Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people who have done this or are achieving it.

Our purpose is to prove it is possible and preferable to build a career in which you can achieve both personal success and progressive benefit to the planet.

It’s possible whether you run a business or work for one. Each week we’ll feature inspiring people from a variety of backgrounds - for-profit businesses, charities, social enterprises, government organisations, and startups.

In addition we’ll share opportunities, tools, events and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Emma Malcolm: embedding purpose right the way through The Macular Society

At the Macular Society, Emma Malcolm is in the somewhat unusual position of being responsible for both fundraising and services.

Already Director of Fundraising and Marketing, since February this year she’s been Interim Director of Services as well and, she says, “I’m loving it – it makes so much sense to be raising the money, and spending it. The audience’s the same, so having a fundraiser leading our services and our fundraising seems to be working really well.”

“I don’t know if it would work for any other organisation,” she concedes, “but it feels right for us in terms of who we are and what we want to do.”

Not only are most of the Macular Society’s supporters also its beneficiaries, but for the past five years it’s been undergoing an organisation-wide change process to put its purpose – beating macular disease – front and centre.

“We are probably the biggest condition you’ve never heard of,” Emma says. “1.5 million people in the UK are affected by macular disease – everyone from children through to people who are losing their sight through ageing. Because of this, we essentially have one audience.

We’re there for them, and they’re there for us, and together, we will beat it. We really believe that, and crucially, they do too.”

Mission possible

The charity’s mission is to put itself out of business. And until that happens, it wants to reach every single person affected by macular disease and for them to know that it’s there for them, whenever needed.

“As a charity you exist for a reason,” says Emma, “And that isn’t just to raise more money.

It’s to solve a problem. We’re really clear about our purpose, so we have three strategic aims: one is to fund a cure, the second is to provide the best advice and support, and the third is to tell people their vision matters – because we need people to look after their eyes.”

It’s a purpose Emma shares.

“I want to live in a world where it doesn’t matter if you can’t see, or hear, or walk, and we treat everybody the same,” she says. “So if I can play a small part in curing the biggest cause of blindness, that would be pretty epic!”

Starting the change process

The Macular Society’s purpose-driven change programme started with the realisation that doing what it was doing, which was growing a little bigger each year, simply wasn’t enough.

Seeking a way to accelerate its progress brought it to Revolutionise. An initial visit by senior leaders to its Scottish headquarters to learn about the principles of Great Fundraising left them transfixed and transformed by the possibilities. It led to implementing a journey of change covering everything from re-evaluating where to direct its resources and improving how it fundraises, to working to become a better employer – all linked to its objective of achieving its mission.

Embarking on this journey also resulted in bringing Emma on board. Passionate about fundraising, her introduction was seven years at the Royal Academy of Music, culminating in working with Elton John on a concert that raised a million pounds. From there, Emma held roles at Refuge and Diabetes UK, before moving to the then Prostate Cancer Research Foundation as its first permanent member of staff. When she started, the charity’s annual income was £400,000.

And when she left seven years later, having been Chief Exec for five and seeing it through two mergers to being taken over by Prostate Cancer UK, this had reached £21 million.

A desire to get back to what she loves most then led her away from CEO roles to become Director of Fundraising and Marketing at Dyslexia Action, and then to another fundraising role at Rethink Mental Illness – fulfilling a dream of hers to work for this cause, having had her own mental health diagnoses since her early 20s. But then a call from a recruitment consultant told her about the Macular Society role – on the off chance she might be interested.

And the rest, as they say, was history, with Emma joining in 2018 – at the start of its change programme.

Single-minded focus

Continuing the charity’s story, she says: “You name it, we’ve changed it, from making sure that all new starters get an induction training in what great fundraising is and their role in that, to changing our focus to become much bolder. Now we talk about beating macular disease. We are very single minded as an organisation, and really clear about why we exist and that we’d like to get to a point where we don’t need to.”

The charity knows that the only way to put itself out of existence is by funding a lot of research, which, in this area, is massively underfunded globally. At the same time, it’s also making sure it’s there to support people, and that means everything from offering counselling and groups through to helping people learn how to use technology.

“The biggest cohort for us is age-related macular degeneration, and the average age of someone that goes to our groups is 83. Some are very technologically minded; lots of them not so much. So it’s really important that we’re teaching people how to use technology as well as thinking about things that are low tech. For example if you have macular disease and do nothing else, sort your lighting out, and get a really good magnifier. So we’ll support people, whilst we make sure that we fund lots of research and find a cure.”

Reassessing and assessing

To this end, a recent gap analysis has enabled it to work out where its resources are best directed and the charity is now looking to answer a couple of key strategic questions as it plans for the future. One is around training. The charity knows patients often aren’t getting the best support from professionals so is considering whether this is something it should be offering, and what that might look like. Similarly, it’s looking at whether it should be offering services to children and young people, and again what these might look like.

Becoming a better employer

Of course, like any organisation, nothing can be achieved without its staff, so becoming a better employer is also a big part of its change process. Last year the charity took part in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work survey. This wasn’t about a quest to get into the top 100 (although it did) but about finding out what it needs to get better at in terms of supporting its staff.

Emma explains:

“We wanted to know, are we giving our staff what they need to do their jobs? It’s been great because it’s told us what we need to improve. So yes, we’re in the top 100, but actually taking it was more about finding out where can we improve than about the pat on the back.

Because we won’t beat macular disease if our staff don’t believe in us as an organisation and believe that we’re supporting them.”

This has seen the HR team working to help the organisation enhance everything from sick and maternity leave, to its pension scheme, leave days, and flexible working, and proactively asking staff what they think, and what else the charity could be doing.

Proof in performance

And the better it supports its people, internally, and externally, the more support the charity finds it is receiving back. The changes implemented since beginning of its transformative programme have seen income grow 75% in the last five years, which is “phenomenal” says Emma. As a result, it has almost doubled spend on research.

“Last year, we spent £2 million on research and £2.8 million on supporting people with macular,” Emma says. “This isn’t about growth for the sake of it. This is growth because we know we need to reach everybody affected.”

Test, learn – and don’t be afraid to fail

The process of embedding purpose throughout the organisation has brought a number of learnings. The importance of testing, and of using those learnings to improve is certainly one of them. As is the fact that for this to happen successfully, trust among teams is essential so people feel they can speak freely and honestly. Emma’s key piece of advice here however, is not to fear failure.

“We positively encourage it,” she says. “If we get it wrong, as long as we learn from it and don’t do it again, I’m cool with that. I don’t think there’s such a thing as failure per se.”

From her perspective, Emma says: “I’d rather you told me if I’m getting it wrong, because then I can get it right. It’s important to be really open. This isn’t a game; it’s people’s lives: those who work for you and those you support. So don’t be afraid to say you got it wrong – nobody’s perfect.”

Purpose firmly at its core

Summing up, there’s now a clarity across the organisation that everything it now does, or considers doing, has to contribute towards it achieving that vision of ending macular disease and putting itself out of existence. It means that with every single step, Emma says: “We come back to the problem we’re trying to solve and ask how will this help us? And if it won’t, we accept that it’s not what we should be doing and that maybe there are partners we can help do that instead. That’s who we are as an organisation: we’re all about purpose.”

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector? Do you wonder about setting up or growing your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events, opportunities and funding that might help.

Churchill Fellowship

A Churchill Fellowship is “a once in a lifetime opportunity to lead the change you wish to see”.

If you are selected as a Churchill Fellow you will receive funding to spend up to two months learning from the innovators in your field anywhere in the world, in person or online. The aim is that you come up with some insights that can help improve society in the UK.

Applications are open to all UK adult citizens regardless of qualifications, background or age. Applications are open until the 14 November 2023.

The Tech For All category might appeal to many. It is looking for projects "that explore technology’s potential to work better for everyone. This may be through technical, policy, social, business or other solutions".

Modibodi 2024 Game Changer Grant

The Modibodi Game Changer Grant is “a purpose-driven programme created to foster talent, inspire innovation, and champion long-term social and environmental change”.

Each year, Modibodi funds an extraordinary person, project or organisation making their mark on menstrual equality, menopause awareness, sustainable textile innovation, climate action, textiles and biodiversity regenerative agriculture, and circular design.

This year’s grant is focused on supporting organisations making a significant impact to address period equality, where the grant will include a monetary donation along with professional knowledge from Modibodi.

Applications close on 29 October 2023 and winners will be announced in December.

Green skills bursaries

The City & Guilds Foundation is offering “green skills bursaries”. Developing the skills for the jobs of the future is part of its contribution to supporting efforts to achieve net zero.

Bursaries cover the total cost of studying, so learners can study for their qualifications without worrying about paying anything back. You can apply for a bursary up to £6,000 but “most bursaries granted are for amounts between £2,500 and £5,000”.

You can for funding to study towards a qualification in industries which is facing skills shortages and requires skilled workers now and in the future, including manufacturing, land-based services, engineering, construction, built environment services, and health and social care.

The deadline for applications is 31 October 2023.

Leverhulme International Fellowship

Experienced university researchers have the opportunity to pursue their research outside the UK with a Leverhulme Trust International Fellowship.

Twitter tweet

Research Fellowships are open to experienced researchers, particularly those who are or have been prevented by routine duties from completing a programme of original research. Priority will be given to applicants whose teaching and administrative duties have significantly impacted their ability to undertake research in the three years prior to their application.

The maximum value of a Fellowship is £65,000 and they can last from three to 24 months.

ChangeNow 2024 - call for solutions

Image: ChangeNow

ChangeNow is seeking participants for its 2024 Summit.

The social enterprise “accelerates the environmental and social transition by fostering the deployment of concrete actions and solutions responding to the biggest challenges of our century”.

Its annual Summit brings together “a new generation of entrepreneurs, citizens, artists… innovative minds and sustainability leaders” to “identify promising solutions for the planet and connect them to the resources they need to scale”.

The second round of applications is open until 30 November and a third runs from 1 December to 31 January.

The Earthshot Prize

Do you have a solution that:

🌳 Protects and Restores Nature?

☁️ Cleans our Air?

🌊 Revives our Oceans?

♻️ Builds a Waste-Free World?

🌎 Fixes our Climate?

Share it with Springwise, one of a group of organisations around the world that are an Official Nominator for The Earthshot Prize 2024.

They will be nominating individuals, communities, businesses, and organisations whose solutions make the most progress towards achieving the five Earthshots – simple but ambitious goals that, if achieved by 2030, will improve life for us all.

Find out more about the process, or explore other official nominators in your country.

What we’ve been reading

Twitter tweet

_{advertisement}

Ticket Tailor is a carbon-neutral B Corp that balances profit with purpose. And still doesn’t charge for free tickets.

What readers say

“For those of you in fundraising, and indeed any professional who has 'purpose' this is a fabulous free resource which isn't getting enough attention, and, indeed, is produced by Howard Lake, whom you all know. Thanks Howard”.
Giles Pegram CBE
8 September 2023

“If Howard Lake created, definitely worth looking at”.
Ian McLintock
Charity Excellence
8 September 2023

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people who have done this or are achieving it.

Our purpose is to prove it is possible and preferable to build a career in which you can achieve both personal success and progressive benefit to the planet.

It’s possible whether you run a business or work for one. Each week we’ll feature inspiring people from a variety of backgrounds - for-profit businesses, charities, social enterprises, government organisations, and startups.

This week we speak to Gerry Lianos, co-founder and CEO of digital raffle platform, Raffolux.

In addition we’ll share opportunities, tools, events and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Gerry Lianos, founder of digital raffle platform Raffolux

Founded in 2019, Raffolux recently celebrated the milestone of giving away over £10 million worth of prizes, while raising more than £600,000 for charity in the process.

Keeping charity at the heart of everything it does, Raffolux makes monthly donations to a not-for-profit of the player’s choice, supporting charities such as Alzheimer’s Society, Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity, and Mental Health UK, among many others.

The journey to purpose

As a teenager, I spent most of my evenings volunteering around my local town and helping out at the youth centre. I think it’s something that I did more and more of just because I liked it, I didn’t consciously think ‘I’m helping others out’ or ‘this is a great thing to do,’ it just felt right and really rewarding. I’m not sure exactly when or where the concept of purpose really hit home for me, or rather, when I decided that giving back was something that I really valued, I just liked being in situations where I happened to be helping people.

When I was a little younger, I had my heart set on becoming a lawyer and was focused on giving myself the best chance I could to get there. So, for me, that meant the usual slew of taking part in various vacation schemes and internships, and I was lucky enough to work for a number of brilliant firms in the process. Although I undoubtedly learned quite a lot from that process, I had the same feeling that a lot of entrepreneurs often have – where you just feel this urge to go your own way and do the right thing for yourself, regardless of whether it will work out or not. It’s just something that I felt that I had to do.

Of course, I’m still fond of the legal profession (and perhaps there’ll always be a bit of me thinking ‘what if’), but to be honest, I’m so happy doing what I’m doing and running Raffolux has been such an incredible experience. I’m loving every moment of it.

I love the concept of Raffolux and the charity twist we’ve managed to bring to it. In a nutshell, players of our raffles can select a charity of their choice to donate a portion of our proceeds towards every month. When we came up with the idea it just made sense, and I was so happy that we managed to bring a twist to the product that would support amazing causes.

Learnings along the way

When you decide to go your own way and start up your own company, it’s all very exciting and there’s so much to figure out. It can be amazingly positive and I’ve had some real highs from running Raffolux, but you also have to be prepared to deal with very regular challenges and issues on an almost daily basis. I think throughout my journey, my two main learnings have really been how to deal with failure, and the importance of remaining optimistic.

The idea of failure and how to react to it is something that your teachers might have pointed out in school – that you need to fail in order to get things right, and that it’s an important part of learning. In the past, I maybe brushed that advice off more than I should have, thinking that getting it right the first time around was the important thing, and the advice sounded more like an excuse than anything else.

When I started the business, however, I realised just how wrong I was. In the early stages of a startup, it’s crucial to try new ideas and iterate constantly. The very nature of that process means that you’re guaranteed to get it wrong a lot of the time, and the critical element to it is learning from the less optimal parts, and taking that understanding forward into your next ideas or iterations. That jagged line of experimentation is so crucial to getting it right, and in a start-up context, getting to the product-market fit that founders dream of.

Remaining optimistic is also a key learning. As I alluded to earlier, at the start, you will almost certainly go through some immensely trying times running a startup, unless you just get ferociously lucky throughout the whole thing. I think I always used to view optimism as some sort of personality trait; that some people generally got up on the right side of bed and others simply didn’t.

But, as the business has grown, I’ve definitely come to see that optimism is more of a life skill, and it is something that you only really develop when you’re in the bad times. From there, it’s so important to break down every bad situation into a set of positive options and maintain that approach as you move forward, however you’re feeling or whatever state the business is in. Sharing that attitude with your team is also so important – optimism and pessimism are both equally infectious in the office, and instilling the right mindset in the group is crucial.

