Charity Impact
Alex Blake, KEDA Consulting
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Top 10 Charity Impact Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Charity Impact episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Charity Impact for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Charity Impact episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
08/07/23 • 49 min
This episode is brought to you by our friends at Purposely Podcast:
Established in 1988, DSC has been a trusted resource in the non-profit sector, providing vital research, high-quality training, and ongoing support to charity leaders and volunteers. In addition, DSC advocates on behalf of organisations facing tough challenges, from economic crises to the recent global pandemic.
With over two decades of leadership experience at DSC, Debra has played a crucial role in empowering charities to fulfil their missions despite limited resources and frequent obstacles. She proudly emphasises DSC's position as a sector leader, offering unique resources that remain relevant, even as competition has emerged. Debra also discusses the evolving nature of the sector, highlighting shifts in attitudes and approaches.
One example of this shift is the increasing transparency in funding practices. Debra recalls a time when DSC faced criticism from trusts and foundations for publishing their information in directories. Nowadays, organizations inquire why they haven't been included, indicating a sector-wide move toward openness.
DSC operates as a self-sustaining charity, generating revenue through resource sales. By reducing reliance on grants, Debra explains how DSC maintains the freedom to express its views and remain critical without concerns about offending funders or losing support. This financial independence enables DSC to stay true to its purpose.
Debra underscores the importance of staying connected to the core purpose of the work rather than becoming fixated on specific methods. This mindset has allowed her and the DSC team to continuously find innovative ways to support charities. Their agility and responsiveness to emerging needs have resulted in valuable services.
Throughout our conversation, Debra candidly shares her experiences as a leader at DSC. She openly acknowledges that she didn't have all the answers when she first joined the organisation and describes how her leadership approach has evolved over the years.
Debra believes that people tend to emulate what they observe as effective. She points out that traditional leadership and management followed a predominantly male and patriarchal paradigm, emphasizing growth and similar metrics. However, she highlights the success of alternative leadership styles that have emerged, challenging the old norms.
In leadership, the primary objective is to ensure team members are aligned with the vision. Authenticity lies in supporting and enabling individuals to bring out their best to achieve that shared vision. Debra emphasises the importance of distinguishing between being authentic to the leadership role and simply proclaiming, "This is me, take it or leave it," which is unsuitable for effective leadership.
Drawing from a powerful analogy, Debra passionately addresses the need for charities to go beyond providing temporary solutions and address the root causes of societal issues. She highlights the duty of charities to not only rescue people from the river but also go upstream and fix the source of the problem. While acknowledging that complete eradication of issues may be unattainable, she emphasises the importance of advocacy and voice in driving preventive measures.
The responsibility to lead the sector in the right direction is significant, but DSC's unwavering commitment to empowering organisations and fostering positive change has guided them for the past 20 years.
"Our focus has always been on helping organizations improve their practices and achieve their goals, whether it's fundraising, governance, leadership, or other vital areas."
“We must work as trustees to always act in the strategic because we are not close enough to the work to know what to do at an operational level and the moment we think we do is the moment we are failing.”
Sufina Ahmad MBE on philanthropy, grantmaking, charity leadership & governance, and developing strategy in complex and changing environments.
In this episode, I speak to Sufina Ahmad about her impressive career progression, learning and development, charity governance and leadership, philanthropy, grantmaking and developing strategy in complex and changing environments.
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
Sufina Ahmad MBE, Director, John Ellerman Foundation
As Director of the John Ellerman Foundation, Sufina works closely with trustees, staff and stakeholders, including grantees, to ensure all aspects of the Foundation’s strategy, governance and grantmaking work is delivered effectively.
Before joining the Foundation, Sufina worked in corporate strategy and performance at the City of London Corporation. She has also worked for the National Lottery Community Fund and City Bridge Trust in grantmaking, strategy and policy roles. Sufina started her career in service delivery and business development roles for charities working with adults with learning disabilities and older people.
Sufina holds trusteeships with Just for Kids Law, We Belong, The Charterhouse and the Association of Charitable Foundations. Sufina is an honorary Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, having chaired their Expert Panel on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. Sufina was awarded an MBE for charitable services in 2020.
For other episodes covering these and similar themes, check out:
Mark Lever - CEO experiences, leadership, training...
Dee Brecker - fundraising, strategy, DEI, culture...
Amanda Batten - CEO experience, strategy, campaigning, collaboration...
Chris Sherwood - Leadership, strategy, change, innovation...
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to increase their income and impact.
