Social Impact Staff Retention 2024
Launched in late-2023, the inaugural Social Impact Staff Retention survey collected data on nonprofit worker engagement. Respondents were asked whether they are seeking new jobs (or will be over the next year), whether they are not, and why. Details were also collected about tenure, scope of work, and whether job seekers plan to stay in the nonprofit sector or look to other fields.
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Findings & Recommendations
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Overwhelmingly, nonprofiteers are dissatisfied.
When respondents were asked if they are looking for a new job, or will be this year, 74.2% said yes — compared to an all-industry average of 65%. Only one-third (34.7%) of those who responded “yes” definitively plan to stay working in nonprofits; the remaining 65.3% said “no” or were “unsure.”
Of those with fewer than 10 years of professional experience, 82% are/will be looking for new jobs. For those with more than 10 years of experience, that figure drops to 69%.
REAL TALK TAKEAWAY: If your organization employs 16 people, 12 of them may be looking for a new job this year — especially emerging nonprofiteers with < 10 years of experience.
Should I stay or should I go?
When respondents were asked why they are/will be looking for a new job, the top-line reasons were: having too much responsibility and not enough support (58%); no obvious/clear growth opportunities (also 58%); and inadequate compensation/benefits (57%).
Top reasons workers plan to stay in their roles include: having hybrid/remote flexibility (82%); supportive management/leadership (64%); and adequate compensation/benefits (also 64%).
REAL TALK TAKEAWAY: If you don’t pay attention to your employees’ workload and advancement, they may pay attention to a new job in a new industry. Be adaptable with in-office mandates, pay your people as well as you can, and make intentional space to be kind.
Discoveries in the data.
Despite industry chatter to the contrary, fewer than half of respondents (48%) suggest they are/will be looking for new jobs because their work environments are poor or toxic.
Similarly, while nonprofit fundraisers are often referenced as having high turnover, it was marketing (81%) and programming (94%) professionals who most suggested they are looking. The industries with the highest projected departures were advocacy & public policy (84%) and arts & culture (93%).
REAL TALK TAKEAWAY: Nonprofit toxicity is high, but it’s not the main reason people are leaving jobs. If you manage marketing or programming teams in advocacy or artistic spaces, pay extra attention to those nonprofiteers.
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In the fall of 2023, working through social networks and directly with nonprofit organizations and their employees, the Social Impact Staff Retention survey was administered online. Responses were collected from a random sample of nonprofiteers across the United States (n=260). Participants were CEO/founders, IT professionals, fundraisers, marketers, and beyond — no one group held a majority. Responses came from a range of experiences as well, from fewer than 5 years working in nonprofits to more than 30. The survey collection was kept anonymous to improve results.
About the survey.
About the project leads.
Michelle Flores Vryn brings 15+ years of nonprofit experience to the table with expertise spanning various aspects of development — from major gifts and institutional giving to capital campaigns and digital fundraising. Contact Michelle.
Evan Wildstein is a nonprofiteer with 20+ years of experience in fundraising, strategy, and operations. He recently published The Nonprofiteer’s Fundraising Field Guide, the first critical review of philanthropy through the lens of servant-leadership. Contact Evan.