Overcoming challenges

With every startup there are, of course, countless challenges you’ll have to go through where you’ll either be completely stumped in the beginning, or worn down by the process of overcoming it. One particular challenge I remember is raising our first round of funding. I think in general that most tech entrepreneurs look forward to that moment, but the road towards it can be very demoralising. In the absence of third-party validation from other investors, it’s often very difficult to raise that first round, and, of course, our experience at Raffolux was no different in that regard. I think we must have received about 20-30 ‘no’ responses from investors for every person that said they’d take a look at what we were doing.

So, getting through that definitely required a lot of resilience – it’s hard just ploughing through the constant rejections. It forces you to adopt a positive mindset, and it’s important to remember that making small steps towards the goal is just as important as actually getting there in the end.

As well as resilience, I think the two other main qualities that are crucial to success are empathy and adaptability. Obviously, it’s possible to be a successful but ruthless leader, but that’s not a trait I place any value on. I think it’s always best to first view a difficult situation with empathy and go into difficult conversations with that frame of mind, rather than a ‘survival of the fittest’ attitude. That’s not to say that you don’t want to build an A-team and it is occasionally necessary to let people go – both are equally true – but I’ve found an empathetic approach often encourages the best work from your team, rather than ruthlessness. Adaptability as a leader is also so important, especially for smaller companies where you spend half your time planning, and the other half dealing with issues that come up along the way. You need to be persistent and single-minded in where you want to be.

I’m still a work in progress on all of these counts, but going in with the right intentions always helps!

The power of purpose

This is almost definitely going to come across as a little bit cheesy, but to me, purpose is all about putting others first. I’m still really excited by my own goals and aspirations, but helping others is something that’s always made me both motivated and happy. I’m not entirely sure where it’s come from, but it’s something that’s always been with me. It’s hugely rewarding to help others achieve something and put them first, and it’s an approach that has helped me throughout my life.

For anyone looking to embed more purpose into their lives, my advice is, if it’s something that you feel in your heart and that you think will make you happy, then absolutely, go for it – what’s the point otherwise?

One thing that I’d advise is that there isn’t always the need to make a dramatic change to find your purpose or start your purpose journey – you don’t need to suddenly uproot your life, make a significant change to your career or start a business on a whim. My advice would be to consider taking small steps to make sure that any change is absolutely what you want to do – consider volunteering in your free time, or find other ways to dip your toe in the water. Our current surroundings, both inside and outside of work, often offer opportunities to make a real impact and, if you’ve given your all there and there’s still something inside of you that’s driving you to explore your purpose further, then maybe then it’s the time to consider taking the larger step.

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

What is the purpose of a mayor?

Paul Skinner, founder of MarketingKind, today interviews Andy Burnham, Mayor of Manchester, and explore the question ‘What is the purpose of a mayor?’

The online event is free for MarketingKind members “and there are a limited number of guest places available”.

Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights

A $5,000 grant is available “to women and non-binary human rights defenders and organisations in Asia and the Pacific who – on their own or in collaboration with others – seek to implement an initiative, including unanticipated opportunity, that would contribute towards resourcing resilience for their activism”.

Applications close on 31 December 2023.

UK Boardroom Apprentice Programme is open

Boardroom Apprentice is a 12-month board learning, development and placement programme which enables those who would like to serve on a public or third sector board to learn and gain experience in a safe way before they take that step.

Twitter tweet

Good Bad Billionaire

In this new BBC podcast Simon Jack and Zing Tsjeng explore how the richest people on the planet made their billions, and then they judge them. Are they good, bad, or just another billionaire?

The first two episodes of Good Bad Billionaire feature Rihanna and Jeff Bezos.

African Union Youth Volunteer Corps 2023

Applications for the African Union Youth Volunteer Corps 2023 are open. The 12-month fully-funded programme aims to bring people from all 55 AU member states together “to build a more integrated, prosperous, and peaceful Continent driven by its citizens”.

The closing date for applications is 19 September 2023.

Learn about social investment

If you want to learn more about social investment, this free online course runs four times a year.

It is designed for anybody who wants to be able to explain social investment to others and answer questions about it; such as infrastructure organisations, membership bodies and capacity building organisations.

Twitter tweet

_{advertisement}

What we’ve been reading

Explore Social Founders for Inspirational stories about founders of social impact orgs.

_{advertisement}

Ticket Tailor is a carbon-neutral B Corp that balances profit with purpose. And still doesn’t charge for free tickets.

What readers say

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people who have done this or are achieving it.

Our purpose is to prove it is possible and preferable to build a career in which you can achieve both personal success and progressive benefit to the planet.

It’s possible whether you run a business or work for one. Each week we’ll feature inspiring people from a variety of backgrounds - for-profit businesses, charities, social enterprises, government organisations, and startups.

As we continue to explore the purpose behind the people making a positive difference to society today, we speak to artist and filmmaker Dan Edelstyn. His latest project, Power Station, follows Dan and his partner Hilary, as they raise funds to install solar panels on houses in their street, including £113,000 raised by sleeping on their roof for three weeks in the winter.

In addition we share another collection of opportunities, tools, events and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Dan Edelstyn: building a power station of people for change

Hilary and Dan Edelstyn. Photo: Peter Searle

Where purpose began

My quest for purpose came out of a crisis of meaning experienced after making my first feature documentary, How to Re-establish a Vodka Empire. I spent five years filming the development of what I hoped was going to be a socially-responsible purpose-driven vodka brand, with the goal of stimulating trade in a village in northeastern Ukraine. The vodka, from my great-grandfather’s distillery, was imported to England, but the project didn’t work out and a lot of hard work was basically for nothing. It was a pretty horrible situation, and I was left questioning why I was making films.

After that, I found myself reading lots of books by authors such as George Orwell, Leo Tolstoy and Viktor Frankl. Frankl’s book about man’s quest for meaning was something of a lightbulb moment. It made me think that, rather than seeing filmmaking as a career where I was trying to get higher up the rankings (rather like an officer in the Army) I should instead focus on its impact, and how it can help others.

Around that time, Hilary and I heard about a group in America who were buying up and then abolishing debt. It resonated with my quest for meaning, and that was the beginning of a new method of work for me. It wasn’t around identifying a really good idea to pitch to a broadcaster to try to get money anymore. Instead, it became about identifying the best film to make to help other people understand the forces at play in the world around us.

So, the idea of Bank Job was born and, in that film, we ended up opening our own bank and then printing our own artists’ currency, selling it, and using the proceeds to then buy and blow up a million pounds’ worth of debt. We effectively became direct action filmmaker artists: we would see a problem, take action on it, and try to have an impact, with the film itself a tool to tell the story and raise awareness of the topic.

Establishing the audience

All of our film work is now impact-driven from the beginning and we start to distribute before a film is finished. This goes against the traditional model to bring the audience right into the heart of what we’re doing.

I just love the documentary genre for getting a story out there. Creating a narrative which embeds a message is a very powerful way to disseminate the facts and, when you can tell a compelling story, then things begin to change. If you involve people in the process you’re creating an architecture of possibility, which is really important because it inspires hope and encourages other people to join in with your work.

This has also helped us meet the challenge of funding our purpose-led filmmaking. We have had to learn how to build movements around our work, and importantly, how to monetise that as well. Power Station is a great example of that.

An army of supporters – Power Station

With Power Station, because it’s a live project the objectives that drive our work can change. For example, can we put solar panels on every house on the street? Can we start working to put solar panels on the civic buildings in our area? How can we do that quickly?

Who do we have to collaborate with to do that? How can we share what we’re learning about this immediately?

To bring people with us on this journey, as well as to develop a model that’s useful to others doing cause-driven work, whether it’s cultural, charitable, or otherwise., we built a membership site.

We also regularly make short clips of what we’re doing and post them across social media, which means that every day we can get 100 people or so signing up to our mailing list. And that’s really important and powerful to us because it means that we have an army of supporters.

Dealing with challenges

I don’t think anything we’ve done has ever been plain sailing but there are always conflicts in everyone’s lives and we can all run into difficulties. But that’s why having a purpose to your work is such a good thing – it reminds us why we do what we do, and is effectively like a compass, giving us a bearing as to where we should be going. We know that we’re working on a cause which is bigger than ourselves, and that’s what keeps us tuned in and pushing forwards and, ultimately, pulls us through.

One key learning I’ve had is that it’s really important to create good marketing strategies that reinforce the purpose of what you’re doing and help you to get there. Even with the very best purpose in the world, you can still have no impact if you fail to come up with a way of involving the thousands, hundreds of thousands or even millions of other people who can back what you’re doing.

Celebrating the wins

Rather than pride, I tend to feel a sense of the work that’s undone, like I haven’t really done enough and I think that’s the same for Hilary as well. We never really feel like we’ve achieved anything like the sum total of what we want to do yet, but I guess that’s good, because it keeps us going. In terms of achievements from a filmmaking perspective, blowing up the million pounds of debt in Bank Job was really cool - seeing an explosion happening and things flying around in the air was brilliant!

I really love movement building and having a tangible impact, and I love the fact that our work has these different little chapters in it, and each of those chapters has an impact on someone in some way.

Mini Movies to Millions by Dan Edelstyn

I used to feel a bit of a sense of separation from my neighbours as well as from the problems of the world in a way. I just didn’t have time to get into them because I was so busy making sure that I had enough money to pay my rent or my mortgage.

That sense of internal pressure has been replaced now by a sense of connection, we connect to all sorts of different people in our surroundings and so, emotionally, there has been real change and the way that we work is significantly different. But maybe that is something to be proud of, although pride isn’t the dominant emotion, it’s more about a sense of feeling fulfilled.

A lucky man

I often felt that there was something intrinsically wrong with me in my early years as an artist and filmmaker because I was always hopping between things – recording a music album, and then shooting a whole load of photography, before making a film. What I was struggling with was really knowing who I was or what I actually wanted and, when I look back, maybe I was trying to find a purpose in what I was doing.

I’ve just set up this new initiative where I’m teaching others such as artists or community groups how to promote their own purpose-driven work. I’m helping with advice on how to build their following and how to effectively build their support mechanism. Basically, how to keep their aspirations alive. Too often, artists are pigeonholed as romantic dreamers, but art should sit right in the heart of our communities, it’s all about expressing our collective imaginations and knowing who we are, and what we stand for.

There’s a statistic in Frankl’s book that always stands out to me, that 85% of people, when asked, said that having a sense of purpose was the most important thing in life. In my mind, to be divorced from a sense of purpose through this idea of having to have some kind of a job that may not really align with who you are, is an awful blight on humanity. So, being able to do the kind of work that you feel called to do is incredibly important, and I’m incredibly lucky to be doing what I do.

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

The Kilfinan Group

The Kilfinan Group is a group of senior business people who provide free and informal mentoring to charity chief executives.

It was founded by Nicholas Ferguson CBE, Chairman of Savills plc, in 2003. It now has nine ‘Chapters’ and around 200 members. Five Chapters are based in London, two in Scotland, one in Wales and one in Northern Ireland.

It is “deliberately informal… Once matched, mentors and mentees are free to structure their relationship to fit their needs and styles”.

Roddenberry Catalyst

The Roddenberry Catalyst Fund makes grants between $2,500–$15,000 “to anyone, anywhere in the world who has an early-stage idea or project that addresses pressing global challenges”.

Applications are currently on hold but will “reopen in summer 2023”.

Yes, it is that Roddenberry. The Foundation was “inspired by the life and legacy of Gene Roddenberry”, the screenwriter, producer and creator of Star Trek: the Original Series.

Building our Narrative Power

This course from the Public Interest Research Center will bring together 16 people who are interested in changing the narrative across social, climate and economic justice and who have faced oppression.

The year-long course is free and expenses will be covered, and there are a limited number of full and partial bursaries available.

_{advertisement}

What we’ve been reading

• Milken-Motsepe Innovation Prize Programme - harnessing Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies for good. Offering the Green Energy Prize and the Agritech Prize.

_{advertisement}

Ticket Tailor is a carbon-neutral B Corp that balances profit with purpose. And still doesn’t charge for free tickets.

What readers say

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people who have done this or are achieving it, and often at pace.

It’s possible whether you run a business or work for one. Each week we’ll feature inspiring people from a variety of backgrounds - for-profit businesses, charities, social enterprises, government organisations, and startups.

This week our interview guest is similar but different. The clue’s in the name with Professionals with Purpose and the Purposely Podcast. Professionals with Purpose tells the stories of people growing income and positive impact, and the Purposely Podcast amplifies those of people with purpose from across the globe.

In addition we’ll share opportunities, tools, events and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Mark Longbottom: sharing lessons from the purposeful

We caught up with Mark Longbottom, Purposely’s host and founder, to find out where the idea for his podcast came from, and what 150+ episodes have taught him about purposeful people around the world.

Starting life during the pandemic, the podcast started out with Mark talking to charity people from the UK. Yet he’s a Kiwi living in New Zealand – so what’s the story?

Pursuing passions

Essentially, it starts with a strong sense of wanting his career to be purposeful and a keen love of the UK, both of which he’s had since he was a young boy growing up in New Zealand.

Transfixed by the country’s football and culture, and after trying and failing to get his parents to move the whole family over, he relocated to the UK as soon as he could, following a sociology degree and a first charity role in New Zealand. Starting in fundraising at Terrence Higgins Trust, he next took a more commercial role at The Prince’s Trust, before moving on to run St. James’s Place Charitable Foundation for a decade.

Thinking back to his younger self, Mark says: “I had this real strong sense of wanting my career to be purposeful, which seems ridiculous because I was super young then, but I think I had that determination that it would matter beyond money; that there’d be some positive impact to people whatever I did.”

In 2018, with home calling him back by that point, Mark and his family moved to New Zealand. Strangely though, despite being a Kiwi he found the transition harder than his English wife did, missing the strong network of friends and colleagues he’d built up in the UK. This left him feeling somewhat adrift. “I definitely had a wobble,” he admits.

Inspired to listen

But then along came the pandemic, and the idea for the podcast.

“I was in New Zealand, which wasn’t making much sense to me and I wanted a way to reconnect with the UK – so that was one of the drivers,” he explains. “Another was the global pandemic. Suddenly I had all day to think about ‘what next’. I wanted to connect with my old world and try something different that got me out of my comfort zone.”

Having always been “big into audio” and with time on his hands to listen and to think, he started to get inspired by others who were doing podcasts. He’d moved into a more corporate environment work-wise on his return to New Zealand, and wanted something that would provide a way to reconnect with the nonprofit world. This, combined with the challenges the pandemic brought, sparked a desire to shine a light on the stories of others and to connect nonprofit leaders so they could learn from each other and be a little less lonely in a difficult time. A podcast, he thought, would be a really good fit.

