Regional nonprofits have contributed an astounding $2.9 billion in economic impact in just one year according to a new study by The Alpaugh Family Economics Center at UC. The study outlines the high value nonprofits bring to our region, not only improving everyday lives, but also generating significant economic returns. The study was commissioned by the Human Services Chamber of Hamilton County in partnership with Leadership Council for Nonprofits and OneSource Center for Nonprofit Excellence with funding from Greater Cincinnati Foundation and Interact for Health.

This report was also featured today in the Cincinnati Business Courier Morning Edition.

Access the full report: Nonprofit Economic Impact Report

In July of 2023 Ohio Justice & Policy Center (OJPC), a non-profit law firm and advocacy organization that has served our community since 1997, named Gabe Davis as its new Chief Executive Officer. Gabe succeeded OJPC’s long-time Executive Director David Singleton, who led the organization for over 20 years.

OJPC’s mission to advance the cause of equal justice by creating a fair, redemptive, and intelligent criminal justice system is of critical importance. Through the fresh eyes of a new leader, Gabe felt the organization’s work could be reinforced through reevaluation of its organizational structure, from job descriptions and titles to internal and external equity and market compensation reviews, reworking of their organizational chart and a new strategy for making the right, culturally-aligned hires. In the spring of 2023, Gabe reached out to Dave Wallace for advice and guidance on these issues and in October 2023, a 6-month consulting project was launched.

When Dave learned about OJPC’s HR-related consulting needs, he knew at once that long-time OneSource Consultant Julia Johnson was the right person to lead the project. After 15 years of volunteering her time and talent to OneSource members, Julia understood the significance of the project right out of the gate:

“You are what you do—the benefit of having relevant titles and compensation is that it prevents employees from feeling that they are working ‘out of class’, outside of their job descriptions and not being appropriately recognized. Having the proper title and delivering what’s expected sets clear expectations and boosts morale. For an agency like OJPC that is focused on justice, letting staff know that leadership looking critically at equity and compensations is truly walking the walk.”

When Julie Jacobson-Ruby and Angela Krites joined the OJPC consulting team it became clear to Gabe and his team that they were working with HR professionals not just with experience relevant to the project, but who are inordinately focused on outcomes. Each team member took the lead on different aspects of the project—Julia keeping the process collaborative with safe, open communication, Julie on compensation and market analysis and Angela on job descriptions and organizational structure—all plugging in with their expertise and learning from each other every step of the way. Gabe describes his experience with his OneSource Center consulting team this way:

“Julia, Julie and Angela played an essential role in providing OJPC with critical HR support and wise counsel during the earliest days of my tenure as the new CEO. They helped to craft and fine tune masterful job descriptions for senior management positions, assisted in retooling our organization chart, and conducted market analysis that illuminated staffing decisions and clarified areas of challenge and opportunity. Above all they were easy to work with, communicated well, and were a real pleasure.“

Upon completion of the project in April 2024, OJPC was provided new job descriptions with an external market data review for comparisons, a new Legal Administrative Assistant was hired, an Internal Equity Review was delivered for positions reporting to Gabe, and an updated organizational chart with applicable new titles and job descriptions was created. Additionally, the team made recommendations for future organizational efficiency improvements such as reworking job descriptions for all positions in the organization, providing new leaders with assimilation and coaching and contracting with an agency that can perform a benefits analysis for annual enrollment.

Julia, Julie and Angela are following OJPC’s process closely and will be following up with Gabe and his team on the impact the project has had on the organization and to be at-the-ready for future support.

Thank you to this extraordinary team for your heartfelt support of an organization fighting for equal justice and fair treatment for people at all stages of incarceration—because every person deserves dignity after their conviction and freedom after their sentence. You’ve made a difference!

“Miguel…the plan is working!”

-David Hood, M.Div., Executive Director, Abilities First Foundation, Inc.

Hiring a consultant to reinforce and build upon a nonprofit’s success through strategic planning is a stressful business. How do we find a consultant with the right expertise? One who really listens to us? One with a proven history of success in their own professional life? With a true understanding and passion for our mission?

For Abilities First, OneSource Center’s volunteer consultant Miguel Garcia (in partnership with fellow OneSource Center Consultant Sandy Edwards) checked each of these vital boxes.

Miguel retired from Procter & Gamble after a career that spanned nearly 30 years and two continents. During his time at P & G he worked in commercial, corporate, and supply chain logistics areas. However, Miguel’s passion projects at the company had everything to do with enhancing P&G’s existing commitment to hiring people with disabilities, complimenting the good work they were already doing by finding new ways to engage these folks throughout the supply chain.

Miguel knows firsthand the positive impact that incorporating people with disabilities has in the workforce. His 28-year-old daughter Natalia has Down’s Syndrome which doesn’t prevent her from having a job in which she thrives and being an active, social, bright light in the lives of her coworkers. He knows firsthand that Natalia is equally—perhaps even more—productive and reliable than those without disabilities. What she teaches her co-workers is that having her on their team is “not just the right thing to do…but the smart thing to do.”

Abilities First, a school in Middletown, Ohio, provides people with autism and other disabilities the education and therapies they need to attain independence, integration and acceptance in the world at large—including the workforce. The organization’s challenge was how to achieve the financial stability needed to pay and retain the extraordinarily talented teachers needed in this educational space. They approached OneSource Center for help with the focused, strategic planning needed to achieve this critical goal using existing resources. Miguel’s expertise in both finance and creation of support systems for people with disabilities made him the perfect match for this challenging project.

Miguel, in partnership with the Abilities First team, successfully created a comprehensive financial model integrating the impact of fee changes, incremental students and improved wages. Between their adherence to the strategic plan and trust in a process designed to take 1½ years to achieve, they found themselves ahead of schedule by at least 6 months of their financial goals with a more engaged workforce services and expanded group of students.

“Miguel worked well beyond the scope of our agreement to create scalable models, sensitivity tables and spreadsheets that proved the math was solid and achievable. Though his focus was our financial and systematic processes, he never lost sight of our mission and never encouraged us to sacrifice quality for a dollar. I am so thankful for Miguel’s guidance and support.” 

 Miguel, thank you for your generosity of time, expertise, and spirit. You make a difference for nonprofits and the people they serve.