Document Type

Capstone Experience

Graduation Date

5-2018

Degree Name

Master of Public Health

Department

Health Services Research & Administration

First Committee Member

Nizar Wehbi, MD, MPH, MBA

Second Committee Member

Lea Pounds, PhD, MBA

Third Committee Member

Vivyonne Ewing, PhD.

Abstract

Nebraska Families Collaborative (NFC) is a nonprofit organization that supports children and families who are at risk, in eastern Nebraska. They offer a variety of services with the goal of moving children toward safety, permanency and well-being. Organizations such as NFC rely heavily on the commitment of the employees to carry out their mission, as do many other non-profit social service agencies across the country. The overall goal of the project was to identify reasons for high turnover and to identify potential solutions to reduce turnover and increase retention in the workplace at NFC. The main objectives were to analyze data pertaining to employee turnover rates and explore possible causes for lack of employee engagement. We began by analyzing current and previous employee turnover rates at NFC for reference throughout the study. This data was also compared with other turnover data related to nonprofit social service organizations. Methods of this observational descriptive study included an extensive literature review pertaining to turnover rates and employee satisfaction in non-profit social service agencies and compared to results both in Nebraska and on a national level. We found that NFC had an average turnover rate of 36 percent last year and it was 42 percent for family permanent specialists. A survey was sent out to each of the employees within the organization concerning engagement and job satisfaction to give us a better understanding of where the issues were. The survey was created within the organization and was analyzed through Quantum Workplace. Focus groups were conducted and utilized to supplement the results from the survey. Through the survey, we found that the organization had an overall favorability rate of 69.4 percent and key drivers of low engagement in the organization were career outlook, communication/change management, feeling valued, trust in senior leaders, and work/life balance.The impact of this project is to identify ways to increase employee retention in an organization and community where stability is crucial.

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