“Plus I’m super curious,” he adds. “I love finding out about people’s stories and why they connected to the purpose or the mission that they’re on – and it just started there.”

Exchanges of value

As the podcast took off, what quite quickly became apparent was that the stories he was hearing and sharing weren’t just interesting to listen to for an hour or so, but full of value in terms of the knowledge and learnings they left the audience with.

“I started off thinking ‘this is going to really take off’. And then I realised that actually, the brilliance of it is really the learning that you do. I learn so much from every episode and interaction. It’s an awesome way of knocking on the door of anybody in the world and having a really purposeful exchange of value.

“There’s also that feeling, because it’s an impact focused podcast, that it’s there to shine a light or amplify the stories of people doing good in the world. It feels worthwhile.”

‘A golden sofa’

Since the launch of Purposely, Mark has opened it up to include people in New Zealand and to stretch as far as Australia and the States, spanning social enterprise, charity, and for profit. And while what’s behind their purpose and desire to share their story varies, Mark’s rule is that he’ll interview anyone who approaches him and fits his focus.

This, he says, creates ‘a golden sofa’ – bringing all sorts of unexpected and rich stories.

Everyone is different – American guests for example, tend to be much more comfortable with promoting themselves and their mission than Brits – and he now gets two or three offers a week from people coming to the idea of purpose from every angle.

Observations on people with purpose

150 or so episodes since launch, and Mark has gained a fair amount of insight into the drivers of purpose. While there’s no one size fits all with the people he interviews, he has noticed some common threads linking purposeful people. It may have been sparked by an experience, or a trauma, or have been with someone since their early years, often linked to religion, or culture. Sometimes, it’s just there.

He says:

“Some people are not that cognisant of why they’ve ended up with purpose but they’ve got the sense of just wanting the career to count for something more. Some have had a point of trauma, and have gone from being super corporate to having something like cancer that has made them really think philosophically about life. For other people, the trauma happened much earlier.”

As an example, he interviewed someone recently who is focused on helping people with debt consolidation. In this case, there was a direct connection between growing up in relative poverty, with debt that almost destroyed her family, and her later life mission and the social enterprise she’s launched. In other cases, he says, “the parental experience has been a positive one that led them to think that their career should be about impact and purpose, or it might just have been a sliding doors moment.”

The power of serving

The idea of serving others is another clear thread. Sometimes it’s a personal, individual thing and at others it’s more about collective purpose, perhaps linked to a religious element, past or present, or something cultural.

“The power of serving – of doing stuff for others before you need something done for you – is huge,” he notes. “Collaborating, going into an interaction with another human being with the idea that you’re going to see how you can help them and be useful has massive power.

“I’m really waking up to the power of that.

“Quite a few of my guests have been brought up in and around religion, where there were the principles of collective thought and caring for others. That is definitely a common thread.”

The idea of collective purpose is certainly something Mark sees in the Maori culture, and in fact learning about this has been an important and inspiring part of his own journey.

“The key Maori principles of whakapapa, which is purpose; manaakitanga, which is cultural and social responsibility; and mana – around justice and equity, go back to Maori origins and guide their people very clearly,” he explains.

“Whakapapa is all about what you do for your family, your extended family, and for your iwi which is your tribe. Everything you do is focused on servicing those groups for the greater good, so their culture is more about the collective while our society has been much more around the individual’s purpose as a drive towards happiness. Learning about that has really enriched my understanding of purpose.”

So far though, he says, this hasn’t featured on his podcast enough and is definitely something he wants to look at more in the future.

Purpose can’t be faked

Mark’s key takeaway from interviewing so many people is that purpose may vary, with differing levels, types and drivers, but it can’t be faked. Purpose, he’s learned, must be truly felt to achieve any real impact.

“People’s sense of purpose might be different but having it is absolutely crucial,” he says.

“And whatever it may be, what’s also super important is enjoying it and feeling like you’re good at it, or getting better at it. So if you find yourself doing something that you really don’t enjoy, don’t stay doing that thing. It’s important to be authentic and not to fake it.”

But there’s more – another (perhaps more selfish) reason having real purpose is important.

In addition to the wider impact it can result in, he adds, he’s also learned that being purposeful can have a positive personal impact. A number of studies in recent years (including here, here and here) have indicated that it leads to a longer and healthier life.

Mark comments:

“There’s been a lot of research over the years around why some people are outliving others with a focus in the past on it being down to the right diet, and having a healthy lifestyle, but there’s a shift now to realising that there’s a huge dollop of purpose in those environments or communities where people are living longer that’s also super important because it keeps you feeling young.”

Certainly, he notes, those with purpose have a drive that spurs them on, and that provides a powerful energy of its own.

For more energy-inspiring stories from charity leaders, social entrepreneurs and others in the nonprofit world, check out the Purposely Podcast.

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

Funding for research that inspires awe and wonder

The John Templeton Foundation’s mission is to fund research and catalyze conversations that inspire people with awe and wonder.

Grant applications (“Online Funding Inquiries” or OFIs) are due on Friday, 18 August 2023.

You can also find some more information on what they are looking for and how to apply.

_{advertisement}

Kevin Cahill CBE, Comic Relief’s joint Honorary Life President

The continued growth of B Corps

According to B Lab Europe’s 2022 annual report there are now

• over 1,000 B Corps in Europe

• over 6,000 B Corps globally

• more than 100,000 B Corp employees across Europe

Twitter tweet

What we’ve been reading

We hope you enjoy Rutger Bregman’s Twitter (OK, X) thread as much as we did. Yes, they are on our list to feature in a future edition.

Twitter tweet

What readers say

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people who have done this or are achieving it, and often at pace.

It’s possible whether you run a business or work for one. Each week we’ll feature inspiring people from a variety of backgrounds - for-profit businesses, charities, social enterprises, government organisations, and startups.

This week we feature a new scheme of paid internships that aim to open a career in the charity sector to a wider audience, and the person behind it.

In addition we’ll share opportunities, tools, events and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Maya Bhose: championing the career changer with Charity Interns

Think of an intern, and it’s typically a young person who comes to mind, perhaps a university or college student, or a recent graduate. But in the charity sector, a new scheme is opening up internships to a wider audience.

Charity Interns launched in May, offering paid internships that they hope will appeal in particular to people who are midlife as well as anyone who is disabled or from the global majority and wants to move into the charity world. A first for the sector, Charity Interns is founded and led by Maya Bhose, and is being incubated by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO).

The pilot, starting in October, offers six-month positions for six interns, each one with a charity host, including Alzheimer’s Society, IAM RoadSmart, and Age UK. The positions are full-time, open to flexible working, and paid at the UK’s real living wage.

Providing a foot in the door

Maya’s mission to provide a foot in the door to a new career for older candidates, as well as others disadvantaged in the workplace, has its roots in her own experiences. Trying to move into the charity sector midlife she found it far more difficult than she had anticipated after a successful 25-year career in marketing and brand development – mainly in TV, but also in tech with roles at big name firms including Nokia and Microsoft.

Made redundant after the company she worked for was acquired, she suddenly had time to consider what she wanted from her working life – and it was something with meaning and purpose.

“I had got to my mid 50s,” she says. “I was working for an American TV company that was acquired, which led to 90% of their roles becoming redundant. So I had that breathing space to think about what I wanted to do next, and that’s when I decided I’d like to move into the charity sector.

“I wanted to start spending my work time doing something that I felt was more valuable for society and I thought, okay, I’ve got a fantastic track record and skills so surely it’s going to be relatively easy to find a job – and it proved nigh on impossible.”

Breaking through the barriers

Maya identified a couple of key issues. First, she was talking about the wrong things – “It was only in retrospect that I realised that what I thought would be attractive to hiring managers wasn’t really. I shouldn’t have been talking about launching TV channels because why does that matter? I should have been talking about my skillset.”

But she also didn’t have a network in the charity sector to connect her to people and opportunities, and, she says: “I found the words ‘Previous charity experience essential’ on pretty much job listing.”.

Eventually she remembered that she did have one friend working in the sector, and this provided her foot in the door, resulting in an interim (and later permanent) role at Locality, a national membership network supporting local community organisations.

It’s an experience that has taught Maya a lot about what it takes to move from one sector to another. For anyone else with that dream, she says it’s about finding ways to get that first foot in the door:

“Look at the companies where you would like to work, and then just knock on doors, ask people if they’ll give you 20 minutes of their time. Ask your friends if they know anyone who works in that area – once you start asking the people you know, you’ll find out that a friend of a friend knows somebody who’d be very happy to meet you for coffee – it’s quite amazing how that happens.”

Continuing, she says:

“And then I would talk to people within the sector you want to move to and get their advice, find out how they managed it. Always ask them for suggestions of what you could do, and other people to speak to – is there an introduction that they can make to help you start building your network? Offer to do some pro bono work or try to find interim or project work to add things to your CV.

“Once you get into an organisation, whether it’s paid or pro bono, you hear of other opportunities that come up so at least you’re then in a position to find out about them early on.”

Lightbulb moment

The real driver for setting up Charity Interns however came after Maya tried to get another job in the sector following a break from work. Despite having gained experience in the sector, she found herself back at square one:

“I applied for up to 70 jobs in nine or 10 months, and had one interview. And I’m absolutely convinced it’s my age because that was the only thing that had changed.”

It’s this that resulted in her lightbulb moment. Looking into recruitment and vacancies in the charity sector, it wasn’t long before she came across statistics on the skill shortage.

“More than half of charities have hard to fill vacancies, and I thought, look, there are all these empty jobs, and there are all these people who would like to do these empty jobs. How hard is it to put those two things together? What you need is someone who will open that door and create a stepping stone into the sector, which is where the idea of Charity Interns came from.”

As Maya herself says, it’s a really simple idea, and one that has been welcomed throughout the sector with the six-month pilot about to get underway to find out whether it is a concept that will work longer-term. And, while the pilot is focusing on marketing roles, the aim for the future is for Charity Interns to cover all disciplines.

Maya says:

“My absolute vision is that the sector changes its mindset so it’s completely open to looking outside of itself and at people who haven’t had previous charity experience.”

The start of a movement

Some charities, she’s found, are more open to the idea, especially the bigger ones which often already employ people who’ve made the leap.

“Some actively recruit from the commercial sector because those candidates are very comfortable around budgets and figures,” she explains. “A commercial background is a real asset to a charity but a lot of people don’t think about making more of it. If you have this, you will know how to set targets, how to measure success, and then how to communicate that impact in an engaging way, which is really crucial for securing future funding.”

Applications for Charity Interns opened at the end of June and close on 27 July, and the initiative has seen a lot of interest so there’s certainly an appetite for change from both charities and professionals looking for a way in to the sector.

“People are increasingly moving away from linear careers to take more interesting paths – or squiggly careers as they’re called,” Maya notes. “Society is waking up to that as an idea.

“But again, I think it’s probably something that’s attached to younger people when I think you’re entirely capable of squiggling to your last!”

Finding the fire

In a few short months then, Maya has gone from midlife job hunter to not only recognising a bigger issue, but setting up and launching an initiative to help others in a similar situation – proving it’s never too late to find your purpose and have an impact that helps others.

So, to what does she attribute the secret of her success with Charity Interns so far? Apart from the irritation of being ignored, she puts it down to having that fire inside her to change something.

“I could have set up a marketing consultancy or brand development consultancy in my 30s or 40s. And I didn’t because I didn’t have enough fire to do it. But I do now, with this, because I know I’m not on my own and I want to do something about it.”

For others keen to make a difference, her advice is this:

“if you can see an injustice that you think you can do something about, then do it because there is absolutely no harm in trying.”

She adds:

“If I get to the end of the pilot and it doesn’t go any further but I’ve helped six people switch sectors then that for me will be a fantastic success, but I really think this is scalable. If you think about the number of charities in this country, and 55% have got jobs they can’t fill –that’s huge.”

As our working years grow longer, more of us will be wanting to ‘squiggle’ while at the same time others will be seeking a way to overcome different barriers to entering the charity world. Many in the sector then – and outside of it – will be watching this space.

Next week: Mark Longbottom, host and founder of the Purposely Podcast

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

Social enterprise jobs

If you want to work for a business that exists for a social or environmental purpose, try the jobs section of Social Enterprise UK.

Twitter tweet

But which social enterprise?

Which is the right social enterprise for you? Explore this year’s NatWest SE100 Index, which lists the “top 100 social enterprises for 2023”.

Twitter tweet

Social enterprise in public services

Public services in the UK are under intense pressure as demand increases while resources are stretched - financial and human.

A new book by Jamie Veitch and Jonathan Bland highlights another way of meeting the needs, and moving beyond the traditional approaches of either in-house local authority or outsourced third party.

Vitalising Purpose: The Power of the Social Enterprise Difference in Public Services investigates “how partnerships between public authorities and social enterprises can make a difference to how public services are provided, and to people’s lives”.

It contains “inspiring examples of the ‘social enterprise difference’, and practical ideas about collaboration, commissioning, social investment, impact, risk, equality, culture and leadership”.

With a foreword by Lord Victor Adebowale CBE, it features interviews with a public benefit lawyer, a strategic public procurement advisor, and experts in behavioural finance, impact measurement, social investment, and auditing mature social enterprises.

_{advertisement}

What we’ve been reading

This is a very unusual opportunity for creative organisations and start-ups, including social enterprises, to secure six-months of rent-free premises in the centre of London along Oxford Street. Find out more on UK Fundraising.

Opportunity to get rent-free Oxford St store plus support for at least 6 months

The opportunity is available through independent retail consultant Someday Studios, which has been appointed by Westminster City Council to help shape the future of Oxford Street.

fundraising.co.uk/2023/07/25/opportunity-to-get-rent-free-oxford-st-store-plus-support-for-at-least-6-months

What readers say

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

What do you think?

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people who have done this or are achieving it, and often at pace.

It’s possible whether you run a business or work for one. Each week we’ll feature inspiring people from a variety of backgrounds - for-profit businesses, charities, social enterprises, government organisations, and startups.

In addition we’ll share opportunities, tools, events and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Patrick Nash: social entrepreneur extraordinaire

With 12 social enterprises under his belt, Patrick Nash has learnt a thing or two about what makes for a success story and what doesn’t.

A quick potted history of his 40 or so years as a social entrepreneur starts with loathing meat as a child and becoming a passionate vegetarian both in his eating habits and politically. This led him towards activism at university during the height of 80s anti-nuclearism and the rise of CND, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, all of which left him wanting to do something with meaning.

Sowing the social enterprise seeds

Inspiration struck during a year-long walk around North and Central Africa after graduation.

