Maybe we should all be more Owl
Howard Lake | 5 July 2016 | Blogs
10 points Richard Sved learned from day two of Fundraising Convention, 2016.
1. Think about how well we reflect our communities
"If we are shocked by the brexit result, is that because we don't reflect our communities well enough?" @karlwilding#FundraisingConvention
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
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In a packed discussion about what the EU referendum result means for charities, Karl Wilding asked the audience why we were surprised by the result. Is it because we don’t reflect the communities we serve well enough? Food for thought.
2. We must speak out now
In the same session, Angela Kitching reflected that charities were hamstrung by the Charity Commission guidance in the run-up to the vote. But we know the needs of our beneficiaries, and we owe it to them to speak out now.
We were hamstrung by pre-election guidance but we must speak out. We know our beneficiaries.#FundraisingConvention pic.twitter.com/Zgbjey8qw5
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
3. We will get through this
And Caron Bradshaw argued that whatever the storm charities are heading towards, we will get through it. We always do. We’ve been doing it for centuries, she argued.
We may be heading to a storm but we l'll get through it. It's what we've done for centuries.#FundraisingConvention pic.twitter.com/IbVTMAN5uq
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
4. Fundraisers like to sing, apparently
It was fascinating to attend Beth Breeze’s sneak preview of her findings from her large study of ‘The New Fundraisers’. There were some interesting facts that may not have surprised us too much, for example that we are mainly female. However, it was interesting to discover how much more likely we are to be community-minded – to give blood, to sing in a choir, to have hobbies. Is there a danger that we will continue to recruit ‘people like us’?
We fundraisers like community oriented activities, says @UKCPhilanthropy. I'm in a band 🙂#FundraisingConvention pic.twitter.com/tqEr6ArEDv
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
5. Legacy fundraisers are finely tuned… emotion-reading machines
Beth found that legacy fundraisers were the most finely attuned to the emotional expression and body language of others. It could be said they’re in the right job, because they have got to be especially attuned to sensitivities.
Legacy fundraisers were found to be most finely attuned to body language, @UKCPhilanthropy found@ClaireyJaneR <=#FundraisingConvention
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
6. Maybe we should all be more Owl
In his entertaining session on the personal effectiveness track, Matthew Sherrington took us through a range of helpful animal-based analogies. Are we rhinos (charging in) or hedgehogs (curling up) when we face conflict? How politically aware and organisation-focused are we? If we’re high in both we’re owls, and if we’re low in both, we may be donkeys, who “don’t really know what’s going on”.
"Donkeys don't really know what's going on"
Should have chosen owl.#FundraisingConvention pic.twitter.com/iUgicdXZgI— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
7. Recruiters focus on attitude
When we head to interviews, we might normally assume it’s going to be our skills and knowledge that people look for when they’re hiring, but those can be more easily developed. The attitude is what will get us the job, Matthew told us.
*This* is what people look for when hiring. Knowledge/skills can be developed. @m_sherrington #FundraisingConvention pic.twitter.com/OAJqrURS2s
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
8. Clock off at a reasonable time
What example do we set our team if we can’t pay attention to ourselves? If we’re shattered, what help are we anyway? Go home at a reasonable hour, and our teams will look after themselves too. This is the new workplace of the 21 st century.
What example do you set your staff in how you look after yourself? If shattered, go home!#FundraisingConvention pic.twitter.com/O3ZrdgNbUn
— Richard Sved (@richardsved) July 5, 2016
9. We need to pay attention to the opportunities of Virtual Reality
VR is featured at @nfptweetup session at #FundraisingConvention, including @TOMSuk Virtual Giving Trip: https://t.co/fteqg6CafA
— Howard Lake (@howardlake) July 5, 2016
Ade Cockle gave his audience at the #NFPtweetup session a brilliant whistle-stop tour of the increasing opportunities that Virtual Reality holds for the charity sector, with examples from RNLI, Cancer Research UK, UNICEF and the Natural History Museum. As this technology gets more and more accessible, we need to be on it!
10. The #Unconvention is a great way forward
I attended two sessions in the ‘Unconventional’ track in the first two days, and they were both excellent. Let’s hope these type of sessions continue to be offered, because they provide an excellent counterpoint to the ‘normal’ seminars that are ‘conventionally’ offered. Pun intended.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.