Non-Profit vs. Corporate America

[Ideal08]

Ok, I think this is an interesting topic!

How many of you have worked in the non-profit sector as well as corporate America? I have done both. After I graduated, I decided to do City Year, which is an AmeriCorps program. I absolutely LOVED the community service that we did. But I felt like our site (Columbus, Oh) started to sell out for funding, so I jetted. I am not one for selling out. Anywho, I decided to try the corporate arena.

Now, after seeing these layoffs, and how they affect people, and how the bottom line is ALWAYS money, I'm wondering if I need to go back to non-profit. But I'm just so tired of being poor. I wanted to make a little money so I could see what it was like, dang! But at the same time, I don't like working for places where money is the bottom line. We are people. Human beings. We are not machines. And that is how you are treated, it seems to me. All they want to know is, can you produce? There are politics within a non-profit, but it's not all about money. And if it is, it's about funding, not about making an all mighty dollar.

I don't know. What do yall think? What are your views on non-profits vs the corporate world? Advantages, disadvantages?

[allsmiles_22]

Well I have just entered the corporate world, so I really couldn't differentiate between the non-profit and corporate world. I can only give my opinion about the corporate even though I have only been here for about two months now. I enjoy what I am doing and I'm making a great salary, but I really cannot say that what I'm doing is meaningful.
Just like you said, "We are people. Human beings. We are not machines. And that is how you are treated...". I've been working 65 hours a week for a month and I'm worn out already. I get up, go to work, work, go home, sleep, and get up, over and over again. If this is the way my life is going to be for the next 25 years, then I'm trying to retire at 25. I think Corporate America works too much. I really don't understand why we should spend 8 hours or more a day trying to make sure that either your company or someone else?s makes money. Yes, it helps to make society prosperous, but it doesn't do anything for the problems that are going on.

I've always done community service on a regular basis, but lately I haven't been able to because of work and I just feel so bad. I enjoy being that independent woman and providing for myself, but if I had the option I'd marry rich quick. Being a housewife doesn't seem that bad now, especially since I'd have the time and resources to do what I like best, which is helping others.

I've ventured off the topic a bit, but I guess the answer really depends on the person. Some people really don't care how much money they have and feel they are rewarded by doing good deeds. Others believe that money is their means of survival and will do whatever to make it. Finally, there are those that know they need money (like myself to pay bills), but can still make time to do something more meaningful for themselves and society.

[DST Love]

Don't get me started about corporate america. I can't say much about non-profit, but corporate america is the worst. My boyfriend and I talk about how awful it is everyday. We both make great money but sometimes it just doesn't seem worth it. For me more than him. I am an accountant and I hate it. I used to be an auditor and I'd be lucky if I didn't work 55-60 hours a week or more or be out of town at the snap of someone's finger literally. People in corporate america definitely look at one another as machines and not human beings.

When I was an auditor out on a client, my sister, back in Illinois (I'm in Georgia), had been rushed to the hospital for an illness she had had for a couple of years and it was pratically life or death. So I tell my senior on that client that my boyfriend and I would be driving back to Illinois the next day and why. He had the nerve to say, "you sure you have to go? You can't stay another day". I thought I was going to drop kick him right there at the client site. Needless to say, I left that job a few weeks later.

Here's my take: whether you're 20, 30, or 70, you're not promised to be here another day. So enjoy each day while you can. And I certainly couldn't do that at my previous job. Well, I barely can at this job either but at least I have a lot more freedom. Praise God for that!!

Sorry for rambling on but I told you don't get me started on corporate america. Honestly I might just start writing a book right here on Greekchat if you're not careful .

[sphinxpoet]

Greetings,

I feel what you are saying. I was in the same position after 4 years of college and working for non-profits I started working in the Corporate World working for a Major Consulting Firm. There are politics in corporate America as well. I have found companies like AMerican Express actually sponser organizations that are non-for profit. Pay their salary and allow them access to certain ventures. Such and example is National Academy Foundation which writes curriculum(sp) for high schools in the work related fields. That is my 06 cents.

Sphinxpoet
Hint: HE is part of that Fraternity that wears that Black and Olde Gold......You know founded by 7 men of vision.......Well if you don't know you betta ask somebody.

