Making Business Partnerships Work for You - Chain Reaction 2009

Making Business Partnerships Work

for you Fiona Rawes, Heart of the City

Burger Edwards, Cambridge House

14:00 – 15:30

What next?

• Fiona Rawes, Director, Heart of the City• Burger Edwards, Director of Business Planning,

Cambridge House

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Making business partnerships work for you

Newcomers Contributors

Workshops Mentoring

Materials Signposting

The Newcomers’ ProgrammeHeart of the City Newcomer Programme

What next?

Who we are

What are the preoccupations of businesses?

Where does this leave you? • Practical case study – Cambridge House• Top tips – Heart of the City

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Plans for this session

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I’ve had a lot of ExperienceOf 3rd Sector/Corporate partnerships

Who are you???

I’ve virtually no experience of 3rd Sector/Corporate partnerships

What next?

• Write down one adjective to describe your experience of corporate community partnerships

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Who are you???

What next?

“a company's positive impact on society and the environment through

• its operations, products or services and through• its interaction with key stakeholders such as

employees, customers, investors and suppliers”

Business in the Community: www.bitc.org.uk

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What is CSR??

What next?

“how business takes account of its economic, social and environmental impacts in the way it operates – maximising the benefits and minimising the downsides.”

“specifically……the voluntary actions that business can take, over and above

compliance with minimum legal requirements, to address both its own competitive interests and the interests of wider society.”

(csr.gov.uk)

See also: www.smallbusinessjourney.com for good definitions

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What is CR??

What next?

“The UK Government approach is to encourage and incentivise the adoption of Corporate Responsibility, through best practice guidance, and where appropriate, regulation and fiscal incentives.

Specifically, we see CR as the voluntary actions that business can take, over and above compliance with minimum legal requirements, to address both its own competitive interests and the interests of wider society.”

(BIS website)

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What is Corporate Responsibility?

What we will cover in workshop 3What is CR?

How are you engaging with the community?

How ethical are your suppliers?

What is the social or environmental impact of your product/service?

How socially responsible are your investment & your procurement policies?

How transparent are your corporate governance procedures?

What impact do you make upon the environment, both through your internal activities as well as through your external operations?

Are you promoting adequate work-life balance to your workforce?

How diverse are your staff & how robust is your equal opportunities policy?

What we will cover in workshop 3What is CCI?: the most visible aspect of CR?

Supporting staff fundraising by matching staff fundraising with corporate donations up to a capped limit

Volunteering: sharing skills eg IT, finance, legal, HR, marketing etcmentoring, team challenges

Sourcing of products and services locally

providing workplace visits and work placements for local people & undertaking local recruitment

Providing training and education for local people

Enabling staff to give via the payroll ('payroll giving')

Making Corporate donations to selected charities

Giving PC's & office equipment

What we will cover in workshop 3Business benefits of CR

Develop the skills of your staff at all

levels

Manage Risk – EnvironmentalGovernance etc

Recruit and retain talented staff

Win business

Enhance your reputation

What we will cover in workshop 3What is CR?

How are you engaging with the community?

How ethical are your suppliers?

What is the social or environmental impact of your product/service?

How socially responsible are your investment & your procurement policies?

How transparent are your corporate governance procedures?

What impact do you make upon the environment, both through your internal activities as well as through your external operations?

Are you promoting adequate work-life balance to your workforce?

How diverse are your staff & how robust is your equal opportunities policy?

CR cuts across a range of functions

IT

Human ResourcesCommunity affairs

Government affairs

Facilities management

Business Operations

Marketing & Comms

CR cuts across a range of functions

What does this mean?

Political

Economic

Social

Technological

• Leadership is increasingly engaged in the CR agenda• CR function reports into senior leaders• More pressure to report social and environmental systems and

management• More adept at setting criteria re what will and won’t support• More pressure to demonstrate business case for engagement

CR is increasingly professionalised

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Right now, I’ve never been more optimistic about the role of CR in City life

If I’m really honest, I wonder whether this City CR community will still be here in 2 years time

What about the recession?

So what are Mike’s challenges within this context?

IT

Human ResourcesCommunity affairs

Government affairs

FacilitiesBusiness Operations

Marketing & Comms

So what might be Mike’s challenges be within this context?

