By Karen Kirkwood-Whyte – Special to the Sydenham Current
Several years ago, my Pastor invited me to accompany him to a Leadership Conference hosted by Willow Creek Community Church just down the road in Tecumseh. It showcased a number of inspiring world-renowned authors and community leaders who spoke about the importance of leadership in running today’s businesses and organizations. It was there that I was introduced to Patrick Lencioni and his work on executive team development and organizational health. I purchased several of Patrick’s books and a subscription to The Table Group.
As I read his latest article on “Corporate Envy” and his personal story of working for two companies in the same line of business, I was relating his message to some input that our organization has recently received to change our current methods of fundraising to “keep up” or “outpace” the competition. We appreciate this feedback and acknowledge that we need to generate increased revenue and financial support for our organization and those agencies with which we partner. But… here’s the rub.
There are organizations in our community that do a fabulous job of organizing and hosting gala events, golf tournaments and other unique “themed” special events. The beauty of these is that they are time limited for the volunteers who are involved, provide great entertainment value for the attendees and can generate anywhere from $10,000 to $300,000 in a single event. I attend them for the entertainment value and look forward to supporting my colleagues who are in the same nonprofit “business”. But … these large special events require huge amounts of time and people power – to plan, carry out and follow up … and a significant amount of financial resources to purchase giveaway items, food and entertainment. These are resources which United Way has chosen to invest in other strategies to lift people out of poverty, help kids in need and pull the community together.
For United Ways – all 1,800 of us across this globe – our fundraising strategy does not include a large focus on special events. Alternatively, we strive to develop relationships with local businesses who want to ensure that their employees are not only engaged in our community, but are knowledgeable about the programs and services that exist to support them as they deal with the challenges of everyday life. Companies are learning about the importance of civic engagement, decent work, work-life harmony and access to health and social services that make better employees … as well as a more productive bottom line! Many are helping by hosting a United Way employee workplace campaign, approving a payroll deduction plan and – in some cases – even introducing a “corporate match” to encourage charitable giving. Locally, we have a number of companies that do this for United Way, “multiplying” the impact of their charitable investments in our community. Giving through an annual payroll deduction campaign also provides an opportunity to consolidate charitable giving to a number of favourite charities – in one easy deduction.
In addition to developing ongoing partnerships with private sector businesses and local government, United Way’s focus is also on maintaining and developing new relationships with individual donors who want to invest in life-altering change for some of our most vulnerable citizens. United Way wants to ensure that its partner programs and direct services continue to be there for our neighbours, friends and co-workers who are experiencing the “messiness” of life’s challenges.
Having said all that, it doesn’t mean that traditional fundraising methods shouldn’t be “tweaked” or “refined” to enhance outcomes. United Way doesn’t do many large special events; we leave those events to those local organizations who do not have the same access to workplace payroll deduction campaigns as we do. While special events are not our organization’s primary “bread and butter”, they do produce approximately 12% of our total revenue, create awareness and generate opportunities for increased community volunteerism.
As Patrick Lencioni noted, an attempt to be more like the competition – or “copy” – can jeopardize a value system or compromise a mission that makes the organization unique. In his own words … “Whether you’re a consumer tempted to keep up with the Joneses, a teenager hoping to fit in and be cool, or a CEO wanting to outdo a competitor, it’s always critical to understand the positive qualities that make you unique, and embrace them. Most healthy companies, and people, are grateful to be who they are. Their customers and friends are, too!”
If there is a particular question that you would like answered in a future article, please do not hesitate to send me an email at karen@uwock.ca or call me at 519-354-0430.
* Editor’s note: Karen Kirkwood-Whyte is the CEO of the United Way of Chatham-Kent. Watch for a series of articles written by Karen each week on the Sydenham Current.