[Rain Man]

Originally posted by DST Love:
Don't get me started about corporate america. I can't say much about non-profit, but corporate america is the worst. My boyfriend and I talk about how awful it is everyday. We both make great money but sometimes it just doesn't seem worth it. For me more than him. I am an accountant and I hate it. I used to be an auditor and I'd be lucky if I didn't work 55-60 hours a week or more or be out of town at the snap of someone's finger literally. People in corporate america definitely look at one another as machines and not human beings.

When I was an auditor out on a client, my sister, back in Illinois (I'm in Georgia), had been rushed to the hospital for an illness she had had for a couple of years and it was pratically life or death. So I tell my senior on that client that my boyfriend and I would be driving back to Illinois the next day and why. He had the nerve to say, "you sure you have to go? You can't stay another day". I thought I was going to drop kick him right there at the client site. Needless to say, I left that job a few weeks later.

.

DST Love, I feel ya!
I am an accountant and I am leaving the profession. I used to do audits with firms like PriceWaterhouseCoopers and KPMG. IMHO it was a VERY Dilbertlike experience and the managers and partners WOULD NOT talk TO me, only AT me through the senior auditor. That pi$$ed me off to the Nth degree. The fact that I was driving up and down the state of Ohio doing audits for these hick towns where if you seen ONE black person, it was truly a blessing, didn't help matters. One women in such a town saw my leftover fried chicken lunch and actually said, "You black people got to have your chicken." What the freak? But I digress.

Currently I am with a nonprofit agency working on an MBA, and while the pay is meager by comparison, the camraderie and love radiating through the agency is worth it. I am looking for another career, but I wish I could take every employee with me, I luv 'em that much.

DST Love, if you like to relate your experiences or career plans or options privately, you may email me if you wish. In the meantime, keep praying to God for something better.

God bless you.
RM

[AKAdemic1]

When I graduated college (93), the job market was so bad that quite a few people I knew (including myself) took low-paying jobs w/non-profit organizations because it was the best we could do. I stayed with my job for two years, and I absolutely loved it- the freedom to define my own job, the chance to really make a difference, the opportunity to have a life of my own. Unfortunately, the grant that funded my position was not renewed, so it was off to corporate america for me.

While my industry (fashion) is not as
"traditionally" corporate as finance or insurance, underneath, it is the same as all the rest- and then some. It's really frustrating once you realize that 1) the bottom line is the money/product and the company is more willing to spend $50 grand a month on buying clothes to copy, (of which half are never even used) than it is to give employees more than a 2 to 3% raise; and 2) getting ahead is not so much about what you know, but who you know and what kind of sucking up you have to do to get it. On the flip side, I do get great perks, so it's not the worst place I could be.


They say that our generation is not as driven or ambitious as our parents were because so many of us don't want to work 12 hour days and live out of suitcases. I'm not so sure it is a lack of ambition so much as it is a change in attitude about priorities. I know that I don't want to be the one working until 10 pm to make money for someone else.

The non profit and corporate worlds both have advantages. I just think that it's really about what you're willing to trade off at this point in your life.

[DST Love]

Originally posted by Rain Man:
DST Love, I feel ya!
I am an accountant and I am leaving the profession. I used to do audits with firms like PriceWaterhouseCoopers and KPMG. IMHO it was a VERY Dilbertlike experience and the managers and partners WOULD NOT talk TO me, only AT me through the senior auditor. That pi$$ed me off to the Nth degree. The fact that I was driving up and down the state of Ohio doing audits for these hick towns where if you seen ONE black person, it was truly a blessing, didn't help matters. One women in such a town saw my leftover fried chicken lunch and actually said, "You black people got to have your chicken." What the freak? But I digress.

Currently I am with a nonprofit agency working on an MBA, and while the pay is meager by comparison, the camraderie and love radiating through the agency is worth it. I am looking for another career, but I wish I could take every employee with me, I luv 'em that much.

DST Love, if you like to relate your experiences or career plans or options privately, you may email me if you wish. In the meantime, keep praying to God for something better.