There he met a man in Southern Sudan who had been part of a workers’ cooperative focused on vegetarian wholesale. This stuck in his mind, and following his return to the UK he decided to head to Bristol where he’d studied, and open something similar, focused on wholefoods wholesale.

Patrick picks up the story:

“On the first day I went round all the shops in the area that sold rice and beans and found someone in the process of starting up a wholesale business. The next day we were working together. We built Nova Wholefoods from the ground up to a £3 million turnover business in two years, which was very, very fast and intense, and I discovered I loved it. I love the business of doing business.”

But it was more than just a business, as he goes on to explain:

“We were very passionate about what we did. We started to learn about the impact of what we eat on the climate crisis and distributed these little pamphlets about the politics, and the health and climate benefits. So we were really activist entrepreneurs and I just got the bug that led me to my next thing, which was building an ecovillage up at the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland.”

Aligning values & commercial interests

Building up Nova Wholefoods (since merged with Bath Wholefood Co into Essential Trading) was an experience that taught him his first lessons about successful social entrepreneurship – one of which was the importance of focusing on the finances as much as on your values.

And this has been re-emphasised with every social enterprise Patrick has worked on – including the Findhorn Ecovillage.

“Your values underpin everything,” he says. “If you’re clear on these, and align them with your commercial interests, you won’t fail, but the moment they’re out of alignment, that’s when the problems start. A lot of emerging social enterprisers get stuck on this – thinking ‘we’re not making any profit but that’s okay because we’re having really great impact’.”

Striving for ‘good enough’ over perfection

Another lesson was the importance of being decisive. It’s not unusual to strive for perfection but this can slow progress down, he says. Better instead to get a ‘good enough’ idea off the ground and then adapt it as necessary.

“Perfection is the enemy of the good. That’s one of my absolute top learnings in life. Not every decision you make will be right and that’s part of being an entrepreneur but you have to be decisive. If you make a decision and it doesn’t go as well as you hoped, you pivot. I made a lot of mistakes in my 20s and 30s, and continued to make them but I got better at avoiding them, and at spotting them earlier on and pivoting.”

It was at the Findhorn Foundation that Patrick learned much about the complexities of running organisations, including raising funds, creating corporate structures and leading teams. Travelling there for an introduction to the community in 1984, he discovered how it was structured and organised, and heard about their ambition to build an ecovillage.

It didn’t take him long to decide he wanted to be involved and within weeks he had returned, to eventually (once the ecovillage’s development was underway) manage the project’s finances. It’s a compelling story that can be read about in detail in Patrick’s book, Creating Social Enterprise, along with more on some of his other biggest ventures.

A focus on changing the world

Following that, 1999 saw him set up Teacherline: a counselling service for school teachers, which led to establishing Connect Assist, the UK’s largest outsourcer of charity helplines, in the Welsh Valleys. In 2017, he established a small consultancy and coaching company, Enterprise Values, which has helped various social enterprises and charities with everything from launching new initiatives, to mergers, finance raising and more. In addition, Patrick has set up a host of other social enterprises, been a charity Chief Executive, worked for the Dalai Lama, and more besides.

The question Patrick always asks himself, whatever he does, is how it contributes.

“That’s the core of it for me,” he says. “I see purpose as being about changing the world the way I can best. So every enterprise has had that focus – on how we do that, on what good looks like when we’re doing it, and how we’re going to do more of it. That was at the heart of our strategies.”

Building an enabling, supportive environment

Of course, there’s more to successful social entrepreneurship besides keeping values, purpose and finances front and centre. Something that makes the biggest difference, Patrick again learned early on, is building a great team – and letting them do what they do best.

“I really like working with people who are way better at what they do than I could ever be,” Patrick explains. “But I learned that the hard way in my first job where I thought I could do everything better than everybody else. Leadership is often about setting the conditions and then getting out of the way.”

Success also demands the right people dynamics. For Patrick, it’s been very clear over the years that the most successful enterprises have been those where the relationship with his business partners has been strong.

“I’ve always had really good business partners and a very close relationship with them. And I realised after a while that the success of the enterprise was in direct relation to the quality of the working relationship and those partnerships. Looking at normal business indicators like revenue, profit, profitability, and numbers of staff, as well as impact on society, the ones where the relationship was really strong and honest are the businesses that performed best.”

‘Empathy is a leadership superpower’

But good relationships also have to filter down throughout the organisation. As a leader, Patrick has learned, compassion and empathy are essential – mixed with clear boundaries.

This way, everyone – from staff to customers to partners – feels supported and knows where they stand, which is essential for getting the best out of people, but also for when hard decisions inevitably have to be made.

“Empathy is a leadership superpower,” he says. “But you’ve got to be able to be ruthless when things go wrong. Losing customers for example is one of the most challenging things –in terms of risk of redundancies, emotionally, and confidence-wise. And the only way I found to get around a difficult time was to be really honest with everyone in the company about it. Including about how I felt. And what happened is everyone would rally round and try to work it out.”

Learning from criticism

Of course, no matter how hard you work at your relationships, or how good the idea behind your social enterprise is, not everyone will like what you’re doing, or how you’re doing it.

But what Patrick has found is that the resulting criticism can be useful, so another key learning he shares is to look for the truth in every criticism of yourself or your project, and address it. Quoting Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, he says: “’Know your enemy, know yourself’ – I came across this at a very important time where the organisation I was working for was under public criticism on a sustained, chronic basis. I deployed it to my advantage, and made friends with the biggest critic. And it was an absolutely amazing learning.”

He continues:

“Even when criticism is outrageous, there is a grain of truth in what's being said so find that, acknowledge it, and put it in the room. That’s the one of the most transformative things you can do.”

Personal development matters

Helping him develop further as a leader over the years, Patrick has found coaching and therapy invaluable. Both for really understanding himself, and for working out where he wants to take his professional life.

“You don’t make a lot of change in the world if you don’t understand yourself,” he says. “I see counselling and mental health work as about more than just getting better; I see it as becoming a fuller person. I’ve been in therapy since I was 35 and had a coach since I was 40.

“They really work for me so I always say: if you haven’t got a coach, get one. You need a space to explore stuff that isn’t with your partner at home, or a member of your family, or anyone else in the business.”

Knowing when to move on

40 years on from when he started out, the social enterprises he had a hand in starting are still going strong: a fact Patrick is immensely proud of. Sharing his learnings in his book, he talks about how one of the great skills of entrepreneurship is knowing when it’s time to move on. Founders, he says, including himself, are often quite addicted to starting things up, but for a social enterprise to really grow requires getting out of that comfort zone and for people with the skills to take it forward to be at the helm – again, it’s about being able to step back and empower others to do what they do best.

“You’ve got to know when to leave it to someone else,” he says. “I like founding things, I like scaling them up, and then it’s best if I leave, because they get to a point where they need to be a bit more corporate. And that’s when I have to look in the mirror and acknowledge that isn’t me. The person who took over Connect Assist for example doubled staff numbers in four years, which is incredible. He was the right person for the job.

“A couple of times I went past my sell by date, which I think was problematic for the organisation. So now when I’m in situations where I’m on the Board with the founder, a conversation I bring up is ‘so when are you going to leave, how are you going to leave it in a great position, and what’s your legacy going to be?”

What’s your legacy going to be? Food for thought indeed.

You can order Creating Social Enterprise here.

(Normally we link books mentioned here to Bookshop.org.uk or B Corp World of Books, but if a book isn’t listed there we shall, as above, link to it on Amazon).

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

Paid internships at GOSH

Twitter tweet

Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity is offering another round of paid internships in the fundraising (mass participation/special events/committed giving/partnerships/community), social media and impact teams.

They are looking for people from a range of backgrounds with a keen interest in joining the charity sector. No experience or qualifications are needed.

The charity states: “We believe that Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity should be representative of the communities we work with and for and that we should all be striving for a more diverse and inclusive charity sector.”

Santander X Global Award 2023

The winners of this year’s international university entrepreneurship competition from Santander were announced recently. Over 40 universities from eight countries entered their most successful startup, in the two categories of launch and accelerate.

The Santander X Global Award saw 20 finalists from around the world travel to Valencia, Spain to pitch. The next day the winners were announced.

Over the past 26 years the bank has allocated more than 2,200 million euros and has supported more than 1 million people and companies through agreements with more than 1,300 universities.

_{advertisement}

What we’ve been reading

Who’s Who in ESG? Top 50 Influencers to Follow - Onalytica

This report highlights Top 50 ESG influencers driving the most engagement on the topic across LinkedIn and Twitter.

onalytica.com/blog/posts/whos-who-in-esg-top-50-influencers-to-follow

Discover the Top 10 Purpose-Led Organisations to Work at in 2023

Discover the top 10 winners of the Escape 100. These are the companies that truly wowed us with their mission, culture and values.

www.escapethecity.org/article/discover-the-top-10-organisations-to-work-2023

What readers say

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of people at businesses, charities, government organisations, or startups who have done it or are achieving it - and often doing so at pace.

In the latest of our series focusing on purpose champions we hear from Vanessa Longley, Director of Development at children and young people’s mental health charity, YoungMinds.

In addition we help you discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Vanessa Longley, YoungMinds. If in doubt, collaborate.

Vanessa Longley

I’m one of the few fundraisers I’ve ever met who knew what they wanted to do. I come from a family who had used their working career to try and change the world for the better, in areas such as nursing, social work and teaching. As a result, I realised quite young that I wanted to do a purpose-led job where I could apply the values that meant something to me.

That doesn’t mean I automatically fell into fundraising – I had a few career experiences along the way that highlighted what I’m good at, and what doesn’t suit me. As an example, I worked in a care home for people with multiple and profound disabilities for a year before university. And, what it taught me, very quickly, was that I wasn’t very good at it. I could do the personal care side of things no problem, but actually working day in, day out, with people who would never get better was tough, especially working alongside families watching the decline of their children. Emotionally, I wasn’t ready for that.

What I did realise however, was that I had the ability to talk persuasively. After uni, I went into advertising and marketing at WWAV Rapp Collins, which was the largest direct marketing agency in Europe where I worked on both charity and commercial clients from Friends of the Earth, to the Prudential, before switching to the charity sector.

Fundraising has always been rooted in purpose, and I feel really proud of the successes I contributed to in a variety of fundraising and marketing roles. I started out at the Leprosy Relief Association and stayed until we’d cured leprosy as a public health problem in India. I moved to Mencap, and stayed until we’d managed to effectively lobby and change a very significant law around consent. I moved to the hospice sector, and would urge as many charity-focused people as possible to do some work in this sector – there’s a purity there because you are so close to your local community and so close to patients, that it positions purpose front and centre. I’ve found there’s a lot of learning to be had from small local charities.

Making a difference

Fast-forward to today, and I’ve been with YoungMinds for around four years.

We need to change the world for our young people, and we, as adults, have absolute responsibility for that. We can’t let this generation of young people get lost whilst we’re sorting out the big issues that take time, like the education system, and making sure there’s mental health support in local communities.

YoungMinds has a lot of practical, actionable support that parents, carers and young people can access for tips they can use to support their own, and each other’s, mental health. And that’s absolutely crucial – the difference one adult, trained or untrained, can make to a young person is huge.

My role was to come into YoungMinds to ensure its sustainable growth and establish how to maximise impact. It wasn’t just a case of growing as fast as we could, it was also about creating a profile of income that would allow us to support long-term thinking. As a result, we’ve grown income by 250% in just over three years.

Collaborative working has also been essential – it’s where true transformation happens. I work closely with other mental health charities to deliver substantial amounts of money into the sector because If we can help someone else raise the money, it’s still helping young people’s mental health, which is what the charity was set up to do.

If in doubt, collaborate

We often put being competitive and being collaborative as the two extremes on a spectrum.

We see competitiveness as being very driven, and collaboration as being much more a slow movement. But in the charity sector, when you get a group of people together with a shared purpose and a shared sense of direction, you gain something huge that moves fast and has its own momentum.

So, that is one of my career learnings. If in doubt, collaborate, and if you don’t know who to collaborate with, start by picking up the phone and just keep going.

Going bravely forward

One of the challenges we have as a sector, is that, understandably, charities tend to be risk adverse. The negative consequence of that can be that we forget to be brave, yet the charity sector was set up to tackle things that society struggles to manage on its own. So, if you are a charity inching around the edge of a societal issue, then perhaps it’s time to take a step back and say, ‘hang on a minute, what should we do as a charity? What’s the difference that we’re making in this societal space?’

Because we can afford to be, not risky, but brave. And sometimes that means moving in a different direction, or taking a significant step. I think that’s something that I would love to see more widely in the sector, more bravery and courage. And alongside that, innovation, because playing it safe means doing it like we’ve always done it, whereas making a huge impact often doesn’t cost more. Sometimes it’s just about doing it differently, and innovation is key to this.

Power of the people

To every person that I meet who is interested in supporting young people’s mental health, one of the questions I ask is, ‘is there anyone you know that I should know?’ It’s about building that network, which is particularly important when tackling challenges.

One of the learnings that I teach to my staff is to group around a challenge. So, rather than trying to solve the problem yourself, always try and bring people together who have a shared desire to resolve the issue. That’s how you get diversity of thought and avoid ‘groupthink.’ At YoungMinds, we involve young people in helping to resolve the issues that they’re experiencing themselves so it becomes authentic and genuine. But you also get some wonderful ideas from outside the sector that can make a real difference.

I am always looking for people that I can learn from and talk to because there is always more to learn. I have also carried on my formal academic education, because it stimulates me in a different way and allows me to bring an alternative focus into my work. New ideas are the only way that we can tackle some of these massive issues, and if we think we can do it on our own, that’s where we fail.

Success in action

One recent initiative at YoungMinds is the Out in the Open Facebook campaign. We created the campaign to not only raise money, but to improve our supporters’ mental health whilst they’re doing it. It’s essentially a campaign where supporters take a certain number of steps every day for a month, with the idea to get outside with, and for, young people. It’s often easier to have those deeper conversations when you’re doing things side by side.

The campaign is already at over 300% against income expectations, so it’s done well but, more than that, something happened that we weren’t expecting, which was the chat forum.

For everyone participating, the forum became an informal peer-to-peer support group with parents and carers sharing support and being really encouraging to each other.

This highlights that within cause-led fundraising, people have purpose, they’re looking for their tribe, and, if you create the space for them, they will do their own recruitment, they will do their own fundraising and they will become part of who you are.

A team-led approach

I’m so lucky to work with an incredible team but what can hold them back is often their own confidence in their abilities and what they have to offer. And so, to anyone reading this what I’d say is, find what makes your heart sing and then show that – be brave and show that you care, because that can change the world.

