The CEO at Large

Leadership and communication

2012-01-22T17:46:00.000Z

Communication, like charity, must begin at home.

All communication should flow uninterrupted around an organisation, like blood through the body. If the flow is blocked, damage soon occurs. CEOs today must lead through more personal and direct communication to harness both internal and external support and turn their vision into reality.

I think it is necessary to radically rethink how the CEO educates and enthuses their organisation with their vision. The CEO must remember that leaders empower their followers, that every one of their employees is their ambassador. They must also be aware that their reputation can make or break the reputation of their organisation and that there is usually a gap between perceptions and reality!

For me these quotes sum it all up;

“It is hard to look up to a leader who just keeps his ear to the ground”

“Leaders have a vision of a better future, they feel strongly about the need to go there”

“There go my people. I must find out where they are going, so that I can lead them there”

This all revolves around the basic belief that companies must put their people, not their customers, first. Leadership is doing the right things and management is doing things right!
Leadership is about impact and impact can only be achieved by communicating effectively and by moulding a positive image. In my view good communication is about;

Shaping and influencing opinion
Sharing information and views
Inspiring and re-assuring
Being honest and transparent
Building trust and co-operation
Listening, listening and listening…

Please add to, improve or comment on this list.

A NEW New Years Resolution

2012-01-10T12:47:00.000Z

As the 9th January is meant to be the day most people in the UK break their New Years resolution I thought that the 10th was a good day to suggest a fresh resolution. “Develop a sound social media strategy”.

Slowly but surely I am starting to understand how important it is for me to get involved with social media marketing. If you are like me and want to manage your online presence all by yourself, and you’re feeling overwhelmed, maybe this blog can help you stick to your shinny new resolution.

Start with the – “Why?”

Many people get into social media for the wrong reason and participate in the networks they joined too much or too little. Now’s a great time to really give some thought to why you are involved in the social networks you are involved in. Having clarity in the “Why?” is the first step in getting yourself organised and on track. Here’s a few ideas to help you answer the question.

Are you involved with social media to boost your ego? Do you collect followers, connections, and Likes solely so you can tell your friends about the numbers you’ve amassed?
Do you really want to engage with the people you’ve connected with, or do you just want to promote yourself or your product all the time?
Did you join a particular social network just because “Everyone I know is on …?”
Are you prepared to put in the time necessary to accomplish your social media marketing goals consistently throughout 2012?

The answers to these questions are important and will help you form your social media marketing strategy for 2012. Businesses and business people, wanting to succeed in the world as it is today, must WANT to connect. You must WANT to connect with you current clients, customers and prospects if you want to be a successful social marketer. These are the people who will help your business grow. Now, when I say “connect,” I mean really engaging in conversations with people instead of pummeling them with promotions for your product or service. I mean adding value to people’s lives on a regular basis with your posts ( like this one?! ). I mean working hard to build lasting online relationships with your connections so they trust and respect you.

If you don’t consistently provide your connections with valuable content you and your business will be forgotten. If you over do it and post too much people will get irritated and stop following you. The key to a successful social media strategy is the same key to a happy and healthy life: Balance.

Whether you are a small business or a BIG company your commitment to social networking should be consistent, compelling and engaging. The social community is a fickle one. They will follow someone who is consistent, compelling and engaging, but once you slip up, they’re gone, never to return.

Developing a social networking schedule you can handle, must also keep you accountable. Again, the goal is consistency. Build your schedule and stick with it for an entire month. At the end of the month, stop and evaluate your efforts to determine if you are still on goal. Do you need to tweak the schedule? Do you need to get involved in more social networks or less?

Here’s my New Years resolution social media marketing schedule. You can use my schedule to generate ideas that will help you create your own schedule to meet your needs and the needs of your social communities, accomplish your goals, and fit your particular business and work style.

I will…

Two times a day

Check my Twitter feed. Reply when required and check the keywords I am looking for. Join a conversation or two.
Check my LinkedIn profile and visit some of the Groups I am in. I will engage with my LinkedIn network in some way twice a day, every day.
Check my Facebook Page and post something of value or respond to comments.
Check my Google Alerts for information on your competitors and mentions of your own brand. Actually I have not really got to grips with Google Alerts so this is more a must learn how to resolution!

Once A Week

Work on Twitter and Facebook Lists to be better organised so I am able to send targeted marketing messages when appropriate.
Really spend some time in LinkedIn Answers and discussions in the Groups I belong to.
Schedule tweets and status updates for the next week so I am consistently providing myr connections with “valuable” information.
Spend some time building relationships with other influencers.
Keep up to date on new products and social tools that may increase my efficiency and reach.

During the Week

Monday
Schedule tweets and status updates to provide meaningful content in addition to the content I scheduled in my once a week session.

Mondays and Wednesdays
Get involved in an industry specific conversation on Twitter.

Tuesdays
Respond to blog comments on my blog and leave a comment or two on another blog. Remember what I said about building trust and credibility!

Fridays
Check on the things I’ve been listening to. This would also be a good day to take a look at my analytics and analyse my website and blog traffic for the week.

I’m sure that your schedule is likely to be very different from this one. Consider your time commitments. Make the schedule something you will really do every week, stick to your NEW New Years resolution. Tweak the schedule along the way but remember that consistency is key.

Please share some of your own ideas in the comments.

The good news for 2012

2012-01-08T11:04:00.000Z

Following on nicely from my last blog. I have been lucky enough to meet a number of interesting and stimulating people in course of my work. Some of whom have become my friend. Once such friend is John Hollands. He runs a small marketing company in Littlehampton, RWP. He always has sound advice and creative ideas. I'd like to share this e-mail he sent me. I think you will agree it made for a good read on a Sunday morning.

I hope you all had a great Christmas and managed to use the break to get some rest and recreation. I was ill for a couple of days (like quite a few people by the sounds of it) and this gave me some time to do a little reading. The first thing that struck me was how negative the news is, not only did it seem to be quite a violent period of time over Christmas but how down everyone was on the economy.

Here’s the funny thing. Our clients and almost all of the business owners I know are quietly confident and upbeat about business in 2012. So how can they be down on the economy yet up about their own prospects. Who knows? – I thought I would do some digging. Can it all be negative?

Headline 1 - Double dip and depression on the horizon. Well, if you define a depression as a prolonged period in which output lies below its previous peak, then the USA, UK and many other European countries are already in one. Doesn’t seem too bad does it? It's just a label.

Headline 2 - Unemployment hits new high. True - 14th December 2011 UK unemployment increases to 2.64m but there are two points to mention.
a) That’s 8.3% of the population. So 92.2% of the UK population is still in work, still has money to spend and in fact more disposable income due to the record low interest rates (despite the inflation rate and rising costs).
b) The rate of increase in the jobless total is very much slowing down.

Headline 3 - The break up of the eurozone will cause the collapse of Europe, a deep depression across the continent, British businesses will suffer and jobs would be lost. The eurozone is Britain’s largest trading partner. etc etc - Nick Clegg suggests "millions of livelihoods at risk".

I had a look at this and here are the facts.

The eurozone countries account for 43% of our imports and 47% of our exports. Our exports account for 27% of GDP. So roughly only 13% of our economy is dependent on exporting stuff to the eurozone.
Maybe luckily; Britain doesn't make many things that people buy in the shops these days. What we do do is weapons, pharmaceuticals and oil and petroleum products followed by business and legal services, financial services, design and consultancy. (Plus Scotch whiskey and Japanese cars) So realistically some of these sectors would continue to do OK even if a deep depression leads to a 5%-10% drop in GDP. - Not quite a collapse is it?

A collapse of the euro could mean that currencies will need to be re-established and the only place with that kind of expertise is the city. Lawyers will be redrafting contracts and filing writs, consultants will be working overtime. American, Japanese and Korean firms may relocate here to escape an unstable eurozone and of course British firms could snap up assets across Europe at bargain prices. The more I think about it the brighter this outcome could be.

So enough about the economy. Where then do we stand from a marketing point of view? We have been advising our clients to

Keep their current customers as close as possible. Try a simple phone call.
Add more value. Don't discount - give that little bit extra, people are spending but they are looking for good value.
Look at what is working and do more of that.
Find what is not working very well and stop it.

Good luck for 2012. If you need some advice send me an email. If you like my email send me an email.

( If you want to take him up on his offer his website is http://www.rwpgroup.com/ I have not included his e-mail address in case of spams)

Fundraising in hard times

2012-01-05T10:07:00.000Z

As bad as this economic downturn has been for us all, chairites who survive will have learned lessons that will prove invaluable later, whether times are good or times are bad. Here are some tips I have collected over the past few years.

I’d be interested in hearing your experiences.

Which ones have you tried?

Can you add to the list?

Don't become or sound desperate.Instead, emphasise to your donors that every year, good or bad, your needs continue. Don't talk about grand plans for expansion, but do talk about solid plans for today. Don't lose your enthusiasm and optimism about your cause. Donors will notice and pull back if they think that you, the fundraiser, have doubts.
Prove that you are responsible. Let your donors know that you are doing your part by being financially responsible. Cut costs where you can, make sure you have good controls in place, and that you are examining marginal programs. Keep your money safe and avoid risky investments. Don’t do an Iceland!
Don't give up on your corporate and cause-marketing activities. Gifts may decrease, but keep your corporate contacts strong. It is very hard to get back on the corporate charitable list if you are dropped. Avoid this by staying visible, and keep cultivating your contacts within the company. Likewise, don't give up on cause-related marketing. Companies are finding that these activities pay off for them with consumer loyalty. Remember too that just because a company's stock price has been depressed doesn't mean that it is not a strong company. Look at the balance sheet to identify companies that are in a good position, and that will likely come back strong from the economic meltdown.
Diversify your funding sources by identifying all types of financial support. Avoid depending on one or two major donors or trusts. Most charitable giving is made up of small donations. If you are not doing direct mail to a large base of supporters, start working toward doing so. Use the Internet to reach more people. The cost is low so that donations can be smaller. Those add up quickly. Explore payment options with low transaction costs and online donation sites.
Put your fundraising programs under the microscope. Determine which fundraising programs work best and are the most efficient in terms of resources. Then cut the least efficient ones and shift those resources to the ones that are doing the most good. Maybe that big special event eats up precious time and resources for very little return. Or the promotion you started last year just doesn't seem worth the time and effort. But, don't let the money and volunteer time you use in those efforts just dissipate. Put them to use by expanding the annual campaign or making more major donor calls or doing another planned giving seminar.
Don't pull the plug on major campaigns, but do slow down. If you were starting a capital campaign when the economic crisis hit, don't stop. But do slow down. Recognise that getting those lead gifts in the size you want will take longer and be dependent on how the economy is doing. If you ask for a multi-year gift, and the donor resists, fall back to asking for part of that gift now, and plan to go back later for the rest. Donors are understandably shy about making long-term commitments in this economic environment.
Keep up your marketing and PR. Building buzz about your good work will help you with your donors. The more they know and see your name about, the more likely they are to contribute to your cause. Got PR professionals on your board or committees? Seek their advice before you launch anything big. Let them organize a PR/Marketing Committee that might bring in other professionals to help. See if their firms can do pro bono work or work at a discount. This kind of help is really priceless.

What dose 2012 hold for the chairty sector?

2011-12-16T17:05:00.001Z

I was signposted to this excellent article by a twitter from Jenny Warner of Charisma Charity Recruitment.

Jane Arnott - acting head of advisory and consulting, Charities Aid Foundation
Commercial: The combination of public sector funding cuts and social investment opportunities will require charities to think in a more commercial way in terms of how they can generate revenue beyond their traditional income streams. Good business skills will be important in 2012 - having an understanding of your market, being able to generate income, developing a strong business discipline so that you're making decisions based on evidence and a clear plan for the future will all be essential. For example, charities will need to think about how can they sell their services or expertise to generate revenue, whether they can make money from their premises or intellectual capital etc.
It requires a more commercial mindset and strong management information to help you understand your costs and where you can maximise value. Social investment: Based on the trends we've seen evolving in the past year, 2012 will see lots of charities looking to diversify their income streams. It's going to be fascinating to see how the social investment space develops - there's a lot of interest in it, but our experience with CAF Venturesome and other projects is that many organisations aren't 'investment ready'. There needs to be a lot more support to get charities geared up to manage debt financing and the income generation required to repay loans. However, our experience also shows that social investment can be really effective in supporting organisations to make a step change.

Diana Mackie - PR manager, Institute of Fundraising (IoF)
Bureaucracy: As a sector, charities have been trying to battle with the red tape that often restricts efficiency and slows processes. 2012 will see a review of the Charities Act 2006. As part of the review the IoF would like to see it made as easy as possible for charities to raise money without compromising trust. It would also be great to see some of the current barriers to successful fundraising, such as unduly complicated solicitation statements, removed.

The basics: New technology will enable a range of fundraising trends in 2012; online giving is rightly a focus but it's important not to lose sight of the basics involved in raising money. Key areas include: consistent communication of your charity's brand, excellent donor care processes and an investment in individual fundraisers' training and development to ensure practitioners are up to speed with the rapidly changing public sector landscape. Ultimately, online is just one channel a charity can use to communicate and raise money. Direct marketing, for example, still remains a useful tool for many charities, as does the traditional donor newsletter (either in hard copy or distributed electronically).

Rosie Chapman - co-founder, Belinda Pratten and Rosie Chapman Associates
Skills mix: The CFDG/PKF risk survey highlighted the following problems in 2011: most respondents (73%) reported greater competition in service provision; 54% said the need for their services has increased; 50% that their costs have increased as a direct result of changes in public policy. Against this backdrop, 41% of charities have not been able to maintain the required levels of investment this year to sustain them in the future and 49% have utilised their reserves to some extent. There are mixed perceptions of how well-equipped trustee boards are to manage new risks - perhaps a good starting point to help this would be for charity boards to discuss their skills mix and identify any gaps. Impact: Impact measurement and reporting will be big themes in 2012. This is partly funder driven, for example, Catalyst Gateway is moving from an input (budget driven) to an outcome funded (paid on the agreement of achieving clear outcomes) model. The recent risk survey (mentioned above) also showed that 53% of charities have experienced increased demand from stakeholders to demonstrate their performance.

Collaboration: Austerity Britain means there will be a continuing trend towards more collaborative working. Some leading national charities, for example, that have federated structures are looking to see whether they should expand their criteria to enable new and different types of organisations to join.

Roberto Kusabbi - community and social media manager, British Heart Foundation
Evolution: The evolution of Facebook and Twitter, and the impact that has on how we engage with users, will become a lot more sophisticated. We're past the stage of knowing it's important - understanding the data and how these spaces plug into existing content/sites will become more prevalent. 2012 should see some much better examples of practice and monetisation will be explored much more. The JustGiving Facebook application, for example, already allows users to donate without leaving Facebook.

Data: Data is certainly one of my trends to watch for 2012. Being able to interrogate the data we have and make decisions that help our organisations will become even more important. In a time when there is more data available than ever before, it's important not to just collect it, but to do something with it and understand it. We did a very small but very useful exercise at the BHF using Facebook data to help us drive our strategy on the platform. This is just one example of using data we already have to help make us more efficient and targetted.

