Finance Highlights 2008 0729 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

probably addressed problems being faced by DSFRC and can offer advice on what does and doesn't work. DSFRC might be the most experienced agency in attendance and may have more to offer than receive, but the "new kids on the block" may have a fresh perspective, and brainstorming always benefits from more brains. Succession Planning: Key Personnel Succession and Support Structures Succession Planning, which ensures continuity in anon-profit agency's functions over time, is perhaps an organization's most important key to sustainability, next to its ability to secure stable funding. Turnover and departmental instability, and responses: During the last two years, DSFRC has experienced quite a bit of turnover in key positions as well as entire departmental reorganizations. Significant, recent (within the past 2 years) events that have fallen into this category are listed below, followed by DSFRCs response. 1) Finance Department: a. Situation: In the past 8 months, DSFRC lost its CFO and the entire staff of the financial department. The previous CFO left on medical leave and so, by law, a permanent replacement could not be hired. A temporary fmancial contractor was selected to fill in. Previous to this, DSFRC had received complaints about the CFO from staff members. Over a period of 10 days, when it looked like she may return to her position, the entire department quit. Temporary personnel were the only constants. When the previous CFO ultimately decided not to return, a new CFO was recruited and new staff was hired. The CFO position had remained unoccupied since August 2007. The new CFO is Ed Cabrera and he has been with DSFRC since late January of this year. b. Result: DSFRC hired temporary contractors to help out during the transitional period. They also reached out to peer agencies when their efforts to fmd a suitable CFO yielded unsatisfactory results. They found that other agencies were also having key personnel turnover issues and struggling with finding appropriately trained executive level staff. Through this interaction, Ms. Padilla-Johnson found a recruiter with which to work. She also worked closely with DSFRC's Treasurer (a Board member) to make sure that core work was getting down correctly. The new fmance department and CFO are now in place but have inherited a reputation earned by the previous staff and temp personnel of paying providers late and not being as responsive as they should be. Reports of the new staff are positive and it should not take too long for them to begin to work more smoothly as a team and to create their own reputation. 2) Client Services: a. Situation: Eowyn Gorman, Director of Client Services, was in charge of most of DSFRC's front-end services, with the exception of mental health intake, and also oversaw the Basic Needs services. Ms. Gorman, who had been with Sustainabiliry Study: Davis Street Family Resource Center-4/08 Page 36 of 96