Root Profiles

Start Date

May 30, 2006

Education

BA, Hampton University

Previous Position

J. Walter Thompson, Account Supervisor

How did you first get involved in the nonprofit sector?

My first exposure to the nonprofit sector was through my church. Having grown up in the church, my family was involved with random organizations through service ministries.

Why did you want to become a Root?

I had always wanted to eventually transition into the nonprofit sector. After reading about Taproot Foundation, I was hooked. I get the opportunity to work within a nonprofit, which also has access to hundreds of other nonprofits. The learning potential is great and the culture is a welcome change from my previous positions in the corporate world.

How is Taproot Foundation's culture unique from other places you have worked?

It is open culture where employees are encouraged to have a voice and not take yourself too seriously.

How has your role at Taproot Foundation evolved during your tenure here?

My role has evolved to have more autonomy and really be the face behind the DC program. I began as a Program Manager in New York City and was able to help build Taproot’s presence in Washington, D.C. and eventually moved to take over and run the Service Grant Program here.

Where would you like to see the Taproot Foundation in 2020?

I would like to see Taproot Foundation as THE organization that major cities turn to in order to improve their communities through service. We will be positioned as the true go to for all things pro bono and all of this is fueled by a viral movement that started with our pro bono consultants and just exploded out of nowhere to have a ripple through all professional communities. Subway signs, bus wraps, billboards... our brand would be as mobile & commonplace as any consumer product causing big city noise.

Start Date

May 2007

Education

BA, Williams College

Previous Position

Director of Field Operations, Intrax Cultural Exchange

How did you first get involved in the nonprofit sector?

After a career in international high-tech marketing, I jumped the corporate ship to nonprofit management about 10 years ago. What drew me to nonprofit work was a desire to make the world a better place in a positive, people-focused environment. I worked initially with youth and cross-cultural exchange –a field I developed a passion for from my bi-cultural background and overseas experiences. People are at the core of what's great (and lousy!) in this world and are fascinating creatures...

Why did you want to become a Root?

I discovered the Taproot Foundation in 2006 while reading Fast Company's "Top 25 Groups That Are Changing the World" article. It was an awesome "ah-ha" moment for me. I had discovered this organization which straddles the corporate and nonprofit sectors and works to better the world through outstanding people, process and results. I stalked the Taproot Foundation job postings until I was hired!

How is Taproot Foundation's culture unique from other places you have worked?

Taproot’s unique, for sure.  I’ve never worked in another place so filled with passion, drive, smarts and direction.  I think this uniqueness stems first from the amazing model:  simple, brilliant and impactful.  All of us here at Taproot – whether staff or volunteer – recognize that we’re working together on something really special and exciting.

How has your role at Taproot Foundation evolved during your tenure here?

I started out managing our Service Grant projects for Bay Area nonprofits; with over 50 projects at a time, the breadth and depth of this experience was awesome!  I now oversee our other Program staff in our Western Cities, as well as a team of pro bono consultant Recruiters.  The combined team’s geared toward doing more projects, doing them better and exploring new ways to achieve great results for the Service Grant Program and beyond, in furthering the pro bono ethic. 

Where would you like to see the Taproot Foundation in 2020?

Our flagship Service Grant program will still deliver project-based capacity building to individual nonprofits, but we'll be in more cities on the ground and I could see us working in other locations with a new remote model. Nonprofits will have an even greater Service Grant catalogue of projects to choose from, including new practice areas. The pro bono ethic will be entrenched in all professionals, thanks to the Taproot Foundation and our strategic partners. The majority of Fortune 500 corporations and professional services firms will be doing their own in-house pro bono flavor but inspired by Taproot Foundation's leadership, best practices and tools. Good times for all!

Start Date

November 29, 2004

Education

BA, Yale University

Previous Position

New Sector Alliance, Special Projects Coordinator

How did you first get involved in the nonprofit sector?

My involvement in the nonprofit sector began through a summer internship while in college at the American Red Cross headquarters. I'd tried to use summer jobs to try out different careers of interest; I knew that I wanted my work to somehow contribute to "making things better" but still needed to explore the details.

The hopes, challenges and tensions surrounding my work there spurred a focus in my academic studies when I returned to school in the fall. My senior thesis research was around the effect educational and professional backgrounds had on nonprofit executives, and specifically whether being predominantly nonprofit or private sector-oriented influenced their effectiveness. After conducting this research I knew that my future career would center around addressing the very challenges leaders in the nonprofit sector faced. In essence I’m working to "make things better" in the nonprofit sector to better our society in general.

