[Cadre-nothere] new job description for 2nd VISTA

[Dan MacNeil]

If you aren't concerned with big picture organization of the CSL, 
  you just want to do your work and go home, feel free to skip 
this message.

If you want clarification, just ask.

VISTA is like the peace corps.

We pay the government 3,000 they pay a citizen or green card 
holder $825/month, pay for some school and basic health insurance.

Message below asks the agency that manages the VISTA program we 
are a part of for advice about what sort of person we should 
recruit.

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On Fri, Mar 27, 2009 at 3:12 PM, Dan MacNeil <dan at thecsl.org> wrote:

>
> Replies/feedback welcome but far from required. I think writing this all
> out has forced me to do the thinking needed to get the right answers.
>
> BELINDA/BEN
> Can we change job descriptions after our organizational application is
> accepted? (presuming of course it is)
>
> VISTA ALUMNI / BOARD MEMBERS
> Does it make sense to take a step back from our plan?
>
> Jim, given your "advertise in bad times" links, you might make a case for
> "no", to keep us from group think.
>
> BOTH
> Are we more likely to get good and relevant results looking for a community
> organizer type than a sales person?
>
> The last plan was to apply for two VISTAs:
>
>        1) software developer
>        2) Fund raiser / community organizer
>
> The fund raiser VISTA would develop a corporate sponsor/advertising
> program. Corporate sponsors would pay to get their banner on
> http://mvhub.com and http://northshoreport.org. The job was defined as
> pretty much straight-up sales.
>
> The VISTA would build our book of accounts and develop the process.
> Ideally the position would transition to a permanent paid spot at
> non-profit fund raising market rates.
>
> Back in November, we planed to have a few pieces in place:
>
>  1) Parker foundation grant to provide a $300/month housing subsidy.
>  2) Success with board members asking for sponsorships
>
> These pieces aren't in place now and won't be in place by July.
>
> Thinking about it a bit more, I can't recall a VISTA I've met in the past
> 10 years who has the personality or inclination for successful straight up
> sales/donation solicitation.
>
> Without a housing subsidy/sweetener odds of getting somebody like this are
> maybe small.
>
> At our last physical meeting, Belinda observed the software developer was
> probably a good fit but we might have to work a bit to make the case for the
> fund raiser being a capacity / infrastructure builder
>
> After Fred's thought provoking email to our planning group, I realized that
> the next step to CSL sustainability is a successful launch of
> http://NorthShorePort.org
>
> I believe the two marketing bits for NorthShorePort success are:
>
>        1) get agencies signed up
>        2) get word out to users
>
> From experience, a good strategy for the agency signup is:
>
>        1) have influential people call other
>           agencies and ask them to signup
>
>        2) attend agency / inter-agency meetings
>           & do demos
>
> A VISTA job would be to followup with influential people and get/reinforce
> commitments to make calls. Making some calls themselves especially as
> follow-up after demos would be good too.
>
> A strategy we've tried and failed at but might be refined to success is to
> have a special data entry interface for Career Center Summer jobs kids to
> fill in records based on agency websites, followup with a phone call to
> agency, email link for agency to approve new record and accept
> responsibility for keeping it up to date.
>
> As we haven't figured out how systematically increase MVHub /
> NorthShorePort readership.
>
> So far our best strategy is to optimize so google indexes us high.
>
>        --This is a technical not marketing job
>
> The next best way (so far) is to goto public events and apply temporary
> tattoos to kids.
>
> A VISTA job might be to figure out additional strategies to build public
> awareness of our (2) directory websites.
>
> So the new plan is:
>
>         1) focus on person to:
>                a. build up NorthShorePort.org
>                   members & users
>
>                b. create more structured build-up processes
>
>        2) Be open to the possibility of a real sponsorship
>           solicitor / sales person and change job description
>           to suit available talent. (if permitted)
>

################

Subject: Re: job description for 2nd VISTA
From: Ben Sheldon <bensheldon at gmail.com>

Hi Dan,
In my official capacity, we would prefer that you
submit a an application for the *project* that
would most effectively build the capacity of your
organization. That's about 70% of the application.
The other 30% is how a VISTA member would contribute
  to the Project.  This is different than the
previous person-centric application---and means
may be less of a need to make heavy modifications
depending upon the individual.  There is room for
adjustment, but we'd like you to really identify
your project based upon need, rather than
resources/individual.

Personally, I'd highly recommend you go for a
marketing/outreach person, and recruit for
that.  I think it's much easier to make the case for
non-technical people---the only issue to look at is how the
capacity/relationships they build are transferred once they leave.

Ben

###########
Ben is #2 at http://ctcvista.org , For a year he was interum #1 and
could probably have been permanent if he wanted.

He was a VISTA at LTC for a year.

He and I are both on the board of
http://www.organizerscollaborative.org/

Before he died, Ben's old boss, Paul Hansen was one of our board 
members.

###########