Think about some of the reasons that you might be hesitant to give money to a non-profit organization. Somewhere on that list is probably something about not knowing where the money is going and how it will be used. You want to know that your money directly changed lives and didn’t pay for the new carpet in the organization’s headquarters. GlobalGiving is a new non-profit that aligns donors directly with projects instead of organizations.

Making Giving Easy

GlobalGiving allows you to find a project and give money to help get it done. If you’re interested in Sri Lankan culture, you can find projects in Sri Lanka to give your money to. If you’re convinced that athletics is the best way to change lives, then you can find a project that is changing people’s lives through sports. The opportunities for giving are endless, but they allow a level of focus that you can’t get by giving to most organizations. Prior to the Internet this kind of charity was virtually impossible, but GlobalGiving has combined innovative ideas with technology to potentially change the way philanthropy will be done for the foreseeable future. GlobalGiving has put together a great video about what they do and who they are, so we’re going to let you enjoy the rest of your Sunday morning by relaxing and watching the video (RSS and e-mail readers will probably have to click through to view).

GlobalGiving is Hiring

Whether or not working at GlobalGiving seems right for you, we hope that you’ll consider using it when you are having a philanthropic urge. They’ve put together a really cool “product” that shows that non-profits can emulate even the coolest Web 2.0 startups. As for entry-level jobs at GlobalGiving, there’s one opening that’s a possibility. They’re looking for a Java Web Developer Ninja. The job description that they’ve put together is pretty cool, although we’re starting to think that the “ninja” metaphor for people in software development is almost as played out as “rockstar” is in other areas. That’s ok, though, GlobalGiving not only describes their job opening well, but they also offer an experience and benefits that look to be comparable to those offered at a for profit company. Like we said, this is a maybe for new college grads. They even say that if you don’t have serious Java skills, you shouldn’t waste their (or your) time. We are totally impressed by GlobalGiving, so we hope that they’ll be listing more entry-level opportunities in their Washington, DC office soon. It’s definitely worth checking back on them periodically (or cold calling)if you are looking to work at a cutting edge non-profit.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

• GlobalGiving.com
• Jobs at GlobalGiving
• About GlobalGiving
• Browse Projects on GlobalGiving.com
• See GlobalGiving’s Results
• GlobalGiving’s Blog
• GlobalGiving’s Fact Sheet

What’s your favorite project on GlobalGiving?

We've identified GlobalGiving as having career opportunities in the following categories:

• all employers
• non-profit
• software development
• Washington DC

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Jobs Near You

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2 responses to “GlobalGiving”

1. Kevin Conroy says:

   June 9, 2008 at 10:07 am

   Thanks for all of the kind words about GlobalGiving. It’s a wonderful place to work and I’m head-over-heels-in-love with my job.

   I would like to clarify your notes on the Java position, though. While we do want a “ninja” or “rock star” Java developer, we’re totally open to a recent college grad assuming that they know their stuff. We don’t mind training and filling knowledge gaps, but you should have a solid programming foundation and be able to learn new languages/frameworks quickly.

   And thanks for the note about “ninja” being over used. Now that I’ve read your post, I agree that it is over used. We’ll have to figure out a better description for our next go round. Perhaps something in the pirate category?

   Kevin Conroy
   Senior Java Web Developer
   kconroy@globalgiving.com

   Reply
2. Willy Franzen says:

   June 9, 2008 at 3:39 pm

   Hi Kevin,

   Thanks for leaving a comment. We love to see employers join the conversation about their entry-level jobs. It’s good to know that new grads fit the bill for the Java Developer position, we thought they would, but it was a bit hard to tell. I’m glad you cleared that up.

   We’ll let you know if we come up with a replacement for “ninja.” I like where you’re going with the pirate thing, although that has its own connotations in the software industry.

   Reply