Mobile. Mobile. Mobile: In terms of fundraising, the interesting spaces to watch are mobile and mobile giving. This should not just be an application for the sake of an application, but a better understanding of the platform and what it can do for donations and awareness is required. Near field technology, which allows you to pay for goods on your mobile, will start to play a much bigger part in our lives in 2012. What this means for charities is interesting; will more people donate or pay for events via their mobiles? Could it branch out into a new area? This will obviously be a space for the early adopters, but one to watch in the future for sure.

Sylwia Presley - social media consultant, Voice
Ambassadors: In 2012 we will see more ambassador and blogger engagement programmes but also more involvement from local communities. Charities will discover the real power of online relationships to identify, work with and embrace the potential of their supporters.

Digital: In 2012 there might be more mature usage of digital tools, with case studies and methodology shared publicly and with a more balance approached. Digital technologies and social media tools will be used all across charities - not only for fundraising and marketing. It is really difficult for people working with digital to represent an organisation where social is not fully integrated all across various silos. More digital engagement can save costs on travel and meetings, moving towards online collaboration and communicating internally in a more consistent way. There is a lot of scope for people who are willing to invest time and skills in those areas. As we enter online conversations, we need to ensure that we operate faster, are able to respond to real-time events and that we have the policies and processes to do so.

Jenny Lowthrop - blogger,
Volunteer Addict Mistakes: With regards to impact measurement and reporting, this talks about NGOs admitting failure. This is perhaps something charities aren't so good at, but it is important. We shouldn't be afraid to admit our mistakes and then take measures to change for the better, rather than carrying on down the wrong track because that is what our aims, visions and funding guidelines tell us to do.

Volunteers: There are more people available to volunteer, due to a lack of jobs, but less money and people employed to manage them. This article suggests some useful tips on trying to get over the assumed barriers - charities need to try and put more faith in the volunteers, positive encouragement and more ownership are required to make volunteers to feel a part of the charity.

This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional.

New Years Resolution?

2011-12-15T22:00:00.000Z

This is the time of year when we begin to hear a great deal about setting goals for the New Year. The thought of a fresh year with no blemishes drives many to dream of new beginnings and better performance. The sad truth is that most just talk about goals and rarely act. They are content to fantasise about what could be.

Goals without plans and daily actions are well-intended daydreams. Any of you who know me well will know that I not a great sportsman or even a sports fan. What you might not know is that one of my heroes is Sir Steve Redgrave precisely because he overcame his adversity by setting goals. Tiny ones that built up to big achievements, six Olympic medals - the famous five Golds and an often forgotten Bronze in Pairs in 1988. He was awarded the MBE, the CBE and following his success in Sydney was awarded a Knighthood in the 2001 New Years Honours List. I have heard him talk about improving his personal best by breaking it down in to ¼ or ½ second improvements which did not then sound too daunting, building up to world class achievements.

Each of us has a lifeline that we are currently moving along to our final destination. It begins at birth and ends on this earth when we draw our last breath. We have an incredible number of choices to make on the journey, but one among all of these normally defines our life. Have you chosen to live a life of default (choices made for you) or design (your choices)?

Let me ask you the question that will be the central theme for the rest of this blogg, “Are you a goal setter or a problem solver?” Most will clearly fall on one side or the other with the highest performers usually on the side of the goal setters. In reality only 2% of the world proudly claim to be goal setters and the other 99% rely on problem solving to move through their life.

Problem solvers will argue they move through life at the same pace as goal setters. The only flaw in their argument is they usually progress in the direction of the problems they solve and not in the direction that their life could have taken.

Here is an exercise that I have recently started doing at this time of year. Take out eight pieces of blank paper and title each page with one of the following words:

Social,
Physical,
Spiritual,
Financial,
Educational,
Work,
Family,
Personal.

Under each heading, create a list of what you want to accomplish for 2012. Ask yourself the following questions as you prioritise each list:

a) What behaviours will you have to change in order to accomplish each one?
b) How committed are you to achieving the individual items on each list?
c) What will achieving each item do for you personally?
d) What roadblocks will you have to overcome to accomplish each one?
e) Who will be your accountability partner?
f) How will you celebrate each accomplishment?

This is not a unique incite, there are 52,533 books on goal setting listed on Amazon.com and 13.2 million websites! However it is not so much about the "however" as it is about the "now"!

I encourage you to set some small goals and test the water. Pick something that will force you to stretch your life beyond your current comfort zone and unconditionally commit to working on it for the next twenty days. Pay close attention to your experience at the fourteen-day mark as this is where the magic occurs. Here is where you get to make a choice because your mind will begin to “convince” you that the degree of difficulty is too great and you should opt out of the process. If you press through this sabotaging self-talk, you have the potential to gain control of your future. Then, it is simply a matter of following the directions on most shampoo bottles, “Lather, Rinse, Repeat.” “Set goals, Achieve your dreams, Set more goals”.

Let me know how you get on.

Big Society – Better Southampton

2011-11-26T08:29:00.000Z

After discussions with Business Solent, Southampton Voluntary Services, Southampton Connect and Business in the Community earlier in the year I was delighted when they agreed to organise this event. The Corporate Social Partnership play a leading role and I was able to lead on of the workshops and sit on the pannel.

The event was supported by Southampton City Council, Saints Foundation, Capita and Flybe.

Local Business, Public and Voluntary organisations came together to discuss what the “Big Society” could mean for Southampton and to hear of practical ways to work together benefiting both the organisations and the local community.

The aim of the event was to create greater connections between the sectors across the city. Over 120 people gathered at St Mary's Stadium and the event was hosted by Martyn Lewis, broadcaster and chair of National Council for Voluntary Organisations; he said: “People in local communities deciding to make change happen is the closest you can get to democracy.”

Keynote speakers included Jo Ash, CEO of Southampton Voluntary Services; Sir Stuart Etherington, Chief Executive of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations; Professor Van Gore, Vice Chancellor of Southampton Solent University and Dave Newton, Managing Director of Corporate Impact. They set the scene by giving delegates an overview of the different perspectives of the voluntary, public and business sectors.

Sir Stuart Etherington said Southampton had the opportunity to lead the way for the rest of the UK to follow and said: “The Big Society approach really is about local brokerage – it may not be easy to achieve but if you can get it off the ground here, you can set an example to the rest of the country”

Workshops enabled over 120 delegates to share their ideas or experiences and make a commitment to action to take back to their organizations. They also highlighted that communication – knowing who to talk to or contact - was a major barrier to success.

Speakers, sponsors and organizers of the Big Society – Better Southampton Conference which took place on 11th November 2011.

Donation instead of company Christmas Card

2011-11-25T17:49:00.001Z

As we come up to the Christmas holiday I’m sure you are thinking of ways to thank your suppliers and customers and encourage them for 2012. I have found that the traditional company Christmas card gets lost amount the mountain of others. The recipient does not remember receiving yours or even notices if they don’t. There is also the environmental impact to consider! If you make a donation to The Rainbow Centre instead of sending cards you have an opportunity to contact your customers, suppliers and prospects letting them know what you are doing. This stands out, giving you a much higher profile.

I would suggest sending an e-mail with a little bit of design with the following wording;

Dear ( supplier, customer, prospect name here)
( your company name) would like to take this opportunity to wish you a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
We have chosen not to send Christmas cards this year, but are instead making a donation to The Rainbow Centre. We will be able to make a donation of £ ( this can be calculated to include the card and postage costs). ( You might like to add ):We have decided to round up / match this to bring the donation to £xx.
It would be a wonderful gift to the children and adults supported by Rainbow if you would join me in this alternative to Christmas cards.
The Rainbow Centre is one of the region's major charities and exists to support children and adults with neurological problems. Please take a few moments to view their website at www.rainbowcentre.org
We would like to wish you a relaxing Christmas and New Year and a prosperous 2012.
Kind regards

I do hope you will want to support us in this way.

Farewell Heartbeat

2011-10-27T14:56:00.003+01:00

My team gave me a great send off today and amongst other things gave me this lovely poem. I will miss them all. It has been a pleasure working with such a dedicated bunch of people.

Our D’Arcy

Our D’Arcy, not the ballerina or that man from the period tale,

but our good humoured colleague about to set sail.

Our D’Arcy always full of cheer, ready with a kind word or a listening ear,

and well worn that ear has been, on occasion feeling the full force of the all female fundraising team.

Our D’Arcy not one to miss a photo opp,

Often with faithful friend Domino roped in as mascot.

Our D’Arcy with his full repertoire of anecdotes,

Who will keep us entertained now the time draws near for him to put on his coat.

Our D’Arcy a true team member he has been,

His empty chair will be a sore sight to be seen.

Today our ‘King of Hearts’ we lose,

Yet least we forget our D’Arcy in those zebra platform shoes.

With Best Wishes from your
Wessex Heartbeat Team

Search for new head to lead heart charity

2011-10-23T12:23:00.000+01:00

I would like to share the following press release with you.

Wessex Heartbeat the charity providing support to the Wessex Cardiac Centre (WCC) at the University of Southampton NHS Foundation Trust will be recruiting a new Chief Executive.

The current CEO D’Arcy Myers has been with the charity since 2008 and will be taking up a position as CEO for The Rainbow Centre in Fareham.

Wessex Heartbeat Chairman Jim Monro praised D’Arcy for his excellent work with the charity and said:-
“D’Arcy has led the charity through a period of change and development. Wessex Heartbeat has helped the WCC to become an international centre of excellence for cardiac care through our support of medical and educational grants. We have exciting plans for the future development of the charity and will be looking for a charismatic CEO to help us with our current appeal to raise £800,000 for a new ward for a Young Adult Cardiac Unit (YACU) to help young adults with life-long heart problems”.

The charity will also continue to fund various projects in support of heart patients and loved ones, including patient support groups for people living with specific heart conditions or treatments.

D’Arcy commented: “I am extremely proud of the charity, especially our work with Southampton Hospital’s cardiac rehabilitation team giving healthy heart health checks and personalised advice in the work place. Plus the invaluable support we give to families of patients through Heartbeat House where we offer a free home from home accommodation on the hospital site. I will be supporting the charity to make a smooth transition with a new Chief Executive.”

ENDS

Notes for Editors

For further information please contact: Dawn Morrison, PR & Marketing Officer, Wessex Heartbeat

Tel 02380 795217 E-mail dawn@heartbeat.org.uk

Wessex Heartbeat (WHB) was established in 1992 and is a registered charity providing support to the Wessex Cardiac Centre (WCC) at Southampton General Hospital, its patients and their loved ones. WHB has helped the WCC to become an International Centre of Excellence for Cardiac Care.

Wessex Heartbeat helps make a real difference to the care of the 20,000 patients treated at the Centre annually, including 1,000 babies and children born with congenital heart defects.

Patients treated at the Centre come from a wide region of southern England, including Dorset, Hampshire, Somerset, West Sussex, Wiltshire, the Isle of Wight and the Channel Islands.

Since the charity’s foundation Wessex Heartbeat has raised in excess of £13 million, funding numerous projects, including:

A £1m refurbishment of the children’s ‘Ocean Ward’
More than £2m worth of equipment for the WCC, including the revolutionary ‘Babypod’, which is used to safely and rapidly transport neonates and children less than 10kg to hospital.

Wessex Heartbeat continues to help patients, loved ones and medical staff in many ways:

Funding revolutionary and specialist equipment
Funding Heartbeat House, a home from home providing free of charge accommodation for patients relatives located just a few minutes walk from the hospital
Running the Heartbeat Education Centre at the hospital, which has state-of-the-art technology and facilitates the training of medical staff
Providing patient literature
Offering on the spot health checks to employees at businesses and organisations, as part of our ‘Your Healthy Heart’ campaign
Funding the refurbishment and maintenance of wards
Sponsoring research projects
Funding educational and training grants

Wessex Heartbeat does not receive any Government funding and is solely funded by the generosity of individuals and organisations, who contribute through voluntary donations, fundraising events, corporate support and legacies. Wessex Heartbeat is very thankful to all its supporters for their invaluable help, which is vital to ensure that everyone living with a heart condition receives the best possible support.

For more information about Wessex Heartbeat please call 02380 795217 or visit http://www.heartbeat.co.uk/
Wessex Heartbeat, PO Box 270, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, Hampshire, SO16 6GE

Registered Charity Number 1116510
Company Limited by Guarantee Number 5924982

From the perspective of a SME how would you want to work with a charity?

2011-10-07T12:16:00.000+01:00

A few days ago I posted the following question to a LinkedIn group. I think the replies make interesting reading.

The question: “From the perspective of a SME how would you want to work with a charity? What would your measures of a successful relationship be?”

The comments:

“I would work with a charity for two reasons: number one - I feel good if I know I helped someone and number two - I feel good if other people recognize that I did something good”

“I think that moving forward SME's need to straddle both working with charities for shared strategic goals (geographical location, community, social issue and/or stakeholders), but also maintaining close relationships with charities close to the hearts of people within the SME (due to personal situations/experiences).”

“Making a difference is key here and should be at the forefront of the relationship. But the relationships need a clear measurable ways of how each can and will make a difference together.”

“If SME's are committed to this, a one-off feel good event, whilst laudable may not be enough. So an SME and charity relationship needs measurable strategic and personal targets so that the relationship can begin to share successes and aspirations for 'making a difference'. This should help enhance and support the success of the charity in the future and create a 'deeper' longer lasting feel good factor and more genuine commitment to 'making a difference' across the SME.”

“giving less or giving more? and does it matter? donations are not just about getting more business and generating more business is not just about making more money...there is much more in this world apart from money and fame...giving for free large or small from the bottom of your heart is all that matters”

“…I really do like the idea sustainable difference and shared goals you can measure (in line with D'Arcy's question), without this giving for free is still an amazing thing little or small!”

“Hopefully where possible SME's can make long term relationships with charities. I am certain would be the way forward for both the benefit of the SME's (maybe not for more business/money, maybe good for staff...), but ultimately to the benefit of the charity and their ability to make a difference (and bigger measurable difference) in the future.”

“We would like to embed the social caring into our Brand awareness so that the element of putting something back into society is pre-structured. Part of this process is to engage the charity social media and develop positive perceptions and recognition while another part is to introduce our clients & customers to the automatic positive benefits of the shared goals we and our causes have.”

“Charity work should be connected to what our core business is, because that's where we can help most. For example, If I had a bakery I would cooperate with an NGO that works with young people at risk of social exclusion, training them to be bakers so they can have a perspective in the future. I think this is the best way to embed charity work in our company culture, and also a way to differentiate ourselves from other companies.”

“I agree ( with the statement above ), it must stem from a fundamental belief that the business and consumers share and be demonstrable so that the cause is creating a magnetism between the two who happily become attracted. Then D'Arcy's question gets answered because the measure becomes the volume of co-operation between consumers, customers friends acquaintances and strangers who are attracted to engage with the business for common the focussed "good". Otherwise known as a fan club.”

I would be very interested to hear your thoughts on this. Please post a comment on my blog.

Charity Giving

2011-05-10T14:12:00.000+01:00

Charities are having a hard time with more than a third of people in the UK giving less to charity than they did before the recession. Which might not be too surprising, however a survey carried out by independent research company markettiers4dc indicated that 35% are giving less because of the economic downturn and 4% have stopped giving completely. A small chink of sunshine in this blackened sky is that 8% said they were giving more.