God bless you.
RM

Thanks RainMan !! I wanted to speak with you about your accounting experiences when I read elsewhere that you hated accounting. I don't know about you but it is just very unrewarding. It's long hours and lots of crap!! People wonder why accountants get paid well. Well that's why. That's also why it's so easy to get an accounting job because people are always leaving the profession. I worked for Ernst & Young and they like the rest of the "Big 5" public accounting firms focused hard on their turnover rate.

I told you all not to get me started but I have a story that I hope you will all appreciate as much as I do. My aunt, who is in her later 30s with a business degree, used to work in corporate america for well over 10 years. One day someone asked her if she would like to take a few weeks and travel overseas. Well she said she couldn't because of work. After a while, that stuck in her head. She wondered why couldn't she enjoy life just because she worked. Well, she quit her job and with some money she had saved, she traveled the world literally for like six to eight months or so.

After she got back to Chicago, she took some waitressing and bartending jobs just to keep some money flowing in. After that, she started her own business. She opened a fitness center where she not only leads the exercises classes but also provides diet plans and other services along that line (Mind you at 37 she looks incredible). She told me that while she makes less than in corporate america she has more now. Which I understood. When you have a lot of money but are not happy with what you do, you try and compensate by buying a lot of things to prove to yourself that you are working for a purpose. However, when you're fulfilling yourself first then the money can't do too much more for you than you're doing for yourself.

Might I add that she is also a lot more in touch with her spirituality due to traveling to other countries but also because she is in a positive environment. She told me that
from being around all the people from other countries, she learned to step out on faith more. When she's not sure if she might be able to pay a bill for her facility, that's when a customer will walk in and want to pay for classes and diets for a year or so in advance. She told me that this has helped her to understand that when you just step out on faith without all the wondering, that's when God is more able to lead you where you need to be.

This whole story sticks with me every minute of the day. It really helps me and my boyfriend a lot and I hope it helps one of you too.

I apologize, Ideal08, if I am straying from what you might of wanted to discuss. I guess when I hear anything about corporate america, I get started.

[Ideal08]

Originally posted by DST Love:
I apologize, Ideal08, if I am straying from what you might of wanted to discuss. I guess when I hear anything about corporate america, I get started.

No apologies necessary, my Greek sista! I think that this is interesting, and I am loving your aunt's outlook on life! It is true, it really is.

I was just talking with my friend over lunch, and we were discussing whether or not our generation is not as ambition. I have to agree with my soror, AKAdemic1, I think that we just have different priorities. I'm not trying to kill myself to put stupid money in my own pockets, let alone somebody else's. It's a hard toss up, it really is. What would you rather have RIGHT NOW? Financial security (not that JOBS provide that, but y'know) or the fulfillment (sp??) of knowing that you are making a difference? Right now, I'm looking at my stint in C.A. as a means to an end. I want them to pay for my MBA and my CISCO certification. Now what I do with the MBA is a whole 'nother thread! LOL!

I'm really enjoying everyone's different viewpoints and experiences!! Keep 'em coming!!

[DST Love]

Obviously, I'm not working too hard today. But of course, that's because I know I will be here until about 8pm.

Anywho, as far as us having a lack of ambition, I think it is more due to choices and opportunities. I think back in the day, our parents, grandparents, etc. were happy to have their job because they weren't sure what else they could get in some instances and they wanted to stay loyal to the company just as the company would take care of them (maybe)!! Now, we have degrees, certifications, advanced technology and all this other stuff that makes the job market bigger and prepares us to have the ability to compete better for said jobs. Not to mention that these companies today don't care about us or our life outside of the job (everything is so impersonal and dehumanizaing)!! So I think today we have the mentality of "get yours before they get theirs".

And it's like what was said before, our priorities are different. Most of my friends say that they are not going to spend the rest of their lives working long hard hours and putting up with mad politics just to make others richer. Now I don't think I'd mind working for someone as long as it's something that either fulfills me personally or helps the Black community (ie teaching, medicine, social work, etc).

[This message has been edited by DST Love (edited March 01, 2001).]

[Discogoddess]

DST Love:

Is your aunt operating in Chicago? If so, can you give me contact information to her fitness center? Feel free to email me privately, if you'd rather not broadcast her info. Thanks!

