Know your audience: the challenges facing CEOs in the third sector

​The challenges facing CEOs in third sector organisations are numerous. Managing relationships with other members of the board can be difficult at the best of times, and with volunteering down for many charitable organisations, achieving your objectives can sometimes seem a long way off.

Our London office hosted a third sector networking event on Wednesday 20th March, where CEOs from 26 third sector organisations got together to share the key challenges they face in their roles. We were delighted to welcome Sherine Wheeler (CEO at animal charity Mayhew), Chris Wade (MD at Time for Impact) and David Jessop (CPO at Charities Aid Foundation) as our speakers.

How to ensure effective board relations

Sherine has had many roles where she’s had to navigate potentially tricky relationships with other members of the board. Board relations, she says, should be optimised for organisational decision-making. That means a ready flow of quality information, mutual trust and respectful practices between CEOs and their board. Nowhere is that more important than in the chair-CEO relationship, where there has to be an alignment of mission and goals in order to give your organisation a chance of success.

Although board culture and organisational culture are two different things, organisations often take their culture from the top – but that’s a lopsided approach. In reality, it’s your people who define your organisation’s character and culture, and it’s up to your board to create policies and practices that reflect your people’s needs. In fact, board members would benefit from shadowing members of the organisation to better understand the service users and organisational culture.

Replacing board members is a big challenge for many not-for-profits. Succession planning can be a particularly effective way of bringing in new leaders who understand the specific culture of a charitable organisation. Some third sector organisations have successfully used trial periods for board members to assess their fit for the role and give them the chance to embed themselves.

Too often, board members don’t work closely enough together, instead focusing on their individual area of the organisation. One easy way of getting the most out of each other is to share prompt and relevant information in advance of meetings, with clear indicators of what you hope to achieve, to ensure more effective collaboration.

Optimising volunteering strategy for greater impact

Time for Impact is a charity leadership consultancy that helps charities achieve maximum impact through volunteering and supporter participation. While it’s entirely understandable that donations take centre stage for charities in allowing them to provide their crucial services, Chris Wade is concerned that giving time isn’t valued in the same way as giving money. They need to treat volunteers in the same way they treat donors, he says, by bringing them through a lifecycle similar to that of donors.

The increase in the cost of living and caring duties mean the intention to volunteer is declining. People still want to help – the challenge is enabling them. Chris feels that charities need to think laterally in order to increase engagement, seeing volunteers as customers instead of resources. Young volunteers want to support purpose driven organisations. By designing opportunities from the participants’ perspective and building their personal experiences into that participation, charitable organisations can engage people on a personal level and attain a level of sympathy with their cause. Organisations can learn from the likes of Extinction Rebellion, GoodGym, Shift.MS and Parkrun when engaging their audience.

There will be some investment involved, but don’t think of it as an expenditure – think of it as a marketing challenge which will give you greater insight into your audience’s thought patterns and ultimately, provide you with the information you need to increase engagement.

The science of giving

David Jessop talked us through the 2023 World Giving Index, a report on giving trends around the world. Indonesia ranked first across the aggregated metrics of donation, helping and volunteering, while Ukraine ranked second. While Britain was ranked third in the world for donating money, it was 112th for helping a stranger. Could this indicate that the British are keen to help when they can donate through official means, confident that their donation will reach a deserving recipient, but are more cynical when it comes to helping someone they don’t know?

It’s interesting that immigrants were more likely than nationals to donate across the globe and religion correlates with a higher index score. Understanding people’s donating habits is key to understanding their thought processes and finding ways of engaging them in your activities. Surveys to understand your audience and targeted marketing campaigns aimed at different segments of your support base can help you get the right message to the right people, and engage those who are able to provide volunteering support.

Conclusion

For CEOs in the third sector, knowing your audience is incredibly important to managing your stakeholders, whether you’re looking to ensure more effective relations with your board or increase your volunteer base. If you’d like more advice on overcoming the challenges you face as a CEO, please get in touch with me.