It is interesting to note that when asked to choice which from a list of suggestions would encourage them to give 75% chose not having to commit to regular donations and 60% chose donating privately without anyone knowing they were doing so.

A different set of research shows that organisations applying for a “Reaching Communities” grant from the Big Lottery Fund have a less that 10% chance of success!

Getting It Done

2011-05-05T19:24:00.011+01:00

Over the past few weeks I’ve been having discussion, via LinkedIn, with people from around the world about how they “Get Things Done”. Of course we are all different and so tackle the problem differently. For me the biggest issues have been delegation and follow up. I was surprised and reassured to hear that I’m not alone.

Two great tips have been the use of Outlook and David Allen’s system informally referred to as “GTD”.

Outlook provides some superb task allocation and tracking facilities and I would recommend watching this YouTube clip. "Assigning Tasks & Adding Them To The Calendar".

David Allen, not to be confused with the wonderfully irreverent Irish comedian Dave Allen, says that when he has to describe his approach in under a minute, he usually says something like “Get everything out of your head. Make decisions about actions required on stuff when it shows up—not when it blows up. Organise reminders of your projects and the next actions on them in appropriate categories. Keep your system current, complete, and reviewed sufficiently to trust your intuitive choices about what you're doing (and not doing) at any time.”

Sounds easy but is mind blowing at the same time. It comes down just four major components;

Collect: Capture everything that you need to concern yourself with in what Allen calls "buckets": a physical in-box, an email in-box, a notebook you take with you, a little tape recorder, etc. Don't try and remember everything! You can put the thing you need to act on itself in your in-box (a bill, an assignment) or write a note on a single sheet of paper ("change oil in the car"). When you first start, or when you feel like there are lots of things on your mind, sit down and do a "mind sweep" of everything you are concerned about.
Process: Now it's time to empty all those "buckets." Start at the top of the in-box, pick up each item and ask yourself "is there an action I need to take about this item?" If there is no action you need to take, either throw the thing away, file it for reference, or make a note on your "Someday/Maybe" list. If there is an action you need to take, can you do it in two minutes or less? If so, do it now! If not, decide what that next action is, and enter it on your "Next Action" list. If one action won't finish this off, enter the overall goal on your "Project" list.
Organise: As you will have gathered the cornerstone of this system is lists. Like with your collection buckets, you want to have enough lists to keep everything straight, but not so many that you are never sure what list to use. Here are the basics:

Next Action: what is the very next thing you need to do to get your thing done?
Projects: chances are many of your things will need more than one action to accomplish. Keep track of those multi-action things here.
Waiting: often we depend on others to help get things done. If you are waiting on something, write it down here, so you don't forget.
Someday/Maybe: for when you have a great idea or long-term goal that you just can't make time to work on now. You don't want to forget about it, but you don't want it to clutter up your Projects list.
Context-sensitive lists: e.g., "Phone calls," "Errands," etc.
Calendar: try and use your calendar just for appointments and other things that have to happen on a particular day/time. This is where the Outlook tasks come in handy.
Filling: keep a simple, easy to update filling system. Don't just dump it all in one pile because you’re not sure where else to put it. Get comfortable with putting a single piece of paper in a folder, labelling it, and filling it away.

Review: If you don't look at those lists, they won't do you much good now, will they? You'll have to review your Next Action list and your calendar every day (and probably several times a day). Set up an appointment with yourself to do a weekly review, where you process all your in-boxes down to empty, and review all lists to be sure you are on top of things.

Oh yes there is a fifth and it the most important DO IT! GTD tends to leave it up to you as to how to decide what needs to be done right now--Allen seems to believe if you have everything laid out in front of you, it will be obvious what needs to be done at any given moment based on your circumstances (deadlines, how much time you have available, what tools are nearby, how much energy you have, etc.)

I’d be interested to hear of your experience and techniques.

Invest Wisely - become a Trustee

2011-03-22T12:14:00.000Z

Statistics often paint an interesting picture. So here are some key trusteeship related statistics from last year.

Estimated 1million trustees in the UK supporting,
181,000 charities which control around £53 billion of income,
Around 50% of these charities have an unfilled space on their board,
39% of boards report difficulties in recruiting trustees,
81% of boards use word of mouth to recruit,
Only 5% of the population are aware of trusteeship as an opportunity to support a voluntary organisation,
66% of trustees are aged over 50, 20% are over 70 and the average age is 57,
only 0.5% of trustees are aged under 24years (despite 12% of the population being in this age group and apparently only 300 (three hundred) trustees in the UK are known to be under 18).

So what do these stats tell us? Are these issues, problems, challenges or opportunities?

Encouraging individuals to become trustees is an on-going challenge. NCVO have recently released a Prezi presentation outlining some of the reasons to become a charity trustee. Something to refer people to when they ask about trusteeship?

http://prezi.com/r838a2q3bvhk/become-a-charity-trustee/

When you visit the Trustee Bank have a look at the opportunity to lead Wessex Heartbeats' board

http://www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/vacancies/chair-trustees-wessex-heartbeat

Who is your Valentine; Cupid or a fish?

2011-02-10T13:26:00.000Z

Some creatures have almost magical abilities to recover from trauma. For example starfish can regenerate their legs, and worms can survive being cut in two, although only the part with the heart! However, these feats pale when compared to the zebra fish, which can fix a broken heart. These common little black and white striped fish have nothing to do with soothing jilted lovers, but amazingly zebra fish can regenerate heart tissue. They also have the ability to regenerate fins and eye parts.

Harvard scientists surgically removed 20% of the heart tissue of ten adult zebra fish, then put them back in the water to see what would happen. At first the fish swam weakly near the bottom of the tank; a microscope revealed that in the early stages of recovery, scar tissue partially clotted the wounded organ.

However, after about ten days the fish were back to their normal routines, swimming vigorously. Of the ten fish with broken hearts, eight fully recovered. Another microscope inspection revealed that the recovered fish had regenerated their heart tissue with virtually no scarring.

How, exactly, zebra fish mend their broken hearts is of great interest to scientists. When people recover from a heart attack their hearts are never quite the same. A healing heart normally accumulates scar tissue instead of muscle growth. The scarred, weakened heart cannot contract and pump blood as efficiently as an undamaged heart.

Since zebra fish and humans share many of the genes responsible for cell regeneration, further study may lead to techniques for scar-free human heart repair.

Finding Your Perfect Customer

2011-01-26T10:42:00.000Z

Nearly every book on marketing will remind you that you need to identify your target market and offer something that meets their needs. But what if when you do this you identify a group of people or a product or service which leaves you cold?

Working with your perfect customer and the services and products you offer should really excite you. If it doesn't, it's bound to have a knock-on effect on the perception of customer service and certainly impact your bottom line. But if it doesn't excite you why would you want to be doing it anyway?

So in an ideal world you want to be dealing with people with whom you share interests, values or enthusiasm. So how do we find the ideal customers?

Start by listing what you enjoy, what's important to you. Can these be incorporated into your business? If your business reflects your interests the likelihood is you’ll attract other people who share them. You're more likely to be able to build rapport with them, and you can be more targeted (and successful) with your marketing, both externally and on-site.

Create your values around what is important to you. If it's important to you to use sustainable resources, or care for the environment create your values around these principles.

Your core beliefs should really influence what you offer; whether you focus on just one of those beliefs or a number, it's a combination of these that add up to make business different.

One way of really capitalising on your interests and capture the interest of your customers is to become an expert in something that they and you are interested in. In addition to attracting the type of customers with whom you can build a good rapport and a better prospect of repeat business, it also gives you a great opportunity to get noticed. By writing articles, blog posts, guidebooks or maybe even organising clubs or seminars around your interests or topic, you'll be on the radar of people who share your interests, which in turn enables you to build your prospect list. It also provides a great opportunity for PR.

Any of these ways of tying in your interests into your business not only enables you to enjoy what you do and who you work with, but is a great way of being unique and really standing out from your competition. If you have a very niche interest it will translate into a very niche target market!

Jeff Bucchino, "The Wizard of Draws"

Competitive Advantage

2011-01-20T16:21:00.000Z

There are more opportunities than ever before for SMEs to embrace CSR to improve profits, whilst playing a more productive role in their communities. Take social media for example, with an innovative and strategic approach to CSR combined with the audience exposure of platforms such as Facebook & Twitter the potential is incredible. This is further fuelled by the Generation Y demographic and rise (even through the economic crisis) of ethical consumerism.
Regulation is coming, slowly, but it is coming in one shape or another. The key is better regulation rather than more regulation as CSR should be integrated into core business anyway. We already have CSR legislation as part of UK Company Law, it’s not burdensome by any means but it already exists.
Progress at the global level is accelerating toward an even deeper embedding of the CSR / sustainability agenda for a multitude of unavoidable reasons such as climate change, resource depletion, energy security, biodiversity, population growth and water scarcity.
CSR is beginning to demand to be seen as a competitive advantage rather than a burden. It is like any other commercial pressure, you can ignore it, comply or embrace and excel.

Online Fundraising

2010-11-02T08:21:00.000Z

Income in the Third Sector is disproportionately distributed – this also applies to online fundraising sites. The majority of these sites are dominated by larger charities. Larger charities are also on those sites that target the smaller charities and the smaller charities simply do not have the resources to compete. The majority of these sites charge set up or monthly fees and often a fee per transaction as well. This has a disproportionate impact on smaller charities.

Charities income sources can differ according to their size. Many of the smallest (50% have under £50k income) are reliant on cash donations and cheques from local community based forms of fundraising.

Generally amongst the smallest charities there is a lack of knowledge and understanding about online fundraising, also for some a lack of IT equipment and skill in their organisation. Many are run solely by volunteers. The majority of the Small Charities Coalition’s members say they have no experience or rate themselves as beginners in online fundraising. Of the 85% of them who ask for help with fundraising an increasing number are asking for help with online fundraising.

Advice to small charities:

Do your research and find out about fees. Some provide additional support with the development of the charity’s page which might make the fee more reasonable.
Do your sums – calculate whether a lower transaction cost will offset a higher set up fee or vice versa. Be realistic about how much you are likely to raise from this channel and assess whether it enough to outweigh the costs – don’t forget you also need to factor in the time to set up and maintain your web presence.
Register for Gift Aid – until April 2011 you will get 28p extra for each £1 given if you do and the donor has completed a deliration. It is crucially important that you encourage all your donors to use Gift Aid, if they are eligible.

Advice to donors:

Also do your research and sums – which site will pass on the best deal to your chosen charity
Use Gift Aid and other forms of tax effective giving – payroll giving, CAF account

The frustration with meetings!

2010-09-26T11:27:00.000+01:00

I get very frustrated when I go to meetings and find that the other people there aren’t really there at all. They spend an inordinate amount of time thinking their own thoughts. They are not prepared for the meeting and they think that by repeating a point already made they will show that they are contributing. However, by far the biggest frustration is the lack of listening. Although most business leaders will say that listening is extremely important, research indicates that we actually spend 75% of our time not listening and when we do listen we only recall about 25% – 50% of what is said, even when we really pay attention!

So what are we actually listening to when we listen? Only 10% of our message is communicated through words, while 50% is our body language and 40% is the tone of our voice. That is one of the reasons why communication via the telephone is fraught with misunderstanding.

Coming back to the problem of really attending meetings here are some points to consider;

During the meeting be aware of how often you are not thinking about what others are saying rather thinking about your relationship to them and how valid their contribution is. Put this judgement to one side and concentrate without preconceptions,
Be aware when your mind is drifting off on your inner conversation and make the effort to focus on the speaker’s body language, tone and words,
Notice how your mind jumps to conclusions or want to “make a point” rather than listen and understand. Which is more interesting: understanding what the other person is trying to say or making your own point?
Take note of yours and other people’s physical gestures, as this tells you a lot about their attitude and readiness to listen too.
Notice when someone’s words say one thing and their tone of voice conveys a different message. Which message has a greater impact on you?
Above all be curious, when appropriate, asking questions and probing to better understand and clarify what others are saying rather than trying to second guess them or jump in to make your point.

Mentoring for Success

2010-09-24T08:49:00.000+01:00

Over the past year I’ve been working with Mentor-net. Mentor-net is the business mentoring scheme for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. It is a confidential service provided by the not-for-profit Mentor-net program and volunteer Business Mentors, who are drawn from experienced members of the business community and the professions. I would like to extend my experience to people who are not part of this wonderful service.

My understanding of a mentor is essentially a ‘wise or trusted adviser or guide’. The word has its origins in Homer’s The Odyssey. Before leaving to fight the Trojan war, Odysseus leaves his son and estate in the care of his friend Mentor, who then guides the young Telemachus. I rather like this connection as Telemachus's name in Greek means "far from battle” and mentoring is most definitely a relationship of support .

To give it a more modern context, I see a mentor as someone with experience or wisdom, sharing and imparting their knowledge on to someone younger or less experienced. The concept works incredibly well in a business environment where an entrepreneur may have a great idea for a business but needs a bit of guidance turning it into a successful and profitable venture. Successful entrepreneurs will often attribute much of their achievement to the support and guidance they received from a mentor. Most notably, billionaire airline and entertainment industry mogul Richard Branson was mentored by the British airline entrepreneur Freddie Laker.

A business mentor is someone who can act as a sounding board for your ideas and plans. They bring their own unique experience of life and business and are willing to share their skills and knowhow with you. Having a business mentor can help you to focus, to look at your business from a different perspective. This is essential to identify strategies and opportunities for improvement and growth.

As a business mentor I am not a consultant, I will only mentor from my own experience. By acting as a sounding board for you, I walk alongside you as your business grows. My role as a business mentor is to support and develop, stimulate and challenge.

The way you choose to approach mentoring will be dependent on how much involvement you agree to, or request me to have with your business. I can work extremely closely with you, speaking or meeting most weeks or even days. However, in most cases I will have less of a day-to-day involvement. Instead I’ll provide help every few weeks or months which could take the form of phone calls, emails, face-to-face meetings or a combination of all of these.

Mentoring can be a very formal and structured process with regular meetings which follow a specific agenda and set of goals. It can also be quite a casual arrangement, where you as the mentee calls on me as and when problems or questions arise.

The main thing to remember about mentoring is that it’s not just a one-off meeting, or opportunity to pick my brains. It’s an ongoing relationship where both parties must be committed to achieving certain goals and willing to live up to their end of the bargain.

If you’d like to try it out please visit my mentoring site and we can arrange a taster session.

The Corporate Social Partnership

2010-08-02T09:37:00.000+01:00

Building on my thoughts from my blog entry on Thursday, 25 March this year, I am in the process of developing an organisation to help solve the problem of CSR for SME’s.

The Corporate Social Partnership ( CSP ) will be a non-membership partnership organisation, designed to ensure that local business can get the most out of their CSR whilst enhancing their bottom line. Working in collaboration with each other local businesses are able to develop their networks and pick the CSR that best suits their objectives. There will be benefits of shared best practice and the power of buying groups.

A brief outline

Comprising 500 locally based businesses and 50 charities from 6 disciplines the CSP brings companies and charities together ensuring a business to business partnership.

Initially business partners will each donate £500pa which will be distributed amongst the partner charities. Throughout the year there will be other opportunities for business partners to provide practical help to charities as well as funding. These opportunities will be designed to maximise commercial advantage.

Charities eligible to join the partnership will fall into the £50k - £3m turnover bracket. Charities below this threshold will be able to apply to a small support fund for operational costs. There will also be a start-up soft loan scheme.

