Why Smart Nonprofits Rely on Temp Staffing

Labor myth buster Dana Scurlock, Director of Recruitment at Staffing Boutique, reframes temporary staffing as a sophisticated business tool for nonprofit leaders—not a last-resort move when things are on fire. Dana steps in to show how strategic temp and temp-to-perm staffing can stabilize teams, protect budgets, and protect sanity.

She starts with a fundamental question: how many staffing firms does a nonprofit really need? From organizations that have never used an agency to those calling their fifth recruiter, she explains why understanding an agency’s model matters. Staffing Boutique works on a contingency basis, which means urgency, flexibility, and the freedom for nonprofits to keep recruiting on their own. In contrast, ‘retained’ firms require exclusivity and upfront fees, which can slow things down and lock organizations into one channel.

Dana is equally direct about transparency. Salary ranges, the history of the role, why the previous person left, whether someone is quietly being replaced—these details aren’t gossip; they’re the bedrock of a solid search. Without that clarity, candidates endure endless interviews only to discover the compensation was never realistic. As Dana puts it, “It’s not just an interview for them. It’s an interview for you to see if it’s the right place where you want to work.” That two-way lens is exactly what reduces turnover and builds longer tenures in mission-essential roles like development.

Then she pulls back the curtain on the economics. That apparently “high” hourly bill rate often includes recruiting, weekly payroll, taxes, unemployment, and insurance—costs nonprofits would shoulder anyway. Agencies absorb administrative burden and even handle tough conversations when a placement isn’t working out or a project ends. For conflict-averse leaders, that alone can be priceless.

Dana also defends temp work as a legitimate career choice, from interim executive directors steering transitions to seasoned admin professionals who thrive on variety. In her world, temp staffing is not about “just getting a body in the seat”; it’s about building smart, flexible staffing strategies that support the long-term health of nonprofit organizations.

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