AchieveMission Selects and Enrolls Seven Prominent Nonprofits in its 2012 Talent Initiative Cohorts

Feb. 6, 2013 - PRLog -- AchieveMission, an organization that builds the leadership and human capital management capabilities of high-performing nonprofits, today announced that seven nonprofit organizations have been selected via a competitive RFP process and enrolled in its 2012 Talent Initiative program.    

OAKLAND, CA, FEBRUARY 6, 2013

Nonprofits undergoing rapid growth or change face unique challenges building their organizational leadership, talent and management capabilities; Talent Initiative is specifically designed to help such organizations better recruit, manage, develop and retain the human capital they need to deepen and sustain their social impact. This subsidized program is available for a select group of nonprofits.

With the addition of the newest cohort, Talent Initiative’s alumni and current participants include four winners of the Fast Company/Monitor Social Capitalist Award, three Social Innovation Fund recipients, four organizations led by Ashoka Fellows or Skoll Social Entrepreneurs, and two named by the Nonprofit Times as among the 50 Best Places to Work in the nonprofit sector.

“These outstanding organizations are among the most innovative and highest-impact nonprofits in the country. Their work with AchieveMission is another indicator that the sector is increasingly recognizing the importance of leadership and talent to achieving social impact,” said James Shepard, AchieveMission’s CEO and Founder.

Paul Minorini, CEO of Boys Hope Girls Hope, which recently completed Talent Initiative, commented on the high impact of the Talent Initiative program, “I learned more professionally and personally than I could have imagined.”

Added Morty Ballen, CEO and Founder of Explore Schools, a recent enrollee, “As a growing network of schools, we know that our most valuable resource is our teachers and leaders. We’re excited to have AchieveMission as our partner because of their track record of working with similar organizations to ensure that qualified and capable people fill the most critical roles in the organization.”

The seven accepted and enrolled nonprofit organizations are:

ACH Child and Family Services (TX) -- ACH Child and Family Services operates a continuum of programs to prevent or treat child abuse, neglect and family separation. Texas, where ACH operates, is trending towards privatized child welfare, likely consolidating 300 niche contracts into 10-15 larger ones. Other funders are likewise increasing their oversight and service outcome expectations. To compete effectively, four smaller nonprofits have recently combined with ACH and more growth and consolidation is anticipated. In partnership with AchieveMission, ACH developed a more explicit and cohesive culture, stronger recruiting and development capabilities, more robust internal communications and development of other foundational human capital management capabilities.

Boys Hope Girls Hope (MO) -- Boys Hope Girls Hope helps children-in-need break the cycle of poverty by providing long-term support from middle school through higher education. Since 1991, nearly 100% of Boys Hope Girls Hope graduates have gone on to college, where 90% graduate – a rate double the national average. The organization now serves 1,050 students in 15 US metro areas and four Latin American countries. Boys Hope Girls Hope plans further national and international growth, as well as expansion of new lower-cost program models. In partnership with AchieveMission, BHGH strengthened its leadership team, improved succession plans, redefined the relationship of local and headquarter operations, and improved retention of vital regional leaders.

Children's Aid Society (NY) -- Children’s Aid Society (CAS) serves 70,000 of New York’s neediest children and their families with a large network of services and programs that provide care from before birth through young adulthood. Under the leadership of its new President and CEO, Richard Buery, CAS has begun an ambitious strategic shift towards a more integrated and holistic anti-poverty approach to help children achieve specific milestones on the path out of poverty and towards college graduation. At the same time, Children’s Aid Society is strengthening its culture’s focus on results and performance. To support these transformations, Children’s Aid Society worked with AchieveMission to reimagine its human resources functions, aligning them with the organization’s new strategic and cultural imperatives.

Explore Schools (NY) -- Explore Schools is a charter school network operating four schools in Central Brooklyn. Since the inception of the first Explore Charter School in 2002, Explore Schools have provided students with the academic skills and critical-thinking abilities they need to succeed in a college preparatory high school. Through Talent Initiative, Explore aims to examine its talent rewards, pilot a new professional development model, and improve leadership development and succession management.

Green & Healthy Homes Initiative ™ (MD) -- GHHI works in collaboration with local and federal agencies, and philanthropic partners to align, braid and coordinate funding and programs to create green, healthy and safe homes in low-income communities nationwide. GHHI has been recognized by the Clinton Global Initiative and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for its work. GHHI is engaged in a significant growth period, and it seeks to develop its board leadership, improve its performance management, and strengthen its talent acquisition and development with the help of AchieveMission.

Nontraditional Employment for Women (NY) -- NEW prepares, trains, and places women in careers in the skilled construction, utility, and maintenance trades, helping women achieve economic independence and a secure future. At the same time, NEW provides a pipeline of qualified workers to the industries that build, move, power, green, and maintain New York. For nearly 35 years, NEW has been a groundbreaking model that works, for women and for New York City. NEW is working with AchieveMission through its Talent Initiative program to improve its strategic goal alignment, staff retention and internal communications.

SCO Family of Services (NY) -- SCO Family of Services helps vulnerable New Yorkers build a strong foundation for the future. SCO programs get young children off to a good start, launch youth into adulthood, stabilize and strengthen families and unlock potential for children and adults with special needs. With deep roots in New York neighborhoods and in Long Island communities, SCO brings essential services to 60,000 New Yorkers annually. SCO is building a performance culture focused on producing life-changing results in the areas of literacy, work, family and community life and well-being, and is working with AchieveMission on talent acquisition, training and development to reach this goal.

Applications for Talent Initiative Spring 2013 are due March 1st, 2013
The RFP is available at achievemission.org/RFP (http://www.achievemission.org/RFP).

More information
Additional information about AchieveMission and Talent Initiative is available at achievemission.org (http://www.achievemission.org/) and achievemission.org/talentinitiative (http://www.achievemission.org/talentinitiative).  Additional information about the Talent Initiative participants is available at achservices.org (http://www.achservices.org/), boyshopegirlshope.org (http://www.boyshopegirlshope.org/), childrensaidsociety.org (http://www.childrensaidsociety.org/), explorenetwork.org (http://www.explorenetwork.org/), greenandhealthyhomes.org (http://www.greenandhealthyhomes.org/), new-nyc.org (http://www.new-nyc.org/), and SCO.org (http://www.sco.org/).