The CSR Model and Nonprofit Partnerships
CSR is redefining nonprofit partnerships. (photo courtesy of tungphoto)
Nonprofits spend a large amount time proposing partnerships with corporations and businesses for a number of reasons: program volunteers, needed resources, Board members and sponsorship dollars. With the 2008 recession and the challenging economic climate that followed there has been a shift in the kind of partnerships formed between the business world and nonprofit community. The relationship today is more mutually beneficial and in a lot of ways more meaningful for both parties. This new socially responsible model and corporate culture is pivotal for nonprofits to understand so they do not just go about seeking partnerships in the same manner.
This model influences how corporations train their leadership and gives them real world experience raising awareness for the corporate brand. Corporations are seeing some of their best and most productive professional development happen from volunteering in their community. Working with local nonprofits through time specific projects has helped professional teams to work together, while at the same time raising awareness about both the corporation and nonprofit. By challenging leadership teams to work with employee groups in volunteer projects corporations are seeing their effectiveness managing people, project management skills, and their leadership abilities in action.
Companies are seeing the ROI of social good and how that success translates to a productive and satisfied workforce. Even in a recession employee satisfaction has become a priority to many businesses. Still corporations are having trouble finding the right people with the right combination of positive attitude, tech savvy, and willingness to become emotionally involved with a product. By being ambassadors of social good employees have the opportunity to see their work place as a positive influence in a community, not just a revenue centered business, thus increasing employee satisfaction.
According to the 2010 Edelman Good Purpose Study consumers expect corporations to invest in a purpose and 64% believe it is no longer enough for corporations to give money; they must integrate good causes into their everyday business. Some corporations like; Cox Communications, Quick Trip, and Home Depot all have opportunities for employees to take a day off work to help local community organizations with special events and improvement projects. The result has been a positive impact to company culture and profitable the bottom line for the corporations making the shift to be more philanthropic.
Knowing where companies are focusing their efforts will give nonprofits making the adjustment in their partnership approach a valuable leg up on status-quo groups not acknowledging the shift to the CSR model. The economy has changed the way the corporate world has had to brand itself and products to their consumers. Nonprofits are going to have to take advantage of this effort by corporations to appeal to more conscious consumers wanting not only value and quality, but a better world as well.
An Amazing Year: Twitter, Work, and Life
Professional goals are important, but never lose sight of the riches in front of you.
This has been an amazing year in so many ways. My family and I have just relocated to the beautiful Pacific Northwest, I enjoyed speaking at several conferences, and have been very fortunate to connect and interact with so many incredible professionals on twitter (my preferred source of social media.) Through traveling and speaking I have been able to meet so many wonderful people, many I first connected with on twitter. I am very thankful to have spent some time with this amazing group of people: Sandy Rees, Darian Heyman, April Northstrom, Allison Fine, Beth Ann Locke, Cletus Coffey, Shanon Doolittle, and Casey Dilloway (check my flickr photos). Connecting with others through Google+ and over the phone has led me to great friendships with Nick Savarese, Patrick Sallee, and Michael Chatman. There really has been so many other great people (I know I’m leaving many out) the point of this post however is not to name everyone, but to thank them for their wisdom, support, and for sharing their knowledge.
I Tweet, Therefore I AM: Twitter has been an amazing experience and I only want to kick myself for not seeing value in it earlier. I started 2011 with a small following of around 100 and will end the year with over 1,100 followers. This to me is just amazing in itself that anyone (let alone that many) would be interested in my thoughts, share their opinions, or learning from my experiences. My latest Twitter experiment is my tweet the “Daily #Nonprofit Tip” has been received well and retweeted often- so I plan on continuing to do it. I have decided that next year every time I reach a new milestone with followers (in increments of a hundred) that I will donate to a charity I have connected with on twitter (hold me to that tweeps). I joined twitter to share with and learn from a community of professionals in my field- what I have received in return from these interactions was so much more. (#Gratitude)
Professionally I have been influenced by these 10 professionals the most, in terms of real substance and actionable advice you will find few better. I would recommend them to anyone seeking fundraising best practices or nonprofit management knowledge:
- @GailPerrync
- @seattledrury (Peter Drury)
- @dheyman (Darian Heyman)
- @GordonJayFrost
- @marcapitman
- @PamelaGrow
- @FundraisingAuth (Joe Garecht)
- @SandyRees
- @MLInnovations (Michael Rosen)
- @fundchat (hosted by @BrendanKinney)
If I helped the twittersphere in any way I would have to say #RetroFriday was my big contribution. With participation in 6 countries and close to 100 tweeps sharing their 80′s best with the world- it only proves that there is always room for humor and fellowship in all our lives.
1989 was not my strongest year in high school. #RetroFriday was worth it though.
Stepping into the Spotlight (my 15 minutes): I was very fortunate to speak to over 3,000 young people this year and over 500 professionals in nonprofit and education. I enjoy an audience and know that speaking is something I want to pursue and do more of I as continue to grow professionally. My good friend Michael Chatman gave me the incredible opportunity to be a guest twice on his radio program The Michael Chatman Giving Show and appear as his guest host 3 times (definitely highlights of the year). I very much enjoyed stepping in to live tweet for Tony Martignetti and his Nonprofit Radio Show as well. Creating a blog and website has acted more like a professional development exercise than anything else, but one that has been very enjoyable none-the-less as well as rewarding. So thank you to my subscribers and those of you who have left great comments!
What 2012 will Bring: With my new position in Washington I have the opportunity to work with Boys & Girls Clubs again. I am very excited to be with such an amazing organization that has meant so much to my career, but more importantly positively impacts millions of kids each year. I will be concentrating less on seeking consulting opportunities and throwing my energies in helping my organization take on an exciting capital campaign. I also have decided to spend 2012 focusing on my writing, both through guest blogging and working on some book ideas. Because of my new focus and position major changes are coming to my site and the way I distribute information- so stay tuned I think you will like it.
I hope your 2011 was a great one and I look forward to engaging with you in 2012.
Bio of Author
This blog was created to find a more engaging way to cultivate funding and connect with stakeholders. Relationships are everything, transparency is key, and nonprofits and schools must find a way to engage their supporters, community, and populations they serve.
Here are the nuts and bolts of my experience: I have 16 years of management and fundraising experience in nonprofit and education. As a professional fundraiser I have raised close to $40 Million Dollars, given over 300 professional presentations, managed more than 200 employees, and authored curriculum for numerous education programs. I hold a Bachelor’s Arts in Psychology from Westminster College and a Master’s of Science in Family and Child Development from the University of Central Oklahoma. I also hold graduate certificates in Advanced Leadership Studies from Clemson University and Public Health from the University of North Carolina.
I frequently guest lecture for nonprofit administration and teacher education graduate programs (my favorite thing to do). I also enjoy speaking to business and service groups about the importance of corporate philanthropy and how partnering with nonprofits and schools can play an important role with employee satisfaction and influencing consumer choice.
Currently I am the Executive Director of the Martinez Foundation, founded by Holli and Edgar Martinez in 2008, which strives for equity and excellence in education. The Martinez Foundation supports teachers of color in the state of Washington through graduate level scholarships, personalized mentoring, access to resources, and professional development.
Ian Adair
“If you believe business is built on relationships, then make building relationships your business.” -Scott Stratten
Great Resources To Check Out!
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Fundraising Strategy:
