Dress for Success of Northern New Jersey: Case study of the value of a network

Rikki Abzug and Kimberly Iozzi

Chapter Chapter 17 in Case Studies on Nonprofit Resilience Management, 2025, pp 146-155 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Dress for Success of Northern New Jersey (DFSNNJ) is one of 142 affiliates of Dress for Success® with a mission to “empower women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of support, professional attire and the development tools to help women thrive in work and in life.” Before the 2020-2021 pandemic, DFSNNJ had built a local network of partner organizations including social service agencies that referred clients; corporate partners that offered funding, recognition, and volunteers; and local churches and colleges that formed satellite programs to recruit women as clients and volunteers. When the pandemic hit, DFSNNJ’s network of referring agencies closed down and clients were left at home without childcare or transportation options. Corporate and university partners were also laying off or furloughing workers, and one-time volunteers were becoming potential clients. In response, DFSNNJ asked its network partners how it could assist them. This outreach helped keep the network connected and led DFSNNJ to reorient itself to online provision, including career-building services for former volunteers, while DFSNJJ’s corporate partners shifted their support from helping with in-person events to funding webinars and Amazon wishlists. As a result, in 2020, DFSNNJ engaged 490 new women as clients, 42% more than the year before.

Keywords: Professional development; Pandemic; Networking; Partnerships; Corporate sponsorships (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035328567
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