Why did you want to become a Root?

I have a personal and professional passion for making the nonprofit sector stronger and better able to improve our world. To me, it was abundantly apparent that Taproot Foundation had taken a truly innovative, yet wonderfully simple approach towards that end -- using the skills, training and tools that are already out there in the private sector and connecting them in an effective, disciplined way to the existing, parallel needs in the nonprofit sector.

How is Taproot Foundation's culture unique from other places you have worked?

Taproot Foundation has been amazingly consistent over the years in finding incredibly intelligent and motivated employees and fostering an environment where, despite differences in roles, professional backgrounds, and geography, everyone’s work is underscored by the same shared passion for the work we do and the possibilities ahead of us. Add to that a sense of humor and 50+ big personalities, and it’s one creative and inspiring place to be.

How has your role at Taproot Foundation evolved during your tenure here?

A lot, to say the least. I began at Taproot when it was still a start-up organization and I had the great experience of being able to shift and grow along with it. From recruiting volunteers to authoring a whitepaper to managing Service Grant projects, my early experience at Taproot cut across nearly every aspect of our organization and gave me a strong understanding of the fundamentals of program management and pro bono service delivery. This expertise provided the foundation for me to found and manage Taproot’s corporate consulting practice, leveraging our knowledge of effective pro bono program design to help build in-house pro bono programs for companies, professional services firms and other organizations.

Where would you like to see the Taproot Foundation in 2020?

By 2020 I think pro bono work should be fully integrated as an expected part of what it means to be a professional in your field.  I would like to see the Taproot Foundation as the driver and supporter of the pro bono ethic across the country, whether that’s through delivering services through our Service Grant program in our flagship cities, enabling effective pro bono service delivery through the tools and thought leadership we create and share or the consulting clients for whom we help build and enhance programs, or inspiring the pro bono ethic to take root across sectors and professions at large. I want it to become commonplace to hear professionals outside of the legal profession ask “what was your pro bono project this quarter?”.

“I can already tell that my experiences from Taproot are valuable and relevant to the MBA coursework I will be doing in the future and the career I hope to have afterward.”

Education

BA, Notre Dame

Previous Position

AmeriCorps VISTA, Volunteer Center of Rhode Island

What made you want to be a VISTA Root?

During my senior year of college, while researching opportunities in the nonprofit field in a volunteerism-focused position I came across this cool-sounding, cool-looking nonprofit called the Taproot Foundation. Fast forward three years, and I found myself job hunting in Chicago where I saw the perfect job posting for me – a VISTA Leader at Taproot.  I had had an excellent experience in my initial year as an AmeriCorps*VISTA Fellow at the Volunteer Center of Rhode Island, and I wanted to help provide others with the same positive experience. I knew that I would be applying to MBA programs in the coming months, and I was seeking out an opportunity that would allow me to build relevant skills of management, organizational design and relationship building. 

What was your role at Taproot during your year of service?

During my year at Taproot, I oversaw a great period of growth for the VISTA Fellowship program from 7 fellows to 18 nationwide, with at least one in each of our offices.  I learned how to be an effective project and program manager as I institutionalized the administration of the program and coordinated communication between our fellows, their managers, and the wider VISTA program. Over the course of this year, I’ve also described my job as that of a camp counselor, mediator, cheerleader, human resources expert, event planner, recruiter, spokesperson and community organizer.

How is Taproot Foundation’s culture unique from other places you have worked?

 I’m constantly surrounded by and working with smart, talented, driven, fun, creative and interesting colleagues.  Early on one of my colleagues described an organizational value as “not leaving your personality at the office door when you come to work in the morning,” and that has really resonated with me.  There is strategic, design-oriented thinking occurring at all levels of Taproot.  Decisions are never made half-heartedly or without good reason because everyone believes in the importance of what they are doing.

How has Taproot prepared you for your next steps?

One of the major reasons I sought out the position as VISTA Leader was to gain the strategic management experience that would make me competitive for MBA programs with a focus on nonprofit management.  I was supported by my manager before and during the process, and have been chosen as a part of the Yale School of Management Class of 2012. I know that the leadership experience I gained this year was a major reason why I was selected to the program. I can already tell that my experiences from Taproot are valuable and relevant to the coursework I will be doing in the future and the career I hope to have afterward.

How would you summarize your experience as a VISTA Root?

Although the most important part of my job at the Taproot Foundation was to support other VISTA Fellows during their service years, I also constantly felt supported and encouraged myself.  Despite working in an office thousands of miles from my manager, she was an excellent mentor and I never lacked mentors within my own office.  I have never before experienced working with such an accessible and open management team, even at the executive level.

