Main Responsibilities of a Founder and Program Director at Treats
As founder and program director, Alison's main responsibilities encompass "being the face and the clear megaphone" for Treats' mission, while simultaneously developing program structure—initially envisioning monthly in-person and outing-based activities—and proactively pursuing collaborative events, demonstrating adaptability by prioritizing community building over strictly adhering to a pre-planned schedule.
Entrepreneurship, Nonprofit Management, Program Development, Community Building, Event Planning
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Alison Griffin
Founder and Program Director
Treats.
University of Southern California, 2012
N/A
Film, Media Arts, Visual Arts
Food, Beverages & Alcohol
Entrepreneurship and Business Owner
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans
Video Highlights
1. Being the face of the organization and clearly communicating its mission is a crucial aspect of being a founder.
2. Balancing the roles of founder and program director involves wearing many hats, such as planning program activities, managing communication with the community, and building collaborations.
3. Flexibility and adapting to opportunities as they arise are important skills for a founder, especially in the early stages of developing a non-profit organization.
Transcript
As the founder of a nonprofit or organization you're trying to get off the ground, you're the face of the idea. You're responsible for taking the information you gather and making it make sense for your audience and community.
I'm working through that in real time. It's the first time I've been an entrepreneur or headed out on my own, but it's definitely been a fun and interesting journey and challenge. Stepping up to the plate and articulating my vision in a succinct and clear way is key.
That's the idea of a Founder besides making the whole ship run. I'm learning the most about being the face and clear megaphone for this important mission.
Then there's the everyday piece as a program director, another title I gave myself. I'm thinking through how this will work. My initial idea was for Treats to meet twice a month.
Once we have a community, we would meet in person once a month for play activities. I'd implement my brain hacks, all science-based things to help people feel better.
Another weekend of the month, we would go out into the world. Maybe visiting a flea market, going bowling, or doing something novel. This connects people to their senses in a different way, within a community.
As a program director, I think about the cadence of meetings and touch points outside of them. What does the newsletter look like? What about email campaigns? How do we stay in touch between physical meetings?
Additionally, opportunities have come sooner than expected. A lot of people have said it's good to be flexible. I thought collaborations and ticketed partner events would happen down the road.
However, those events have come first. We had our first dinner where I announced Treats and the website. A friend who wanted to launch her offshoot idea joined me.
We were both starting new things, and it was a cool exercise to empower each other to jump in and try it. We hosted a dinner together. I had my Treats elements, and she got to cook for everyone.
It was a good way to introduce our ideas to different networks. I have two or three more collaborations on the horizon, more than I ever thought would happen before the regular program was set up.
As a program director, I make decisions about what makes sense in the flow of things. Maybe it's okay that we're having these community-building events before the regular programming starts. That's what I've been up to as a Founder and program director.