DHAKA TRIBUNE

Career

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Breaking into Bangladeshs non-profits

Insights for joining and succeeding at the fast growing development sector
Nakibul Hoq and Naiian Yazdani n
Meet Areef. Electrical Engineering major, age 23 and fresh out of a renowned university in Dhaka. While most of his peers from his undergraduate class went on to work in traditional fields such as banking, research, academia, high school teaching, or even entrepreneurship, Areef felt a burning passion inside himself to give something concrete back to the community. Thus, he began his career as a teacher at Jaago. He now plans to pursue the fellowship, for at least the next two years, and is confident that he will be able to make a difference to society. The experience in a non-profit is unmatched. While we all plough through our daily lives, it is not often that we set out to make a difference in a world, which we may actually know little about. It can be a rewarding experience and can transform your outlook as you raise your head out of the world of materialism. So, what characteristics do you need if you are considering a career in the non-profit sector? Like any career in which you are successful, it is important for you to be passionate. In particular, the drive is nothing but your own desire to change the lives of others and to work on rectifying the societal ills. Your work can take many avenues; sometimes it will be about implementing a programme and making sure it is running as it should, while at other times you will have the opportunity to innovate to find effective solutions. The Hunger Project, for instance, is a countrywide empowerment programme that aims to improve the standard of living by initiating a bottom-up approach to change through community and union action. The project aims to mitigate poverty in the poorest of areas in the country by securing the basic human rights of food, clothing and shelter and to create a self-subservient community with active, educated citizens. Your tasks will be wide ranging, whether it is understanding the infrastructure needs of a particular community or developing your technical knowledge about Union Parishad legislation and millennium development goals. In a country where around 26% of the people live below the poverty line, resources for a project like this are

Understanding stock market lingo

Career Desk n
Bid The price a buyer is willing to offer for shares in a company. Blue Chip Stocks Stocks of leading companies with a BIZ reputation for stable Vocab growth and earnings. Bond Certificate issued by companies and governments to their lenders. Capital Money and other property of companies used in transacting the business. Capital stock All shares representing ownership of a company. Commodities Products such as agricultural products and natural resources (wood, oil and metals) that are traded on a separate, authorised commodities exchange. Dividend A portion of a companys earnings that is paid to the shareholders/stockholders on a quarterly or annual basis. Equity The value of stocks and shares; the net value of mortgaged property. Equities Stocks and shares that represent a portion of the capital of a company. Futures Contracts to buy or sell securities at a future date. Insider All those who have access to inside information concerning the company. Insider dealing/trading Buying or selling with the help of information known only to those connected with the business. IPO Initial Public Offering selling part of a company on the stock market. Issue Put into circulation a number of a companys shares for sale. Liabilities The debts and obligations of a company or an individual. Mortgage Agreement by which a bank or building society lends money for the purchase of property, such as a house or apartment. The property is the security for the loan. Mutual fund Savings fund that uses cash from a pool of savers to buy securities such as stock, bonds or real estate. Option The right to buy and sell certain securities at a specified price and period of time. Par value Nominal face value. Penny stock Shares selling at less than $1 a share. Portfolio Various types of securities held by an individual or institution. Securities Transferable certificates showing ownership of stocks, bonds, shares, options, etc. Share The capital of a company is divided into shares which entitle the owner, or shareholder, to a proportion of the profits. Share certificate Certificate representing the number of shares owned by an investor. Shareholder Owner of shares. Speculator Someone who buys and sells stocks and shares in the hope of making a profit through changes in their value. Stock Shares (portion of the capital of a business company) held by an investor. Stockbroker A licensed professional who buys and sells stocks and shares for clients in exchange for a fee called a commission. Stockholder Person who owns stocks and shares. Trader Investor who holds stocks and securities for a short time (minutes, hours or days) with the objective of making profit from shortterm gains in the market. Investment is generally based on stock price rather than on an evaluation of the company. Trading session Period during which the Stock Exchange is open for trading. Venture capital Money raised by companies to finance new ventures in exchange for percentage ownership. Yield Return on investment shown as a percentage. l

bound to be limited and obstacles will arise, so be prepared to think and make decisions on your feet. Although a career in this sector is challenging, once you begin working you will be humbled, and realise that what you have is sometimes more than others could have wished for. There is a bigger picture involved and when you know you have made a difference, you may just look in the mirror and give yourself a wry smile. This is why employees in the non-profit sector hardly complain; there is a satisfaction that can hardly be accounted for in monetary terms. While life is not all about making money, the reality is that you will need to support yourself and your family. The popular myth that a work in this area is solely for the rich kids is only that: a myth. You can get paid in non-profit organisations, NGOs or any other institutions that might be characterised as giving something back to the community in return. While you can volunteer your time or money in these organisations, you can also work fulltime and earn enough to make a living. In the long run, the non-profit experience may in fact help you gain a lot more than wealth. MBA schools abroad often view applicants with non-profit sector jobs in a very positive limelight.