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
Radical social change with Alex Fox OBE, Charity CEO
Charity Impact
04/11/23 • 58 min
“Ask what a good life looks like rather than what a good service looks like.”
“How we work is as important as what we do as charities.”
“We could be approaching some really radical changes in the charity sector, which we should be excited about.”
This conversation includes:
- Finding alternatives to traditional social care
- Shared Lives and Homeshare
- Alex’s book, ‘A new health and care system: Escaping the invisible asylum’
- The VCSE review
- Strengths and asset based approaches in health and social care
- The Mayday Trust’s approach
- Human Learning Systems
- Power dynamics in the charity sector
- The potential for some radical changes in the sector.
Alex Fox OBE is CEO of Mayday Trust, which offers strengths-based coaching to people going through tough times like being homeless, and works with organisations and local areas to replace our broken support systems, through the New System Alliance.
Previously, Alex led Shared Lives Plus, the UK network for Shared Lives and Homeshare. Alex sits on the NHS Assembly and was Vice Chair of Think Local, Act Personal, developing the Asset Based Area model. He is a trustee of Alternative Futures Group, Honorary Senior Fellow, Birmingham University, a Human Learning Systems associate and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
He chaired the government’s review of health and care charities (2015-18), the Social Care Learning disability & Autism Advisory Group and co-founded the Social Care Innovation Network. Alex is author of A new health and care system: Escaping the invisible asylum, and Meeting as Equals on building asset-based charities. He was awarded an OBE in 2017.
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If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
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The Charity Impact podcast is the in-depth podcast for people working in the charity / non-profit sector, or more broadly to achieve social impact and/or social change.
We cover a range of charity sector issues and topics including strategy, funding and philanthropy, social impact, learning and evaluation, income generation and fundraising, governance and more.
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For episode notes with links to resources and organisations mentioned in this episode, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
For the opportunity to submit questions to future guests, sign up to our e-mails via the banner at the top of the website.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us by e-mail at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
Follow the Charity Impact Podcast:
Twitter: @CharityImpactPd
LinkedIn: @Charity Impact Podcast
Facebook: @Charity Impact Podcast
Follow our host, Alex Blake:
Twitter: @alexblake_KEDA
LinkedIn: @Alex Blake
Past guests on the Charity Impact Podcast include:
Ross McCulloch – Founder, Third Sector Lab: digital for charities, harnessing technology for social impact.
Nick Temple – CEO, Social Investment Business: social investment, social enterprise, social value.
Derek Bardowell – CEO, Ten Years’ Time: funding racial justice and social change, systemic challenges, new funders and changemakers.
Emma Beeston – Philanthropy Advisor: philanthropy advice, impact measurement, choosing charities to support, funding trends.
Rhodri Davies – Director, Why Philanthropy Matters: philanthropy, impact and effectiveness, tech trends.
Sufina Ahmad MBE – Director, John Ellerman Foundation: philanthropy, grantmaking, leadership, governance, strategy.
Chris Sherwood – CEO, RSPCA: innovation, service improvement, governance, strategy, professional development.
07/25/23 • 48 min
Keywords: Innovation, Programme Lifecycle, Impact Evaluation, Partnerships, Social Enterprise, Winning Scotland, Charity, Social Change, Board Champions.
Description: Can you imagine crafting a future where children are not just surviving their circumstances but thriving in them? That's precisely what Zahra Hedges, the dynamic CEO of Winning Scotland, is striving to achieve. In our engrossing chat, Zahra opens up about the charity’s ambitious mission to revolutionize Scotland’s social fabric, focusing on empowering children and young people to develop resilience and confidence. We dissect their approach and discuss Zahra’s experience of moving from running her own business to supporting social enterprises to being charity CEO. We also discuss the importance of getting the most out of your board of trustees.
Zahra Hedges
Zahra Hedges is CEO of Winning Scotland. Before that she worked for the Scottish Government in children and young people's mental health, and the CEIS Group where Zahra supported social enterprises. Zahra is also an advisor to Samtaler, which helps large companies to create social value, a board member of community justice organisation SACRO and a mentor with MCR Pathways and Pilotlight.
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If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
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The Charity Impact Podcast aims to help you increase your charity’s income and impact by sharing the experience and expertise of our guests.
Whatever your role or level of experience, we think you’ll be inspired and informed by our guests who are absolutely the stars of the show!
We aim to showcase a diverse range of guests, including people whose voices have been less heard as well as established leaders in our field.
So, whether you are CEO, fundraiser, trustee, manager, practitioner, funder, or any other flavour of social leader, welcome to the Charity Impact Podcast!
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For episode notes with links to resources and organisations mentioned in this episode, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
For the opportunity to submit questions to future guests, sign up to our e-mails via the banner at the top of the website.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us by e-mail at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
Follow the Charity Impact Podcast:
Twitter: @CharityImpactPd
LinkedIn: @Charity Impact Podcast
Facebook: @Charity Impact Podcast
Follow our host, Alex Blake:
Twitter: @alexblake_KEDA
LinkedIn: @Alex Blake
“Unless you can show and evidence that you are a truly inclusive organisation, you do not have the right to ask someone to bring their ‘whole self’ to work.”
Dee Brecker is currently Deputy Director of High Value Fundraising at Guys and St Thomas’ Charity. Dee has previously held senior roles in philanthropy, fundraising and communications at a range of interesting organisations including the LSE, Carers UK, Sense and the Department of Health. Dee’s also been a trustee, a chair, a consultant and is a qualified coach.
I know Dee because we’ve worked together a couple of times directly and because we try to stay in touch when we’re not working together. I see Dee as an excellent fundraiser and relationship builder, importantly an organisational navigator, a thinker, strategist and an articulate communicator.
Dee has some great insights to share. We discuss recruitment, from both sides; working in and across organisations of differing sizes; diversity and inclusion – finding the confidence to speak up, demonstrate diversity in leadership and fighting to recruit more diverse teams; the benefits of informal catch ups with peers; asking beneficiaries to donate; strategy development; working with consultants and agencies; facilitation; and coaching.
For episode notes, links and other guests, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, which provides strategic consultancy support to charities. KEDA is led by Alex Blake who works as a management consultant, specifically for charities and non-profits in the UK, with the aim of maximising social impact. We help charities to be as effective as possible in delivering their charitable objectives through developing strategy and plans; securing funding; undertaking reviews; and a range of other consulting projects involving research, analysis, facilitation and reporting.
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
Ed Archer on co-production; shifting power; and diversity and inclusion issues in the charity sector. (#6)
Charity Impact
10/12/22 • 78 min
“It is better to do great work that nobody knows about, authentically, that makes a real difference to the community you are working with, than to say all the right things but to let down that person that comes through your door.”
Ed Archer on co-production; shifting power; and diversity and inclusion issues in the charity sector. (#6)
In this episode, our main focus is on co-production and shifting power to people with lived expertise / lived experience. We also discuss diversity and inclusion issues in the sector, particularly through the lens of class; and Ed shares some great examples and practical advice on inclusive recruitment practice (this is around 28 minutes in).
Our guest is Ed Archer, Head of Service Design and Delivery at Toynbee Hall.
Ed has previously been interim Policy & Campaigns Director at Ambitious about Autism, Director of the SEND Consortium, the National Strategic Lead for Children & Young People at Mencap, and is a member of the Council For Disabled Children Partnership Board.
Those job titles are all a bit of a mouthful but basically what Ed does and knows really well is helping charities to listen to and work alongside the people they serve, finding ways to build fairness and transfer of power into ways of working across service delivery, campaigning, recruitment and more. Its about designing systems and structures that serve communities in the way they want and need.
For episode notes, links and other episodes, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail me at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to develop strategy, secure funding and navigate a range of challenges and opportunities.
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
“I find time and again that it's the quiet leaders that have the skills and capacities that we need; they've got the ability to sense make, to relate, to vision, to invent. They're often the people who are doing the hard work and the necessary background work through which we can form these building blocks that we need to dismantle the oppression or the injustices that we currently find ourselves facing.”
Sufina Ahmad MBE on grantmaking changes during Covid; racial equity; reimagining the art of the possible; and leadership capabilities. (#5)
Sufina Ahmad MBE, Director, John Ellerman Foundation
As Director of the John Ellerman Foundation, Sufina works closely with trustees, staff and stakeholders, including grantees, to ensure all aspects of the Foundation’s strategy, governance and grantmaking work is delivered effectively.
This inbetween-isode features a clip from our 2021 event on grantmaking trends, where Sufina spoke about her personal reflections of leading John Ellerman Foundation since starting the role in January 2020 as well as what this period has meant for the grant making sector and what might come next.
Sufina’s insightful and inspiring talk covers leadership in the sector as well as some of the big issues for grantmakers around power, transparency and equity; how the response to Covid-19 has improved grantmaking practice; increased focus on diversity, equity and inclusion and re-energised the art of the possible.
