Dorothy Norris-Tirrell, Ph.D., ACNP
President Emerita
Nonprofit Leadership Alliance
Exploring the Nonprofit Job Market: Insights from Topic Modeling Analysis
Jennifer F. Rinella, Emily Dale, Dorothy Norris-Tirrell
International Journal of Public Administration, 1–15
Given the nonprofit sector’s significant, ongoing challenges of filling vacant positions and retaining staff, this study examines the nonprofit job market through an analysis of online job announcements. Using Non-Negative Matrix Factorization topic modeling, a dataset of 13,685 job announcements was explored to find job-related themes. The analysis revealed nine topics that identify the core organizational functions for nonprofit organizations today as well as commonly stated requirements for nonprofit jobs. Findings also highlighted the cross-functional work of nonprofit employees. Practical implications are shared for organizations seeking to recruit and develop emerging leaders.