What does this mean?

Political

Economic

Social

Technological

• Leadership engagement• Securing middle management buy-in• Maintaining momentum• Linking up across functions• Reporting effectively • Selling business case at all stages

The CR Manager’s challenges

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • Don’t underestimate their value; they may be easier to access and have fewer established relationships

Top Tip #1 – Smaller and newer businesses

Get the right people you know asking

the right people in the company for

the right type of support (not just money!).

Top Tip #2 – Map your route into the company

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • Use the same language the business uses• Make a clear fit between its criteria for

engagement and what you have to offer

Top Tip #3 – show you’ve done your research

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • What can the company offer you beyond money?• Products

• Resources

• Skills

• Communications Channels?

Develop a menu which accommodates as many of these as possible

Top Tip # 4 : develop a menu

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • Businesses are interested in collaborations – particularly with their clients and suppliers

Top Tip #5 – Show who else you are working with

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How Don’t underestimate the value of your local knowledge

• short cuts around key local issues • access to key local players

Top Tip #6 – Local knowledge

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • Don’t spend a disproportionate amount of time talking about the need for your services

Top Tip #7 – Balance your pitch appropriately

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • Keep it pithy

4,000 children call ChildLine each day, but lack of funds means that only 1,800 can get through. For barely more than the cost of one pint of beer a month, you can help us towards our goal of answering every child in need, the first time they call.”

Top Tip #8 – The NEED

Understand the public policy agenda the company faces. How • Show how your work achieves impact (the company will want to show how it has played its part in this)

• Think about : - social impacts (lives changed) - economic impacts (savings made to the

economy as a result of your collaboration)

Leverage

Top Tip #9 - impact

•On time•To budget•With the right impact

Top Tip #10 – Deliver what you’ve promised

•If you can’t report back beautifully, how can the business expect to?

Top Tip #11 – report back beautifully

Top Tip #12 – don’t be in too much of a rush

•Interest

•Engagement

•Commitment

Making business partnerships work for you.

Chain Reaction – Nov ‘09

Burger EdwardsDirector: Business and Finance

About Cambridge House…….

• Law Centre• Advocacy and Advice• LINk host• Nursery• Community Development• Young People• Learning Disabilities• Community Resource Centre•Landlord………………………..

Our perspective…………….• Longstanding relationship with Macfarlanes• Core business not property management• Buildings in desperate need of repair• Once repaired – still no skills / knowledge• Suspicion of Trustees and staff• Future options• My perspective….......................................................................get the “best person” for the job

How did we get started?.........• Heart of the City• City Action• “Broker” is key!• Cambridge House – Needs reflected BEL main

core business: based in a number of terraced Georgian properties - in need of

major repair require health and safety training, IT and financial expertise landlord advice due to a number of tenants residing in the

properties. • Opportunity to use property management skills

for social good

Why Broadgate Estates?.................

Broadgate Estates• Property experts• True landlord• Managing buildings is their forte• Building security experts• ITC skilled people on staff• New buildings• Employ people from deprived

areas• Manages £90m in building

maintenance and management• The building experts• Project management stage

involvement• Best practice• Economies of scale

Cambridge House• No property skills• Crap landlord• Less competent in managing

buildings• Building security illiterate• ITC skills almost non-existent• Old buildings• Serve people in deprived areas• Largest spend in its 120 year

existence• No building experience• No building project experience

…………………the initial agreement.

•4 hours per month

▫ IT contract advise/guidance▫ Property Security Audit▫ Health & Safety Training course (IOSH)▫ List of free events at More London

Where are we at………………..

•“Leveraged” their supply chain•Part of their business• IT support contract•Cleaning contract procurement•HR software package•Key holding service•Property security•Total monetary value in excess of £ 200k

Challenges…………..

• Engage leadership on both sides Highest level of “buy-in” MD and CEO keep contact CEO addressed Board MD addressed Trustees

• Regular meetings and updates CSR Champions Progress Wishes Expectations Possibilities

• Other staff members involved Challenging in itself Matching of skills Understanding of involvement Long term involvement guaranteed

Tips……………………………………….

• Not about “money”• Do your homework / research! • Long term relationship• Honesty• Equal partners• Champion in each organisation• Don’t rush• Be clever• Match available skills with skills needed!