ULLL- NGOs interaction in Romania. A bridge too far away?

ULLL- NGOs interaction in Romania. A bridge too far away? Mihai Lisetchi AID-ONG / FEAA, Timisoara, Romania International conference: VALUE - Volunteering & Lifelong Learning in Universities in Europe Middle East Technical University, Ankara (Turkey) 8-9 June 2011

Objectives of the presentation: • Defining the potential of Romanian NGOs as beneficiaries of ULLL; • Creating an overview of the Romanian universities offer on NGOs management.

Why about NGOs? • NGOs in Romania - prominent social actors: • 62,000 registered organizations; • 2008: NGOs attracted Euro 1,25 billions; • 49% of the accredited suppliers of social services and almost 50% of the accredited services; • 2007: 90.000 jobs; • Relevant actors in the current institutional reforms of the country.

NGO concept(1/2): • Terminology: • (juridical criteria) non-state actors (EU) or non-governmental organizations (France) • (commercial criteria) non-profit organizations (US) • correct name: non-profit non-governmental organizations • (political criteria) • Organizational behavior: • function like private commercial entities • similar scope to public agencies (social needs)

NGO concept (2/2): • Definition: • an organizational category, • formed by institutionalised entities, • of private nature, • dedicated to social needs, • independent from public institutions • and not interested in political power (i.e. political parties) • or profit (i.e. commercial private organizations).

Romanian NGOs as Potential Beneficiaries of the LLL • 66.58% of the NGOs had no income or had incomes lower than EUR 10.000 (2/3 of NGOs - low and very low financial resources); • most of the organizations have below 10 members; • 90% of NGOs works with volunteers; Conclusion: membership, volunteering, and funding problems – aspects of organizational management • Questions: • how are future NGO managers currently being trained? • Which skills and knowledge does a successful nonprofit management program build?

NGOs’ Management Training Needs Specificity of NGOs management: • The ambiguity of their performance criteria and the complexity of their management related values. • The legal and financial constraints under which they operate. • Some of the sources from which they derive economic sustenance. • The kinds of personnel they employ. • Their governance structures Conclusion: training is an essential condition for the development of the voluntary sector

Romanian NGOs as training consumers (1/2) Barometer of NGO Leaders: • 2009: 57% of NGOs: at least one person from participated in a training activity (40,1% have no paid staff); • Priority: training courses on financial sustainability (proposal writing, funds raising, project management); • 2009:21,8% of the NGOs participated only in free trainings, 8,1% only in paid trainings, and 27% participated in both, paid and free trainings

Romanian NGOs as training consumers (2/2) • selection of the training provider: 25,8% of NGOs are aiming at free trainings, while 26,6% choose the training provider based on notoriety and expertise; • frameworks of the training process: classic face to face approach (62%), individual study (23,3%), online courses (18,4%); • level of the market covering NGOs training needs: 18,7% very satisfied, 32,9% satisfied to a certain extent, 4% low level of satisfaction; • quality of the NGOs training providers during the last 5 years: 61,2% the diversity and quality of the NGO dedicated trainings have increased, 4% consider they decreased

Romanian Universities as Providers of NGOs’ Management Training (1/3) • Universities can approach the NGOs’ management training needs through: • formal (undergraduate and graduate studies) • non-formal education (post university courses). • Diversemanagement topics: organizational management, project management, human resources management (including, volunteers’ management as distinct topic), financial management, marketing, etc.

Romanian Universities as Providers of NGOs’ Management Training (2/3) NGO management courses in Romanian universities: • Undergradued studies: NGOs Management • Babes-Bolyai University, Department of Public Administration, • Bucharest University, Faculty of Sociology, • West University of Timisoara, Faculty of Social Assitance;

Romanian Universities as Providers of NGOs’ Management Training (3/3) • Master studies: NGOs Management at Babes-Bolyai University, Department of Public Administration (not financially self sustainable); • PhD studies: West University of Timisoara, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration; • Postuniversity courses: community based resourse mobilisation at Babes-Bolyai University, Faculty of Political Sciences

University – volunteer sector interaction in Romania - the way those teaching in the universities relate with volunteer sector; - the position of the university toward NGOs activities (interest in the society, at large, vs. a specific target group); • universities’ organizational capacity (teaching staff with NGO management expertise); - the NGOs financial capacity (66.58% incomes lower than EUR 10.000); - the legal framework (short courses vs. long courses).

Opportunities for ULLL- NGOs’ management training relationships • the size of the potential market (i.e. number of NGOs) makes volunteer sector an attractive and viable target for the training providers; • the level of the organizational management within the volunteer sector leaves room for improvement; • universities’ position as widely recognized know-how providers can be an important competitive advantage compared to other training providers, when marketed properly.

Barriers in Developing ULLL-NGOs’ Management Training Interaction • lack of clear understanding of all parties concerning the management training needs of the volunteer sector; • lack of financial potential of the Romanian NGOs; • low public interest on NGOs in Romania (only 32% of the Romanians trust much or very much the NGOs); • weak interaction between Romanian academic institutions and community reality in the field of social science.

Recommendations • deeper involvement of the NGOs in their training needs assessment; • a more flexible offer of the universities: short courses on NGO management rather than long courses and a more customer need adapted courses, specific to certain types of NGOs as target groups; • developing academic international cooperation (joint ventures of national and foreign universities, European Nonprofit Academic Centers Council, etc.); • European funding program aiming at developing the universities educational and training offer for NGOs through curricula and handbooks development, exchanges of experiences, etc.

Thank you for your attention! Mihai Lisetchi lisetchi@gmail.com Questions & comments

ULLL- NGOs interaction in Romania. A bridge too far away?