Joanne Dillon

Over the years, I’ve been involved with many professional and nonprofit organizations either as a board member or a volunteer. I had even studied and received a certificate in philanthropy from New York University to expand my knowledge of the sector. So after I retired from my full time position with a global financial services firm, I welcomed the opportunity to work part-time with a nonprofit.

From October 2013 through September 2014, I had the privilege of being part of the Encore.org Fellowships program, and was chosen to do my fellowship at Community Resource Exchange (CRE) in New York City. CRE is an unusual non-profit. It is essentially a consulting firm, offering strategic planning, management development, and board development services to New York City-based community organizations, primarily focused on social justice.

During my career in marketing and communications, I had worked primarily in financial services, including several accounting and consulting firms. So from the moment I first learned of the opportunity through the interview process, I was sure that CRE would be a good fit with my background and skills. During my tenure there, I worked on many communications-related projects. But two stand out for having helped CRE expand its capacity.

The first was a video project that I managed. Along with an outside video production company, we produced “€œA Case Study in Collaboration”,€ which documented work CRE had done with members of the Far Rockaway/Arverne Nonprofit Coalition. Having coalition members and others from the nonprofit sector explain in their own words how CRE helped the organization come to the decision to focus on programs for young people on the Rockaway Peninsula proved to be an effective marketing tool.

The second involved CRE’s preeminent management development program -€“ The Leadership Caucus. Over the course of nine+ years, about 300 nonprofit executives had graduated from the program. From a business development perspective, this presented a great opportunity. I developed a proposal for a Leadership Caucus Alumni Program that would reunite graduates several times a year. CRE’€™s management embraced the idea, and in January 2015, about 50 alumni attended the kick-off breakfast.

The audience was enthusiastic about the program, the guest speakers, the chance to reconnect with fellow cohort members, and the opportunity to network with other nonprofit leaders in an informal setting.

By helping CRE explore new ways to promote its programs and focus on business development, I have helped ensure that a vital and much needed service for nonprofits in New York City will continue, well after my fellowship ended.