Defining Culture & Leadership

Volunteer Spotlight: David Gray

David serves as president and CEO of Daxko. He is responsible for leading the company’s strategic direction, growth, culture, and overall operations. Under his watch, Daxko was  named as one of Fortune Small Business magazine’s “7 Great Places to Work.”

Earlier in David’s career, he had the opportunity to conduct substantial consulting engagements for dozens of Fortune 500 companies, leading tech firms, and large governmental entities. Each experience allowed him to observe various corporate cultures and leadership approaches. He brought the lessons learned back to Daxko, using them to shape and build the unique culture that the company is now so well known for.

In addition to his position at Daxko, David is on the board of directors and currently serves as TechBirmingham‘s chairman. He and his wife, Susan, along with their three children, live in Birmingham. They are active members of the Birmingham YMCA and their local church. Follow Dave anywhere from Birmingham to Hong Kong on Twitter @DaxkoDave.

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Projects Unlimited, Inc (PUI): What has been the most fulfilling part of your volunteer service?
David Gray (DG): The most fulfilling aspect of volunteer service is the ability to make a difference for the organizations and community that I believe in.  Further, as Daxko has experienced success, it is our responsibility to ensure we are active participants and leaders in our community.

PUI: How essential has volunteer leadership been for your own professional development?
DG: I’ve found the boards I serve on to be a great source of professional networking and have benefited from establishing relationships with innovative people from a variety of industries and backgrounds.  It also allows you to hone your skills in strategy, leadership and execution often times with limited resources.

PUI: What advice would you give to someone that will be serving on their first board of directors in the next few months?
DG: Patience and participation! Many of us who are leaders in our companies are used to being able to make faster decisions with the expectation that those directives will be executed accordingly. However, with a nonprofit board made up of other volunteers, it requires patience to gain consensus and to wait on responses from busy people with other priorities.

Secondly, in order for it to be a rewarding experience, you must be an active participant. Go to meetings, engage in discussions and brainstorms, and volunteer to lead initiatives. You were asked to be on the board because someone believed you could make a positive impact, so go do it.

PUI: How do you see the technology sector having an impact on the work that volunteer leaders do?
DG: As I mentioned above, many nonprofit organizations are operating with limited resources and are dependent on part-time volunteers.  Effective use of the right technology provides efficiencies and communication capabilities that would make our work extremely difficult to accomplish otherwise.

PUI: In a few sentences, please touch on the importance of your industry to the broader economy.
DG: As the US economy moves away from traditional manufacturing and Birmingham’s economy suffers from the departure of banking and other industries, the technology sector can fill many of those gaps. Obviously, it is one of the fastest growing portions of our economy and allows us to remain at the forefront of the world stage.

Additionally, it is where some of the most significant innovations are occurring, and the approaches and techniques used within the technology sector can also benefit the thinking of those in other industries.  Finally, the introduction of new technologies often times greatly enhances and improves our lifestyle both at work and at home.

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PUI spotlights volunteer leaders of our client groups only. If you are interested in nominating someone for our spotlight, contact Julie today.

Our Year In Review

Projects Unlimited 2011 Annual Report Snapshot

Since 2007, PUI has served dozens of nonprofit associations through our core services of full service association management, administrative and financial management, membership and campaign planning, and event and meeting execution. 2011 was an exciting year for our firm. The year was packed with productivity for PUI staff and interns, and the chart below provides a snapshot of the impact we had this year.

PUI Events

In this portion of our annual report, we see that in addition to the associations who opt for the full-service menu of PUI services, we also managed major events and meetings for local, state, regional and national organizations.

To the left, you will see a snapshot of the time that we spent per month making arrangements for a variety of events – luncheons, expositions, awards galas, and benefits. This is not the full list of events that PUI had a hand in, but you can get the picture.

In the graph above, you see the average time we spent each month on a variety of events. What were we doing, though? For our clients that we work with on a “special project” basis, we are typically assisting them with items such as:

• Coordinating Vendors
• Planning Registration
• Messaging
• Designing event materials (programs, signage, logo design, etc.)
• PR, Marketing, Social Media, Mass Communications
• Committee Meeting and Milestone Management
• Volunteer Recruitment and Management
• On-Site Execution
• Developing Timelines, Budgets, and Run of Show Documents
• And a whole lot more!

We complete these projects in conjunction with fulfilling our responsibilities to our full-service clients. As you saw in this earlier post, the PUI team approach has proven successful. We employ a few hours and the talents of multiple team members to complete tasks in the most efficient way that we can. Working this way guarantees that every day will be different, which is something that we see as a benefit.

By taking on the tasks from our full service and special project clients, we save volunteer leaders time – time you need to build relationships with donors and sponsors, recruit top talent, or secure a dynamic speakers for educational, revenue-raising meetings and events.

Turning to PUI means staving off volunteer burnout and ensuring year-in, year-out business continuity as volunteers come and go. Read more about how we support the volunteer leaders of our full service clients and contact us today – let’s talk about how we may be able to help you relax.

Interested in reading our full annual report? No problem. Just contact Ed Fields to secure your own copy.

Calling for Spring 2012 Interns!

Applications for our Spring 2012 Internship Opportunities are now open!

Interested students should submit your resume, cover letter, writing sample (just something you are proud of from one of your classes – no need to create something new) and at least 2 references to kellie@relaxitshandled.com no later than February 10, 2012. Read the full position description now.

Who are we looking for?

• A marketing, communications, nonprofit management or business major.
• Someone who really wants to get some relevant work experience THIS semester.
• Attitude: Flexible, Fun, Focused, Forgiving
• Critical Skills: Confident writer/editor, organized, intense attention to detail and the ability to work with minimal supervision and take ownership of tasks.
• Education: No less than five full-time semesters completed. Traditional students preferred. Juniors and Seniors only.

What to expect?

At PUI, we have our hands in multiple projects on any given day. As a PUI intern, you can expect to hear a lot about:

Nonprofit Fundraising       Customer Service       Office Administration
Event Planning       Marketing and Sales       Project Management

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Initiate or respond to e-mails and phone calls from volunteers leaders. Take meeting notes.
• Data entry into important databases, including Excel Spreadsheets and online databases.
• Make phone calls to venues, caterers, photographers and others for special events. Sometimes our work pace feels like a competitive reality TV show, but without the cursing and fighting.
• Write and edit copy for electronic newsletters, website copy and social media updates.
• On-site support (based on availability) for meetings and events. Our important dates must be confirmed on your schedule before your internship begins.
• Other projects as assigned.

Schedule and Compensation

March 1, 2012 – April 30, 2012
Our intern should expect to be with us from March 1, 2012 – April 30, 2012. You should be able to dedicate at least 20 daytime hours per week between 8:30 am – 5:00 pm to Projects Unlimited and our clients. The actual days and times you work are completely negotiable as long as the other criteria are met.

$750 + Bonus Opportunities
Our interns will be compensated with a $750 stipend paid upon successful completion of your internship. BONUS POTENTIAL: A performance bonus of $500 is available for those that exceed our expectations, and high performing interns will have preference for paid summer internships.

Applicant To Do’s:

1. Read the full position description.
2. Only apply if you are Junior or Senior in one of the listed majors with at least 5 full semesters of school completed.
3. Make sure to submit all the items listed: resume, cover letter, writing sample,and  at least 2 references.
4. Submit your application materials by February 10, 2012 to kellie@relaxitshandled.com
5. Please make sure you meet the criteria listed before applying.

We look forward to having you as part of our team!