Charities commit to share their events calendar thereby minimising clashes and finding opportunities for collaborative events.

Charities will also provide details of Trustee opportunities so that the participating businesses can encourage their staff to get involved. This is a great opportunity for both personal development and a practical demonstration of CSR.

The charities are divided in to 6 categories with 8 or 9 charities in each group;

• Children and Education

• Health

• Animal Welfare

• Faith

• Environmental

Each year on charity from each category will receive a donation of £10k as the “Charity of the Year”.

The Sums

500 companies x £500 = £250,000
£10,000 charity of year donation x 5 categories = £ 50,000
Small Charities grants ( for operational costs ) = £ 20,000
Start-up loans ( carry over from previous year )
Charity event sponsorship 50 charities x £8,000 = £160,000
Administration = £ 20,000

Potential impact of events sponsorship: example £500 for Dragon Boat Racing generated £12,000

With a ratio of 24:1 charity sponsorship the CSP could enable £3,840,000

The Trustee Board
The board of Trustees will consist of skill sets such as finance, marketing, strategy, governance. The board will also have representation from both the charity and business community.

I would welcome comments and suggestions.

From a Gift Of Life to a Gift After Life

2010-07-14T09:29:00.000+01:00

In my last entry I talked about organ donation and the gift of life that it may bring. I’d like you to think about another sort of gift that you can make upon your death.

It's a common myth that only the rich and famous leave money to charity when they die. This couldn't be any further from the truth. The reality is without the gifts left in wills many of the charities we know and support today wouldn't even exist. With the challenges facing us all in this difficult economic climate I think that legacies are going to become even more important to charities.

I’m always delighted by the generosity of our community, with 74% of the UK population supporting charities. When asked, 35% of people say they'd happily leave a gift in their will once family and friends had been provided for. The problem is only 7% actually do.

That's why, if we all leave some money in our wills for charity as well as our family, we can make a huge difference. In fact, if we can raise this figure to just 11% we would create an additional £1 billion for charities in the UK every year, which would ensure that their work lives on.

Legacies are the foundation for many of the charities in the UK. Some of the larger charities receive a third of their income this way. For the smaller charities it can be vital in making sure that all the good work they do can continue.

So, you don't have to be rich and famous to make a contribution that can make a difference. We can all do something amazing for the world just by leaving a gift in our wills to charity.

Organ Donation - A gift of life

2010-07-06T10:21:00.000+01:00

Earlier this year I agreed to become the Non-Clinical Chairman for the Organ Donor Committee here in Southampton. I was appalled that currently only 28% of us are on the register, whilst 96% of us would take an organ if we needed one. The UK has one of the lowest rates of organ donation in Western Europe at 13 donors per million, whilst Spain has 35 donors per million.

Did you know that there are 23 organs in your body, provided your human. You can donate kidneys, heart, liver, lungs, pancreas and small bowel. You can also donate corneas, skin, bone, tendons, cartilage and heart valves. I was also amazed that the simple act of registering could mean that I could help up to nine different people.

Many of us have an organ donor card from when we passed our driving test but simply carrying it does not mean you are on the register, you need to sign up to the online database. Anyone can register on the Organ Donor Register. Age isn't a barrier to being an organ / tissue donor, and most medical conditions don't stop you donating either.

This week has been designated “National Transplant Week”. I’m not looking for actual organs, no kidneys in a soggy envelope please! It is in fact for more than 10,000 people in the UK deadly serious as they are in need of a transplant. Of these, 1,000 each year ( that's three a day ) will die waiting as there are not enough organs available.

Most of us are guilty of putting off important conversations with a loved one, so why not spend some valuable time with family and friends during National Transplant Week to have a Heart to Heart.

It might be telling someone how important they are to you, reconnecting with an old friend or apologising to a partner, but have you thought about telling your loved ones what your wishes are about organ donation?

Take time this week to have one of the most important Heart to Hearts you can have and help spread your gift of life. If you need any more persuading watch the second or third video on the NHS Organ Donation website.

The End of the Walk - Where Next?

2010-06-28T12:34:00.000+01:00

I have completed my walk along the South Downs Way and really enjoyed all of the 200,550 steps. With the tops and tails of each day I actually covered 120 miles. The last day took me over the Seven Sisters, I’m sure there where eight, no sooner had you climbed to the top of one than you had a steep decent to the base of the next one. Although it was blisteringly hot the view was fantastic and it made for a spectacular finish to the walk. Domino did really well with her thick black coat and very little shade.

Once we climbed down into Eastbourne we had to walk another mile and a half to the party and certificate ceremony. It was lovely sitting down in the cool with a shandy and a few doggy biscuits.

I would like to thank everyone who has supported my walk. If you'd like to contribute please visit my Just Giving link or click on the blue wigget.

Almost there!

2010-06-25T06:51:00.000+01:00

This my penultimate day is the longest day, just what you need after 80 miles! The day before yesterday was a Devil of a day, more from mythology than the toughness of the walk. I started just west of Chanctonbury Ring. A hill fort that has also been a Roman temple. Legend has it that if you walk backwards around the ring seven time you can summon the devil or is it scare him off. Whichever it is I would not recommend trying, particularly if you have to walk all the way to Devil’s Dyke. The story goes that as Christianity was spreading across Sussex the Devil decided one night to dig a giant trench down to the sea to keep the Christians back. He made such a noise that an old woman lit a candle to see what was going on. The farm cockerel thought it was the coming dawn and started crowing. The Devil was so startled by the early arrival of the sun that he took off hurling pieces of earth everywhere, one landing in the sea and forming the Isle of Wight.

The weather has been glorious in the low to mid 20’s, affording me some wonderful views. Both Domino and I have been finding it hot work but yesterday she cooled off in a dew pond. If it had not been so smelly I might have joined her.

Yesterday from the Dyke I walked to the delightful village of Pyecombe where the church had tea and rock cakes waiting. The gate of the church has a central hinge so that coffins can easily be carried in! I then walked on past the twin windmills called Jack and Jill before climbing to Ditchling Beacon.

Today the white cliffs and the coast will be clearly visible as I make my way down into the Ouse valley. That means I’m going to have to climb out of it!

A relaxed Fathers Day!

2010-06-20T07:30:00.000+01:00

I started walking the South Downs Way, with Domino my Cocker Spaniel, from Winchester to Eastbourne on Friday. The 105 mile walk is in aid of my charity Wessex Heartbeat and specifically for Heartbeat House. The house provides a conformable and supportive home right next door to the Cardiac Unit at Southampton General Hospital for the relatives of people being treated for heart conditions. The reason for choosing this particular part of our services is due to a conversation I had with a guest only a couple of weeks ago. She told me that they live on the Isle of Wight and that without Heartbeat House she could not be with her husband as they could not afford the daily ferry crossings. I don’t thing I need to say anything more.

The first day from King Alfred’s statue in the heart of the capital of Wessex, very symbolic for Wessex Heartbeat, to Exton was about 13 miles and went through some stunning scenery and iconic hamlets. For this first leg I was accompanied by a cohort of staff from Domino’s Pizza. My dog is called Domino as she is black with one white spot and Domino’s Pizza are sponsoring her! It was a glorious start to the walk with two excellent pubs on route. I don’t think I can expect that from now on.

Yesterday I was not able to walk as Wessex Heartbeat had its first Dragon Boat Race day on Southampton Water. What a great event, lots of fun. I was impressed with the speed of some of the boats and the great team names such as Skipper Heartbeat and Dragon Hearts. Unfortunately for Domino’s paws and my feet we have to make up the distance today, walking from Exton climbing Old Winchester Hill, HMS Mercury and over to Buster Hill. I then need to sneak through the border guards in to West Sussex and home ground. I think that from there I will climb onto the Ridge Way and over Harting Down. By then I should have cover around 18 miles and have Beacon Hill looming up in front of me. If I make it alright I can have a little rest with the ancient dead on the Devils Jump before the final sprint to the Cocking Gap. All in all I’ll have to cover about 25 miles and my feet feel sore in anticipation!

If you’d like to help my fundraising efforts, I promise that there will not be any photos of blistered feet at the end, please visit my site www.justgiving.com/dcfmyers

Brand Bible

2010-06-15T11:16:00.001+01:00

I’m working on a brand development handbook for a friend and would value comments and suggestions on the following guidelines.

A corporate identity manual should:
a) be easily printable and easily referred to,
b) be easily accessible ( format: Make your guide available as PDF, Put the guide on your intranet , Create templates of all your elements so people can easily work with them and stay on-brand ),
c) use very simple language - and at least in 2 languages ( one in a major language of the country plus vernacular languages ). e.g. In Canada it will be in English & French. In the Middle East, English & Arabic. In Pakistan, English and Urdu and so on and so forth,
d) use lots of "Dos & Don'ts" to lucidly depict the logo type, colour scheme, size, height etc,
e) display options in colour & if in black & white,
f) portray all possible avenues of branding.

A corporate identity manual should contain:
a) Corporate introduction: include your brand values, philosophy, proposition with a little history about your brand, its roots, founders etc. It gives the creatives a little more meat to chew on and they love a good story!
b) Brand basics ( communication platform/attributes, writing style, design attributes ),
c) Kit of parts ( corporate logo, font samples, colour palette / Pantone , photography, icons and other graphics elements, headline usage, page layouts, paper specs ),
d) Templates (presentations, packaging, marketing literature, merchandising),
e) Promotional items (banners, trade show booth design elements, packaging/info-binders),
f) Direct Mail guidelines,
g) Advertising (print) guidelines,
h) Electronic brand elements (web site layout guidelines, GIF banner guidelines, e-mail templates and guidelines),
i) Co-branding guidelines,
j) International considerations ( guidelines for local photography, font usage ):
- Paper specifications are not the same worldwide. Make sure to leave room for local paper specifications ( material, format, etc. )
- Font usage ( Japanese/Chinese/Hebrew/Cyrillic fonts do not always exist, depending on your font choice )
- Photographic material ( think about racial effects, cultural dependencies )

Notes
1. Explain the importance of using the brand guidelines consistently and why they need to be used across all markets and what this contributes to the brand. Maybe include, how much re-branding has cost to the company and why EVERYONE needs to ensure the correct formats, identity, logo, colour etc are used.

2. Use a binder that you can add inserts to and that are easy to print and do not incur unnecessary costs by being 'creative' - an A4 size will do and is a pretty universal format.

3. On your CD/DVD make sure your interface is simple and easy to use with a hyperlink to get updates from your website/intranet. Include commercials or well known campaigns.

4. Clearly illustrate the different versions of your identity - e.g. colour, greyscale and outline versions and specify colour usages.

5. This also applies to your product & brand typeface usage but can be applied to pictorial usage and any other elements you use as a standard across your brand. Also allow for some interpretation of elements for International markets for flexibility.

6. Show relationship sizing of your identity & products regarding its placement within collateral material with samples of use in e.g. a full colour ad, bw ad, billboard, poster treatment, email campaigns etc.

7. Specify media usage with clear examples using the identity, colours, sizing and proportion.

8. Also show, how your brand CANNOT be used. Give examples of wrong use of identity, colour etc and product usage. This refers to brand identity mutilation and distortion, inappropriate or offensive imagery or association (becomes more important internationally) This saves a lot of headaches and annoying questions.

9. Specify photo usage and how they can be used with your chosen media. Include examples as mentioned. You need feedback from your International markets regarding photo 'sensitivities' e.g. sexual references but this will be clarified in your brand values, philosophy and proposition earlier.

Marketing Mentor

2010-05-24T08:47:00.000+01:00

A colleague has asked me to pose a question to businesses large and small.....

Do you know what role a mentor fulfils? Specifically would you consider using a marketing mentor to improve your organisational and personal business performance? Perhaps an expert who would come in each month to work with the MD/Chief Exec to progress strategic plans or perhaps work with an inexperienced marketing team to get them working more effectively?

Would their membership of the Chartered Institute of Marketing be important to you? Do you understand what membership means?

Any thoughts would be welcome including the price you would pay for such a service?

CEO's working together

2010-05-21T10:42:00.000+01:00

It can be a lonely place being a CEO. That is why I’m writing this blog and have set up the South East Charity Forum ( See my article of the 13th May ). The SECF meetings are proving to be an excellent support network as well as brains trust. At the last meeting on the 18th the discussions around the recession and collaborative working where both informative and inspiring. I for one am delighted to see CEO openly sharing their expertise and concerns. SECF is a great example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. As the SECF grows I’m convinced we will be able to speak as one voice for charities in the region. That is a powerful incentive to be involved.

Numbers

2010-05-20T09:03:00.000+01:00

With all this talk about our deficit and debut it is difficult to get your head around the vastness of the figures. From what I understand, people don't really understand exactly what a million is compared to a billion. Our brains just aren't wired to think in numbers that large. A million sounds a lot but how much can you visualise the difference between that and a billion? Well a million seconds equate to 12 days and a billion seconds equals 31 years!

Checking my maths;
60x60x24*12 = 1,036,800
Taking into consideration that a year would be 365.25 days because of leap years.
86400*365.25*31 = 978,285,600
(almost a billion. Rounding up is fine)

A billion is 1,000 times bigger than a million, but this doesn't impact our minds as much as we like to think it does. We still don't understand even what a million really is. To us it’s just a word. It’s not a number like 5, for instance, that we can visualise. We can hold our hand up with 5 fingers and count them, but try peaking at a crowd of a million people and accurately guessing how many are there!

However, the 12 days to 31 years really illustrates the difference for me. I’m prepared for some hard times ahead if we are to recover from our countries debt. A happy little thought for the end of a week!

South East Charity Forum

2010-05-13T15:58:00.000+01:00

I have launched a new discussion forum to enable Chief Executives of charities in the South East to discuss ideas and share opinions on key topics and concerns in the sector. The South East Charity Forum builds on my vision and has been developed with the support of asb law and Kingston Smith LLP.
“The South East Charity Forum is all about CEOs coming together to assist each other and to share knowledge, experience and best practice with a view to developing stronger leadership and management in the region and the sector,” according to Margaret Craton, partner at asb law. “It also provides an opportunity for them to network with other charity heads, and support their peers at a local level.”
We held the inaugural meeting in January when Debra Allcock Tyler, chief executive of the Directory of Social Change and author of ‘It’s tough at the top’( which is also the tile of a course I run at the DSC ), gave a stimulating presentation to 25 chief executives on the issues currently facing the sector. Feedback from the delegates after the meeting was positive with comments such as “an excellent start”, “interesting and informative meeting” and “a good range of charities represented”.
David Montgomery, partner at Kingston Smith LLP, said: “The feedback from the first event proved its value. The members of the forum will decide on the subjects to be discussed in the future, and there’s no shortage of ideas. The next event will give charity chiefs the opportunity to discuss ways to ride out the current economic situation and prepare for the upturn when it does come, for while the recession may be officially over, we’re not out of the woods just yet.”
Membership of the South East Charity Forum is open to chief executives of charities in the region with an income in excess of £500,000 and by invitation only. In order to ensure diversity I have set up the forum to have a revolving chair. Diana Greenman of Music in Hospitals will chair the second event on 18th May at St Catherine’s Hospice, Crawley. The main discussion theme will be ‘The recession – how to ride the storm and use the opportunity to leverage change’

Election Comment

2010-05-09T21:36:00.000+01:00

Following on from the election and my last blog with the manifesto for small charites it would seem on the face of it a hung parliament could have some positive outcomes for small charities. All three of the main parties have promised to improve things for small charities in one way or another. We hope that the parties who finally form the government work constructively together to achieve what is best for the sector. We would hope that working together to achieve consensus and compromise will result in a more rigorous approach that addresses the real concerns of small charities and will not result in delays and confusion.