One of my proudest moments isn’t really my moment at all! A while ago, I took on a new fundraiser who hadn’t had much sector experience. When my time managing them came to an end, I was able to nominate them for a Fundraiser of the Year Award, which they went on to win. It’s not my victory as they did the hard work, but if I’m a great manager, or I try to be, I can create an orchestra’s worth of great fundraisers who can help us change the world. So, I’ve put a lot of work into being a half-decent conductor, so that I can get my orchestra out there and playing long after I am gone.

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

Learn storytelling for change

RSPB Phoenix group on reserve walk, RSPB Saltholme Reserve, Teeside. © Kaleel Zibe, RSPB

WWF, the RSPB and the National Trust have launched Young Voices for Nature’ a creative programme for young people aged 13-25 across the UK, led by young volunteers at the three charities.

The series of online and in-person workshops and seminars in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales will be available 300 young people, at least half of whom will be from typically low-income areas.

Group taking part in bioblitz at Camp Cameron in partnership with Black to Nature and The Cameron Bespolka Trust, RSPB Franchises Lodge Nature Reserve. © Anneka Schofield, RSPB

The programme will help them to develop their skills in change-making, storytelling and film production, “empowering them to showcase the impact they are making by protecting UK nature”.

Applications to Young Voices for Nature are open until 10 July 2023.

_{advertisement}

Social entrepreneurship as a reintegrative solution for young people of Black and Minoritised communities

The first recipients of The Jane Hatfield Award have published their reports on the experiences, barriers and opportunities of social action and social entrepreneurship for young people of Black and Minoritised communities.

Two teams received funding.

Ammaarah Felix, Naomi Robinson and Sharon Tamale investigated social entrepreneurship as a reintegrative solution for young Black men who are ex-prison residents.

Ayisatu Emore (of Idaraya Life CIC) and Nikhwat Marawat (of The Delicate Mind) interviewed racially marginalised individuals already involved in social action to better understand the challenges in terms of access and support.

Together, the reports highlight the stories of their participants and recommend solutions such as equitable funding, specialised training programmes, and peer support or mentor schemes to help tackle barriers in the social action space for under-represented communities.

The Award is named in memory and celebration of Jane Hatfield, trustee and then Chair of IVAR from 2006 to 2021.

The Jane Hatfield Award provides an annual grant of £5,000 to support the next generation of researchers and activists to explore issues in social action and/or social justice. A project of the Institute for Voluntary Action Research (IVAR) it works in partnership with The Ubele Initiative CIC (‘Ubele’) who, in its inaugural year, provided match funding to allow for two teams within their network of young researchers to be supported in the inaugural year of the Award.

50 years of the Templeton Prize

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Templeton Prize. Each year one outstanding person who has “responded to the deep challenges of our times with inspiring humility and curiosity” is recognised by the prize.

Originally, it was established to “recognise discoveries that yielded new insights about religion”. In 2020 its function was updated to one that focuses “on research, discovery, public engagement, and religious leadership that advance our understanding of, and appreciation for, the insights that science brings to the deepest questions of the universe and humankind’s purpose and place within it”.

In 1973, the first Templeton Prize was given to Mother Teresa. Since then its list of laureates has expanded to include humanitarians, theoretical physicists, philosophers and one king.

If you are looking for inspiration for your purpose and how to achieve it, exploring the list of laureates might well be a good place to start.

This anniversary year the Templeton Prize is profiling its laureates in groups of 10, having started with an initial group of 14.

Spotify and UNICEF - a partnership that sounds good

Spotify is making more of its content and reach in a three-year partnership with UNICEF. Because they are “dedicated to using the power of our platform to bring resources to people directly where they are”, Spotify’s partnership will “help ensure that young people, including refugees, displaced people, and migrants, can access trusted and engaging mental health audio content.”

Twitter tweet

Elizabeth Nieto, VP, Global Head of Equity and Impact at Spotify, said: “Our collaboration will particularly focus on harnessing the power of music, audio, and other innovative digital content to deliver trusted and engaging mental health content for young people, their caregivers, and communities.”

The partnership will initially focus on the mental health needs of young people directly affected by the war in Ukraine.

Corporate fundraising consultant John Thompson commented on the partnership:

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Be Bold!

Entries to the 2024 BOLD Awards are now open. The awards celebrate companies, projects, and individuals in the digital economy “that are leading the way for positive impact”.

The awards are open to individuals, companies and organisations who can demonstrate their involvement in the project that fits any of the 33 BOLD Awards categories. All entries must have passed the idea stage and must have been conducted within the immediate past two years.

Twitter tweet

The early bird submission fee is €87 for entries before 31 July. Final entries, submitted before 31 December, cost €187.

People moves

Sian White is to take over as Director of The UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub (UKHIH). She succeeds Ben Ramalingam, and joins from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, where she has been Assistant Professor for the past nine years.

The Hub is hosted by Elrha and funded by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).

What readers say

"I can’t believe I’ve not come across this before now – it’s a great read."
Liz Rigby
UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub
27 June 2023

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and often doing so at pace.

In addition we help you discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims to work with social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Ruxandra Mercea: Transforming the Romanian education system one school at a time

Ruxandra Mercea

Executive Director of the oldest and largest independent school in Romania; charity founder; and now founder and Head of School of a new adtech startup, Ruxandra Mercea is on a mission – to ensure that every child in every school matters.

It’s a mission with its roots in her own childhood. Ruxandra, like many in Romania, had a difficult time at school. The legacy left over from Ceaușescu’s Communist regime has cast a long shadow over the country, even in the education system where, she says, there remains a culture that can make it hard for children to be seen, to fit in and to thrive.

“We came out of Communism with a lot of unacknowledged traumas, with teachers and parents pushing how they were raised and educated onto the next generation, which was my generation, and those that followed. And unfortunately, fear-based education is still common 30 years later.”

Starting with one school

It’s this experience that influenced Ruxandra’s decision to leave a career in the business world for one in education. Joining Transylvania College, the school her parents opened during her childhood, and where she is now Executive Director, she set about trying to change its educational model to build a school experience very different to her own.

However, it wasn’t until her six-year-old daughter suffered her own damaging experiences at the same college whilst it was under Ruxandra’s leadership that the extent of the problem really became apparent, and she set her sights on transforming the whole education system.

“One day the school called my husband and told him our daughter was a problem child and that we should find out what’s wrong with her. I was the Head, so that was an awful moment – I felt I’d failed as a mum, as a wife, and as a Head. So, we took her to specialists and were fortunate enough to find a psychologist who said there was nothing wrong with her and that the problem was the adults around her.”

The first step was to work out what was going wrong at the school, and how to change it. It became clear quite quickly that part of the reason children were suffering was because the adults were also struggling at the hands of the system and needed support of their own.

Ruxandra says:

“I did an emotional audit of the school to find out what was wrong. Kids were criticised, punished, and labelled because we focused on behaviour instead of needs. There we were, already undergoing a cultural change process to bring in a new educational model but we were not going deep enough. The message was that we were failing the children and not the other way round, so we adults also needed to change. That was the moment I started therapy, and we also hired a team of wellbeing therapists to work with our staff.”

Scaling up the mission

The knowledge however that this was not a problem unique to the college but replicated in schools throughout Romania meant that simply solving the issue here was not enough.

Ruxandra’s next step was to develop a charity that works with schools to help them shift their culture and become places where staff and student wellbeing is as much a priority as an education that meets the needs of each individual child.

School of Trust (Scoala Increderii) started in September 2020 with 54 schools on its five-year transformation process that systematically changes the way education is done, free of charge. Over this time, a team of specialists works with everyone involved in children’s education, from principals to parents, to create an environment in which children can reach their potential, and school is a place where staff, children, and their families are all happier.

In just three short years it has reached more than 200 schools across the country, with a further 300 on the waiting list.

“We hit the nail on the head with School of Trust,” Ruxandra observes. “Our vision is to ensure that every child in every school matters – and we won’t stop until we’ve achieved this – but we realised that to do this we have to help the teachers. For them to fulfil the children’s needs they have to first understand themselves and learn how to form healthier relationships with each other.”

Going international

But children everywhere suffer when they don’t quite fit the education system, and this has led Ruxandra to go even further, launching an adtech startup, Spark Hybrid School, in September 2021. Aimed at 14-18-year-olds, it offers a blended education experience: online, and in person, with a mission to make education fit for the future and to reach children globally.

Building stronger

Her aim of cultural and behavioural change on a grand scale is an ambitious one, but the secret of Ruxandra’s success, she says, is her very clear vision and purpose – “Do not get in the way of a mom with a mission!” – combined with the strong network of support she’s built up. As well as her personal support network of family, friends and colleagues, she works with consultancy for purpose and business growth Revolutionise, which helped her with defining School of Trust’s mission at the outset and setting out a strategy and action plan for growing the charity.

Crucially too, she is part of the G30 for Education group: a community of 30 global education leaders who come together each year to discuss critical issues facing schools worldwide.

“When I go to these meetings once a year, I am able to see how normal my problems are. And also how others have dealt with similar challenges,” she says.

And there have been challenges. The biggest, Ruxandra notes, was the lack of finance at the beginning. With little funding available to new NGOs in Romania, most of the money to date has come from parents of students at Transylvania College.

“They’ve seen what we’ve achieved in our college so when I said I have this crazy dream – I want to change state schools, and will you help me? They said yes. So, until now it’s been parents and their companies giving to the School of Trust.”

Scaling up though to reach more schools and children requires more funding and the next stage is a public fundraising campaign with a far wider reach, for which Ruxandra is again working with the Revolutionise team to create a powerful campaign. It shares the compelling story, highlighting the potential for the future and asking people to support by giving via SMS or online, either as a one off, or recurring donation.

Focusing on the dream

Over a few short years, it’s been quite a journey. So, what are Ruxandra’s tips and lessons for other charity startups?

Having a purpose that everyone on the team understands and supports is essential, she says:

“The big learning was that if you have a clear purpose and you believe in it then the team believes in it. This makes it easier, because at the beginning you’re likely to have a lack of funds, a small team, and beneficiaries that are not sure what you do. You have a lot of healthy chaos at the beginning, and the purpose is what helps everyone get through that.

“I have thought a lot about my purpose over the years,” she muses. “And all these projects are built around helping people change, and all children being emotionally well by their 18th birthday. That’s the key driver for why I get up and why I sleep very well. My husband at some point asked me if I meant all the children in the world and I said yes. I have no idea how I’'ll do that, but I do have the determination to figure it out!”

It’s important, she believes, to find a problem that you care enough about to feel determined about solving it. “Not just because it’s the latest, the fanciest or it’s a trend. So, find something you are annoyed by in the world and dream high. And don’t listen to others when they tell you to dream less! If you care enough, make it your purpose!”

In fact, this is her key takeaway for others considering setting up a nonprofit, or in the early days of doing so.

“I’ve seen other charities start up with a lot of enthusiasm. And when the critics come and tell you dream lower, start smaller, do less, they get demotivated. My key takeaway is, don’t dream less. Don’t lower your dream just because others say so or because they are afraid.”

Looking to the future

Ruxandra’s next step is to bring what are currently three separate organisations together, and to help these organisations get to a stage where they don’t need her anymore.

 “We are soon to be 10 moms,” she says. “All the leaders in these organisations – the CEOs and marketing and salespeople on the team – are mothers. So the next step is to build this group of women up to start working and thinking and behaving like a group across all three organisations. I have the next two years to make this group independent of me so that in 2025 I can take some time off.”

Why? To spend some quality time with her family. With four children, and the eldest two in high school by this point, the time will be right for a break. “By the time we do this, they can be with Spark. After all, by this stage we will have just a few short years with them at home, and then they’ll be off into the world!”

The mission, of course, will continue!

_{advertisement}

Resources

Are you looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company? Do you want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

Supporting schools develop media skills

Media Trust is looking for volunteers to deliver all-day film-making workshops at state schools in West London.

If you work in film and TV, content creation or AI/tech, have experience in engaging groups of young people aged 16-17 and are free from 9:00-15:00 on either 12 or 18 July, they would love to hear from you. Contact: louised@mediatrust.org

Which businesses are leading the move to Net Zero?

Forbes has produced a list of the top 100 US public companies that are “leading the way not just in transitioning to a low-carbon economy by 2050 but are also adjusting their business model to achieve sustainability targets”.

The five Net Zero Leaders are diversified financial companies, defence/aerospace and a bank - Moody’s, MSCI, Northrup Grumman, Bank of America, and S&P Global.

Explore the list to see which major employers might be aligned with your values.

^{advertisement}

Beehiiv - the newsletter platform built for growth

Better banking

Since 1998, Co-op Bank has withheld finance from any business involved in the extraction of fossil fuels, and last year they became the first UK high street bank to join the Bank.Green Fossil Free Banking Alliance.

The alliance’s members have pledged themselves against the financing of the production or extraction of fossil fuels.

By working with Bank.Green, Co-op aims “to exert pressure on the rest of the banking industry to follow suit”.

The bank states “we know that many people still don’t know how their bank invests their money, so by encouraging consumers to switch their money from fossil fuel funders to an ethical bank, we’re making a big difference to the planet.”

The future of international development is on the cards

International development is changing and needs to change. But what might this change look like?

Bond has produced a set of Future Innovation Cards to present new ways to stretch and challenge thinking on the future of the sector.

Twitter tweet

Walking the green talk

Businesses in Europe that think they can get away with mere talk about their environmental credentials might have a surprise coming.

According to ESGToday, the European Parliament has voted 544-18 to approve the adoption of new proposed rules that will require companies “to substantiate and verify their environmental claims and labels, aimed at protecting consumers from greenwashing”.

One of the proposals is to include in the rules “a prohibition on green claims such as “carbon or climate neutrality” that are based solely on carbon offsetting schemes.”

_{advertisement}

Locking in purpose

Image: Tony’s Chocolonely

A business’ purpose and values can change over time, and not always for the better. How can you ensure that the mission doesn’t get diluted?

Chocolate brand Tony’s Chocolonely has rejigged the structure of its business with Tony’s Mission Lock. This offers a virtual share to ‘Mission Guardians’, independent experts who can use this to protect or challenge any attempt to change the company’s governance that they feel represents drift or a withering of the company’s purpose. The Mission Guardians - the company has started with three - have a range of options open to them to uphold the purpose, including to establish a legal enquiry.

The company is also planning to publish an open source guide to help other businesses who want to adopt this approach to protect their values and purpose.

People moves

Supply chain mapping nonprofit Open Supply Hub has announced its full Board of Directors, following nine new appointments.

In November 2022, the organisation, formerly the Open Apparel Registry, announced its expansion beyond the apparel sector. It is growing particularly in light of the new supply chain legislation being enacted globally. It has seen particular interest from new sectors such as food and beverage, sporting goods, electronics and toys.

Its board represents a diverse range of actors across global supply chains, from global brands and retailers, to human rights representatives and will support the organisation as they look to scale up their technology globally.

