Corporate Partners Council: Public Private Partnerships

Abstract

Issue

In the midst of a slow recovery from a historically severe recession, characterized by high unemployment, excessive government debt, sustained government funding cuts, and growing demand for social programs, nonprofits must look for alternative and creative ways to carry out their missions and achieve social impacts for clients. Collaboration across the private and public sectors is critical to solving our nation’s social problems, particularly those related to helping people find employment and working toward self-sufficiency.

It is somewhat anomalous that even in an era of high unemployment employers have difficulty filling positions and keeping people on the job. According to a 2009 report from the Business Roundtable, more than 60 percent of U.S. employers were experiencing difficulties in finding skilled workers at the height of the economic downturn. In the current economic climate, employers need to work together to address the workforce challenges of the new economy. Employers need employees, and nonprofits such as JEVS and others that work with at-risk populations need employers to place clients in jobs. The cross-sector partnership model works because it allows both corporate and nonprofit partners to advance their respective organizational goals.