SMALL CHARITIES COALITION - Manifesto

2010-04-12T09:50:00.000+01:00

As a board member of the SCC I thought you'd like to read and hopefully comment on our top recommendations for the 2010 general election

Introduction
The Small Charities Coalition exists to help small charities access the skills, experience and resources they need to achieve their aims.

We know from our own experience that many small charities suffer from a chronic lack of resources, skills and expertise, despite having an abundance of passion and commitment. The Small Charities Coalition is like a voluntary sector matchmaking service, matching small charities with other organisations that have the skills, experience, and in some cases resources, that the small charity lacks.

The Small Charities Coalition is about helping small charities to help themselves, and enable them to have access to the considerable expertise of their larger counterparts in the charitable sector or those from other sectors.

Our services include:
• Matchmaking small charities with other organisations to increase resources or improve knowledge and skills;
• Providing support, guidance, encouragement, advice and information to small charities;
• Presenting personal and vocational development opportunities for individuals who volunteer to help small charities; and
• Offering a resource for small charities to get their voices heard within the media and Government.

Manifesto Recommendations

Advice and support
HM Revenue & Customs and the Charity Commission should develop a section on their websites specifically for small charities.
Our recent survey of small charities found that around a third of respondents believed that HMRC information on tax issues is too complex and technical to understand; and a third did not know what requirements do or do not apply to them. In addition, although many respondents found HMRC’s and the Charity Commission’s websites helpful, it was not always easy to locate the relevant information. Currently a lot of guidance is written with larger charities in mind. However, it is often the case that different rules apply to small charities. Furthermore, many smaller charities are run exclusively by volunteers without the funds to engage legal or accountancy professionals. We believe that HMRC and the Charity Commission should jointly create a specific online portal dedicated to small charities, including step by step guides written in plain English.

HM Revenue & Customs and the Charity Commission should retain and expand their telephone services.
The Small Charities Coalition welcomes online developments by the Charity Commission and HM Revenue & Customs. However, we also stress that many small charities do not have easy access to the internet and will face increasing difficulties if the internet becomes the preferred or sole channel of service delivery. We believe that HMRC and the Charity Commission should jointly create a bespoke telephone service for small charities, including tax, fundraising and other regulatory advice.

Deregulation of small charities
More charities should benefit from the lighter regulation enjoyed by ‘small charity’ status.
At the moment there are around 100,000 ‘small charities’ with a gross annual income of less than £10,000 who benefit from less onerous reporting requirements. In particular:
(a) small charities are not required to complete an Annual Return (although they must inform the Charity Commission if any changes to the charity’s details, including income and expenditure.
(b) if the charity’s income does not exceed £25,000, the trustees are not required to file their Trustees’ Annual Report (although they must complete it and make it available); and
(c) small charities can prepare ‘receipts and payments’ accounts (rather than more complex accrual accounts) and these need not be audited.

We believe that these thresholds should be raised so that more charities benefit from lighter regulation. It would also be beneficial for small charities to ensure that the monitoring thresholds are co-ordinated and aligned across the UK jurisdictions.

Public consultations should consider the regulatory impact on small charities
In recognition of the role of small charities within the Third Sector, public consultations should consider the impact of any proposal on small charities and not just larger ones. After all, continuing change has a disproportionate impact upon smaller charities.

VAT
Simplify the rules; The current VAT rules for charities are extremely complex and reform is long overdue.
Encourage collaboration by exempting shared services. Currently, charities which charge each other for shared services currently have to pay VAT. This often ends up costing more than simply working separately. We therefore support proposals to exempt this form of cost-sharing from VAT. This will encourage greater collaboration between charities.

Gift Aid
Simplify the Gift Aid rules
We support the simplification of rules for Gift Aid and the further promotion of its use. We also believe that an individual’s donation should be Gift Aided unless expressly stated. This would make a larger number of donations tax-efficient and increase charities’ income. These proposals are also supported by NCVO.

Extend the transitional relief
We propose to extend the transitional relief beyond the current end date of April 2011. This is in the hope the end of transitional relief will coincide with the implementation of Gift Aid reforms. This proposal is also support by the Institute of Fundraising.

Trading
Raise the limit on the small charities’ trading exemption
We call on the Government to raise the small charities’ trading exemption from the current limit of £50,000 to £250,000. This would give charities greater flexibility and obviate the need to create a subsidiary. This proposal is also supported by the Charity Finance Directors’ Group.

Treat sponsorship and advertising the charity’s work as primary purpose trading
We support calls to treat as primary purpose trading (a) sponsorship where it is directly related to charitable purposes and (b) advertising that supports the charity’s charitable activities. Many charities give corporate donors recognition for their sponsorship of an activity or event. However, this can have adverse tax implications for the charity if appropriate arrangements are not put in place. In particular, if HMRC believes that the substance of the relationship involves the charity providing advertising services, its sponsorship income will be treated as trading income. If the level of sponsorship takes the charity over the threshold of the small charities’ trading exemption, the charity would need to divert the sponsorship income through a trading subsidiary. We believe that donations currently treated as taxable sponsorship should be reclassed as primary purpose trading so that charities are not forced needlessly to establish a trading company to receive them. This is cumbersome, expensive and serves no useful purpose. In the same way, advertising income should also be reclassed as primary purpose trading if it is revenue that supports the charity’s charitable activities. These proposals are also supported by the Charity Finance Directors’ Group

Recognising volunteering
We support NCVO’s proposals to formally recognise the importance of volunteering.
Introduce a bank holiday dedicated to volunteering.
We believe that a bank holiday dedicated to celebrating the voluntary sector and recognising its role in society would encourage greater participation and build community.

Give employees a right to take five days’ paid leave for voluntary work
We believe that employees should have a right to take additional paid leave for voluntary work. We believe this will particularly benefit smaller charities which foten do not have the resources to pay for staff.

Easter Message

2010-04-02T11:57:00.000+01:00

‘The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.’ John 10 verse 10

Spring time is my favourite time of the year! Having just endured one of the coldest winters in the UK for over 30 years, the blue skies and the spring sunshine are such a welcome sight, well they would have been if they had stayed! Our garden, like many, throughout winter looked so dark, dull and lifeless. But now with the onset of spring, it is exploding into new life with a beautiful array of colourful plants and fragrant flowers. Although I found myself mowing the lawn in the rain this morning!

At Easter we celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ! God’s Son could not be contained in a cold dark tomb. Jesus rose again on the third day, conquering sin, Satan and death once and for all (as he promised he would), making it possible for you and me to celebrate the truth and power of Easter every day and to have the assurance of eternal life.

‘We live and die; Christ died and lived!’ I can't remember which Theologian said this but it sums it up perfectly,

The Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility for SMEs

2010-03-25T09:59:00.000Z

Small to medium-sized business (fewer than 250 employees) account for about 90% of businesses worldwide and are responsible for 50-60% of employment. As such, they play a fundamental role in society and can potentially have a huge impact on social welfare.

I find it surprising, therefore, that corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, so far, have tended to focus on large companies and multinationals. As SMEs have stakeholders and an impact on society, the concept of CSR is just as valid for small companies, as for large companies.

Many SMEs may be doing CSR in some way or form, but don’t call it “CSR” as such. For example, they may provide excellent goods and services; they may be great employers, engaging with their employees and other stakeholders; they may be alert to health and safety issues in the workplace and for customers, or they may be attempting to operate sustainably and minimise their use of natural resources. All of these things are examples of socially responsible behaviour but are not labelled as such by many small and medium sized businesses.

Staffing is often a critical element in the success of a small business. It is true in any business but employees in a small business are often a critical resource for the business’s success and prosperity. As such, many small and medium-sized businesses place emphasis on increasing employee skills and work on motivating and building staff morale. Much of SMEs’ social, community and environmental initiatives are therefore driven by, or focused on employee engagement and development.

Some of the barriers for SMEs in becoming involved in corporate social responsibility include;

the cost of implementing CSR activities when survival is often the greatest economic imperative;
time and resource constraints which may mean a lack of affordable external support and resources;
a lack of awareness of the business benefits with no/little understanding of the business case for small and medium-sized enterprises;
the fact that existing CSR tools and guidelines are mainly geared towards large business;

On the other hand, there are a number of things which could encourage CSR in small business. Most importantly there is the ability to attract and retain valued employees. A characteristic of small businesses is that their success is largely dependent on a handful of key employees. Other things include the ability to develop unique selling propositions and competitive benefits through their products and services; cost and efficiency savings and enhanced reputation.

One of the problems that SMEs face when seeking to address CSR issues is that many of the tools are designed for big business. Initiatives aimed at encouraging SME involvement in CSR need to be easily accessible and relevant. The advice needs to be tailored to them with easy-to-use tools and case studies that make it real and provide encouragement to SMEs. If small businesses can see examples of specific initiatives that have increased profitability and improved the business they will be more likely themselves to adopt CSR strategies. I think charities could work with channels known and trusted by SMEs such as industry associations to ensure that information, guidance and partnerships are available.

Charities working in partnership with business

2010-03-18T09:10:00.000Z

The following is the text from an article in the Southampton Echo:

In this time of economic pressure both charities and the companies who support them are looking for ways to work smarter and to ensure that the money is well spent.

Peter Robertson of Condor Office Solutions is keen to help charities to work together to maximise their fundraising events. Peter, who is also Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce, said “I’m delighted to see local charities taking the opportunity to work closer to the business community”.
D’Arcy Myers, CEO of Wessex Heartbeat, is a prominent member of the not-for-profit community and is out spoken about the need for charities to be the best possible stewards of the monies gifted to them. As a board member he explained about the Small Charities Coalition and called for local charities to form a consortium to better promote their work and the benefits of support. He said “Where charities can work together they should, supporters want to see real impact for the money they give”. Peter Robertson along with James Hiley-Jones of Careys Manor and the Montague Arms provided a congenial setting and superb lunch to a dozen of the most proactive charities in Southampton and seventeen local businesses, enabling them to discuss ideas and ensure that the maximum benefit is derived from people’s generous support.

There was much interest in the Small Charites Coalition which exists to help small charities access the skills, experience and resources they need to achive their aims. The Coalition is like a voluntary sector matchmaking service, matching charities with other organisations that have the skills that that the charity lacks.

St Patrick's Day Blessing

2010-03-17T09:47:00.000Z

On this St Patrick's day I have this blessing by an unknown author for you all. I hope you will find time to raise a glass of the black stuff ( you have dispensation from your Lent abstinence ).

I wish you not a path devoid of clouds,

Nor a life on a bed or roses.

Nor, that you might never need regret,

Nor that you should never feel pain.

No, this is not my wish for you. My wish for you is:

That you might be brave in times of trial

When other's lay crosses upon your shoulders.

When mountains must be climbed and chasms crossed,

When hope scarce shines through.

When every gift God gave you might grow along with you,

And let you give the gift of joy to all who care for you.

That you might always have a friend who is worth that name.

Whom you can trust.

And hope will be, in times of sadness,

Who will defy the storms of life by your side.

One more wish for you:

That in every hour of joy and pain, you may be close to God.

This is my wish for you and those who are close to you.

This is my hope for you, now and forever.

Charities working together to strengthen trustee boards

2010-03-08T16:59:00.000Z

Developing a coherent and effective Trustee board is an ever evolving challenge. It goes hand in glove with the need for leaders to constantly challenge their standards. After all a Trustee board is only as strong as its component parts. Effective boards have a mature understanding of the skills and experience of their members and seek to fill gaps as soon as they are identified. However, in my experience some charities have difficulty in recruiting from outside their personal pool of contacts and therefore often end up with an ever narrower view of themselves and the outside world. If the charity is located outside the capital this problem is even greater.

A strategy to minimise trustee clones would be for charities in the same geographical area to work together in establishing a “Trustee Recruitment and Retention Committee”, I’m sure that there is a snappier title! The committee could;

Create a pool of available trustees to fill vacancies promptly as they arise;
Develop links with local business, professional bodies, community groups and other partners to promote charity trusteeship;
Present awareness sessions for local people or companies who are interested in serving as trustees;
Develop and share best practise templates;
Provide briefings to potential trustees candidates whilst their application is being processed;
Provide a local induction programme for new trustees;
Facilitate a forum for trustees to meet and collectively discuss issues that are relevant to all trustees.

As this would be done as a collective of charities, approaches to potential trustees would be seen to be none charity specific and focused on the benefits offered to both the individual and company. For example; local accountancy firms could be approached outlining the professional personal development opportunities for staff and the corporate social responsibility achievements for the company. This would also have the benefit of cutting down repeat requests from multiple charities.

Once a firm, group or individual decides to become a charity trustee they would be able to select the charities that most interest them and be matched to the charities needs. An example of this could be an accountant who is interested in working for a health charity being able to choose between a number of health charities that need a Treasurer.

Recently I was reminded of a maxim that "as a leader your lowest standard is the highest others will aspire to".

Trustees from Beyond the Boundaries

2010-02-23T15:47:00.001Z

Recently I attended the TrusteeWorks first sector event hosted by the Clothworkers’ Company which challenged the often voiced view that recruiting trustees is difficult.

The follow-up from the event makes for interesting reading;

The panel debate discussed three questions that sought to challenge the boundaries trustees and boards can impose when looking for great trustees. Key points that drew further discussion included the challenge that, as boards, we spend too much time looking backwards not forwards. We also talked about sustainability, which limits us to be the organisation we are now where resilience is a more relevant focus, becoming the organisation we need to be. Less than 1% of trustees are under 30 and yet these are talented people like any other trustee, they just happen to be young.

Leadership by a board is critical. The panel recognised the challenge of leading as a group and understanding the difference between leading and managing, the board’s role and the staff role. Compared to the private sector, the voluntary sector has been slow to undertake proper board development and review.

Compelling improvements identified included the need to introduce new talent, to recognise the value of difference and diversity on a board as well as understanding risk and how to manage it, rather than be controlled by it, and the need to actively consider and act on the need to change to thrive.

‘Effective organisations have a restless search for improvement’ – quoting Michael Barbour

The table discussions looked at 7 questions across 13 tables and some creative and lengthy discussions continued into the networking and drinks. Highlights from the discussions include a sense that trustees can be overvalued especially in relation to status, i.e. the “great and good” and the value of the board as an entity can be under recognised. Being able to understand and represent the community being served is important but over representation by users and not enough recognition of skills, business experience and decision making create real barriers to success. Younger people have a lot to offer especially in this digital age, it is our problem to recognise, understand and include them not theirs. Private sector experience was recognised as valuable and bringing key skills, more needs to be done, consciously, to integrate people with differing backgrounds on a board.