The board now has 53% female representation and members from Asia, Latin America, Europe and North America.

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place.

Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and often doing so at pace.

In addition we help you discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims to work with a social impact or to find a social impact role or employer.

This week we hear from Johnny Pitt, founder of The Creative Shootout. His success shows that you don’t need to work for a charity to achieve positive change: sometimes you can just use the skills and team at your own business to introduce a new programme or initiative that benefits others and your own business.

And then magnify the impact by involving your contacts and partners in your sector. An element of competition also goes down well.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Johnny Pitt and The Creative Shootout

Johnny Pitt

Tell us about The Creative Shootout and its aims

The Creative Shootout was created by me in 2016 as I was utterly bored of going to traditional ‘award ceremonies’ that seemed to serve little purpose other than to line the pockets of the organising company.

Whilst I appreciate that these awards have their place and are important, they never celebrate the talent, or the shortlisted campaign ideas, in any meaningful way. Have a dreary dinner in a hot hotel ballroom, smile, collect a trophy (or not!) and walk off stage. And fork out loads of money for the privilege! Where’s the integrity or fun in that?

The Shootout abandons the standard awards format altogether and sets out to do three things.

First, it shines a light on talent in a raw but brilliant way.

Secondly, it promotes and celebrates brave and inspired creative thinking, and then showcases it live on stage.

And most importantly, it gives back. Our overall aim has always been to transform the fortune of a charity, every year, through the collective power of creativity.

How have you grown its impact and reach?

By being bold and ambitious. Fearless ambitious is the most important thing when you embark on any new venture and The Shootout is no different.

Whether that’s committing to the live show format (it can be a bit hairy at times!), the choice of charity, the judging line up, the brief, the prize fund, or even the venue. We’ve never played it safe.

Partnerships are also a key one here. And the longevity of those partnerships. We’ve had partners with us since year one, and we’re proud of that. We’ve also developed some game changing collaborations over the years, and The Guardian and Channel 4 seem like another big step up, of late.

What have you learned about growing an industry partnership campaign like this at pace?

Brand, brand, brand. Standards, standards, standards! You’ve got to be obsessive about how the brand looks, sounds and feels. And seven years later, I’m proud of The Shootout brand.

Be ambitious, as mentioned. Be flexible. Constantly evolve. And always consider how you can commercialise it, but in a way that does not damage the fundamental integrity. But it does need to wash its face! And the more successful it becomes, the better for everyone; charity, industry, entrants and of course, Launch.

How is it funded? What further plans do you have for the event?

The Shootout is funded by Launch, ticket sales, sponsorship and partnerships, of which we’re constantly looking to grow and develop.

Future plans are all about scaling up, whether franchise, international or TV. And we’ve looked at all three in some detail, already.

Tell us more about how charities have benefited from it?

So far, The Shootout’s been held for UNICEF, A Plastic Planet, Time to Change, FareShare, Crisis and most recently, FoodCycle.

FoodCycle is about to embark on its biggest awareness and volunteer recruitment campaign they’ve ever done. They would not have had the budget to do this campaign without The Shootout. And that’s what it’s all about. Turbocharging the reputation, awareness and understanding of a charity each year.

Twitter tweet

What skills, experience, contacts and qualities do you and the Launch team bring to this initiative?

The Launch team are truly brilliant on it; committed, professional, selfless, nurturing and passionate.

Everyone loves working on it too, and I appreciate that it’s a pretty unusual thing for an agency to do. On Live Final day, my heart bursts with pride for how every member of the Launch team goes about their role. And people notice the professionalism too, which is always special.

What would you advise someone else trying to do good as a business?

My advice would be to think very carefully about ‘why’ you want to do good as a business. It sounds an easy thing to do, but isn’t. It all starts with the why. And is there real integrity there? Then you move on to the ‘what’. And assuming you have a good idea, you should be halfway there!

The Creative Shootout

The Creative Shootout is a member of Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

vimeo.com/user43926823

Entries for the 2024 Creative Shootout are open until 30 June 2023.

Twitter tweet

^{advertisement}

Resources

Looking to move into the social impact sector, to set up or grow your own purpose-driven company, or want to gain skills and knowledge in this area? Here are some events and opportunities that might help.

Fundraising Apprenticeships at University of Kent

The Level 3 Fundraiser Apprenticeship Programme at the University of Kent offers free/almost free 13 month training starting September 2023 for new fundraisers working in England.

Apprenticeships are available to those already employed in a relevant position and require the support of an employer to take part. If you are not already employed in a relevant role, the university offers advice on Becoming an Apprentice.

Global Change Awards for fashion

H&M Foundation has announced the winners of its annual Global Change Awards to transform the textile industry. They have “doubled the winners and the grant”.

The Foundation launched the awards “to provide the tools, connections, and resources necessary for early-stage innovations to move from idea to scale as quickly as possible”.

This year’s award categories were:

1. Regenerate – solutions towards positive effects

2. Repurpose – solutions towards circularity

3. Reimagine – solutions we have not even thought about yet

The winners receive €200,000 each and embark on the year-long GCA Impact Accelerator.

The winning projects covered recyclable and biodegradable polyurethane, food waste polyester, circular dyeing, natural bio-colours, ultra high-performing textiles, seaweed material, AI textile sorting, corn husk and sugarcane fabric, zero waste pattern system, textile-to-textile recycling for polyesters.

H&M Foundation is privately funded by the Stefan Persson family, founders and main owners of the H&M Group.

Struggling to break into the charity sector?

If you’re over 50 and have been experiencing knockbacks despite your talent due to a lack of sector experience, this may be the programme for you.

Join Charity People on Thursday 29th June at 1pm for their LinkedIn live with the leads of the pilot Charity Interns programme.

Charity People’s Board and Leadership Associate Director Tiku van Houtem is partnering with Maya Bhose, Charity Interns Founder, and Woosh Raza NCVO Director of People, Culture & Inclusion, for this pilot, and during this live event, they will be discussing how to apply, along with providing further information on the programme itself.

The initiative aims to help people from outside the charity sector to bring their transferable skills into the sector. The pilot is going to focus on 4-6 marketing roles within several leading “household name” charities.

Charity People say: “This is such an exciting opportunity to break into the sector in a paid internship.”

The pilot starts in October 2023, placing people in paid, six-month internships.

Applications will open on June 29th and will be advertised on the NCVO Job Board.

Charity Interns was founded by Maya Bhose, who is also the project lead. She has a wealth of marketing experience, with a career spanning TV, media and partnerships. It will be incubated by NCVO, operating independently but within NCVO’s governance structures.

_{advertisement}

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

And discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims.

How can successful football or sports clubs use that success to benefit social causes? With Manchester City on the brink of winning the (continental) treble this week, we share their exclusive insight on what they are doing. Rachel Cummins, Communications Manager at City in the Community explains.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

5 ways Manchester City has supported its charity during end of season moments

Photo: City in the Community

Since its formation in 1880, community values have lived at the heart of Manchester City Football Club.

This ethos rings true today, embodied by the Club’s charity, City in the Community.

As the 2022/23 season draws to a close, sharing success with City in the Community and the people it supports has been at the forefront of the Club’s celebrations.

Here are five ways which Manchester City’s end of season moments have elevated City in the Community.

1. Premier League Trophy Presentation

Former City goalkeeper, Alex Williams MBE, was given the honour of handing the Premier League trophy to Club Captain, Ilkay Gundogan, during the presentation ceremony at the Etihad.

Williams was selected to be the lead trophy bearer for City’s third consecutive Premier League triumph by way of a fitting tribute to his 33 years’ incredible service with the Club’s charity, City in the Community, ahead of his retirement later this summer.

Alex was joined by 19-year-old Tom O’Dell, whose journey with City in the Community has been similarly inspirational, taking him from the verge of school expulsion to degree student and now valued member of staff.

2. FA Cup Final Shirts

City in the Community’s logo featured on the back of Man City’s FA Cup final shirts to help raise awareness of the charity, which has the potential to be seen by up to 500 million viewers globally.

Fans were also able to take part in an auction of match-issued FA Cup final shirts with proceeds going towards CITC’s new fundraising initiative, Healthy Goals, which uplifts the physical and mental health of city youth through football.

The auction closes at 12pm on Saturday 10th June and fans can take part here.

3. An Istanbul surprise

City in the Community Military Veteran participant, Dennis, received the surprise of his life when the Club gifted him two tickets, flights and a hotel package to watch the UEFA Champions League Final in Istanbul.

Dennis, a huge Man City fan, has served in the RAF for over 20 years before recently retiring. He is a much-loved member of the CITC Military Veterans sessions, who is willing to go above and beyond to support the charity and his peers.

Upon visiting the City Football Academy under false pretences, Dennis was surprised to find that instead of simply meeting CITC Community Coach Pete Bradshaw, he was presented with the trip of a lifetime.

4. Donations from UCL Final Screening

City in the Community will be receiving 100% of the proceeds raised by Manchester City’s UEFA Champions League Final screening at Depot Mayfield on Saturday, 10 June.

The Club has also enabled the charity to arrange a raffle at the event, with signed Jack Grealish and Kevin DeBruyne shirts up for grabs, to help bolster funds.

All profits raised on the night will be matched pound-for-pound* by the Club, supporting the charity’s new Healthy Goals initiative.

Funds raised will uplift the physical and mental health of local young people by creating new community football pitches in Manchester, where the charity’s youth led programmes will be delivered.

5. UEFA Champions League Final shirts

City in the Community will feature on the back of Man City’s UEFA Champions League final shirts on Saturday 10th June to help raise awareness of the charity. A match which averages 400 million viewers globally.

Fans will also be able to take part in an auction of match-issued UEFA Champions League final shirts, with proceeds going towards CITC’s new fundraising initiative, Healthy Goals.

The auction will open at 8pm on Saturday 10th June, when the match kicks off, with more details to be announced across mancity.com and @citcmancity on social media soon.

Commenting on the support received from the Club, Head of City in the Community, Mike Geary, added:

Founded in 1986, CITC’s purpose is to empower healthier lives with city youth through football.

Our programmes help support people across Greater Manchester by placing physical and mental wellbeing at their core, whilst creating healthy futures and healthy communities.

The 2021/22 campaign saw the charity deliver 17 programmes, reaching 19,119 people aged between two and 79, totally over 22,000 community sessions and averaging 29 hours per participant.

To keep up to date with City in the Community, follow the charity across social media using @citcmancity.

For more information, please visit www.mancity.com/CITC or email citc@cityfootball.com.

*Overall, City Football Group will contribute a maximum of £125,000 to City in the Community through this campaign or £500,000 in total for all City Football Group affiliated charities participating in the campaign (whichever comes first).

Republished with permission from City in Community.

^{advertisement}

Robot mower adds rewilding mode

Achieving a positive social impact is possible in almost any business. Including those with robot tools!

Husqvarna has brought ease and automation to moving lawns with its @Automower®, but has realised that cutting all the grass can damage habitats for insects like bees and butterflies.

So it has adapted its programming to offer a ‘rewilding mode’. This uses GPS to designate initially 10% or more of a garden that will not be mown. The user can then tweak that to set it to a chosen location in the garden.

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and often doing so at pace.

And discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims. We’ve got six below.

Remember last week’s announcement re the American Express and Common Purpose Global Leadership Academy to Nonprofit Sector? They have extended the application deadline for UK and EU applicants till 11 June. Applications from Africa are however closed now, “due to time needed for visa processing”.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

6 resources for emerging leaders

If you’re wondering how to expand your for-purpose work, to step up to the next level, or to find sources of support, try these.

Resource Alliance to offer bursaries for its Emerging Leader programme

The Resource Alliance has created a bursary fund “to promote equitable access” to the International Fundraising Congress, its October event in Holland.

The Emerging Leader programme will “support the personal and professional development of Emerging Leaders across the world, giving them the opportunity to build a network of support, learn from their peers, and further their vital work”.

At present Resource Alliance is inviting donations to the bursary fund from people who know the value of IFC and of the organisation and who have already benefited from it.

The bursaries will be provided at cost: the Resource Alliance will not make any profit on donations to the fund, it said.

Details of how to apply to the fund are not yet available.

Foresight and change

Calling all current and want-to-be changemakers who want to use foresight to transform their communities and change the world.

Launched in 2018 by the School of International Futures (SOIF), the Next Generation Foresight Practitioners (NGFP) is a network of almost 600 people from all over the world who are using futures and foresight to create positive impact and systemic transformation globally.

Applications for the next NGFP Fellowship have just closed, but add the organisation to your list for exploring. Their breadth of coverage of for-purpose issues is extensive.

As well as geographic fellowships covering all regions, we also are inviting thematic applications in the following areas: Just Transitions, Peacebuilding, Futures.Methods from around the world & indigenous futures, intergenerational fairness, Democracy and Governance, Emerging technology and existential risk, and Nuclear Security.

Find out more about NGFP and their Fellowships.

UPFRONT offers free training to build women’s confidence

Every woman at over 144 charities is being offered a free place on a six-week course to build women’s confidence. The gift, with a £4.8 million value, comes from UPFRONT, founded and led by Lauren Currie, formerly Chairperson of Pregnant Then Screwed.

The places are on their seventh BOND six-week course. (A bond is the collective noun for a group of women). The course begins this week.

UPFRONT’s bold aim is "changing confidence for 1 million women".

Explore UPFRONT to see how their next Bond might be for you.

advertisement

Women Energize Women

On 15 June 2023 the second international "Women Energize Women" Conference will take place in Munich as part of smarter E Europe, “Europe's largest platform for the energy industry”.

The one-day event will bring together experts and innovators from the fields of politics, industry, and research to discuss urgent issues of the energy transition and develop solutions from a gender-sensitive perspective.

Twitter tweet

Women are “still significantly underrepresented in the energy sector”, according to the event organisers.

Raising one hundred million for charity

If you’re ambitious in your fundraising this new e-book title is sure to grab your attention. Even better, it is based on actually achieving that sum - not for an individual charity, but over five years for various charity clients. And author Adrian O’Flynn accepts that not every charity needs to or can raise 100 million pounds, dollars, euros etc: for some one million is an ambitious aim.

It is for “ambitious fundraisers who want to do amazing, difficult work that has a huge impact on causes they care about”.

The free download is not tactical fundraising advice: it’s designed to help the ambitious fundraiser think differently and effectively about their role in achieving the charity’s mission.

The first section explains the argument for changing how to structure fundraising budgets.

The second section explains the problems ambitious fundraisers currently face in the charity sector.

And the third section provides the solutions before fleshing out the big-picture argument as it should be presented to senior people in your charity.

You can download it via LinkedIn, but the author asks that you do one tiny thing before you do. Share it with another fundraiser.

