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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
21 September 2016
Updated: 22 October 2020
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Amber Sainsbury is the CEO and Founder of Dramatic Need, a creative arts charity that helps vulnerable African children. The charity will celebrate their 10th Anniversary in 2017.
Leadership is - to me - much more about asking for help than passing on instructions. And it isn’t just about inspiring people that your cause is valid. Not everyone will be sold on an idea through your personal conviction.
There is a lot of understandable rhetoric about leaders and leadership, often designed to encourage and enthuse young people to go on and do great things. Words like vision, inspiration and transformation are frequently associated with the concept, and we are inundated with pithy quotes from Ghandi to Mandela on coffee cups and T-shirts reminding us why these leaders were so effective in forging change. However, in a day-to-day model of leading a group or organisation, neither lofty visions of change or didactic methods of working are, in my view, necessarily the most helpful. It must also be about being open with people as to where your weaknesses lie and letting them help. Partly because they are inspired by what your organisation is trying to do - of course! - but also because it is empowering for both individuals and groups to know that their impact will be noted and substantial.
I have frequently been told to not mention to people that we are a ‘small’ charity. The fear seems to be that we will be seen as less able, less important and therefore overlooked. However, much like lying about your age, it seems to me that pretending you are what you are not will catch up with you eventually. Instead, I find being up front about your limitations helps people you are approaching to feel that they stand to make a real difference. It is important to admit that you are stuck, that you don’t have the resources, the personnel or know-how to achieve something. It’s also important to see yourself not just as a leader, but as someone who is also a follower, willing to be led and to learn about something in which you lack expertise.
Dramatic Need employs just four people across two continents, and yet we have three functioning community art centres, work with several thousand children per year and put on participatory fundraisers which have involved globally recognised creative talents from Anish Kapoor to Nicole Kidman to Benedict Cumberbatch.
It is not that our cause is more valid that the next, and certainly not that I am a more inspiring leader than the next person. It is simply that we ask for help prolifically and candidly, from everyone across the social and creative sectors. Thousands of people have been involved with this charity, some for very short amounts of time, some for longer, but all of them have been directly asked for help because we didn’t know how, or we couldn't do it without them.
There is something to be said for keeping overheads limited, with as much of the funds and impact of what you do being spent on the people and the cause you are trying to help. This is only possible if your team remains small and enthusiastic, with a wide skill-set and the ability to roll up their sleeves and get on with any aspect of the job. This too is about asking people to help out in the right way. There is an increasing trend towards specialisation within the workplace. Titles like ‘social media manager’ are great in a large company as the more specific your job specs are, the easier it is to fit into a well-oiled machine. However, in a small charity everyone has to be able to do everything. If one of your team doesn’t know how to do something, teach them. If you don’t know how to do something, ask them to teach you. Smart delegating is of course a crucial part of leadership, but keeping on top of the detail and knowing how everything works is essential. Small teams mean if someone is ill or occupied, you have to be prepared to step in and do it yourself.
Some things to consider:
1. Both people who are well established in their professions and people who are just starting out want to make the greatest impact with their time/money/talent or expertise. No one enjoys these things being wasted. The advantage of a small charity is that the effort/impact ratio of anyone involved can stand in your favour. Make that clear.
2. Tell people what you need in specific terms early on. Tell them why the cause is different and important, but also communicate clearly what you need. For example, ‘please attend our event’ or ‘please be our visual marketing partner’ could mean different things to different people.
3. Small charities are often niche charities. Make sure your mission statement and branding are clear, succinct and impactful so that you don’t get bogged down trying to explain your cause before getting to the point of asking for what you need.
4. It might seem obvious, but never lose touch with anyone who has helped you in the past, or who you think might be helpful in the future. Keep a detailed and cohesive database of everyone you and your team meet, and keep them up to date and informed with the work you are doing. The social sector is small; every time you can remember someone’s name and how they helped (no matter how small their contribution) the better the chances are that they will support you in the future. Simple, but important personal touches.
5. Make sure that you are not asking anyone in your team to do something which you couldn’t do yourself. Small can mean lean and efficient, it can’t mean elitist or heavily stratified. Of course job specifications are necessary, but make sure you hire team members who, when the chips are down, are also happy to do take on the unspecific task.
Visit here for more information about Dramatic Need or follow them on Twitter.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
19 August 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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It is a testing time at the moment for charity leaders in the UK - a ‘perfect storm’ of difficult events are bubbling up around them. With an uncertain political and economic climate, the landscape is changing for charities. There is more public scrutiny than ever, and more people needing their services; all of this adds to the challenge of their roles.
