"I just thought, if I could design a programme that made genuine impact on the lives of young people, and made as much noise about it as possible, someone somewhere would pick this up and be like ‘how can we support’…” – Duro Oyé
In this episode we speak with Duro Oyé, CEO and founder of the multi award winning, social enterprise, 20/20 Levels. We speak to Duro about building effective corporate partnerships that deliver real impact for charities, the challenges that these can pose and how to navigate them.
1. Mentoring
A starting point for charities and charity leaders is to be open to new ideas and feedback. In relation specifically to mentoring, Duro spoke about the power of exchange, where while you’re receiving you’re also giving, and how this has played a part in his and his organisation’s success.
Leaders, of course, need to filter the advice they receive, being open to receiving it and understanding it, but balancing this with your vision and going with your gut instinct. The filter engaged in this scenario is in part calibrated around the trust in the relationship, which has to be two-way.
2. Being ready with your pitch
Duro talked about how press coverage led to a conversation with the Managing Director of Converse and how he was ready for this with a vision and plan on what his cause wanted to achieve and could achieve with their support.
It is vital that charities have a clear idea of what their purpose is and the role that corporate partners, as well as other types of partners can have in delivering it. When it comes to engaging corporate partners there may be a number of engagement points which charities should consider understanding and responding to, including staff engagement, meeting the objectives of corporates both internally and externally, and a synergy of image and values.
3. Tips and advice about managing your corporate partnership
Partnerships between charities and corporate partners should consider putting more emphasis on announcing their impact than the starting of their partnership. Defining their success based on achieving for the beneficiaries of the charity will mean more to both parties and their audiences.
Charities should focus on developing effective corporate partnerships rather than a higher volume of them. Effective corporate partnerships take time to create, much like any other important relationship in your life. Research, understanding, and finding a fit will help to deliver more over time, for both parties.
If, like 20/20 Levels, your charity can help to add value through service delivery to corporate partners then this can be a real asset to engaging wider corporate support too.
4. More about 20/20 Levels
Check out these links for more about 20/20 Levels:
· 20/20 Levels partners (scroll down the page for “our partners” logos)
This episode of Charity Chat has been brought to you by our platinum sponsor Work for Good.
Work for Good is a fundraising platform helping businesses raise funds for charities through their sales. The platform makes the legal agreement needed for businesses to fundraise from sales quick and simple. Saving charities time and resource, and enabling them to raise more unrestricted income.
Pop to www.workforgood.co.uk to learn more and book a free demo.
We hope you enjoy this week’s episode.
Related episodes that you may be interested in:
E237 - Retailer models for charities with Michael Chuter - https://www.charitychat.org.uk/post/e237-retailer-models-for-charities-with-michael-chuter
E247 - The Ukraine Appeal with Viktoriya Shtanko -
E197 - System Strategy with Seth Reynolds -
Comentarios