Expert advice

From fundraising to resource-raising

Governance | Caroline Beaumont | 12 Jul 2011

Charities could unlock untapped resources if they were more strategic about non-cash giving, says Caroline Beaumont.       
            
The central idea of my new report, From Fundraising to Resource-Raising, is that donated resources, including goods, services and facilities, knowledge, skills, profile, access and influence, can make a valid and valuable contribution to income generation and mission delivery. 

One of the people I interviewed for the research was Lindsay Boswell, former CEO of the Institute of Fundraising and now chief executive at FareShare, which features as a case study in the report.  Lindsay commented: “When there isn't much money around then fundraisers have got to be lighter on their feet, cleverer and looking at what other resources are available to them beyond pure dosh.”

However, two-thirds of charity professionals I surveyed described their approach as reactive or opportunistic. In the face of falling funding and increasing demand from donors to give more than money, the study suggests that the time is right for a more planned approach and that charities need to better support fundraisers to raise more than money.

There is particular attention to the importance of valuing and reporting on non-cash giving. Two-thirds of survey respondents weren’t able to easily find out the value of donated resources to their organisation and 72 per cent said their charity never counts the income towards the fundraising target. There is a direct correlation between how supportive a charity’s financial systems are and how good the charity is at resource-raising. Those that value and report send a message that they are strategically important and those that count the equivalent income towards fundraising targets and set more rounded fundraising performance measures, which also consider impact on mission, drive more entrepreneurial behaviour. There is a recognition that the Charities SORP’s guidance on valuing donated resources is open to interpretation and David Membrey, deputy chief executive of Charity Finance Directors’ Group, contributed new guidance on the subject to the report.

Membrey makes his own arguments for reporting the value:  “It all comes down to transparency, not just in terms of your stakeholders’ understanding but your organisation understanding itself. So often charities don’t really understand their costs because so much slips through as ‘in kind’ in one way or another,” he said.

Membrey went on: “As a funder, I think you would worry that, if you’re not reporting donated resources then what else aren’t you being clear about? If people can tell it reduces the general confidence and not valuing them means you’re completely disregarding that particular group of donors.” 

Other factors that influence a charity’s ability to resource-raise effectively include:

• the strategic clarity to proactively identify resourceful ways to deliver the mission
• the ability of programmes, services, operations, procurement and finance people to work together to identify needs, specifications and value
• upfront acknowledgement of the costs associated with managing and mobilising the resource
• recognition of the different and distinctive skills needed by resource-raisers
• confidence in negotiating with the donor for quality, reliability and sustainability

The report features seven case studies highlighting good practice from the likes of Crisis, Christian Aid and Leonard Cheshire Disability and includes practical guidance on how to develop a resource-raising strategy. It is available as a free download from the Clore Social Leadership Programme website.

Caroline Beaumont is a 2010 Clore Social Fellow and director of services and business development at Reach Volunteering

Who's Who: David Membrey | Lindsay Boswell | Caroline Beaumont