The use of skills audits, self administered or with out side support was echoed across a number of tables where the need for self review, external governance support, succession planning, board development and time for the board to know each other as people as well as the task of being trustee was highlighted. Being a trustee can and should be fun, it should add value to the individual, it may be great personal development, build CVs, allow them to be part of a team or social environment. The motivations of trustees are not uniform, recognising and allowing different motivations was seen as a key way to cross recruitment boundaries. To read the speaker and table notes in full, http://ctt-news.org/72Y-3NGG-1D37XJ-21QUS-1/c.aspx.

The evening supported the TrusteeWorks suggestion that attitude and approach can be two boundaries to successful recruitment.

To add to the debate, email trusteeworks@reachskills.org.uk

To find out more about TrusteeWorks, visit the website http://www.trusteeworks.org.uk/

There is an I in TEAM

2009-11-11T12:04:00.000Z

Business have evolved, no longer driven by muscle today’s business are driven by the mind. Information and knowledge are what drive the world now. Leadership must also evolve if a company is to continue to thrive and prosper. Business no longer needs automatons, mindlessly following orders given by a select few. It needs collaborators working together.

Job minded people serve time where as career minded people live time. They come to work because they want to rather than have to. Career minded people are self motivated; they want to learn and excel. They understand that each and everything they do enhances them as a person. Each project is a learning opportunity which increases their talents, experience and knowledge bringing them one step closer to wherever they choose to go. One more step that broadens their horizons and expands possibilities. In the truest sense they are working for themselves; refining their product which is them.

The days of “There is no I in TEAM” are over. In today’s world employees must be able to work with the management not for management. The challenge is how to put the “I” in Team. This is a team in which each individual works in unison with others whilst utilising those talents and abilities that make them unique. Success in business is all about relationships. Management must not hoard information or wisdom but share it willingly and understand that what is good for one is good for all, that what benefits one benefits all. When one succeeds all succeed. Employees under this leadership style view problems as challenges, they persevere and are proactive. They are not afraid to speak up and share their ideas or to ask for information or help.

Owls and Larks

2009-10-30T10:40:00.003Z

It seems to me that more CEOs are owls than larks. Over the years I've heard countless business leaders describe their horrendously long work weeks in “last car out of the car park” terms. It's an existence of flickering fluorescents; take-out dinners, and the clatter of cleaning staff emptying trash. As these leaders sit nodding over their stacks of reports, the day's stresses, frustrations, and failures hang in the air around them like stale smoke.

I prefer to burn my candle from the front end. That's because I love offices at dawn. I want to be there as pale light washes slowly over the utilitarian landscape of desks and computers. I enjoy the hush that plays prelude to the soundtrack of workaday activity.

I like to miss the traffic, make the first pot of tea, drink the first pot of tea; then pretend I didn't and start another. You don’t want to be doing that at the end of the day with the prospect of an hour in the car!

The very early morning is the best time to go desk-browsing. During the day no one spares more than a glance for their colleagues' workspaces. Yet many desks are made over into miniature museums of collectibles, galleries of beloved images, scrapbooks of rich family lives. Such exhibits powerfully evoke their curators. As you peruse the idiosyncratic display on a desk, you find yourself looking forward to its occupant walking through the door.

If you walk by an office where a colleague or employee labors after hours, it seems natural to poke in your head and commiserate. But often commiseration devolves into passing the time; and after hours another's time is not yours to pass. In the early morning, by contrast, no one is yet late for anything and so conversation is relaxed. During work hours I have argued and gossiped and traded stiff pleasantries with office mates. But my best true "chats" have been with fellow early risers.

When I gaze out the window at night I see my face floating in a dark pool. In the morning I see the world. And I am reminded that everything I do that day will contribute to it.

I'm sure that you know your company better than anyone, that you love it more. Still, try going in some day at dawn and wandering around in the silence. To watch the office wake up is to see it fresh.

Private, broad and serious

2009-10-30T08:57:00.006Z

It should be nice to receive praise but I’m not comfortable with praise it makes me feel embarrassed. How should praise be used in the work environment? Some people are addicted to praise, if they don’t get it they go into a decline, if they do get it they hold it up to the light and asses its worth. They may then get a brief praise rush but quickly need more.

Praise is surprisingly difficult to get right. Even good praise looses its power if there is too much of it. It can be ruined in any number of ways. A surprised tone of voice wrecks it, whilst any hint of negativity wipes out all the positive impact. As with all addictive substances there is a level of safe use, after which it gets dangerous. Two units of alcohol a day are deemed safe, two units of praise is far too much. If one is praised every day you quickly stop experiencing any rush and any reduction leaves one feeling de-motivated.

In my view the correct praise “dosage” is gender dependent, as with alcohol. Men take praise on face value and so are sustained by less. Women reject half the praise as being insincere, misdirected or offensive so need more to get by on. I’m not sure where that puts me with my aversion to praise, a house cat maybe!

It is not only the quantity of the praise but the quality that is hard to get right. There are three pieces of advice often given to managers to make their praise more effective.

Praise must be public: this is down right irresponsible, whilst it is never certain that the praise will make the person feel any better. It is always certain that public praise will inflict heavy collateral damage on everyone else who hears it.

Praise must be specific: I thing that this is poor advice as the detail chosen by the manager may not be the thing that the recipient wants to be commended for. They might be praised for their eye for detail, when in fact they’d like to be praised for their creativity.

Smile when praising someone: this is also a bad idea. The point of good praise is that it should look deadly serious in order to seen as sincere. If it comes from some grinning fool one knows to disregard it all together!

In my opinion praise should be private, broad and serious.

A Trusted Advisor

2009-10-16T15:39:00.007+01:00

“Nowadays we seem to put a price on everything and you think you only work or do something if you are getting paid for it and I do think that in recent times a lot of people know the price of everything and the value of nothing. I have always been passionate about community and people having a sense of place." Benjamin Zephaniah, Poet

I’m fortunate to have a rewarding career that has been centered around working with other people. Recently I’ve been looking for a way to use my business skills to support the community that I live and work in. I’m already working with the Small Charities Coalition and the Portsmouth Business Champions. This has led to an opportunity to act as a volunteer mentor with Mentor-Net.

There seems to be a lot of confusion about what a mentor is. My understanding is that, in an employment context, a mentor is a person with skills and experience who counsels an individual and helps guide their thought processes. I suppose that a mentor relationship is one where the outcome of the relationship is expected to benefit all parties in the relationship for personal growth, career development, lifestyle enhancement, spiritual fulfillment, goal achievement, and other areas mutually designated by the mentor and partner ( I’m not sure about the word “Mentee”). The dictionary definition is “A trusted advisor”.

A few times in my life, I’ve had someone see potential in me, and give me advice on a continual basis. I considered these people mentors, although at the time I would not have used this title. I believe a true mentor sees potential in someone by taking a personal interest. They will advise and motivate, celebrate and commiserate, but never control. I suppose they are your critical friend

So what are the characteristics of a mentor? I think of a mentor as a role model, a teacher and a companion. They support you by listening to your ideas and concerns. They will boost your self-esteem and encourage your efforts, whilst introducing you to new people, places, interests, ideas, or suggesting new sources of information or ways of doing things.

Perhaps I’m being too idealistic. Do you have a mentor? Could you see a mentor being beneficial to you? What do you think a real mentor provides?

2009-09-25T13:11:00.005+01:00

I’m delighted to say that we had a great day, met some wonderful people with awesome stamina and generally enjoyed ourselves. Cycling along the Tennyson Trail took us up a couple of near vertical chalk hills. The view from Compton Down was breathtaking, or was that the lack of fitness! It was almost as breathtaking whizzing down the other side at 40 miles an hour! As we toiled up past an old barrow, a belted Galloway calf stood in amazement, as three red faced men puffed past. We managed to cycle 21 miles in the end with a few minor detours, we still didn’t find a pub. The canoe was hard work on the shoulders and although it only took us just over half an hour it seemed a lot longer. We did an impressive beach landing at the end, which was spoiled by my inability to stand up, as my back had locked (thanks John for helping the old man up). It was a lovely sunny day, which made for a sweltering run. My back problem kept me from completing the run, but John and Grant came back talking about narrow cliff paths and being hosed down by a couple. You will have to ask them for the details. The map turned in to papier-mâché in John’s running shorts. As far as I know it is still there! I can’t thank everyone enough who helped run, organise, support and sponsor the event and of course a special thanks to those who participated. I would urge you to get involved next year.
With the money raised from my justgiving this site we will be able to provide community support through our "Your Healthy Heart" scheme for 6 months. From the giftaid alone we can now supply leaflets for the Cardiac Rehabilitation Team to give to people who have suffered heart attacks, helping them understand what is going on. That is quite an achievement.

Volunteering in the new Millennium

2009-07-17T11:06:00.006+01:00

I've been reading how volunteering is changing. The figures seem to say that the days when charities could pick out the jobs that needed to be done and hand them to unpaid but willing recruits are over. According to Cabinet Office national survey on volunteering and giving from 2007 volunteers do give less time than they used to, volunteers spent an average of 4.05 hours per week in their role in 1997, but only 2.75 hours a decade later.

It seems that in the past, people volunteered in fundraising because they were committed to a cause. Now they want to have an idea of what the money they raise is spent on. They're businesslike and they expect tangible outcomes. They want a bigger role. They're not content with being given tasks. They want to innovate and come up with ideas for new fundraising strategies.

The increase of employer-supported volunteering has also encouraged this trend. The survey found that only 16 per cent of respondents in 1997 said their employers ran volunteering schemes, but 36 per cent said this was the case in 2007. It found that employees have specific demands: 43 per cent want "personal achievement" and 41 per cent to enjoy volunteering.

It is intereting to look at why people dont volunteer;

Not enough spare time- 42%.
Put off by bureaucracy- 42%.
Worried about risk and liability – 39%.
Not got the right skills/ experiences- 35%.
Would not be able to stop once I got involved- 31%.
Worried about threat to safety- 31%.

A lot of charities have changed the way they work in response to these developments. In 1997, 71 per cent of volunteers said their work could be better organised, but only 31 per cent said the same in 2007.

I'm delighted to say that charities themselves are becoming increasingly professional in their work. All of this means the task of attracting volunteers has now become as much a marketing challenge as anything else.

Having reported on the figures I find that my charity, Wessex Heartbeat, seems to be bucking the trend. Our volunteers, although small in number at the moment, are willing to do what ever they can to help. It is true that they need to see how their work makes a difference and they need to be appreciated. However, this applies to us all, doesn't it?

Are you ready to support a charity?

2009-07-03T17:14:00.007+01:00

If you are thinking of becoming a Knight in shinning armour and being a supporter of a charity please take the time to ask charities questions about their programs, mission, and goals before you decide to support them.

For those of you who don't have the time or resources for this here are six questions that you as a donor should expect to get clear answers for:

1. Can your charity clearly communicate who they are and what they do?

If a charity struggles in articulating its mission and its programs, it will probably struggle in delivering those programs. Organisations that can explain who they are and what they're trying to accomplish have a singularity of purpose and a commitment to focused institutional change. If a charity can't explain who it is and what it does, and why it is needed, find one that can.

2. Can your charity define their short-term and long-term goals?

Organisations without quantifiable goals have no way to measure success. If they have no way to know if they are successful, how can you be sure they are working toward something? Demand that your charity tell you what it is trying to do. Good organisations relish this opportunity. They know what they are working toward today and tomorrow.

3. Can your charity tell you the progress it has made (or is making) toward its goal?

Once again, it's not enough to merely be concerned with a problem. Good intentions are no longer sufficient to warrant your charitable support. The marketplace is too crowded with nearly 187,000 charities registered with the Charity Commission. Ask your charity what it has done to make the issue it confronts better. What are its results? You wouldn't buy a brand of toothpaste if the manufacturer couldn't prove to you that it fought cavities successfully. Why should you support an environmental clean-up charity if it can't show you that it is cleaning up the environment?

4. Do your charity's programs make sense to you?

If you support the mission of a charity, ask yourself if its’ programs also make sense. You believe in the cause, and you hope for the end result, but is the charity working toward that result in a way that seems rational and productive to you? If the charities goal is to promote kindness toward animals, does it pursue its goal in a way that makes sense to you, or does it merely inflame the issue? Do you want your research charity doing advocacy? Do you want your outreach charity making policy, or your policy charity doing outreach? Maybe you do, maybe you don't. This doesn't mean that every organisation should be singular in focus. It also doesn't mean, however, that you have to support every organisation that has the same belief system as you. Just because you support the ends, you may not support the means. If you know you want to support the outcome the charity aims to deliver, ask yourself if its method of arriving at that outcome makes sense to you.

5. Can you trust your charity?

There has been much research on public trust of charities. Generally it has shown that the overwhelming majority of charities are not only responsible and honest, but well-managed. So we give with confidence. You should feel the same way before you give. Don't support a charity until you feel comfortable with it. To gain this trust look at unbiased sources of information. The Charity Commission or Guidestar are good starting points. Call the CEO of the charity and ask the questions you need answered before you can be assured this is a good use of your money. Ask for an annual report. Do whatever it takes to put your mind at ease. Good charities will encourage this. A happy and trusting donor is a willing and supportive donor.

6. Are you willing to make a long-term commitment to your charity?

We like to think of giving to charity as a long-term commitment, more akin to marriage than dating. Intelligent giving is motivated by altruism, knowledge, and perspective, not a knee-jerk reaction to a television commercial. You are an adult. You have a budget. You have the means to help others. You want to help. Ask yourself if your charity is the type of organisation to which you're willing to make a long-term commitment. When you do this, you agree to support them through good times and bad, and provide the funding they need to weather economic downturns. In return, they promise to continue working toward addressing the issue you both think is so vital. Look hard and find a charity you can support for many years to come. When you find that charity, give it your financial commitment, tell it you'll be there through thick and thin, and then continue to support it. Only then will long-term sustainable change take place.

A jolly good "fellow"!

2009-06-16T13:46:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I received my certificate showing that I have been elected a Fellow of The Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM). The Institute is the world’s largest professional body for marketing and business development.
I have been a member of the CIM for 12 years, and as you know I’m passionate about professionalism within the voluntary sector. I believe that charities must be run in a businesslike manner and prove to their benefactors that they are managed in both a cost-effective and efficient way. During these challenging economic times those who work within charities need to be savvy marketers and be evermore ready with a business plan and proof of where public donations are being spent.

Carpe diem - "seize the day”

2009-06-10T15:56:00.006+01:00

I’m luck to have a great network of friends and business colleagues Recently I read an e-mail from one such friend in which they had been inspired by a 90 year old and his 45 lessons of life.

I’m not quite 90 yet so here are 26 of my favourite lessons;

- When in doubt, just take the next small step.
- Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
- Pay off your credit cards every month.
- You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
- Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
- It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
- Save for retirement starting with your first pay cheque.
- Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
- It's OK to let your children see you cry.
- Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
- It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second oneis up to you and no one else.
- Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
- Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
- What other people think of you is none of your business.
- When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
- No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
- Forgive everyone everything.
- Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
- Believe in miracles.
- God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
- Your children get only one childhood, be there for them.
- All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
- If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.
- Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
- Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."
- The best is yet to come.

