SIFE leader's worldwide efforts earn business support

Alvin Rohrs spends 80 percent of his job traveling the world, ratcheting up corporate support for the massive organization he leads right here in Springfield.

Rohrs is president and CEO of Students in Free Enterprise, a not-for-profit that, as he says, "creates a network of leaders of today and tomorrow." The organization uses support from large corporations to fund SIFE teams at 1,400 colleges and universities, which in turn use the power of business to help communities become self-sustaining.

Rohrs was the featured guest Tuesday morning at Springfield Business Journal's 12 People You Need to Know breakfast event at the Clarion Hotel's Newsroom Café.

After 26 years on the job, the Pleasant Hope native is comfortable meeting with even the highest-level executives - from corporations such as PepsiCo and Microsoft - and he is passionate about SIFE's mission. Getting face time with those top execs can be a challenge, he says, but once he's in the door, he focuses on building relationships by getting to know them personally - ask about their "kids, grandkids and hottest product" - and helping them understand his cause.

"I ask them, what are you doing to make the world a better place, and how can I help you do that?" Rohrs said.

Among the many past SIFE projects, Rohrs recounted one in Albania, where SIFE students worked with a village that was supported primarily by a marijuana-growing business. The team helped villagers leave the drug trade behind and begin growing medicinal herbs - a safer and more profitable venture.

Rohrs said all of SIFE's donors are tightening their belts during the recession, but most are still committed to the organization's mission.

"We have learned it's a time to be very patient, strategic, and continue to build relationships," he said.

Rohrs added that the recession will likely result in a shakeout in the nonprofit industry, which he calls "overbuilt." A number of organizations that have been formed to serve a very small need or that are run inefficiently will be weeded out, he said, allowing the remaining groups to thrive.

Despite modest beginnings, SIFE has grown to a multimillion-dollar worldwide organization serving more than 40 countries. Rohrs' advice for finding that success: Let other people become engaged in your dreams. Otherwise, "it will stay your dream."