Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Reviews

Pros

- Rewarding
- Flexible
- Fun
all things considered it is good.

Cons

- Low growth potential possibly
- Stressful sometimes

Advice to Senior Management

Let the volunteers be aware of career potential early on.

Pros

other staff on the program level, made some great friendships very good people have worked there. Some of the matches that truly worked with caring volunteers who made a difference. Some great families participate in the program.

Cons

It is all a numbers game. They chase funding that require unrealistic numbers program staff are meant to meet. Then when you struggle there is no support only intense pressure. It felt like a sales job, you are so desperate to meet your match goals it truly stops being about the people and ultimately the kids. there is an unrealistic expectation to call all the matches on your high caseload monthly as tracked by a computer program and if these goals are not met even if circumstances are beyond your control you are blamed and made to feel guilty. Inane phone surveys done frequently. Huge divide between program staff and funding, program put in a cube farm, others have nice offices. Large meetings where the CEO would talk yet have no idea about the basic way the program functioned.

Advice to Senior Management

Listen to your staff, there are great people with innovative ideas who are stuck in boxes with all time taken to menial work. Stop micro managing. Value your people more I felt so dispensible when I was there, the longer I was there the more it felt like I should leave even as I had more knowledge and could answer others. The people who work there truly want to make a difference and help others but instead get burned out and feels mistreated. Value your employees at lower levels more.

Pros

The kids, it really was for the children not for those who worked there. A lot of activities that brought smiles to those kids faces and it included their families as well. It really does it's best to help the community.

Cons

The management. Been there WAY too long and they got too comfortable. It was cliquey. Expected to work long hours.

Advice to Senior Management

Good program and great experience, especially for the non profit sector. The management has to be more grateful for the work done by others.

Pros

Along with its great mission, BBBSA is a small enough national organization where you can learn a lot about non-profits, if you're willing to create learning opportunities for yourself. There are many smart and talented people from whom to learn. The work can be challenging (that's a good thing) and most employees are dedicated to performing well. This is the kind of environment where you leave the job but not the people. They stay with you.

Cons

While the org is good at vision and conceptualizing the impact of its service model and outcomes, it cannot effectively execute its strategy. It lacks innovation. The folks in the trenches have great ideas and are willing to try something new but their voices are unheard. Senior management is overly cautious, glacial in its pace to make decisions, and has lost focus on its core mission and the importance of the people doing the work. A more trusting approach with its directors and business managers would serve the organization well.

Advice to Senior Management

Despite changes in 2010, senior management needs a make-over, starting at the top. At the risk of sounding ageist, BBBSA would greatly benefit by hiring leaders less than 50 years old who are more in touch with business/working models that fit today's marketplace and who can more easily connect with the 20 to 30 somethings that make up the majority of the workforce. Its hiring practices should focus on getting the most qualified, forward-thinking individuals rather than building a "diversity profile" for the sake of how it "looks" in the eyes of potential funders.

Pros

There is constant confirmation that you are doing something important. You get to see how what you do affects others. The work you do is important & those you serve let you know that!

Cons

There are no benefits. No insurance or retirement. There is always the possibility that we will lose grant & government funding & I will not have a job.

Advice to Senior Management

I don't really have anything negative to say about the management here. So far, it has been fair and consistent. They are in the office working more hours than I do, so I never feel that I am working for a hypocrit. It's great!

Pros

Upon first being hired some years ago, I really loved the organization. Yes, on first glance it was unorganized and a frazzled environment, but we got results as far as the children were concerned, and the staff at the national office were amazing. They were just a great group of people to work with, and I finally felt like part of a great team. But once the new CEO was hired and all of the layoffs happened, employee morale plummeted and has been down in the dumps ever since.

Cons

We are all overworked and underpaid, and treated disrespectfully. Also, care is not taken when hiring new employees. All of those that have been hired of late, are nasty and have poor attitudes; their personalities don't mesh with those who have been here for some time. There is a lack of communication across departments, and between managers and lower level employees.

Advice to Senior Management

Management needs to pay more attention to all of the "worker bees". If it wasn't for them the organization would not survive because they literally do EVERYTHING. Upper management simply delegates, without a clue, and the "worker bees" pick up all of the slack, get things done, and cover upper management's rear ends. They need to be treated with respect, and after several years without pay raises, they all truly deserve them. Pizza parties do nothing to help them feel better about where they work and what they do.

Pros

Your coworkers; it takes a certain kind of person to do the job right. Also, working with the kids can be rewarding, and seeing them grow in a positive way from the experience.

Cons

There's not a lot of money to make things happen; especially paychecks. Last year, our office went through a two week unpaid furlough, as well as our benefits being cut drastically. Nonprofits can be an uncertain place to work.

Advice to Senior Management

Please remember that even though money isn't the most important thing in the world, that what employees do needs to be compensated fairly and appropriately.

Pros

It's a good career "starter." They hire people fresh out of college, so it's easy to get into the nonprofit world. The office atmosphere is pretty casual and the staff is friendly.

Cons

Though improving greatly, the agency was financially unsound for a number of years. There has been high turn-over and the agency lacks "institutionalized memory." Additionally, entry level staff are doing very difficult, emotionally taxing, and high-stakes work with inadequate training, support, and pay. There is a condescending attitude towards program staff, and it is reflected in low wages and work hours that make it difficult to balance personal life. There is a definite class divide between "us" and "them" when it comes to entry level versus management. Program staff make less than 30k per year, and management doesn't seem to "get" why we don't rally behind fundraisers with our own time and money.

Advice to Senior Management

Treat program staff like they're essential, valuable employees--they are! Pay enough to prevent constant turn-over and give adequate training for the very difficult issues front line staff deal with. So long as people are burnt out within a year or two, the agency will always under-perform.

Pros

Big Brothers Big Sisters does great work in helping to change how children grow up in America. The organization has a national footprint serving over 250,000 children annually. The mission to help provide support for children is outstanding.

Cons

In 2010 6 of 8 members of the leadership team and many managers have left BBBSA is experiencing dramatic issues in retention of employees.

Advice to Senior Management

Respect employees and learn to value diversity of opinions.

Pros

Great mission, worked with great employees

Cons

Low Pay, long hours, senior management does not always understand

Advice to Senior Management

Less hours, try rewarding employees more for the hard work they do.