Leaders need to find ways to be able to communicate their message effectively, campaign hard, collaborate with others, inspire teams and win funds. For that, they need to grow their influence. What do I mean by influence? You can find a longer explanation here. Without having enough influence, they can’t have the impact that they want and their cause desperately deserves.
In my work as The Influence Expert, I regularly see both good and bad examples of charity leadership when it comes to influence. Good examples include things like being authentic so that beneficiaries, volunteers and funders really have the chance to know what the people at the top of a charity stand for. Bad examples include things like (to my mind) outdated ideas such as mistaking having a personal brand with ‘bragging’, when really it is simply about being clear about the things you stand for and are known for so that you have a chance to further your cause.
In this speech I gave at an international charity conference, I outline some of the ways that people working for charities can build their influence. As a former charity chief executive, I know that time is precious, but making a start to improve the amount of influence that you have needn’t take long. My LEAPS Model, mentioned in the video, gives 5 broad areas to focus on and improve:
L- Likeability - How do you come across to other people? How do you relate to them and empathize with them?
E- Expertise - What are you good at? What should you specialise in? Do others recognize you as an expert?
A- Authenticity - Do you come across as a genuine person? Do you walk the talk?
P- Personal Brand - Do you have a clearly defined and strong personal brand and do you know how to reinforce it both offline and online? Using online platforms, such as LinkedIn, effectively, is important.
S- Synthesis - Are you bringing all the other elements together and do you have a consistent plan to grow your influence over time?
Growing your influence is a marathon not a sprint. Over time though, it can transform the ability of a leader to make an impact on the cause that their charity is fighting for. Of course growing influence is not just about leaders at the very top: everyone in the organisation should be supported to grow their influence so they can be more effective in their roles and progress in their own professional lives.
Alex Swallow is The Influence Expert, helping you grow your influence to increase your impact. He is also the Founder of Young Charity Trustees and of the interview series, Social Good Six and has a background in the charity sector, including as Chief Executive of the Small Charities Coalition.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
08 August 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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Heather Black is Managing Director at Economic Change CIC a management solutions social enterprise.
As the leader within a non-profit it’s important to reflect and ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you effectively communicating with your different stakeholders to harness their energy, enthusiasm and engagement?
- Do you need to improve engagement with your stakeholders to help increase referrals, funds and resources?
- Do you have a strategy in place to communicate regularly with your different audiences e.g. your beneficiaries, funders, donors, volunteers, trustees, partners, influencers?
On a daily basis I help leaders develop stronger and more intuitive relationships with their community of stakeholders, through reviewing ways in which they can communicate, interact and involve them in the organisation’s success.
I achieve this by helping them segment their stakeholders, identify the messages they want to send or hear from each stakeholder group, and finally determine the best methods or tools to engage with them. Once this is decided, I work with the leader to embed the use of a good Client Relationship Management Systems (CRM) with integrated e-marketing tools to execute the strategy.
Below I have summarised five approaches that may be useful to your own organisation:
- Customer support management - Introducing a formal way to track, catagorise and analyse customer enquiries helps to identify if there are common issues, concerns or questions arising amongst your stakeholders. Introducing an online customer support form or call handling service with a clear case management process and/or a self-help Q&A forum can help improve and speed up standard communications. This also provides a way for customers queries to be heard, logged and monitored in a quality assured way, flagging areas to improve or develop for the organisation.
- Targeted e-communications – When I work with clients on a new CRM this is often is a catalyst for them to organise, update, cleanse and re-categorise their contacts into target audiences. This enables them to send out targeted and focused emails and newsletters to certain audiences via integrated e-marketing tools.
- Social media engagement – Engaging with stakeholders via social media is becoming increasingly important and as a result, my customers are now asking to track social media handles for both contacts and organisations within their CRM, and recording if they have completed the action to find and follow them.
- A community discussion forum – Introducing a community platform can enable different groups of stakeholders to share common interests, discuss ideas, thoughts and issues together. I have deployed community platforms for staff, volunteers, members, beneficiaries and learners to interact together.
- Ideas exchange – You could establish an online ideas voting platform, which lets stakeholders post ideas, vote on ideas and comment on them. This can support co-design and development of new solutions that are customer led.
If you are interested in streamlining your communication practices with stakeholders and implementing a good CRM using Salesforce with integrated tools for your organisation, contact Heather at heather@economicchange.co.uk for a free consultation.
