Time to shed the shackles
Anyone reading the press over the last year could be forgiven for thinking that working in the charity sector is like living through The Blitz. It feels like the sector’s […]
Finding the diamonds
There’s an old story about a Persian farmer that a lot of struggling charities might find extremely relevant. It was popularised by the 19th century Baptist minister Russell Conwell and it goes like this…
Doing good is not enough
Need is growing, funding is contracting, grants are turning into contracts, and the people who are giving them out are looking for ever more things in return. For charities on the receiving end, it seems that ‘doing good’ is no longer enough.
Mark Lever on commerce, excellence and the future of the sector
Mark Lever, CEO of The National Autistic Society talks about the sector’s most pressing challenges, and how business thinking is becoming increasingly important to its future survival
The Changing Face of Charities
Between 2001 and 2011 the charity sector’s income grew from £31bn to £41bn a year. Not through fundraising or grants, or legacies or investments, but through commercial trading. Public donations […]
CEO Seminars
Our Charity CEO Breakfast Seminars are extremely popular – the last one was fully booked two months in advace. As far as I’m aware, they are quite simply the only […]
Why your people won’t all get along
A single, harmonious organisational culture is a myth. Subcultures are inevitable, but they don’t have to be a problem if you follow these steps.
A question of innovation
In any organisation there will be lots of people who have ideas as to how things could be improved, but how do you decide which ones to back?
When strategy and culture clash
If you don’t have the capabilities to deliver your intended strategy, you’ll fail. In the same way, if you don’t have the right culture to deliver it, you’ll fail. And the solution is no different in either scenario.
Transforming ideas
One of the biggest challenges for charities over the next few years will be how to bridge the gap between the money you can raise, and the money you need to spend, and there are just three ways to do that…
Stop looking for markets to enter
One of the interesting aspects of what I’ll call “the charity mindset”, is that we do things on a shoestring and if we can cover our costs, we’re good to go. That mindset leads to some very dangerous assumptions indeed.
Why meetings are a waste of time
If all you’re doing in most of your meetings is agreeing to carry on with the current plan, your time would probably be better spent elsewhere.
Stop waiting for the data
The best way to develop high value commercial income with genuine impact, is to find unmet need and to create new markets around it, but that means a lot of people inside your charity need to change their expectations.
Finding your strategic space
Easter is usually a quiet time here at Drake Towers. This year though, things were different…
How to help your people change
Most of the charities I work with are having to change, but the thing that most often slows them down, is persuading their passionate long-standing people to embrace those changes
Video: profit versus impact
In this three minute video, Martyn demonstrates and explains a simple tool that you can use with the executive team in your charity and social enterprise, to quickly prioritise the big initiatives
