Your organization plays a critical role in supporting the growth and development of young people, but like any organization, you face challenges around efficiency, resource management, and staff retention. Here are three simple innovations that youth-serving organizations can implement to save time and money and keep your staff happy.

1. Streamline Communication with Technology

In today’s digital age, there are countless tools available that can help youth-serving organizations streamline their communication processes. One of the most effective tools is a messaging platform like Slack, which allows team members to quickly and easily communicate with one another, share files and information, and collaborate on projects. By using a messaging platform, organizations can reduce the need for time-consuming meetings and email chains, leading to increased efficiency and productivity. Additionally, messaging platforms can help to improve staff morale by making communication more seamless and reducing the stress and frustration that can come with disorganized communication channels.  Other options include the chat function of Microsoft Teams, Google or even Zoom.

Quick tips to make it happen in your org (if you’re not already doing it): Choose one tool; Ask a small team to pilot test it, develop a few clear protocols and offer staff training; Provide one-on-one support or office hours to the “non-tech” users. Use it system wide–it’s not effective if everyone but the CEO uses it.  Everyone needs to adopt the tech.

2. Invest in Professional Development

You already know that one of the most effective ways to retain staff and improve the quality of service provided by youth-serving organizations is to invest in professional development opportunities for staff and leaders. This can include providing access to training and certification programs, offering regular workshops and seminars, and encouraging employees to attend conferences and other industry events. By investing in professional development, organizations can help staff to develop new skills, stay up-to-date with the latest trends and best practices in the field, and feel valued and supported in their roles.

Quick tips to make it happen in your org (if you’re not already doing it): Work with your team to develop guiding principles for professional development so they can find learning opportunities that actually move them forward within your mission–popcorn-style PD is not useful; Consider if your organization needs a learning management system or if you can benefit from existing online courses like those at NonprofitReady.org, for example. Need help deciding? Please call us.

3. Implement Automated Processes

Many youth-serving organizations still rely on manual processes for tasks like scheduling, record-keeping, and reporting. However, by implementing automated processes you can save time and money, reduce errors and redundancies, and free up staff to focus on more high-level tasks. Additionally, automating processes can help to improve staff satisfaction by reducing the amount of time spent on repetitive or administrative tasks. Here are some of my favorite tools right now (they each have a free version, too!):

• Calendly.com–Has virtually eliminated all the back and forth emails to schedule meetings.  When someone wants to schedule a meeting, I say: “Great! If it’s convenient, please find a time on my calendar that works best for you.” I’ve integrated with my Google calendar and Zoom–so it automatically sends a calendar invite to the meeting attendees with a Zoom link.  Wow. What a time saver.

• Otter.ai–I love talking to clients, but usually get so into the conversation that I forget to take notes.  Otter.ai transcribes Zoom meetings in realtime (ie, built-in note-taker), provides a summary and can assign action items.  There are other tools that do this, but I’ve been happy and impressed with the level of accuracy Otter.ai provides. For me–this is a time saver and also a stress reducer. 

• Zapier.com-One of my friends automates anything she does more than once. Zapier is the tool to make that happen. For example,  I just created a proposal template I can easily customize for each client with just a few strokes. Here are the instructions to create a Google doc template based on form responses. Why spend hours writing new proposals when you can update the info that changes so effortlessly?

• Chat.openai.com–also known as ChatGPT.  Yes, yes–it’s all the buzz right now.  Try prompts like “write a blog post that highlights 3 simple innovations youth-serving organizations can implement to save time and money and keep their staff” and look what it generates! ^^^^ I had to do some editing, creative direction, finessing, revision and personalization, sure. But if you’re someone who works better with a headstart rather than starting from scratch, this is something to check out.

I know you want to focus your attention on solving the big problems, getting upstream, moving forward on strategy.  Implementing simple innovations can save you time and money, improve staff morale, and (ultimately) help your org provide better services to young people. While these innovations may seem small, they can have a big impact on the overall effectiveness and success of your team. By embracing technology, investing in professional development, and automating processes, you remove all the little time-sucks and can focus on your big picture.  Totally worth it.