Investing in appreciation

All of our organizations have faced immense challenges due to the pandemic — from funding uncertainty to disaster planning to a shift to remote work — which were unfathomable for many of us just a year ago. Yet, 2020 may well offer one of the greatest opportunities in recent history to drive change.  We have before us a monumental cry from nature and society to address climate change and bring equity and inclusivity to our world. As leaders we would be remiss to let this groundswell fade and with it, opportunities for creativity, growth and meaningful change.

Nonprofit work can be exceptionally challenging and stressful, and now it is more important than ever to invest deeply in cultures of care and support — for all staff, board, volunteers and participants — but especially for directors and leaders who often carry the lion’s share of stress.

As Montezuma Land Conservancy’s board president, Jeanne Becker, points out, “Staff are the heart, the brain and the muscles of a small land trust like MLC. You can think of the board as the skeleton, providing the essential fundraising support and foundation, but without the staff, the organization would not be striving forward with new ideas, passion and energy.”

So where do we start? How do we run our organizations in a way that elevates the care of our staff and creates a deeper culture of appreciation and compassion? How do we serve our organizations to build dedicated and inclusive teams that work with passion and deliver outstanding results?

We know that, for our land trusts, this work involves creating a culture of care that includes livable wages and benefits that provide ample opportunities for mental health support and self-care. We also must regularly evaluate how we support paths to professional careers and comfortable lives for our employees and their families.

Thankfully, we’re not the only organizations doing this work, and there exists a large body of evidence-based research showing the positive outcomes of this type of leadership. Let’s jump into a few specific things that have worked well for MLC, Mississippi Valley Conservancy (MVC) and Eastern Sierra Land Trust (ESLT):

Next to Zero Cost Benefits

Opportunities  to  Show  Appreciation and Build Teams: There are many fun, simple ways to bring people together (once we are all able to do so again) and show employees they matter. Explore opportunities for staff and board to gather, such as potlucks, holiday parties, happy hours, “random pie days” and paid staff team building days. Take the time to learn what matters to your staff and work to practice appreciation whenever possible — you might be surprised how much a fresh pie means to folks! For now, a Zoom lunch together, paid for by the organization, can provide an opportunity to relax and catch up with each other. No matter the method, finding ways to celebrate successes and show gratitude creates an important foundation for developing a culture of care.

Holidays: Provide staff paid time off for recognized state and federal holidays as well as birthdays. Both MLC and ESLT have elected to change the name of Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day, and MLC has also added Juneteenth to the list of paid holidays. Consider time off for elections and other life events or take time family-care as appropriate use of sick leave.

Free Professional Development and a Learning Culture: Establishing a learning culture is key to nurturing knowledge and skillsets while keeping creativity alive. Our new virtual world has opened up more opportunities than ever to take advantage of a plethora of free webinars and learning. Studies have repeatedly shown that professional development is important to staff as part of a retention program. Make sure staff know this is a priority and find ways for information to be shared with all staff and board.

Low-Cost Addition

Budgeted Professional Development: While there are many free opportunities for professional development, it can be valuable to offer other options, including coaching, paid webinars or certifications. Consider establishing an annual budget for every staff person, no matter their position.

Support for Remote Working Environments: Even in a post-COVID world there is a growing recognition that many staff will want to continue to work from home, at least part-time, to reduce commuting or to allow for better focus. It also provides a way to reduce the organization’s carbon footprint. Ensuring staff have the tools and support they need to comfortably work from home or other remote locations goes a long way toward showing support — and providing organizational resilience. This means new policies, flexibilities and investments in technology.

Deeper Investments

Health Insurance: There is no doubt that health insurance is a great way to show appreciation, support team well-being and advance diversity and inclusion. Not everyone can afford healthcare given school loans, rent or mortgages, car payments and childcare costs. There is no silver bullet for how to dive into insurance, and your organization’s options will vary state to state. Find a reputable local broker and begin conversations about a good place to start. MVC pays 70% of a whole family’s costs; ESLT pays 100% per employee; and MLC pays up to $550 per month per employee, which covers between 85-100% of current staff’s individual costs.

Retirement Plans: Developing options for retirement helps to create long-term, professional career paths for employees. Simple IRA Retirement Plans are common, with an employee match of between 3-5%. That said, matching requirements can be biased towards those who can afford to save. More organizations are shifting to a straight contribution.

Paid Family and Medical Leave: Providing the opportunity for employees to welcome new members into their families through birth or adoption — or to provide care for a child, spouse or elder — is a great way to value your employees as part of a long-term team. Because this type of leave is planned in advance, organizations can anticipate costs and staffing adjustments needed. Some organizations, like ESLT, utilize state guidelines to inform their policies, while others like MLC employ an internal written policy. These policies can include a mix of paid leave and additional unpaid time, but recognizing adequate paid time off is critical for the staff member’s health and well-being.

Sabbaticals: Sabbaticals can provide long-term dedicated staff with the opportunity to take a much-needed refresher while deepening their commitment to their careers and exploring their creativity and passions. Like maternity/paternity leave, these are planned in advance so the organization can adjust and prepare. Currently, MLC provides a three-month sabbatical option to staff after five years with the organization, including 1.5 months paid. Staff may elect to utilize any accrued leave towards the additional 1.5 months. The organization requires that some element of the sabbatical must relate back to professional development and enhance the employees’ career with the organization.

Creating an organization that invests in staff is central to staff quality, retention, commitment to inclusion, organizational viability and community relationships. With all of the options available to show appreciation and support staff, one thing should remain clear — if your organization is just getting started, this won’t happen overnight, but you can begin with small steps to start building your culture of appreciation. For MLC, MVC and ESLT, creating and implementing policies and developing a culture of care has been a long-term process that began at the board and staff leadership level. Once these organizational values are established, it becomes easier to develop goals and objectives for policy development, fundraising, community conservation and implementation. However, throughout this process it is important to value this work as an investment in our organization in much the same way that we understand the value of financial investment or investments in technology.

How do we know these things pay off in the long run? For all of our organizations the outcomes of this process have been clear: Staff express to leadership they feel heard, seen and cared for; staff deliverables often exceed leadership expectations; our organizations have less turnover, less time spent training new staff and less hiring costs; and our offices are a place where people want to work because they are filled with laughter, passion and commitment.

Building dedicated, compassionate and inclusive teams is no small task, but there has never been a better opportunity to dive in and invest. Conservation is about love of place, connection and commitment to the future. Let’s work together to ensure we extend this ethos throughout our organizations and the land trust community: Care for yourselves and care for one another.