2009-05-25T11:15:00.007+01:00

This is the second open event that I have taken part in in as many weeks. Although the Wessex Cycle Festival (http://www.cyclefestival.com/) is not strictly a charity fundraising event it has presented a great opportunity to get involved. My small attempt to support both Wessex Heartbeat and the Festival was a 25 mile bike ride from Somerton to Glastonbury and back. As I struggled up a long steep hill, thankfully not to the Tor, I thought that on a bike gravity is rather like Marmite, you either love it or hate it. I certainly loved gravity as I sped down the other side at 40 miles an hour! I was pleased with my time of 1hr 58mins. Although I felt it was a bit tough having to cycle 3 miles to and from the car park! We were blessed with a fantastic day and it was enjoyable cycling past fields of buttercups with lambs in. There were a couple of magnificent bulls, one black as coal and shining in the sunlight like satin.

The more I think about the sorts of things one can do to support charity the more I am convinced that charities should offer as wide a choice as possible. After all people support charities for very different reasons; the kids have left home, it's a milestone birthday, that special anniversary, they are recovering from an illness or a bereavement, having a midlife crisis ( I do hope that is not me!). Or they are just looking for the challenge of a lifetime?

If as a charity you only offer a couple of your own events you run the risk of appealing only to those people interested in those particular activities and that they will be free on those dates. You also take all the risk, which doses not strike me as prudent particularly in this economic climate. However, if you can offer a wide range of events and dates you maximise the opportunities for your supporters to find an event that excites them and at a time that suites them. Of course you can’t put on all these events yourself so partnerships with other charities and event organisers spreads the risk and in the case of open challenges negates the risk completely. I’m always mindful that money gifted to my charity is in my care and I have to be the best steward I can be. After all the money has not been given to the charity to pay for more fundraising.

I found the Just Walk event (http://www.acrossthedivide.com/) inspiring as there were over a 100 charities supported by 850 walkers. There were plenty of opportunities to expand your horizons both literally and by learning about other charities and the stories behind the walkers.

One small step

2009-05-16T06:52:00.007+01:00

I’ve taken the first step towards completing 1 of the 4 challenges that I set myself in support of all those people affected by heart conditions; well, actually 14,500 steps to be exact! The ‘Just Walk’ Challenge involved walking 60km through West Sussex and along the South Downs. The walk went really well, the weather was perfect and the scenery superb. It took me twelve and a half hours actually walking with an hours’ worth of rest stops. The last 4K was uphill, in the wood, in the dark and on flint!!

It was a little bit of a wake-up call as I had not done any training. I’m nursing two blisters but other than that have come off well. However, my next challenge, the ‘Wessex Cycle Challenge’ on Saturday 23rd May is only a week away and the route is 35k........ (I had better get my bike out this week!) http://www.heartbeat.co.uk/wessex-cycle-festival

The Wight Challenge on Saturday 19th September requires some serious training, this Challenge consists of a 20 mile cross country cycle, followed by a 3 mile canoe, topped off with a 8 mile run! http://www.heartbeat.co.uk/wight-challenge

If you would like to sponsor me or would like to take part in any of the Challenges, please click on the widget on the right of this blog to donate or to take part, please click on the links in this post.

Anger for good

2009-03-24T16:56:00.003Z

Why do we need anger? We react with anger for a number of different reasons. For example, we get angry when we are trying to protect our rights or maintain our individual identity. To stand up to those who are bent on preying on the weak or against social injustice. It can be a crude way of protecting more vulnerable emotions or to give us the time to retreat, compose ourselves and live to fight another day.
I was taught that all anger is sinful, but in itself anger is just a feeling, and as such neither good nor bad morally. It is true that anger is a dangerous thing and can result in each of us saying or doing things we later regret. But anger can also be a good thing. It can spur us to put right something that is blatantly wrong. There are times when we ought to be angry. An unjust situation should make us angry. Yet let us not be in any doubt, anger can be an expression of love.
All of us should look at things which make us angry. It is said that you can measure the size of a person's soul by the size of the things that make him or her angry. Most of our anger is motivated by self-interest and it is also true to say that we very often get angry about petty things.
We should never forget that anger is a tool, it must be understood and used effectively for the purpose it was designed. Anger is neutral and it is the individual who decides if anger will be put to constructive or destructive use. The emergence of anger is not a call to action necessarily. It is a signal that something is not right and must be addressed. Our job is to use our anger to make worthwhile decisions that help us grow as human, not destroy us and those around us.
After a business meeting recently we were discussing charity leadership and I was reminded that my drive comes from my anger. At first I disagreed, but they were right, I am driven by the anger generated when I see a charity poorly run. I feel that everyone working in a charitable organisation has a duty of care to be the most professional they can be as they have to make the most of the gifted money that charity receives.

Three challenges one goal

2009-03-13T15:52:00.002Z

I’m not known as the most sporty of fellows. I would rather be sitting back admiring the view with a glass of something in my hand. However, I’m also keen to encourage others to care for their hearts and live a full and healthy life. Leading from the front, no that’s not right, I’ll probably be at the back of the pack. So, leading by example I’m undertaking three of Wessex Heartbeat’s challenges this year. Kicking off with a 37 mile (60k) walk on the South Downs on May 9th closely followed on the 23rd with a 22 mile (35k) bike ride as part of the Wessex Cycle Festival. I’m then going to bring my peak physical fitness to bear on the 9th September for the Wight Challenge. I’ll be cycling 20 miles, canoeing 3 miles and then running 8 miles.
As long as you have not hurt yourself laughing at the thought of me doing all of this exercise, please ensure that I have to complete this by sponsoring me. Just click on the widget on the right of this blog. Of course you could join me by clicking on the links in this post.

Luck, where hard work meets opportunity

2009-03-13T15:17:00.005Z

I was asked the other day why I thought some people are more lucky than others. My reply was that I don’t believe in luck as a factor in life. I think we see people as lucky when their hard work meets opportunity. Many “lucky” people leap at opportunities and are prepared to embrace failure.

Embracing failure dose not mean seeking out failure, rather love it, listen to it, make a friend of it, learn from it and treat is as a real insight on how you can grow and develop.

There are a number of reasons to embrace failure;

1. Failure teaches us. Failure narrows down the possible approaches to success. Scientists rely on trial and error in their research. Each failed experiment brings them a little closer to revolutionary breakthroughs. Think of your own efforts as experiments. When you don’t get the desired result, figure out why. Then try again with your new knowledge.

2. Failure reveals our ability. You’ll never know how much weight you can lift until you reach an amount you can’t. I think trainers often refer to this as “lifting to failure.” Pushing yourself as far as you can lets you know what’s possible. By avoiding limits, you’ll never reach your peak. The fear of failure stops us a lot shorter than failure itself. So keep going until nothing more is possible. Then celebrate what you’ve accomplished.

3. Failure makes us stronger. Those same weight lifters who lift to failure also have learned that is the way they build muscle. At first the tissue is damaged, but it’ll heal bigger and stronger than before. Soon the athlete will be able to lift more weight. The same is true for our pursuits. Failure strengthens our character, with each effort, we grow a little stronger.

4. Failure inspires us. When we don’t let discouragement hold us back, failure makes our desire burn hotter. Often this inspiration is a wish to avoid another failure. If failure makes you work harder or focus more, it’s an experience with tremendous value.

5. Failure inspires others. Leaders must take risks. Even when they don’t succeed, their courage can still make a difference.

6. Failure builds courage. Becoming more comfortable with failing enables you to take more risks. If you know you can deal with it, it will no longer threaten you. If you're open to failing, you'll readily take more chances.

7. Failure is better than regret. The times I’ve been denied an opportunity never felt as bad as when I’ve let opportunities pass me by. At least when we fail, we know. Not trying at all leaves us wondering. Avoid kicking yourself later by taking a leap when the opportunity presents it’s self.

8. Failure leaves us open to better opportunities. Without an awareness of the big picture, it’s easy to perceive failure as misfortune.

9. Failure makes success a little sweeter. We appreciate victory more when we’ve tasted defeat. We expend a lot of energy running from failure. Try embracing it. Find the opportunity in the adversity. If there’s a recipe for success, failure might be its primary ingredient.

I’ve heard a lot about SMART goals, how in order for goals to be effective, they need to be SMART. That the gaols are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound. However, I think this can go against our own motivation to take that opportunity. It can steal our potential by making us conform. If we are fearful of failure and want to protect ourselves by setting goals that don’t push us and open us up we won’t reach our full potential.

I’m not suggesting that you should not have goals; rather you should reach for the stars. Successful people know the importance of setting goals, they also have many failures on the way to their success.

I know I’m an opportunist I don’t see the glass half full, I see the full jug beside the glass ready to top it up. If I start each day reflecting on the things that I am grateful for such as a lovely wife and children, my health, a stimulating and challenge career, my glass is filled to the brim. If I let the negative things empty the glass I’ll end up setting smart goals!

How about setting goals that are your vision. Step out of that comfort zone, manage the risk, learn from the failures and create your own competitive advantage. Create your own luck.

Setting goals to help achieve success

2009-02-12T15:31:00.003Z

Since my last posting, I am pleased to report that I have made some progress towards improving my BMI! This in itself, is significant as the difficulty I have had with exercise in the past is keeping the momentum going. Now that I have set myself goals to reach, I am actually making headway.

Snacking between meals has been my biggest downfall, I don’t eat breakfast (which I know is one of the most important meals of the day), I sometimes eat a lunch late, or miss that too and then by the time I get home, I am really hungry. I then snack until my evening meal and by the time I have eaten, I've made up for lost ground! It’s hard to break out of this habit but with my new goals to reach (and willpower!), I am trying to alter this.

From an exercise perspective, I have implemented small but significant changes. I use the stairs not the lift, I walk to the train station and have recently purchased a hybrid bike. If I am to achieve my goal of entering at least 4 challenges within the Wessex Heartbeat calendar, I must be fit enough to complete them!

The really positive aspect of the Healthy Heart initiative is that I am changing my lifestyle for the better. If you would to request a visit from the Wessex Heartbeat team or for more information, please contact either myself or Melody Carter on 023 8079 5907 or email melody@heartbeat.org.uk.

Healthy Heart goes ‘on air’

2009-02-03T11:24:00.002Z

The start of the New Year has proved to be a busy one already. The Healthy Heart initiative which has already rolled out in Chichester, Bognor Regis and Southampton is now in Portsmouth. Radio interviews with Darren Gamblen and Rob Davies, radio presenters at the popular Portsmouth Radio Station Express FM 93.7 has ensured that the Healthy Heart message is reaching the local community. The radio station based in Arundel Street, Portsmouth has also agreed to take part in a Healthy Heart session and publicise the event on-air so that listeners will get a practical insight into how you can look after your health and suggestions on how to keep fit and eat well.

If you would like to listen to the radio interviews, click on this soundbite to hear Darren Gamblen on the Morning show or follow this link to hear the series of podcasts http://expressfm.com/tabid/267/Default.aspx from The Volunteering Show on a Wednesday evening with Rob Davies.

Photograph includes Ellie Young, Producer and Rob Davies, presenter of The Volunteering Show

Season's Greetings

2008-12-24T11:47:00.003Z

I received the following from a good friend of mine who runs a great marketing company ( www.rwpgroup.com ). I was so impressed with the message I thought I'd reproduce it in full. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did;

May I take this opportunity to thank you for your custom in 2008 and may I wish you and your loved ones a very merry Christmas. As yet another year has come to an end it gives us all a time to reflect on how well we have performed both as individuals and as a business. There is nothing like smaller budgets, job insecurities, increased competition and a shrinking market to focus the mind. For me, one of the high points of 2008 was (apart from getting married!) the election of Barack Obama. This must be one of the most amazing elections in American history. A year ago what odds would you have given to a black man with the middle name Hussein, a first generation immigrant, of winning the 2008 US presidential campaign? How about zero? Yet he did it... and he did it through superior messaging and organising. It is funny how often the 'secret' to these things is communication. He had no rich family money like John Kennedy or George Bush to help pave the way. He raised his own finances. He managed to get a whole nation to buy into his brand and support his vision. Whatever you think about his politics, it's an accomplishment of epic proportions. My hat's off to the man. So how did he do that? Well, I am no expert on American politics but he found new 'markets', those people that had felt over looked and unmotivated. He communicated with people in a tone and manner they could understand and he connected. More than 120 million voted, and Obama won more votes than anyone else in U.S. history. Obama won 54% of Catholics, 66% of Latinos, 68% of new voters — a multicultural, multigenerational group that never before had been persuaded to vote in such numbers.So what can we learn from this. Communication is king. Sure, you need an excellent proposition but if no one hears you, you are not going very far. Keep your current customers. Remember if you are not talking to them your competitors usually are. Use different marketing channels. Barack Obama used everything available to him, advertising, web, e-mails, texting, word of mouth, member get member schemes, PR, direct mail, sales promotions and the Barack brand'. Know what your company stands for and let people know the benefits. Remember this is a time when all things are possible. Have a great Christmas. Best Wishes,John

2008-10-31T11:02:00.011Z

I’m not really a card player; other than snap and Uno with the children, even then I always seem to loss! However, playing the other day I was contemplating the deck and in particular the suites. It occurred to me that the suites and the Kings in particular could represent the four elements of sound business.

King of Hearts: If you are passionate about your work it drives you to constantly want to do better. I was at an IT conference recently and a speaker talked inspiring about her passion and why she worked for a charity. She broke the word down to represent Patience, Action, Selflessness, Status Quo or rather not accepting it, Inspiration, Oration and Network. I could not have agreed more. I would add that patience and action are not mutually opposed. You have to be able to channel both so that you can find the logical, rational arguments, deliver them with a cool head and use your commitment to influence others. Above all you must be prepared to be different.

King of Diamond: the phrase “Cash is King” sums it up. If your business dose not have enough money to operate it dose not matter how great a product or idea you have you just are out of business. The ability to maintain a positive cash flow is closely linked to my next suite, Spades.

King of Spades: represents good old fashioned hard work. Another phrase that is often used in business is “fail to plan, plan to fail”. Planning at the strategic and operational levels is vital. Of course you can’t plan for every eventuality but you can minimise risk and maximise by planning. You can also put your self in the position of being able to take advantage of the unexpected opportunities when they arise.

King of Clubs: sticking with clichés, after all they are clichés for a reason; “In business it is not what you know but who you know that counts” My last suite is all about commitment and the over worked “Networking”. Although the expression irks me, it's so cynical. The insinuation is that you can be the smartest, wisest, most educated being this side of next Tuesday and you still won't succeed unless you schmooze. Networking isn't a new concept, though sales gurus and executive trainers would have you believe otherwise. Truth is, it takes people to help people in both profit and non-profit settings. One of the main problems with popular networking advice is it's based solely on numbers - with no nod to humanity. Sure, the more people you know, the more people will know about what you want to promote. However, it's also true that people can sense when they're being used. So, how does a person with ethics and a healthy sense of kindness work the networking angle without feeling like a total hypocrite? Here are some pointers I've picked up over the years:

You can network anywhere. You never know when you might find someone who wants to help you or whom you'll want to help. The same is true in cyberspace. Opportunities abound. You can make meaningful contacts almost anywhere provided you truly believe in helping others. So, don't limit yourself to networking only in professional settings.
Go where you feel comfortable. Sure, there are professional networking groups. But don't go to places because you feel that that is the place to go networking. Instead of being strategic to the exclusion of your feelings, pay attention to them. Go to meetings, lunches or social events precisely because you enjoy them. You'll be more natural in those environments and will be able to make truly useful connections.
Don't over market. We've all met the bore who won't stop talking about his or her accomplishments. Well, that same bore exists in the business world and in my experiance it is normally hot air. When you're talking with someone, make sure the conversation is truly two-way.
Elevator speeches sound exactly what they are; prepared pitches. Never sell a fake you. One of the tricks to networking is honesty. Of course, you should prepare some good talking points about your product (and you). But if you stick to a script you're bound to sound insincere.
Try to follow up. This isn't as easy as it sounds. Most of us don't have all the time in the world to send personal, hand-written notes to everyone we've met and with whom we felt a connection. At the very least, send hand-written notes to a few people with whom you really clicked. I firmly believe that's more effective than any kind of mass thank-you.
Keep in touch. Newsletters, emails, phone calls, dates, lunches, walks, and for some a round of golf . . there are many, many ways to keep yourself top-of-mind with other people. But the key here is to do something that you will both enjoy.