When you know you have made a difference, you may just look in the mirror and give yourself a wry smile
Renowned business schools even award scholarships and grants based on the guarantee that the candidate will graduate to give something back with their education. Remember, non-profit organisations are still businesses and as such, they require business majors. These organisations also want effective managers to control costs, formulate and implement effective ideas, and build relationships with external parties, skills that you can take into any corporation. There is also a lot of upward mobility in this field. Think about Sir Fazle Abed and Dr Yunus. Through their non-profit activities, they have left a significant mark on the world and have been able to achieve it not only as philanthropists but also as effective professionals. They have had to engage with all the different types of people, from the poorest of the poor

(Muhammad Yunus) to the heads of states and other political leaders. How did they do it? They had the soft skills and insights that are required to be successful. They were proactive in absorbing the core issues and finding solutions, and in constantly learning, adapting, and innovating. Just as importantly they ensured their ideas were implemented. Success on a large scale in the non-profit sector is not only about having a great idea or a great invention, but also about getting them initiated. You will need the networking and presentation skills to convey your beliefs and products in order to garner support. You will also need business nous to make sure that you are organised and all is in order so that you can pounce on an opportunity when it arises. This industry provides you the opportunity to help, to learn and to make a difference to the lives of not only others but also yourself. This is what makes a career in this sector extremely rewarding. l Nakibul Hoq is a Research Analyst and Naiian Yazdani is the Director of Strategy at GradConnect, an international career information and advisory firm. You can email them at hello@grad-connect.com, and learn more about GradConnect on www.gradconnect.com

Words of wisdom

The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they cant find them, make them. George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright and cofounder of London School of Economics

Whatever you do, do not picture them in their underwear

Ahsan Sajid n
If one were to do a survey of peoples biggest fears, the list would undoubtedly be topped by death, getting dumped or never meeting somebody, losing a pet among other fears and irritations that any one of us would list off the top of our heads. However, one fear we often overlook is the fear of public speaking. Some are naturally good at it, while others get better at it through practice and experience. In Bangladesh, a common belief, which starts in schools and is carried to university where public speaking engagements become frequent, is that extroverts are natural public speakers. However, there are many extroverts in reality who suffer from the same crippling fear when push comes to shove no matter how talkative they are among friends. This starts to become a real problem at work where public speaking may be called for in a number of ways presenting weekly updates at a meeting, pitching an idea to seniors, making a sales call at a company, updating stakeholders the list becomes endless. Fear of public speaking is not fear of speaking in front of a large group of people. Fear of public speaking is really the fear of being ridiculed, rejected and publicly humiliated. This fear stems from a number of factors such as lack of confidence in self, lack of belief in what one is speaking for, unfamiliarity with the topic in question etc. If you have any real interest in what you have to speak about, and have done your homework, there is little reason why you cannot overcome your fear. Following are a number of suggestions that will further help you relax and deliver a winning presentation at work. 1. Take a [figurative] bow. You should consider it an honour to be speaking in front of people who took time out of their day simply to listen to you. Start by thanking them for their time. 2. Be prepared. Maybe you have gone through university winging it for every presentation. Even if you are great at improvising or adlibbing, prepare for your speech. Going with the flow and being permeable to speaker is at least passionate about what he is speaking. Do not ruin that belief with admission of doubt. 8. Do not be overly apologetic. Are there technical/PowerPoint related problems with your presentation? Is your speech starting later than it was slated for? Rather than apologising, it is best to just carry on. Chances are the audience has not even noticed what you are apologising for till you point it out. However, certain cases do call for a quick apology, such as mispronunciation. 9. Maintain pace and eye contact. Practicing your speech beforehand gives you an idea of how to pace your speech where to speed up, where to slow down and emphasise. Pacing is important to draw the audience in during an important point and breeze through unimportant ones. Lightning fast speeches are a clear indication of the speakers nervousness while slow ones are boring. While maintaining pace, it is also important to maintain eye contact. One of my instructors in school once told me to avoid eye contact during a debate, as it would make me nervous. Bad advice! People will not trust you if you do not look them in the eye. Look at your audience while you are talking to them. There is nothing interesting happening on the floor or the ceiling so stop looking there. 10. Be the best you that you can be. A five oclock shadow and dishevelled hair might look sexy under an Instagram filter but it will win you no points under harsh light in front of a large group. Groom yourself for a speaking engagement, dress well and look the best version of yourself that you can possibly look, but do not get carried away playing dress up. l

Fear of public speaking is really the fear of being ridiculed, rejected and publicly humiliated
change is a great strength, but even professional speakers dont trust themselves to be brilliant without preparation. Practice your speech and carry written key points. 3. Know your audience. Are you speaking to a hall full of engineering students? Underprivileged mothers? Business investors? Tailor your speech to your audience to captivate them. Even if your speech is essentially about the same thing, when talking at different engagements, it is best to fit the speech accordingly. If you know of particular personalities likely to be present during your speech, Google them beforehand and try throwing in an anecdote or joke they can relate to. There is no shame in such measures to win an audience. 4. Lead with a bang. Whether your public speaking engagement is only for ten minutes, or an hour, open your speech with your big idea. Building up to your best point simply for effect is a bad idea you will do yourself great service by

grabbing the audience from the get go. 5. Respect your audience. You are not always going to be so lucky as to speak to people you personally like or find worthwhile to talk to. It is your job not to allow this fact to become apparent in your speech. Find at least a few things you can relate to with your audience and stick to those. Back in university, we had a live skit once about womens rights and a fervent speaker constantly referred to men in such a sardonic and confrontational tone that it resulted in a number of audience members leaving, and others becoming completely reluctant to speak during the following Q&A session.

6. Visualise your success. You have delivered the most winning speech. You are getting your first standing ovation. The audience members are throwing rose petals at your feet. Instead, if you constantly dwell on all the ways you are likely to fail your speech, you most likely will. It is important to believe you will be great, and to know that everyone present wants you to be great. The audience wants to be amazed, entertained, and come off having learned something new, they are on your side. They are rooting for you, because they do not want to be bored. 7. Do not announce failure. It is such a common trend to start a speech

If you constantly dwell on all the ways you are likely to fail your speech, you most likely will

by announcing how nervous one is. You immediately lose any weight you may have carried with the audience when you announce that you are nervous. Even if you dont feel like youre in control, let the audience believe that you are. Audiences will excuse nervous speakers if they believe that the