Last week, I wrote about few key tools available to you to help foster a working charity partnership. I also acknowledged that due to the immediacy of platforms such as Good Company and Centre for Volunteering, they tend to focus on short term, one-time events rather than encouraging a strong relationship with charities.
As such, it forces us to think a little more creatively when it comes to building a solid partnership. Here are some of my tips to get this done.
Seek Volunteer (https://volunteer.com.au)
As opposed to corporate facing shared-value platforms such as Good Company, Seek Volunteer is a platform that caters to consumers and individuals. As a small business, you may find that this caters more to your needs. With a larger user base than Good Company, and one that has expectations set on individual volunteering over corporate events, you may find it easier to approach charities posting on Seek, and start buidling a rapport. The site also allows you to contact the charities directly and filter based on the cause, the type and the event so as to tailor your search based on your businesses’ interests.
Zoho Projects (https://www.zoho.com/projects/)
Another way to start connecting with a charity partner is to treat them like you would any other business partner. This involves creating a charter, aligning on needs and milestones, delegating roles and responsibilities and identifying stakeholders. It allows charities to feel included, and helps communicate that you are dedicated and treating their cause seriously. Ultimately, it can be treated like a contract between the project manager and the stakeholder, and makes future conversations about continuing the partnership easier. Charities may have less experience when dealing with complex projects and project plans, so a free web-based project planning and collaboration management software tool like Zoho Projects can help immensely in simplifying the process.
These are just some of the examples of thinking laterally to work around a long held belief. Feel free to comment below with any additional tips.
Growth By Giving 