“From a cultural standpoint, professional development was always available for me—almost every day there was a new opportunity that I could take advantage of.”

Education

BA, University of Northern Colorado

Previous Position

Peace Corps Volunteer, Benin

What made you want to be a VISTA Root?

I found Taproot when I first moved to New York after serving in Peace Corps following college.  After six months of internships and minimal employment, I decided I need to get a foothold here, so I started looking into the AmeriCorps*VISTA program. 

My goals in taking the VISTA Fellow position were to get an understanding of the nonprofit sector and how it works. I also wanted to learn more about how I work, what best motivates me, and what type of environment I work best in.  I feel like I’ve been more successful and happier working in an office than I thought I would be, especially coming straight from the Peace Corps to this position.

What was your role at Taproot during your year of service?

In my time at Taproot I helped plan the quarterly NYC grantmaking process from doing the initial outreach to nonprofits all the way through awarding them one of our Service Grants. I was also a principal member in creating the first version of Taproot’s interactive online community for its pro bono consultants.

How is Taproot Foundation’s culture unique from other places you’ve worked?

There is an entrepreneurial spirit here that I haven’t seen played out in other, similar organizations. The decentralized nature and interdisciplinary teams allows for Roots to really find projects where they can put their skills to work. I can also wear biking clothing in the office and no one minds.

How has Taproot prepared you for your next steps?

My next step after Taproot is this cross-country bike trip to advance the local food movement through Bikeloc.  We’ve been doing the planning for it since November 2009, and in every single meeting we had, I was pulling directly from my experience at Taproot.  I would not have had the first idea how to conceive of, organize market and plan this project without my Taproot VISTA experience.

I’ve far exceeded what I hoped I would learn about the nonprofit sector during my VISTA year. I feel like I have a really solid foundational knowledge about what makes a nonprofit tick and what the challenges of running one may be. The connection I feel to the nonprofit field in New York is strong. Getting my next position will be infinitely easier than when I first came to the city a year and a half ago.  I feel at ease and confident in my future job search. 

How would you summarize your experience as a VISTA Root?

The thing that sets Taproot apart specifically in its VISTA program is that not only are you in a capacity building role as a VISTA Fellow here, you’re playing that role at a capacity-building nonprofit, which means you are solely dedicated to building up the nonprofit sector.  We have a lot of VISTAs at Taproot, and our VISTA Leader supports VISTAs across the country.

From a cultural standpoint, professional development was always available for me – almost every day there was a new opportunity that I could take advantage of.  I now have experience in web development; I have worked as a project manager. My year at Taproot definitely required some financial sacrifices, but I’ve learned more this year than in all my years of school.

“Taproot always took care to hold VISTAs in high esteem and recognize our contributions while also supporting us in our year of service.”

Education

BA, Occidental College

How is Taproot Foundation’s culture unique from other places you have worked?

Taproot’s distinctive energy comes from a unique blend of corporate and nonprofit worlds – it’s very rare to work at an organization that values people and process equally.  I felt that every employee was expected to give their professional best but also invited to share their individual accomplishments and personality.

What made you want to be a VISTA Root?

I had a fundraising background working with arts organizations when I decided to move to San Francisco to get more experience in public affairs and public policy.  I was intrigued by Taproot’s almost corporate aspects in its process and design, and I felt that Taproot would give me just what I was looking for – the chance to interact with the wider business community in an innovative environment.

How has Taproot prepared you for your next steps?

I’m attending graduate school to obtain a Masters in Public Policy, where I will focus on nonprofit capacity building initiatives.  I’m eager to gain this analytic foundation so that I can pursue a passion I cultivated at Taproot – promoting pro bono service to effect change internationally. My VISTA position afforded me the opportunity to work with several leaders in the corporate responsibility and grantmaking sectors, which was truly inspiring.  I developed skills I never expected to in my year here. I’ve been stretched in new ways, learned a lot about technology, and vastly improved my writing and editing skills.  I think it’s a testament to Taproot’s model and culture that I am keen to continue working in the same field.

How would you summarize your experience as a VISTA Root?

The VISTA program at the Taproot Foundation is exciting because the VISTA Fellows are working for service while we serve – we are the ultimate pro bono consultants!  Taproot always took care to hold VISTAs in high esteem and recognize our contributions while also supporting us in our year of service. Having a VISTA Leader as part of the team was great for that.  My position at the Taproot Foundation had a high level of responsibility and a high level of freedom to truly own the projects I was managing.