Breakdown of your role: The Borgen Project’s goal is “1 in 435″ and ”1 in 650”. We want one high-impact team member serving in all 435 U.S. Congressional Districts and all 650 UK Constituencies. Your job is to help recruit these individuals in your target areas. How important is recruiting to the movement? The Borgen Project only hires 5% of people who apply for roles… That means we need to recruit 100 applicants, just to find 5 people we think can have an impact for the world’s poor. Needless to say, HR plays a huge role in building the network of people who are advocating for those living in extreme poverty.
Role Expectations:
- All weekly assignments completed on time.
- Fundraising hours utilized.
- Top quality postings and emails.
- Tracker completed on time every week.
Here are some steps to get you started:
1. The Weekly Tracker
This document outlines your weekly assignments and expectations. Your manager will have sent you access to the Google Doc to be used throughout your time with us.
Begin working on Week 1 assignments today. We recommend that you look through the document and plan your weeks accordingly. Some weeks are more time-intensive than others.
The week’s tasks are to be completed by 11 PM PT (U.S. based and team members abroad) and 5 PM GMT (UK based) each Friday.
As this is a ‘live’ document, there is no need for a copy to be sent to your manager. They will access the document throughout the week to check your progress.
2. Create a Folder. Add a “Borgen Project” folder to your desktop.
3. Training Pages: Before your first day, read the training pages below and watch the applicable videos. College recruitment is our current focus. Your manager will also send various emails on training videos and instructions relating to this task.
- U.S. Team – Managing University-Wide Postings
- U.S. Team – Tutorial Video on University Postings
- UK Team – your instructions can be found in Week 1 of your Tracker document under the Training section for Sixth Form & Colleges.
Things to Know
Team Manager: Kelly Hall (UK based)
1. Pick a Weekly Schedule: You can pick your own schedule, but you’ll need to ensure that you work 12 hours every week.
2. Manage Your Time and Be Upfront:
Okay, comically creepy photo of Robert De Niro in Meet the Fockers aside, we’ve got a serious topic that we want you to be proactively ready to address. In the world of telecommuting, there is a common situation that repeats itself over and over again at every company and organization. Telecommuting offers a lot of freedom and some people end up going through the week doing considerably less work than they would have done in an office setting. Shocking, right? But here’s where it gets even worse. When that point in the week comes when they must face the music and report to their manager, even honest people sometimes try to lie their way out of the hole they’ve dug. Don’t ever do this here or anywhere! This instantly makes you look like a slacker for not doing the work and even worse a lying slacker for trying to cover up your tracks. We immediately let people go in these situations. Always be upfront! Manage your time well. Don’t mark anything off your tracker that hasn’t been completed. If you miss a weekly target, complete it the following week.
3. Helpful Links
- Training: University-Wide Postings
- University-Wide Posting Tracker
- Fundraising Ideas
- The Point Chart
- U.S. Key Bills
- UK Legislation
- Email forms to Congress
- Email Members of Parliament
4. Congressional & Parliamentary Outreach: Everyone volunteering for The Borgen Project participates in basic advocacy and contacts their Leaders weekly. Congressional and Parliamentary offices tally how many times they are contacted about each issue, so your emails and calls matter!
5. Fundraising: Our funding levels determine our impact. It’s that simple! Like sending advocacy emails to your leaders, everyone who is part of the team steps up and participates in fundraising. Bookmark the fundraising ideas page and start planning your campaign. The Weekly Tracker will guide you through friends and family letters, but to reach the $500/£400 criteria you’ll want to develop your own strategies as well.
6. Award Ops: With team members spread across the globe, our approach to awards is fairly low key. However, achieving these milestones look great on your resume/CV and we love verifying your impact when future employers do background checks.
7. Stay informed with The Borgen Project State of the Union. The organization’s monthly updates are published on this page. Every month we highlight the achievements of The Borgen Project high achievers across the globe. If you go above and beyond the call of duty in your fundraising, lobbying or mobilizing efforts, you too, may be featured!
Q&A
Can I fast forward ahead on the weekly targets? Yes. As you finish the current week’s assignments, you are more than welcome to jump ahead.
Can I miss a week? If needed, you may take one week off during the course of your time with us. Notify your supervisor beforehand and make note of it in your Weekly Tracker. Missing a week pauses where you are on the Weekly Tracker, so simply pick up where you left off.