Remember: underlying all of these pointers is an assumption of activity. You can't network in a vacuum.

Guilt or commitment?

2008-10-08T10:08:00.001+01:00

I just watched a documentary on BB1 about British Fashion Genius which I wanted to share with you because it really reflected my believe that charities are doing themselves and the sector a disservice by ‘guilting’ people in to sponsoring them.

On the programme, Jane Shepperton, the former brand director for Topshop who is credited with the store’s image and financial success is quoted as follows:

“If you buy a t-shirt for £2 obviously you are not paying for it but somebody is... the person who made that t shirt is clearly being paid an extremely low wage and probably not a living wage in order to make it.

But nobody likes to be driven by guilt, we need to make people feel good about what they are buying. What is sad at the moment is that consumers are not being offered exciting, interesting, well designed fair trade or ethically produced product and that’s a real shame. That’s where the industry needs to pull it socks up and put better design in.

It’s not enough to say “you should buy this because the people who made it are now being treated well, I know it looks like a sack but honestly, it will make you feel good” because it won’t!

To address this Shepperton, in collaboration with Oxfam, has begun an ethical fashion awareness campaign. Enlisting the help of the best of young British design talent (including Jonathon Saunders and Christopher Kane) Jane Shepperton and Oxfam are attempting to show how recycling and re-fashioning second hand clothes could provide a stylish and ethical alternative to fast fashion.

Progress So Far

2008-10-01T14:16:00.010+01:00

Living up to the health heart rescue has got off to a slow start but I’m pleased to say that now I’m underway it is more pleasurable than I thought it was going to be.
I’ve been up to LA Fitness in Southampton, who have kindly donated five membership places to people who are willing to have their progress monitored, just like me. Well, maybe not just like me! I’ve given myself a couple of achievement goals. One to bring my BMI within the acceptable range and the other is to be fit enough to not only compete in but enjoy a fundraising challenge in 2009. So far I’ve managed to reduce the time it takes me to walk to work from the railway station, a little over 2 miles. My visits to LA Fitness are not yet regular enough to be considered habit but I’m certainly getting there. I’ve already reduced my weight to 14st 13lbs.

Governance and Trust

2008-07-24T17:45:00.003+01:00

There is a lot in the press about charities and public trust and after all THE BEST WAY to get attention in the charity world is to say something controversial about public trust. So here we go!

5 years ago public trust was mentioned 6 times a week now 17 times a day in the Guardian and Observer. NCVO Research

If you follow one survey trust is up another is down and yet a third is somewhere in the middle. A few weeks ago Joe Saxton, fundraising guru and boss of think-tank nfpSynergy, hit the charity headlines by proclaiming a haemorrhaging of trust in the voluntary sector. Yet just the other week Third Sector devoted over a page of analysis to a survey which showed the opposite result. According to data released by the Charity Commission, trust has actually increased since 2005. For balance the YouGov poll from 2007 showed trust declining at an alarming rate, but levelling-off at a higher level than the nfpSynergy research!

All very confusing but what can I do about it? I suppose making the principals of governance easier to understand would be one thing. Another would be simple steps to sound governance. Well, to this aim I’ve collected together good practice and guidance in the form of a Knol. A Knol is meant to be an authoritative article about a specific topic. More importantly its also a place where knowledge can be gathered from other people so the collective is greater than the sum of its parts. Here is a link to my Knol, don’t forget to add your knowledge to it!

https://knol.google.com/k/darcy-myers/charity-governance/156fvhcgke2b/3

Your Healthy Heart beats into life

2008-07-24T14:59:00.002+01:00

I’m delighted to see that the initiative has got underway with such a great fanfare from the Southampton Echo. My commitment to address my BMI is now in print as well as being virtual. I have found the walk up from the station, which is just over two miles, much easier than I had thought it would be. Once I start combining it with a few trips to LA Fitness we should see some real results!

D’Arcy Celebrates His BNI High-Five!

2008-07-22T11:27:00.003+01:00

I have spent the majority of my career in the First Sector and am chuffed to been officially recognised by the most successful business referral organisation in the world.
As a member of the Chichester BNI chapter, I have received the BNI Notable Networker Award “in recognition of outstanding performance.”
This is the fifth time in seven years of membership that I have been presented with the accolade, which acknowledges business mentoring, bringing visitors to the chapter and generating business for existing members.
I am delighted to have received this for the fifth time. My role within Wessex Heartbeat brings me into contact with many different people from all sections of the community including the business world. I feel I am able to make introductions and contacts for other members and they are able to reciprocate – living out the BNI mantra “Givers Gain”

First not Third

2008-07-22T10:42:00.006+01:00

Collectively know as the Third Sector, Not-For-Profit Sector or Charity Sector in my view all these are damming with faint praise. Third rate, unprofessional, begging! More accurately I think we should be referred to as the First Sector. After all the 190,000 charities in England and Wales contribute £32 billion each year and employ around 608,000 people. The work we do underpins society and could be seen as an ever more important key stone for government. Should charities provide services previously funded by government? Do we really know what constitues a charity? How do we know which charity to support?

A penny for your thoughts

2008-07-18T15:30:00.004+01:00

This is a little trick I sometimes use to check out my deep feelings about a tricky choice. If you have to make a decision between two options which are pretty much equal, take a penny and give heads to one option and tails to the other. Toss the coin and catch it hidden under your hand. When you look at the coin what is your emotional reaction? In the first split second were you pleased that it was say heads or disappointed? I’m not suggesting that you use the result to decide which course of action to take, rather to see which one you truly desire to follow!

Where are all the CEOs?

2008-07-14T12:41:00.000+01:00

To communicate effectively, leaders require great strategy, implementation and ideas. Communication defines your image and image is everything, not just what you say, but the way in which you say it. Image is only half the battle, images get you noticed and make people listen to you but it is substance that holds their attention.
The key attributes of great leaders are;
· Belief in oneself. They are known for their position and respected for their stance.
· They are decisive with an ability to transcend risks through sound judgement.
· They are also skilled communicators, which is essential to inform and enthuse in a simple, consistent way.
· Being responsible the buck stops with them. Leaders don’t blame their followers for their failings.
· They are intuitive, with an instinctive grasp of their follower’s moods and ability to predict and pre-empt future events.
· They are one step ahead, not two!
So, why does the public not know the names of more CEOs of voluntary organisations? Why are not more CEOs of voluntary organisations sitting in the House of Lords? Why are not more CEOs of voluntary organisations non-executive directors of private sector organisations? And why do we so rarely hear or see CEOs of voluntary organisations interviewed on the news?

Leaders have impact

2008-07-11T07:11:00.000+01:00

Communication, like charity, must begin at home. All communication should flow uninterrupted around an organisation, like blood through the body. If the flow is blocked, damage soon occurs. CEOs today must lead through more personal and direct communication to harness both internal and external support and turn their vision into reality.
I think it is necessary to radically rethink how the CEO educates and enthuses their organisation with their vision. The CEO must remember that leaders empower their followers, that everyone of their employees is their ambassador. They must also be aware that their reputation can make or break the reputation of their organisation and that there is usually a gap between perceptions and reality!
For me these quotes sum it all up;
“It is hard to look up to a leader who just keeps his ear to the ground”
“Leaders have a vision of a better future, they feel strongly about the need to go there”
“There go my people. I must find out where they are going, so that I can lead them there”.
This all revolves around the basic belief that companies must put their people, not their customers, first. Leadership is doing the right things and management is doing things right!
Leadership is about impact and impact can only be achieved by communicating effectively and by moulding a positive image. In my view good communication is about;
· Shaping and influencing opinion
· Sharing information and views
· Inspiring and re-assuring stakeholders
· Being honest and transparent
· Building trust and co-operation
· Listening, listening and listening…

Award winners are Ambassadors

2008-07-09T10:41:00.003+01:00

I see a lot of opportunity in the charity world to be clapped on the back for your achievements. Throughout the year there are a number of award ceremonies accompanied by expensive dinners. The larger charities “invest” donor money to attend and reap the reward of a gong or two. The smaller charities are disenfranchised by not being able to afford to attend and the socially aware stay away. I can not think that there are many donors who would be happy if they knew that their donation was used to fund a night out! Sadly these awards seem to be focused on celebration rather than developing a better sector.
When someone receives an award, for say a well run lobbying campaign, there should be some commitment to share their knowledge and experience. Rather than just stand up once to collect the shinny peace of Perspex they should commit to stand up a number of times throughout the coming year and pass on why they where chosen for the award. I would like to see an award ceremony change the way they do things to include this ambassadorial role. I’m sure that some people will then turn down the award but then we will know who are only after self engrandesment!

Communication and the CEO

2008-07-07T17:56:00.005+01:00

We live today in a sophisticated multi-media society where the number of global communications networks has exploded in recent years. This has made it even more important to have effective communication, “the right word at the right time”.
Looking back at a brief history of communication we start with the first consumer brand, Wedgwood, in 1760, followed by the first newspapers in the 1800’s. With the development of the understanding of psychology, Pavlov and his slavering dogs (1920), the advertising world took off in the 60’s and 70’s. The mid 90’s had the www.com chaos and the last decade has left us reeling from stimulus, response and endless feedback. So is the 21st century is the age of conversation?
An organisation’s reputation is increasingly based on how others see the CEO and how others talk about you. Those favourable perceptions are dependant upon the CEO's visibility and the consistency of thier behaviour. The communication skills of CEOs are important in shaping public perception, after all in today’s business world CEOs are the celebrities! In a world of suits, their human face helps to differentiate the brand, inspire confidence and deliver results. In the voluntary sector this is equally true but many CEOs are reluctant to take the risks of being in the goldfish bowl of public life.

The Cycle Scheme

2008-06-24T16:00:00.002+01:00

I’ve been investigating the Cycle Scheme further with the help of Sarah of ChainReaction in Bognor Regis, http://www.chainreactionbikes.co.uk/ , and it all seems straight forward. Either as an employer or as an employee you just follow the links on the Schemes website, http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/ For me this ad from Transport for London say it all.

Step by Step

2008-06-24T15:42:00.000+01:00

I've come down from the high of my results from last Thursday and realise that I still have to address the BMI reading. Wessex Heartbeat kindly sell pedometers (£4) so I can encourage myself with a nice high step count. The recommendation is 10,000 steps a day. I have had a pedometer for almost a week now and the results are not too good. Over the weekend I clocked up 34,545 steps but the rest of the week has been fairly abysmal. I have only managed around 4,000 steps per day. It is surprising how easy it is to go from home to car, car to office and then sit all day at the desk. When I took the train yesterday I managed to clock up 8,184 steps but took bus!I have already talked about cycling but what can I do through the course of the day? Any suggestions?

BNI get a visit from Wessex Heartbeat

2008-06-20T17:43:00.004+01:00

Small Charities Coalition

2008-06-19T16:56:00.002+01:00

I have been asked to expand on my profile. In it I made mention that I am part of the Small Charities Coalition and some people are unsure what it stands for.

Well to begin with what is a small charity. The SCC has defined it as a charity defined by its income as having less than £1million income per year.

The core objective of the SCC is to seek out the problems small charities face and find the best solutions via innovation, inspiration and leadership. This is based on the simple value so well defined by the Samaritan effect: “Don’t pass someone who is struggling”

The SCC is empowering small charities to enable them to unleash their full potential whiles building a bridge between large and small charities. With a vision that "No small charity should struggle in providing social change".

Our aim is to be the one loud and clear voice for small charities. With a goal to inspire innovation and provide leadership. We are building a sustainable framework of support that small charities use to help them achieve their aims. This includes speaking up for small charities, seeking out the problems they face and finding innovative solutions. By encouraging best practice we can promote small charities, provide advice, guidance, support, inspiration and praise and demand change if needed.”

My first session

2008-06-19T11:48:00.005+01:00

I’ve had my session with the Cardiac Rehab Sisters and I’m relieved by the results. I already know that I am over weight and have to do something about it. What I suspected or rather dreaded was that either my blood pressure or cholesterol would be high. Both of these as silent killers so the initiative by Wessex Heartbeat is vital, as it helps identify, early, the warning signs. Well both my blood pressure and cholesterol are fine and so is my blood glucose.

My Reading
Blood Pressure 117/70 mmHg
Cholesterol 4.16 mmol/L
Body Mass Index 27
Glucose 6.7 mmol/L

Target Readings
Blood Pressure Below 140/90 mmHg
Cholesterol Total under 5 mmol/L
Body Mass Index 19 – 25 ( Healthy )
Glucose Less than 10 mmol/L

Dose this mean I can take a big sigh and relax? No! I can enjoy the sigh or relief but have now to focus on the weight loss.

Through Chain Reaction in Bognor Regis ( see the links ) I’ve discovered that there is a government scheme call creatively “The Cycle Scheme”. It allows you to purchase a bike through your work cheaper. You can buy any style of bike and normally up to a value of £1,000. The savings made through the scheme are around 45% depending on your tax code. You can also select £50 worth of safety accessories under the scheme, including helmets, lights, locks and reflective clothing. I’m now going to find out how I can offer this to my team so we cal all get on our bikes!

On your bike

2008-06-10T09:17:00.004+01:00

I am going to have my session with the Cardiac Sister soon. So in preparation I thought I'd see what proactive things I could do to impress them! I think my office is about two and a half miles from the train station and I currently drive the 44 miles to work. If I took the train and got one of those little folding bikes I could cycle up from the station. It's an idea and would be great for my carbon footprint.
That got me thinking; what is my carbon footprint? I've just gone onto the government website to calculate my footprint. http://actonco2.direct.gov.uk/index.html It was fun to do until I got the result. Although my home and appliance use was below national average my transport burden was way up. I rated at 7.55 tonnes of CO2 per year as apposed to 4.48. As I don't fly this is all down to those road miles. Aspirationaly I'd like to see my footprint drop by 20%.

Opening the challenge

2008-06-08T16:17:00.005+01:00

I've been the CEO of Wessex Heartbeat since the beginning of January and have gone through an interesting learning curve. One area that I am keen to see the charity grow is in our support of the community. With this in mind we have launched a project called "Your Healthy Heart". We are offering an advisory consultation with a Cardiac Sister in the hope that we help people identify early how their life style choices are affecting their long term health.
As this is quite a challenge I thought I should be the first to step up to it. So what is my blood pressure, cholesterol, body mass index and what should they be? Well I know I weight 14stone 10.5lbs! Oh dear that sounds rather heavy. I'm off for a chat with the Sister and will let you know how it goes and what, if anything, I need to do about it.