How to embrace social responsibility

If you’re not ready to jump to working for a social purpose organisation like a charity or social enterprise there are plenty of opportunities to make a difference at your current employer. Not least volunteering, or organising an employee volunteer programme.

Join guests from Capgemini for a free webinar during Volunteers’ Week, on Tuesday 6 June at 1pm BST, to learn more about employee volunteer programmes and how they can benefit you or your organisation. Volunteers from AbilityNet will also share how volunteering has helped boost their mental health.

Quote of the week

Too many social purpose organisations are damaged by founders or leaders that overcommit themselves, for the best possible reasons, but which lead to burnout. So this advice rings true. True, if not easy.

Hootsuite’s Uplift week

Social media management platform Hootsuite has announced a new virtual event called Uplift – A Week for Social Good. It is designed “to help educate and empower nonprofits on how to use social media to inspire change, generate awareness, and drive more donations through social media”.

Between June 12 – 16 it features speakers from organisations such as Plan International Canada, LinkedIn, Razom for Ukraine, and Canva. The event is free to attend.

People moves

Lesley Anderson has been appointed as permanent head of the Scottish Procurement Alliance (SPA). The not-for-profit has £1.1 billion of contracts under management and is also delivering a benefits scheme worth millions of pounds for local communities.

Lesley, who has 27 years in the public and private procurement sector and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply, said: “Our role in supporting the delivery of projects for public sector organisations is crucial in the growth of communities.

“The projects procured through our solutions offer access to facilities and provides opportunities for children and adults of all ages to thrive within their improved surroundings.”

She added: “SPA supports councils, housing associations, blue light services, the NHS, further and higher education providers and many other public bodies to build, maintain and refurbish vital social housing and public buildings.

“Across the supply chain that means hundreds of Scottish SMEs get the chance to bid for and win lucrative work that creates jobs and employment across the country.

“But the most rewarding part is that, as a proud not for profit organisation, we also put our surpluses back into the communities where we operate, through our innovative Community Benefit Fund, which enriches and improves thousands of lives.”

SPA is Scotland’s largest free-to-join procurement organisations. Its 120 partners cover a diverse range of public sector entities from small cooperatives, regional and national registered social landlords (RSLs), as well as local authorities.

SPA was founded in 2016 as the Scottish business unit of the LHC Procurement Group (LHC), which has been supporting public sector organisations across the UK with technical procurement expertise for over 50 years.

That gives it insight at a local, regional and national level into the challenges and priorities for the public sector and it applies this knowledge to develop solutions that meet the evolving needs of its partners.

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

This week we feature not one but five charity CEOs from around the world who have achieved this. Their story and what they have learned from the process is told by Alan Clayton, MD of Revolutionise International Ltd.

If you have a similar story of rapid, sustainable growth in income that led to a growth in social impact, let us know.

Meanwhile, discover inspiration, opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

^{advertisement}

What Great Fundraising CEOs are doing to raise their fundraising game

If you are a financially ambitious CEO, this should be a useful story.

If you are a frustrated fundraiser, then consider aiming to become a Great Fundraising CEO. It’s the best way for you to raise MUCH more money and make a massive impact on the world.

For me, it is a real and humbling privilege of my job that I get to work with some of the very best non-profit CEOs in the world. There are many and I respect them all.

For this article, I will analyse the fantastic work of five CEO’s who have increased fundraising income with dramatic results over the last few years:

• Daniel Speckhard at Corus International, Baltimore, USA.

• SallyAnn Kelly at Aberlour Children’s Charity, Stirling, Scotland.

• Cathy Yelf, at Macular Society, Andover, UK.

• Scott Chapman at Royal Flying Doctors Service, Melbourne, Australia.

• Rasmus Kjeldahl at Børns Vilkår, Copenhagen, Denmark.

The source for this article is detailed notes I have kept of the behaviours, analyses and actions initiated by these CEOs over a time period of up to six years.

They have all been supported by fantastic fundraising heads – Dave, Eddie, Pippa, Emma, Marie, Lisbet and Allan – but for now I will focus on the specific behaviours of these CEOs.

As a prologue, it is important to note that all five of our featured CEOs admit that they came to the most senior position via non-fundraising careers. And they said they had held assumptions, misconceptions and even some prejudices about fundraising when arriving in post.

None of them had appreciated the resources, power, independence or scale of opportunity that fundraising could deliver for them and their organisation.

As an epilogue, all of them have delivered transformational levels of income growth and created, launched and succeeded with new programme strategies and projects on the back of the fundraising growth. All of them have reached more service users, clients and beneficiaries and they have all made the world a better place for a huge number of people.

So, what’s the story between the prologue and the epilogue? It’s a consistent story for all five featured Great Fundraising CEOs.

Are you sitting comfortably?

1. They researched what other organisations have achieved. If there was no equivalent in their country, they looked internationally. They did not believe ‘it won’t work here.’ They looked at markets, statistics and communications, and they spoke to their peers in successful Great Fundraising Organisations.

They came to believe transformational growth was possible and increased their ambition.

2. They took their time to learn and understand fundraising. They investigated the difference between fundraising and grant funding and developed clear insight into the different communications required for both. They immersed themselves in the strategy and metrics of investment leadership and management. They studied the different leadership styles and behaviours required to bridge the different cultures needed by fundraising and all other departments.

They made themselves ready.

3. They took ownership of kick-starting fundraising. They understood that the whole organisation needed to get behind a fundraising surge, and it was their responsibility to achieve this.

They took command of initiating the change.

4. They achieved organisational wide buy-in. They took the time and allocated resources for training, immersion, cultural development programmes and co-creation sprints for communications. They dealt with politics and nay-sayers. They remembered to include the board throughout.

They got the right people on the bus – and got a few wrong people off it.

5. They made the three key decisions. They prioritised meeting donors' needs, optimum investment levels and focussed, powerful communications. They consulted and involved widely but realised the buck for the final decisions ultimately stopped with them.

They did not compromise.

6. They set their fundraisers free. They set ambitious targets and gave fundraisers the resources to achieve them. They moved organisational chaff, politics and bureaucracy out of the way so fundraisers could move with the speed required. They invested in the professional development of their fundraisers. They permitted testing and learning. They stopped amateurs blocking fundraising with mere opinions.

They treated fundraisers as respected professionals.

7. They kept involved. They left their fundraisers free to fly, but they touched base regularly. Partly they were monitoring progress, but mainly they were using the authority of their position to make sure fundraisers have the required resources to deliver on increasing targets and evaluating if there were any blockages which only the CEO could clear.

They led but did not manage.

8. They used the money to create innovative projects. They used the increased income to deliver more activity in direct pursuit of the mission. Some created innovative new projects that only fundraising could fund. Others scaled existing projects in a way they could not otherwise. They fed the results of these projects back to the fundraisers and to the donors.

They inspired for the long term.

We know of many CEOs beyond these five who have delivered Great Fundraising. With and through their teams and boards.

All five CEOs I have mentioned did all eight stages of the story, plus the prologue and epilogue. This is no coincidence.

Revolutionise International enables Chief Executives and fundraising leaders to become Great Fundraising CEOs.

Why not take a look at what we do to find out how you can become one?

This article by Alan Clayton was first published on Revolutionise in March 2021.

Resources

Here is a round-up of opportunities for professionals with purpose covering funding, recruitment to for-purpose organisations, conferences, training courses, professional development, networks and more.

Twitter tweet

Meg Garlinghouse on LinkedIn: This is a must attend for any nonprofit leader and practitioner who is…

This is a must attend for any nonprofit leader and practitioner who is looking for best practices on how to find world class talent and donors online - as well…

www.linkedin.com/posts/meggarlinghouse_mark-your-calendars-and-set-those-alarms-activity-7064280436134350848-QQjU

#FixTheFlow Fellowship

#FixTheFlow Fellowship is a Mighty Network. Join us to share your tips, tricks and stories with other members.

fixtheflow.org

Best charity to work for in the UK

Congratulations to St Giles Trust on being selected as “the best charity to work for in the UK” at the Best Companies Live Q2 event in Salford this month.

The top five ranked companies in the charity sector, based on their employee engagement scores, are:

• St Giles Trust

• St Barnabas Hospice Trust

• n-compass

• Medaille Trust

• St Martins

At the free-to-attend event in Salford (which you can still watch on-demand), the winning organisations shared their insight on what employee engagement practices had proved successful and also how they were navigating some of today's biggest people management challenges.

American Express Leadership Academy

American Express and Common Purpose are inviting applications for the second class of the global American Express Leadership Academy.

The Academy has places for 50 “high-potential nonprofit leaders” from across UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa. The six-month programme features a new curriculum that helps nonprofit leaders build specific skills to meet the changing needs of communities around the world.

This year’s theme is ‘Resilient Changemakers’.

The application deadline is 11:59 p.m. BST on Sunday 4 June 11 June for UK and EU applicants (the deadline for African applicants closed on 4 June) and participants will be announced in June.

Over the past 16 years the American Express Leadership Academy has helped more than 165,000 social purpose leaders around the world reach their potential. An additional Leadership Academy programme is being planned in Asia-Pacific.

AI for Good

AI for Good, from DeepLearning.AI, is a course designed for anyone who wants to apply AI to humanitarian or environmental projects, regardless of their background. There are no prerequisites, just a recommendation that you have some familiarity working with data, and running some basic analysis on your data using tools like spreadsheets.

The course has been developed in partnership with Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab, whose team members have used AI to map renewable energy, quantify biodiversity, and more.

If you pre-enroll you receive the first 14 days of the course for free.

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

And discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims.

This week we feature four opportunities to access funding and/or support for your business to grow at pace, one with a closing date of today. These cover:

• a micro business

• a startup

• underrepresented founders and entrepreneurs focusing on no-code tools

And we start with the largest which also is the only one focused on “bold social ventures”. Good luck!

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Four opportunities to help grow your business

1. Win £150,000 plus business support

Applications are now open for the second cohort of the 100x Impact Accelerator, an initiative of the Marshall Institute.

They are looking for “bold, innovative social ventures that are taking on the world's most complex issues”.

If you're a visionary, radical social entrepreneur, their programme offers the chance to access £150,000 of catalytic capital, tap into world-class insights through its 12-week programme, join a community of changemakers, and “drive change on a global scale”.

Successful applicants are announced in October and the programme begins in March 2024.

If you’re an impact-first organisation, a registered charity, not-for-profit, or social enterprise, and you are currently scaling social impact in one of the Accelerator’s eight Impact Areas, then you are eligible. They welcome applicants from anywhere in the world, “as long as you have a minimum viable product (MVP) and a track record of achieving impact”.

And yes, that can include for-profit businesses, but only if it “is an impact-first organisation with a primary social mission”.

The deadline to apply is 3 July 2023.

2. Win £25,000 to launch your business

If you have a business idea and need help with making it happen, then do explore the AXA Startup Angel competition in partnership with the Evening Standard.

There are six chances to win, including two top prizes of £25,000, mentorship from the AXA Startup Angels, and business insurance for a year, funded by AXA.

It’s not specifically for businesses with a social purpose, but perhaps that is the element of the pitch that will impress the panel. If you get to the final stage you’ll be presenting to Sharmadean Reid MBE, founder and CEO of The Stack World; Raphael Sofoluke, founder and CEO of UK Black Business Show; and, Henry Firth and Ian Theasby, co-founders of vegan food brand Bosh!

To enter simply send a pitch video and answer a couple of questions about your idea, and demonstrate your drive and passion for your business.

The competition closes on 4 June 2023. Find out more from the Evening Standard.

3. Small Business Jumpstart

Small Business Jumpstart is a free six-week programme designed for micro businesses “to help you get unstuck and create a plan for the future”.

It’s a partnership from Digital Boost and BT. Over a series of 90-minute interactive sessions, you’ll get mentoring from BT volunteer mentors to help you develop your own personal action plan “to supercharge your business”.

The sessions will run every Thursday at midday and will cover business strategy, branding, marketing, customer service, and finance.

Applications close today, Wednesday 17th May.

^{advertisement}

4. Bubble’s Immerse programme

No-code platform Bubble has a virtual residency programme for underrepresented founders and entrepreneurs who want to become their own CTOs. In just 8 weeks, the Immerse programme will teach founders how to build with Bubble, connect them with the broader tech ecosystem, and coach them through MVP development.

The deadline to apply for the next all-women and femme-identified cohort is Monday 22 May. Apply now or nominate someone you know.

Fancy some coffee with impact?

Here’s a round-up of UK coffee companies that also generate funds for charities. Published by UK Fundraising.

Coffee for good causes – a round up of beneficial beans

In time for your mid-morning break, here’s a round-up of UK-based coffee-related companies that generate funds for charities.

fundraising.co.uk/2023/05/16/coffee-for-good-causes-a-round-up-of-beneficial-beans

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose.

If you are wondering how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, you’re in the right place. Read on for examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

And discover opportunities, tools and resources to help you in your aims.

Talking of which, here are eight books that you might find useful.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

8 books on business with purpose

Given the current technology acceleration that we’re all experiencing as generative AI touches all our lives, let’s start with a guide to recognising change at exponential pace and what to expect.

1. Exponential

The ‘exponential gap’ that Azeem Azhar posits is the gap between the power of new technology and humans’ and their institutions’ ability to keep up.

Exponential: How to Bridge the Gap Between Technology and Society

Writer and technologist Azeem Azhar’s first book Exponential: How to Bridge the Gap Between Technology and Society explores the notion that we […]

fundraising.co.uk/books/exponential-how-to-bridge-the-gap-between-technology-and-society

2. The Purpose Upgrade: change your business to save the world

Social entrepreneur Lynne Franks OBE describes author Paul Skinner as “one of the most intelligent people I know and his perspective on how to combine purpose, business, the future of society and indeed the world is absolutely crucial understanding for us all.”

3. Future philanthropy: the tech, trends and talent defining new civic leadership

Ryan Ginard looks at the technology, trends and talent that will be needed over the next 10 years as civic leadership, or indeed leaders with purpose, face up to challenges. What would happen if philanthropy became a progressive industry, rather than a sluggish and reactionary one?

Future philanthropy: the tech, trends and talent defining new civic leadership

Civic connector and fundraiser Ryan Ginard anticipates incoming philanthropic trends and helps lay the groundwork for their adoption.

fundraising.co.uk/books/future-philanthropy-the-tech-trends-and-talent-defining-new-civic-leadership

4. The Future is Faster than you Think

One of three books listed here by Peter H Diamandis, founder of the X-Prize amongst other things, and Steven Kotler.