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
27 July 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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With the closing date for applications fast approaching (midday on Monday 5 September 2016), everyone at Clore Social Leadership is hugely excited to receive applications to our 2017 programme. However, we understand that the process can be a little daunting, so in addition to our FAQs and selection criteria, we have devised a few key points to help guide you through it.
1. Have the support of your employer/nominator
The support of your employer during the Fellowship process is paramount. Your employer needs to understand that the programme is not just an investment in your own leadership development, but an investment in the whole social sector.
Your employer will need to understand their own commitment, as well as the benefits that their organisation will gain from your Fellowship. The support of your employer will become a key element of your development as a leader over the 12 months. From providing you space to share your learnings with your organisation to assisting you with progress and impact surveys, we expect them to stay engaged throughout the Fellowship.
We expect your employer to be your nominator; they will normally be either your Chief Executive or your Chair. In exceptional cases it might be a senior leader in the social sector who knows you well. Make sure they are briefed thoroughly before applying.
More detailed information on the commitment and benefits to employers can be found in the Information for Employers section of our Prospectus.
2. Demonstrate how and why the Fellowship is right for you at this particular time
We want to see what your reasons are for applying to the 2017 Fellowship at this particular point in your life. Where are you on your leadership journey, and why would the Fellowship be right for you now? What do you hope the Fellowship help you achieve?
This will show us whether you have the vision and self-awareness, as well as readiness and head-space necessary to make the most of the opportunity that our 12-month programme will provide you with.
3. Clearly illustrate how you will give back to your organisation and the sector
Although we are strong believers that leadership development encompasses your individual journey, we also strongly hold that it is in fact much bigger than that. We see leadership development as an investment in the whole sector, a way of strengthening the social sector for the future. This is why giveback is one of the key aspects of the Fellowship.
We are therefore looking for applicants who have an appetite to bring back what they learn on the Fellowship to their organisations to achieve better outcomes for their beneficiaries and the community.
4. Show us your flaws
When completing application forms it can be easy to fall into the trap of only showing the best parts of yourself. However, we want to see what you can gain from the Fellowship, how it might help you, and whether you have the self-awareness to do it. Various elements of the programme will allow you to gain further insights into where your strengths lie, and what you could work on.
5. Come to a recruitment event
We are running a number of information events this summer to support you and your application. One of the best ways to get your questions answered, and get a feel for what the Fellowship entails in practice, is to come and talk to the Clore Social Leadership team and our Fellows at one of our events. See our Fellowship Events page for more information and registration details.
If you can’t attend any of our events and still have questions, please call us on 020 7812 3770.
Good luck with your applications!
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Posted By Clore Social Leadership,
20 July 2016
Updated: 14 October 2020
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Caroline Mason CBE is Chief Executive at the Esmée Fairbarin Foundation. The Foundation funds our gender equality Fellowship on our 2017 Fellowship programme.
At Esmée we talk a lot about the importance of key people. As one of the largest independent funders in the UK, we place our trust and our money in the hands of some of the most brilliant, entrepreneurial and effective leaders in the social sector.
We have also supported organisations where the actions, and sudden departures, of leaders have failed organisations and their beneficiaries. So you might want to know from me, what do I think an effective leader looks like?
I've seen great leaders who have spotted something they want to change, and built up organisations from scratch to make that change happen for the most disadvantaged people in our society. I've met brilliant people who have moved over from the private or public sector, determined to use what they’ve learned there to help the charitable sector avoid the same mistakes. I've worked with excellent people with a long history of working for non-profits, who have worked their way up and have a huge knowledge of what works in our sectors. And I've met inspirational leaders who have themselves experienced hardship or prejudice, and set out to change the lives of people like them.
All these leaders can be effective - they can make a difference for their beneficiaries, inspire their staff and impress trustees. But they can also make the same mistake - which is to hold too much of the power and influence, too much of what makes their organisation great, within themselves.
Leadership is not about complementing your own strengths and weaknesses, it's about building a team who can shape, deliver, and own a shared vision together. In this sector it is often tackling an issues that affect many people. If you left your organisation tomorrow, would it be able to excel and deliver without you?
The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation is a leading independent grant-making foundation in the UK who fund our gender equality Fellowship on our Fellowship programme. Rebecca Gill and Polly Trenow are our 2016 gender Fellows. Apply now to our 2017 Fellowship programme - the deadline is midday on Monday 5 September 2016.
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