Charity partnerships aren't just for Christmas
From Rebecca Baron, Associate Director for Advocacy at Purpose Union.
Around this time of year, you might notice a theme to the ads you see on your social feeds or on your televisions. ‘Tis the season for retailers, brands, big businesses to show their support for important causes, and raise awareness through their partnerships with charities.
Historically, partnerships between charities and businesses have revolved around funding. NGOs have looked to businesses to provide restricted (or in some cases unrestricted) funding. Businesses in return benefit from employee engagement and brand reputational benefits through association with the charity. Sometimes these partnerships are limited to a particular appeal or time of year, rather than looking to build long term relationships.
While this model provides benefits, it ignores many other strengths and benefits that businesses and charities can bring each other. Some organisations have started to explore this. Samaritans have formed a long-term partnership with National Rail, in recognition of the (difficult) role trains and tracks play in suicides in the UK and the impact of this on employees. The partnership not only raised Samaritans’ profile and highlighted their services through some truly impactful media campaigns, but involved training and supporting National Rail staff in suicide prevention and interventions.
What makes this partnership interesting and effective is not just its longevity. The partnership centres on a common goal: preventing suicide. It is an issue that both parties are concerned with. The partnership recognises that each organisation has a unique role to play in achieving that goal - and that working together makes both of them better and more effective in tackling suicide.
This is a powerful template for private and third sector partnerships. Finding a partner that has values or issue areas that overlap with yours means that you can build impactful initiatives that far outweigh the simpler option of looking for who brings you the most awareness or funding. Building a partnership on a shared goal related to a social or environmental issue will deliver better results for both parties, and together these initiatives can be truly greater than the sum of their parts.
Business leaders should think more imaginatively about who they could partner with. What issues do you see cropping up in your work? What values do you and your employees share? Is there an organisation that has been critical of your operations that you could bring in to help drive change and build something better? The bolder the choice, the bigger the payoff.
Similarly, issue-based NGOs should think more strategically about who can help their cause in the long term. It’s not necessarily about who has the biggest and most flexible budgets to support your organisation. Who do you bump up against in the course of your work? Does a business hold the key to one of your campaign goals? Who could be an ally in the long term vision for your charity? Again, the bolder the choice, the bigger the payoff.
There are risks inherent in any partnership. It may seem even riskier to stray outside of the tried and tested funding paradigm. However, if constructed correctly, these partnerships have the most potential to bring about lasting change and to cement both partners’ reputations and standing as values-led, purposeful organisation. Holding values in common, a well-articulated shared goal, and defined roles that fit into the partnership theory of change give you the best foundation for success.
There has been a growing understanding that we all, no matter who we are or what our organisation does, have a role to play in bringing about environmental and social change. Driven by consumer preferences and greater accountability through technology, this growing understanding has also eroded the strict separation between the private and the third sectors. We know that people trust these coalitions of individuals, non-profits and organisations to take action. Strategic leaders must maximise this trend through bold and values-led partnerships tol drive change and with it, success for both partners.
Rebecca Baron is a strategic campaigner with more than a decade of activism experience across multiple issues including migrant and refugee justice, climate justice, LGBTQ rights and global inequality. She specialises in coalition building and narrative framing.
Purpose Union is a specialist social purpose strategy firm that works with clients to develop compelling arguments, build powerful coalitions, and devise winning campaigns to change the world for good.
Get in touch to find out more about partnerships, their benefits and how Purpose Union could support you: rebecca.baron@purposeunion.com.