The Future Is Faster Than You Think: How Converging Technologies Are Transforming Business, Industries, and Our Lives

Diamandis and Kotler probe the science of technological convergence and how it will reinvent every part of our lives.

fundraising.co.uk/books/the-future-is-faster-than-you-think-how-converging-technologies-are-transforming-business-industries-and-our-lives

5. The Smart Nonprofit: Staying Human-Centered in an Automated World

Beth Kanter and Allison Fine explore how nonprofits can combine embracing artificial intelligence with retaining their essential human-centered approach to their work.

Kanter and Fine’s other works on nonprofits, technology and their impact on people are also worth exploring.

The Smart Nonprofit: Staying Human–Centered in An Automated World

Artificial intelligence is here to stay. In fact, it will almost certainly be more widely implemented across multiple silos within […]

fundraising.co.uk/books/the-smart-nonprofit-staying-human-centered-in-an-automated-world

6. Abundance

The original Kotler and Diamandis book that led to The Future is Faster Than You Think.

In Abundance, space entrepreneur turned innovation pioneer Peter H. Diamandis and award-winning science writer Steven Kotler document how progress in artificial intelligence, robotics, digital manufacturing, synthetic biology, and other exponentially growing technologies will enable us to make greater gains in the next two decades than we have in the previous 200 years.

Abundance: The Future Is Better Than You Think

A manifesto for the future that is grounded in practical solutions addressing the world's most pressing concerns.

fundraising.co.uk/books/abundance-the-future-is-better-than-you-think

7. The Tech That Comes Next

How changemakers, technologists, and philanthropists can build an equitable world. This book connects ideas and conversations across sectors from artificial intelligence to data collection, community centred design to collaborative funding, and social media to digital divides.

The Tech That Comes Next

Technology and equity are inextricably connected, and The Tech That Comes Next helps you accelerate change for the better.

fundraising.co.uk/books/the-tech-that-comes-next

8. Bold

“Bold is both a manifesto and a manual. It is today’s exponential entrepreneur’s go-to resource on the use of emerging technologies, thinking at scale, and the awesome power of crowd-powered tools.”

Bold : How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World

"A visionary roadmap for people who believe they can change the world-and invaluable advice about bringing together the partners and technologies to help them do it." -President Bill ClintonA ...

www.hive.co.uk/Product/Peter-H-Diamandis/Bold--How-to-Go-Big-Create-Wealth-and-Impact-the-World/20756878

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose.

If you’ve wondered how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, we’ll help inspire you. We’ll feature examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

It’s not just good news stories, it’s about revealing how many people and teams are growing their income and impact at pace.

Professionals With Purpose is brought to you by Revolutionise International Ltd, who have over a decade of experience in helping NGOs large and small around the world achieve such income growth.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Co-operative Bank fund support to further fair and ethical business

23 Mar

The Co-operative Bank is granting a further £400,000 to the Business Support for Co-operatives scheme.

The scheme delivers tailored business support and mentoring for start-ups and existing co-operatives, as well as supporting businesses looking to convert to worker or community ownership. The programme also offers:

• webinars to attract new audiences to the idea of starting a co-operative;

• free online resources and digital tools,

• including subsidised registration, for start-ups;

• and an after-care packages including access to free business banking from The Co-operative Bank.

The Co-operative Bank has now invested £2.5 million in the scheme since 2016, giving more businesses access to the support they need to start or grow.

Co-operatives are businesses and organisations owned and controlled by their members and operating under a shared set of values and principles.

There are around 7,200 of them in the UK, employing nearly 250,000 people, with a combined annual turnover of more than £40 billion.

Commenting on the announcement, Rose Marley, Chief Executive Officer of Co-operatives UK, said:

“We are seeing increased demand from people looking to start and use fairer businesses. Co-operatives are a better way to do business and transform people’s lives every day. By acting collectively to we can create fairer and ethical ways to trade, consume and live.

“Our partnership with The Co-operative Bank is about the opportunities democratically owned and run businesses offer people, communities and the UK economy – as well as business support. We want more people to understand the power of co-operation.”

The latest funding for The Business Support for Co-ops scheme will offer support at earlier stages to encourage more exploration of this route as an option for business start-ups. It will also target hard-to-reach demographics to inspire them to consider co-operatives as a way of having a say in where they work, live and consume.

_{advertisement}

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose.

This is not just a good news newsletter. It’s about revealing how people and teams are growing their income and impact at pace so that you can too.

Professionals With Purpose is brought to you by Revolutionise International Ltd, who have over a decade of experience in helping NGOs large and small around the world achieve such income growth.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Nyasha Njela joins Revolutionise to grow giving in Southern Africa

Nyasha Njela

Fundraising leader Nyasha Njela has joined Revolutionise International, the global accelerator for people with purpose, as Director, Southern Africa. 

In her previous role at The Feenix Trust she used Revolutionise's Great Fundraising approach to achieve income growth of over 600% growth in four years.

Alan Clayton, CEO of Scotland-based Revolutionise International, said:

"Nyasha put in a stellar performance in her previous post, developing c. ZAR 150,000,000 from scratch at Feenix education. She had 'Great Fundraising' at the core throughout."

"Great Fundraising" is the research and practice-based approach to mission-based fundraising that Revolutionise has developed and used to support large and small nonprofits around the world in growing their impact and income at pace over the last 12 years.

Nyasha is based in Cape Town and will work with clients in Southern Africa - and join the Revolutionise team for education, creative and cultural development sprints worldwide.

With a background in personal banking and sales, Nyasha has worked for nonprofits including Doctors Without Borders South Africa and Breadline Africa over the past 11 years.

She set up the fundraising department at Feenix, a South African Public Benefit Organisation which built a crowdfunding platform to enable students registered at South African public universities to connect with their communities and fundraise towards achieving debt-free education.

Nyasha is skilled in developing teams to set up fundraising strategies that include a diversified income portfolio through donor development - acquisition, retention, relationship building, and donor loyalty. She believes in building organisational fundraising culture that encourages cross-departmental collaboration to meet donor needs, which ultimately leads to serving beneficiaries and achieving its social mission.

Nyasha believes in building capacity for more people to join the fundraising profession and thrive. Since 2019 Nyasha has been a Steering Committee Member of Women in Philanthropy South Africa (WiPSA), a network of passionate people who are active in the social and development sector.

Nyasha said:

“As a fundraiser I have the privilege of seeing communities coming together and connecting through giving. Being African our core and values stem form "Ubuntu" meaning "I am because we are", this is how I view community giving. This community view eliminates the singular because as society we can only move forward as a collective.

“In 2017 I attended the GFM in Cape Town. I knew from then that I wanted to apply the learnings and start building an organisational fundraising culture that encourages cross departmental collaboration to meet donor needs. Bringing it all back to "Ubuntu" within an organisation. I was able to test this at Feenix and see it succeed. Now I would like to help more organisations should experience Great Fundraising to achieve their social missions”.

Her appointment means that Revolutionise International now has teams in New Zealand, Australia, the USA, South Africa, and the UK and Europe.

_{advertisement}

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose.

Professionals With Purpose is brought to you by Revolutionise International Ltd, who have over a decade of experience in helping NGOs large and small around the world achieve such income growth.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Social investment enables new ethical recruitment agency

Andy Street visits New Leaf Initiative

A Birmingham social enterprise that has supported nearly 1,300 people with convictions has secured £100,000 of social investment to launch a new ethical recruitment agency and refurbish its training academy.

New Leaf Initiative, which is based in Allcock Street in Digbeth, is now planning to place 100 clients into work in the first year by supporting companies wishing to increase their social value to find and appoint motivated, local, work-ready people emerging from diverse and often disadvantaged backgrounds.

Backed by funding from the Sumerian Foundation, this latest move will provide a commercial boost for the CIC, as well as creating a clear pathway into employment for the individuals it has been supporting since 2014.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, marked the launch of the new service during a tour organised by Big Society Capital yesterday, where he saw first-hand how people with convictions are being supported to move away from crime and into work.

The visit comes just a few weeks before the Government announces how it will allocate the English portion of nearly £1billion of dormant assets that can be used to help levelling-up.

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to Professionals with Purpose.

We’re not just about good news stories: we share the stories of how people and teams are growing their income and impact at pace.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

Leading with purpose drives employee and customer loyalty

Employee engagement is crucial to building a successful business, but this doesn’t come easy. Globally, only 20% of employees are engaged with their employer currently. When considering who to work for, more people than ever before are looking into a company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) activity and how they use business as a force for good.

It’s never been so important for businesses to take their social value and activity seriously. Not only can this make you more profitable, but attract and retain talent, and of course contribute to making the world a better place. In fact, when a company leads with purpose, 76% of employees and customers are more likely to trust them, and 72% are more likely to be loyal.

At Engage, our purpose is extremely important to us and we regularly look for new ways to support charities in our local area. For example, in 2016 we set up the Engage Elympics which is our annual challenge to become the healthiest agency in the UK whilst raising money for our nominated Leeds charities. So far, we’ve raised over £51,000 for deserving causes, including CATCH Leeds, Sunshine and Smiles, St George’s Crypt and Open Country.

Force for Good

Our most recent initiative is our Force for Good volunteering policy which gives our employees a total of 40 days of paid time off for volunteering activity in the community.

The Engage team isn’t restricted to a set list of charities to choose from, and can volunteer with any cause that is close to their heart.

We launched the volunteering initiative to encourage our staff to support and give back to the community. It allows us to connect with the local community, understand the potential challenges that are out there, provide support wherever we can and support our colleagues in terms of their mental health and wellbeing.

This also helps us to build a network of trusted individuals in the local community which has a positive impact on our reputation. Our team members who’ve been involved have truly felt a sense of achievement and are looking forward to taking up the volunteering days that are available this year.

The most recent charity to be supported through the volunteering initiative is FoodCycle, which aims to make food poverty, loneliness and food waste a thing of the past for every community. FoodCycle is more than just a charity. It uses its volunteers as a Force for Good to connect communities, reduce loneliness and food poverty, and help anyone who needs them. Their vision is truly inspiring.

Commenting on the volunteering opportunity, our Head of Marketing, Yasmin Russell said:

“The rise in the cost of living is worrying for everyone, especially those who are less fortunate. FoodCycle aims to ease some of those worries throughout the week; nobody should have to worry about their next meal. FoodCycle has introduced a new hub and home in the community that ensures a safe, supportive place for anybody to come along and enjoy a warm environment, hot cuppa and a hearty meal”.

Find out more about Engage’s purpose and why more companies should consider investing in business as a force for good.


A guest post from Engage.

_{advertisement}

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to issue three of Professionals with Purpose.

If you’ve wondered how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, we’ll help inspire you. We’ll feature examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

It’s not just good news stories, it’s about revealing how many people and teams are growing their income and impact at pace.

Professionals With Purpose is brought to you by Revolutionise International Ltd, who have over a decade of experience in helping NGOs large and small around the world achieve such transformational growth.

Howard Lake
Editor
howard.lake@revolutionise.com

WaterAid appoints first Resilient Water Accelerator CEO

Kate Hughes has been appointed as WaterAid’s first Resilient Water Accelerator CEO.

She starts this week and will lead on further strengthening the charity’s relationships with governments and the private sector to facilitate sustainable water projects at scale.

She joins WaterAid from the UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy where she was Director for International Climate Finance and Strategy. She led teams working on the long-term global transition to net zero, including for COP26, supporting clean energy transitions, scaling up climate finance, creating sustainable supply chains, and delivering on global climate ambition through the G7, G20 and UNFCCC.

She has been Chair of the Climate Investment Funds committees, the Green Climate Fund's Investment Committee, and the Board of UK Climate Investments. 

Resilient Water Accelerator

The Resilient Water Accelerator aims to boost available finance for climate-resilient water programmes by designing low risk, scalable programmes for the private sector to invest in.

It aims to reach at least 50 million people in water-stressed areas with reliable and sustainable water sources by 2030, with the first projects launching in Nigeria and Bangladesh.

It was set up under The Sustainable Markets Initiative founded by HM The King Charles III in his former role as HRH The Prince of Wales. The coalition is backed by partners including the Bank of America, African Development Bank, Arup and the UK and Dutch Governments.

Kate Hughes said:

“Investing in sustainable water systems is crucial for global health, for food security, for nature and for growth. The Accelerator will drive public and private investment to unlock investable opportunities and support millions of people with one of the biggest climate impacts – the access to clean, safe water.”

Sol Oyuela, WaterAid’s Global Director of Policy and Campaigns, added: 

“The Accelerator is now at a stage of kicking off the design of our pilot programmes in Nigeria and Bangladesh, and with Kate Hughes at the helm we can use our work to build a shared vision for water security with governments, communities, water partners and the private sector, to reach millions of people and unlock billions in funding.”

Watch: Resilient Water Accelerator

_{advertisement}

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown an organisation’s income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.

Welcome to the second edition of Professionals with Purpose.

If you’ve wondered how you can have a more positive impact while you run a business or earn a living, we’ll help inspire you. We’ll feature examples of businesses, charities, government organisations, individuals and entrepreneurs who have done it or are achieving it - and doing so at pace.

It’s not just good news stories, it’s about revealing how many people and teams are growing their income and impact at pace.

61% of young workers want their next job to tackle the climate crisis

10 Jan

Energy company OVO’s Tech Academy is again open for applications for 2023, with a new apprenticeship course in software development.

The Academy is an apprenticeship programme focused on supporting more people to kickstart a career in software engineering. Trainees are committed to either starting or retraining in a skilled career that helps tackle the climate crisis, while providing a flexible employment opportunity where they can earn as they learn. After passing the programme, apprenticeships join as full time engineers with 100% staying on from 2022.

Polling for OVO found that 45% of people in the UK and 61% of under-35s are looking to move to a skilled job where they can help tackle the climate crisis.

As part of the OVO Tech Academy, the software engineers work on technology helping to lower household's carbon footprint and enable customers to understand and take control of their energy usage.

The opportunity to launch a career in software engineering at OVO requires no prior experience, opening the doors for those with different backgrounds. Every apprentice will receive “a competitive salary with all training fully paid for by the apprenticeship levy”, ensuring apprenticeships do not bear any costs associated with the programme.

Christina Scott, Chief Product and Technology Officer, OVO said:

“The OVO Tech Academy has already seen inspiring and diverse talent join OVO, pursuing a new career without a background in engineering. I’m proud to continue working with Makers to ensure our future apprentices have the tools, confidence and support on hand to launch their careers at OVO.”

OVO was founded in 2009. Through its sustainability strategy Plan Zero OVO aims to help tackle the climate crisis: it has committed to being a net zero carbon business and “achieve bold science-based carbon reduction targets”, while helping customers reduce their household emissions at the same time.

Applications close on 19th January 2023 by 5pm.

^{advertisement}

If you have a story to tell about how you’ve grown a business’ income and social impact at pace, do get in touch with us.

If you’d like to advertise on or sponsor future editions of Professionals With Purpose do contact Connor Seaton.