Community sector

Overview

The Australian community sector – sometimes referred to as the not-for-profit sector, third sector or social sector – encompasses a variety of organisations that are neither commercial nor governmental These organisations pursue a range of charitable purposes through service delivery, grant making and other activities, which advance health, justice, education, social welfare and religion

In Australia, the community sector is highly fragmented Indeed, there are almost 55,000 registered charities according to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC). These can range from global charities such as the Red Cross, Oxfam, ChildFund or Amnesty International to Australia-specific organisations such as Starlight Children’s Foundation and The Smith Family, to much smaller and less well known organisations

All of these organisations essentially have the requirements of a typical business While they may have a core service, such as community outreach, they still need the usual support functions such as marketing, accounting, operations and supply chain As such, the community sector is always looking for talented individuals with business skills

Entering the community sector

Given the breadth of the community sector and the issues with which the community sector deals, the first step to finding an entry point is figuring out which social challenges you’re most passionate about

For example, if you are interested in international development and aid, you may gravitate towards working for an organisation such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or World Bank

If you are passionate about addressing homelessness, disadvantaged youth or violence against women, you may find it more fulfilling to work for an advocacy group

The competitiveness on entering the community sector very much depends on the type of organisation

International development organisations such as the IMF or World Bank are considered highly prestigious organisations with high impact As such, these are usually very competitive organisations to get into and typically prefer experienced hires instead of graduates

Other community organisations do not typically have the scale – or funds – to run official graduate programs However, this doesn’t mean they are not interested in hiring graduates If you are interested in a specific organisation, it is worth reaching out to them directly and asking about job availability

Another way to gain experience in the community sector is by volunteering and getting to know the people involved in an organisation, so you are ‘front of mind’ when they are looking to hire Often entry into the community sector is via word of mouth, although jobs can be advertised through more official means Again, this is more likely in larger community organisations than smaller ones

Alternatively, if you would like to contribute to the community sector without necessarily committing to it, you might research organisations that have a corporate social responsibility (CSR) program There may also be some professional services or advisory firms that run official pro-bono programs or at least have pro-bono clients

There are also some pockets of more commercial organisations with a social purpose focus For example, Social Ventures Australia (SVA) is a management consulting firm, which focuses on solving social challenges SVA is known for hiring experienced consultants from top-tier organisations such as McKinsey, who want to use their skills for good

While not prevalent yet, we are also seeing the rise of investment funds, often known as ‘green funds’, which focus on investing in companies that are deemed socially responsible This may be another nontraditional way of becoming involved in the community sector

What’s involved

Your day-to-day work at a community organisation will very much depend on your specialisation For example, if you are a marketer, you will focus on promoting your organisation and developing and managing

fundraising campaigns If you are in the accounting and finance team, you will focus on managing the money raised from these fundraising campaigns and implementing budgets

To a large degree, if you have a business specialisation and are working at a community organisation, you are more likely to be working at a head office rather than in the field. This is not to say however, there won’t be opportunities to see your organisation ‘in action’ If your organisation fundraises in Australia but uses the money to help individuals in other countries, you may have the opportunity to visit and see the impact of the organisation’s work Or if your organisation does a lot of outreach work in specific communities – with at-risk youth, for example – you may have the opportunity to spend some time learning about and helping these individuals or communities

Furthermore, if your specialisation is in consulting, whether in strategy, technology, process or operations, you may be required to spend more time in the field to better understand front line operations.

Best and worst

The community sector is often perceived as offering lower average pay than other sectors, and there is some truth to this, with salaries in the community sector generally lower than those offered by corporate or professional service organisations

The good news is that community sector jobs often offer increased flexibility, as well as tax benefits through competitive salary packaging They also offer other rewards including the satisfaction of knowing one’s work is making a meaningful and positive difference to the lives of socio-economically or otherwise disadvantaged individuals or communities Indeed, knowing you’re making a difference – and seeing your impact – can be a powerful motivator

Career progression

Your career progression in the community sector will depend on the organisation you choose to work for Given the relatively smaller size of these organisations, as compared to larger corporations or professional services firms, there may be some limitations to progression

Restricted funds may make it difficult to be promoted or argue for an increased salary, particularly as community organisations are highly conscious of being responsible and accountable about how funds are spent At times, this may be frustrating and progression may come by joining another organisation

Typically, you will find it easier to cross over from the commercial sector to the community sector, rather than the other way around Some organisations highly value commercial experience and as such, you may find it faster to move into a more senior role as an experienced hire than through internal promotion There are of course, exceptions to this rule For example, if you work at an organisation such as the IMF, the transition back to the corporate or professional services sector is likely to be much easier

As some community organisations are international, or at the very least, may do international work, there is also scope for some travel and spending more time in the field.

Choose this if you:

■ Feel strongly about a specific social challenge ■ Wish to contribute to your community ■ Are passionate about social justice

On the job

How did you get to your current job position?

I first found Project Everest Ventures at a university careers fair in June 2019 and they encouraged me to apply for the internship online After a couple of interviews and a pre-departure training day I started working with the company in Fiji, completing a 4-week internship on an agriculture technology project Since completing the internship, I have continued my connection with Project Everest Ventures; I’m about to complete my team leadership training to hopefully return overseas on a project as a team leader

How did you choose your specialisation?

Of the four countries that Project Everest Ventures operates in (Fiji, Malawi, India and Timor-Leste) I decided to work on a project in Fiji Initially I saw it as an opportunity to travel to a picture-perfect destination and work at the same time; it ended up as a much more authentic experience where we really got to engage with the Fijian culture As the project progressed, it became evident there were many issues with the local agricultural supply chain and that’s when I knew the project really had the potential to positively impact the lives of the local community

What does your employer do?

Project Everest Ventures aims to solve social issues using business solutions in developing countries With the help of university students, they set up social enterprise businesses in these countries These projects are designed to work towards solving some of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, such as ‘no poverty’ and ‘zero hunger’ Project Everest Ventures currently operates across a range of project areas, such as renewable energy and fuel alternatives, agriculture and economic empowerment

What are your areas of responsibility?

As a social impact intern, or ‘Trekker’, you are given lots of freedom to decide how to execute the project goals set by the project development and leadership teams My key responsibilities included organising meetings with farmers, NGOs, government officials and middlemen We’d also conduct a range of stakeholder interviews, where we would ask set questions to validate some key assumptions, as well as open-ended emotional questions to uncover deeper insights and understandings Finally, I was responsible for preparing a handover report for the next team to take over the project at the end of our internship period It was great to be given such a high level of freedom and trust by the team leader, as it felt like I was responsible for the day-today direction of the project

What are the career prospects with your job?

Project Everest Ventures has significantly more interns than full-time employees They are very open that full-time graduate roles are limited due to the relatively small size of the company However, there are still many opportunities to continue working with Project Everest Ventures through their alternative pathway opportunities These include returning as a team leader, experienced trekker, or joining the marketing or recruitment teams in Australia

Alex Cain

Alex Cain studied a Bachelor of Commerce/Bachelor of Economics and is a social impact intern at Project Everest Ventures.

Study

Bachelor of Commerce/ Bachelor of Economics, University of New South Wales, ongoing

ROLE

Social impact intern, Project Everest Ventures

Project Everest Ventures aims to solve social issues using business solutions in developing countries. With the help of university students, they set up social enterprise businesses in these countries.