Local organizations receive boost from IU group

Several local nonprofit organizations are receiving business, financial, marketing and strategic advice -- and it's all for free.\nJanus Consulting Institute, a student-run organization, works to find business solutions and provides consulting advice for nonprofit agencies. \nThe group began in 2002 and will be looking to recruit new members in mid-November.\n"We started with small, local, nonprofit organizations, but now we are working with national nonprofits," said Managing Partner and senior Sarood Baig. "By being successful in every single endeavor, we win a lot of credibility."\nOrganizations for which they have worked include the Bloomington Development Learning Center and the IU men's hockey team. Janus currently works with a larger organization but cannot release names until the consultants finish work on the project.\nBaig said Janus is looking for students to do unpaid work for organizations in return for receiving valuable work experience.\nThe ideal candidate must be detail-oriented and enjoy a fast-paced, high-energy work environment, according to a statement released by Janus. In addition, candidates must have superior quantitative skills, and excellent communication and interpersonal skills. \nThere are other groups on campus that do this sort of work, but Janus is specifically engagement-focused, meaning they take a project and meet with the company to see the results through to the end.\n"Janus is execution-focused," Baig said. "We're focused on getting an engagement and getting it done. We work in the executive position and try to figure out what are your biggest issues, then we solve them. We meet with you every two weeks to update on progress."\nErika Brettingen, a junior who is also a managing partner, joined the group as a sophomore and stresses that the group is open to anyone.\n"We're really open to anything. We like to recruit intelligent, outgoing people," Brettingen said. "We're currently only made up of business majors but not closed to others."\nBaig also thinks the skills are the most important characteristic of a Janus candidate, not the major.\n"Willingness to learn is what matters," Big said. "It doesn't matter if they are in (School of Public and Environmental Affairs) or history."\nWorking with nonprofit organizations presents its own unique problems. \nBrettingen said many problems arise because people are not in it for the money, so they don't have as much motivation. That is where Janus comes in. They tell the organization what problems they have and present them with solutions to fix them.\n"For one engagement, we set up a pricing scheme for a day care center," Brettingen said.\nThough the students aren't paid, Janus stresses that it has a lot to offer.\n"Janus provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to interact with senior management of major nonprofit organizations and participate in solving complex business problems," Baig said.\n-- Contact staff writer Cecelia \nWolford at cwolford@indiana.edu.