On the topic: This is my first job in "corporate America," and I have to say that while I don't agree with the politics and layers of garbage one has to go through to get the job done, I REALLY dig the compensation! Most of my professional life has been spent in the nonprofit world, where politics and money were still the end all/be all, just dressed up differently. I do miss doing issue advocacy public relations the most, but I don't miss not having much in the way of benefits or vacation to show for the 10-12-hour days (on the regular)!!

I'm okay with my job now, knowing that I WILL be in business for myself and/or working in another career within the next few years, so I'm enjoying/learning what I can now. I consider myself an independent contractor whose renting herself out for a period of time to this particular company. When I get good and ready, I'll be renting myself out somewhere else or reserving my talents for my own venture.

[This message has been edited by Discogoddess (edited March 01, 2001).]

[DST Love]

Originally posted by Discogoddess:
DST Love:

Is your aunt operating in Chicago? If so, can you give me contact information to her fitness center? Feel free to email me privately, if you'd rather not broadcast her info. Thanks!

She is in Chicago but I'll have to talk to her and get that info for you.

[DST Love]

Discogoddess I sent you an e-mail. If anyone else in the Chicago area would like that info let me know.

[PrincessELG]

Well I know that I have worked for both a non-profit organization and a coporate arena (and yes I am only 20, I just have alot of working experience) and it seems to me that they both were concernend about the might dollar. In a non profit there was always this cloud of breaking even and the gov't looking over your shoulder about where your money went. Where as in coporate america it was really the company's discretion about where and how the money went. And let's not forget about the monetary stability of a for-profit over a non-profit because in the situation of the company I was in everyone was scared that they would be sacrificed to break even.

------------------
#1 DRAMA QUEEN
Spring 2001
ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA SORORITY INC.
GAMMA EPSILON CHAPTER

[yasava]

...to get some perspective.

I've had several internships with different corporations and I've been working for this financial services corp doing some marketing for a few months now. I'm not enjoying it AT ALL. I've done a little soul searching and am seriously considering making a career change to non-profit. I've never been happy with any job/internship I've had, I've loathed the corporate "retreats" (they were anything but) that I had to go on as part of my honors pgm. (I didn't even go to the last one, and it was "mandatory") The service/volunteer work I do is really fulfilling to me, but I don't want to be too impulsive ; I want to pray on it, research thoroughly, and talk to people who are working for non-profits, so I know what I'm getting myself into. However, the more I think about it, the more I feel that this "corporate america" thing is not me.

I'm thinking about getting an MPA or MPP with a concentration in non-profit mgmt. I would love to pick the brains of those of you out there who have these degrees and/or work for nonprofits. Basic info like what do you do, how did you get into non-profit, and how satisfied are you. Also, if you know of some good MPA/MPP programs. Any words of advice/encouragement are appreciated. Thanks!

[Honeykiss1974]

Speak everyone. The non-profit industry is not just mutually exclusive to social workers, case managers, etc. ANYONE can work in this industry and enjoy me. Look at me!

I have a BA in accouting and after graduation, I went to work for a big, major oil and gas company as an accountant. This place was corporate america to a tee. I worked at the headquarters and out of the 5,ooo employees there why was I one of only 10 black folks Yes, I really mean ten.! No exaggeration intended. It was a really straight laced. white-bred, khaki company full of white men and again, they talked AT you, not too you. At this company, the mighty dollar ruled EVERYTHING! no, for real EVERYTHING!! Most people only worked there for about 6 months to a year. I was an "Old head" because I had been there for 2 1/2 years.

And yes, accouting is a THANKLESS profession. You bust your hump working 60-70 weeks (and this does not include a company' fiscal year end or tax season) all for no bonus (or a real measley one).........

Anyway, I left that job to work as a financial analyst for a non-profit catholic hospital. Y'all, I love the non-profit environment. You matter........and not just you the worker, but you the person.
In my situation, when I took this job, my pay INCREASED!! You can bring your babies/children to work with you as your work.

Yes, as with any work environment, the non-profit industry can have its "political issues" as well, but all in all, I plan to stick with this industry.