Executive Service Corps
A Resource for Nonprofits. A Partner for Philanthropy.
Menu:
Our Mission
To build the capacity of nonprofit and educational organizations and strengthen communities in Washington State.
Our Values
Professionalism
ESC is an organization made up of professionals delivering professional services to the nonprofit community. This commitment to professionalism can be witnessed in the caliber of work produced by ESC volunteers. A consistently high standard of product is delivered in a timely manner to our clients.
ESC service corps members approach their coaching and consultancy assignments with the same level of professionalism with which they approach career endeavors. The commitment of the individual service corps member is to provide the same level of service to the ESC client as that client would receive from a for-profit management consultant or coach.
Personal and Professional Growth for Members
ESC is committed to life-long learning and improvement for all individuals associated with ESC. To meet this end, ESC provides opportunities for training to augment the skills brought by the service corps member to serve nonprofits and schools..
Additionally, ESC is committed to quality improvement, both organizationally and in the services provided to our clients. Demonstrating this commitment, members have the opportunity to receive and engage in feedback and evaluation throughout the coaching and consultancy projects.
Service Provision Policy
The policy and intent of ESC is to provide equal access to services and programs for all nonprofits and educational institutions in Washington State. ESC reserves the right to establish minimum requirements (for example, budget size or type of service provided) for participation in certain programs, where those requirements are critical to successful participation in a program.
Commitment to Culturally Competent Practice
Guidance on culturally competent practice for capacity building organizations like ESC is provided by the Alliance for Nonprofit Management. The Alliance's Ethical Standards for Nonprofit Capacity Building state:
Capacity builders shall be cognizant of the cultural dimensions of their work and the relationship between their own cultural identity and that of clients and communities. Capacity builders shall continually seek to achieve a high level of competency through self-awareness, learning, and building a diverse network of colleagues and partners.
Based on the Minority Executive Directors Coalition’s definition of cultural competence, the following describes ESC’s commitment to working with clients in a culturally competent manner:
The consultants and agency staff of Executive Service Corps will strive to utilize a set of behaviors, attributes, and practices enabling the consultants to work effectively in a cross cultural and multicultural setting. ESC consultants and staff will strive to demonstrate the following elements of a culturally competence consulting practice.
ESC consultants will:
- Become familiar with the history and characteristics of its client organizations, including the ethnic and racial makeup of its staff, board and clients.
- Frame issues and the consultation process in a way that values multiple perspectives.
- Examine both the assets and needs of the people and the agency with whom we are working.
- Ensure that that an extra effort is made to include members of a various ethnic groups as we interview and collect information from the board and agency staff.
- Create emotional safety and build trust by treating people with respect.
- Review and assess our questionnaires, interviews, and consulting tools to ensure that they are culturally sensitivity and effective.
- Consistently pay attention to our own assumptions and cultural background and reflect on how it may affect our interaction with people in the agency and our interpretation of information.
- Respect and value other cultures and demonstrate an appreciation for the various ways of learning.
- Build bridges across cultural differences, recognizing that there are individual differences within cultural groups as well.
- Engage in continuous learning and reflection, gaining an understanding of our own cultural identity and its impact on our relationship to others.