What keeps workers going when it’s not all about the money?

If there’s one problem Robert Lee has at his company, it’s that his employees can be too driven.

Lee runs a non-profit called Rescuing Leftover Cuisine, which takes uneaten food from restaurants and distributes it to organisations feeding the needy in 12 US cities. When the phones ring, it’s often a restaurant, reporting that they have unused food and usually his employees want to rush right over.

Rescuing Leftover Cuisine

Since leaving his job as an analyst at JP Morgan two years ago to run his charity, Lee has learned that non-profit employees are often very driven, but unlike those at traditional companies their motives are different. They take on extra tasks, work hard and want to say yes to any client, but they're not doing it for the money or prestige. Instead, they want to help as many people as possible. So rather than have them rush out the door every time the phone rings, Lee encourages his staff to schedule several pickups at once, getting the best use of trucks and personnel. 

“You have employees so focused on the mission that their reaction is always, yes, we can do that,” Lee says. “But you have to get them thinking about using their time for the most impact.”

It’s a lesson for any manager switching to a non-profit from a for-profit organisation, as it's an industry largely made up of the altruistic, motivated not by money or status. So if you’re moving from a traditional company to a charity, get ready for an entirely different way to think about how you work and manage. 

It’s not about money

Because non-profits attract those driven by the cause, managers must be ready to find new kinds of motivation, says Taara Hoffman, executive director of GirlVentures, which runs outdoor adventures for at-risk girls.

It’s not money. Her employees are more likely to make more if they work elsewhere, Hoffman says. And it’s likely not status or titles, since well-educated employees could have gotten more high-profile jobs in for-profit companies. 

“The key is to find what sparks them about the work,” Hoffman says.

 Most employees in non-profits aren’t in it for the bragging rights of completing a project or increasing revenue, like at traditional companies, Lee says. “Because everyone is so passionate about the cause, they are willing to put aside their egos.” 

Instead, Hoffman says, it’s often about some connection to the cause. With her non-profit, sometimes employees want to help girls growing up in poverty. Or maybe they participated in a similar program when they were kids. So Hoffman identifies their motivations and ensures the tasks she gives them fit.

“If you’re going to be the executive director of a non-profit, you really have to get your motivational skills in order,” Hoffman says.

Short-term motivation

There’s also not a lot of time to spare, warns Leila Janah, CEO of Sama Group, which aims to reduce global poverty by helping people find digital employment. 

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Many employees in non-profits are just out of university, spending two or three years working at a good cause before moving on. As a manager, that means figuring out how to set short-term goals for short-term employees. 

“As a manager, it may be even harder to get the results you need” at a non-profit, Janah says. “Because you may have to dig deep to find what motivates your employees.”

For some, it may be the idea of helping someone who went through similar challenges, like children raised by single parents or from poor homes. Or maybe they have a goal of helping a community or minority group. Find that motivating factor, and you've found a way to motivate your employee, Janah says.

Along the way, managers need to make sure employees at charities have good working conditions, Janah says. Because they’re often overqualified and highly educated, non-profit employees have options elsewhere.

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That means saying yes to things that might not go over in the for-profit world, like redefining responsibilities, working from home, creating new hours or giving them time in the day to work on side projects that go to what motivates them. Maybe their main responsibility is answering phones, but perhaps here and there they'd also like to do outreach with the nonprofit's clients.

It also means you need to keep reminding staff of the mission, Janah says. If you’re handing off an undesirable task, be sure to explain how it’s going to help do good. And be flexible where you can.

“It’s not that non-profit employees aren’t willing to work hard, because they are,” Janah says. “But people need to be motivated by inspiration first.”

Because in an industry based on altruism rather than money and titles, a manager needs to remember one thing: it’s all about the mission.

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