 that takes action on nonprofit labour force issues. Hundreds of sector employers and employees through the consultations articulated a need for HR support. Challenges included low pay and inadequate benefits, the lack of management capacity, poor recruitment and retention policies and practices and insufficient training opportunities. These challenges were echoed in the recent community conversations that Imagine Canada hosted in the lead up to the National Summit.

Another keynote speaker, social commentator Allan Gregg provided context to the HR discussion by talking about the future of Canada’s labour force. It is an aging workforce — with estimates that one in four working Canadians could be aged 55 or older by 2021 (Statistics Canada, 2011). It is also becoming more culturally diverse, with nearly a third of the workforce being foreign born by 2031 (Statistics Canada, 2011). Additionally, Canada’s Aboriginals, traditionally underrepresented in the workforce, are one of the fastest growing segments of the population (Conference Board of Canada, 2010).

Getting down to work

Co-leads Marlene Desboisbriand (Boys & Girls Clubs of Canada and HR Council board chair), Miia Suokonautio (Phoenix Youth Programs), and Bob Wyatt (Muttart Foundation), were charged with leading approximately 100 delegates through a process that would result in tangible actions to support the attraction and retention of paid staff in the sector.

Five broad areas of issues were identified and in small working groups delegates identified strategies that would address each area. This was deemed to be a challenging exercise as the areas were quite broad (e.g. being an employer of choice). There was concern around the group’s ability to adequately cover each area, however delegates made the most of the time they had taking into consideration that not everything would be covered.

By the end of the working sessions, delegates had identified and agreed on three strategic actions:

1. Support HR infrastructure development.

Delegates talked about the importance of not only having access to quality HR information but the need to build the capacity of organizations to implement and follow through on effective HR management policies and practices.

2. Host public, education campaign(s) about the role of the sector, HR and pay.

This strategy stemmed from a concern expressed by delegates that HR isn’t seen as a priority in organizations. Nonprofits need to understand the role effective HR management practices can play but they aren’t the only ones. Funders, donors, members, partners and the public need to be aware of the important role HR plays so that it becomes acceptable to allocate appropriate resources for its implementation.

3. Develop a national leadership program on core skills.

Many nonprofit executive directors and boards lack core skills needed to implement effective HR management practices. To better support these nonprofit leaders it was suggested that core HR management skills be identified for each and that a national leadership program be created to disseminate the information.

Participants were asked to submit in writing what they could do to advance these actions locally, regionally and nationally. This is where delegates really had to think about what their organization could do to contribute to the strategies.

Beyond the Summit

Participants discussed ways to engage with their colleagues, volunteers and partner organizations to share what was learned at the Summit. There were a number of comments that centered on reviewing their own HR practices and then sharing their knowledge with other local organizations. One participant even wrote that they would seek out an opportunity to mentor an organization in need of HR expertise.

Others indicated that they would circulate information and host meetings to increase the public’s understanding of the sector. Those individuals who represented organizations in the room from Quebec voiced that they were ready to create a provincial committee to develop a campaign to position the sector.

More broadly organizations talked about the importance of creating a shared resources network, of identifying funders that would contribute to HR initiatives and of the importance of collaborating with provincial and national organizations. Creating a national network of organizations with the capacity to advance the strategies was even suggested. These action items became less about what individual organizations could do and more about what in particular what the HR Council or Imagine Canada could lead.

The future of the HR Council

The fact that the federal government has decided to end to core funding for 30-odd sector councils by March 2013, which could have serious implications for the HR Council for the Nonprofit Sector was not lost on delegates. It was as Al Hatton of United Way — Centraide Canada described, “the elephant in the room.”

“There is a lot riding on the viability of the HR Council,” said Mike Grogan of the Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations. There was agreement among many that without an entity like the HR Council operating at the national level, addressing HR issues would be more difficult.

As the chair of the HR Council board of directors, Deboisbriand told delegates that the organization is working through a strategic planning process over the coming months and that “the HR Council will do anything it can think of to keep the organization moving forward.”

The path forward

Andrew Lockie (CEO, United Way of London and Middlesex) suggested that nonprofits need to be more collaborative with others outside the sector. “By talking only to organizations in the sector, the discussion has a real risk of becoming insular,” he said. “Considerable efforts need to be made to find advocates outside the sector.”

At the end of the working sessions, it felt like the conversation wasn’t ready to be concluded, that not everything that needed to be discussed was brought up, and that delegates were still interested working though the strategies. There seemed to be comfort however in knowing that Imagine Canada would make the session notes available to organizations so that they could be reviewed in more detail. Asked for her thoughts on the proceedings, Deboisbriand indicated that she felt that the discussion solidified the need for some body to house a mandate that focuses on providing HR support to the sector. “HR remains a priority,” she concluded.

Tanara Pickard has been working and volunteering in the nonprofit sector at national and local levels for a number of years. Currently she works as a project manager with the HR Council for the Nonprofit Sector overseeing projects that build the HR capacity of organizations. She is also a recent addition to the Planned Parenthood Ottawa board of directors. Her background is in recreation with a Master’s degree in Leisure Studies from Dalhousie University.

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