For episode notes, links and other guests, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, where I help charities to develop strategy, secure funding and make decisions to navigate the various challenges and opportunities we face in the sector.
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
09/20/22 • 73 min
“If there was one thing I could change about the sector it would be the diversity of trustee boards”
Paul Nott – how to recruit and retain the best staff for your charity. (#4)
Paul Nott is a consultant helping charities to improve staff recruitment and retention.
For the last year almost, Paul has been offering consultancy to organisations to improve their internal systems to both attract new staff and, as importantly, to retain the good people they already have.
Paul is also a coach, helping individuals and teams to develop their careers, create their own definitions of success and plan achievable steps to make them happen.
Prior to this Paul has been a recruitment consultant specialising in fundraising, marketing and senior roles in the sector for the last 16 years and has also been a fundraiser, a charity founder and a trustee.
In this episode, we discuss charity sector recruitment and retention in some detail – the challenges and solutions; tips for learning and development; career advice and more.
For episode notes, links and other guests, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, which provides strategic consultancy support to charities. KEDA is led by Alex Blake who works as a management consultant, specifically for charities and non-profits in the UK, with the aim of maximising social impact. We help charities to be as effective as possible in delivering their charitable objectives through developing strategy and plans; securing funding; undertaking reviews; and a range of other consulting projects involving research, analysis, facilitation and reporting.
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
“What helps or hinders us is us, it’s how we are, managing stress and conflict, how resilient we are. Coaching has been really helpful in shining a light on those things.”
Amanda Batten, CEO of Contact - the charity for families with disabled children – strategist; campaigner; Agatha Christie fan; collaborator; and occasionally ‘a bit of a martyr’. (#3)
Amanda Batten is Chief Executive of Contact, the charity for families with disabled children and chair of the Disabled Children’s Partnership campaign. Amanda was previously director of external affairs at the National Autistic Society (NAS). While there she led a multi-award winning campaign to secure the Autism Act, the first ever condition-specific legislation. She played a key role supporting the development of autism strategies in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Amanda studied Economics and Politics at Birmingham University and holds an MSc Voluntary Sector Management from Bayes Business School.
In this episode, we discuss a range of topics including the experience of becoming a Charity CEO; coaching; campaigning; diary management to maximise energy flow; Agatha Christie for recovery; the power of feedback and remembering to be less ‘martyrish’.
For episode notes, links and other guests, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can e-mail hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk or tweet @alexblake_KEDA
This Podcast is brought to you by KEDA Consulting, which provides strategic consultancy support to charities. KEDA is led by Alex Blake who works as a management consultant, specifically for charities and non-profits in the UK, with the aim of maximising social impact. We help charities to be as effective as possible in delivering their charitable objectives through developing strategy and plans; securing funding; undertaking reviews; and a range of other consulting projects involving research, analysis, facilitation and reporting.
The purpose of the Charity Impact podcast is to learn more about how effective charities and individuals achieve social change or social impact. This podcast is for anyone who wants to make a difference, but particularly those who are working for social change / impact; including charity trustees, CEOs, staff, volunteers, advisors, philanthropists and public service professionals.
06/20/23 • 20 min
We're thrilled to have Anne Fry, CEO of Eating Distress Northeast, join us as she shares the experience of her first 100 days in a charity CEO role.
Anne describes how she prepared for the role and what the priorities have been in the first few months. Anne shares the three questions she asked all staff and trustees; the support she has accessed and the focus required in year one.
Episode keywords:
Charity CEO, First 100 days, Eating Distress, VCSE Sector, Frontline Charity, Mental Health, Leadership, Strategy, Organizational Resilience, Support Network.
Chapters:
[00:00:00] - Transition from Deputy to Chief Executive
[00:06:03] - First 100 Days as CEO
[00:12:19] - Increasing need
[00:11:10] - Strategy
[00:14:00] - Support networks for new CEOs
Anne Fry, CEO Eating Distress North East
Anne joined Eating Distress North East as Chief Executive in October 2022 from VONNE where she was the Deputy Chief Executive for three years.
Anne is also Chair of the Board of Trustees at Rape Crisis and a trustee at WWiN domestic abuse services in Sunderland.
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If you enjoy the podcast, please do follow us and leave a rating / review.
*
The Charity Impact Podcast aims to help you increase your charity’s income and impact by sharing the experience and expertise of our guests.
Whatever your role or level of experience, we think you’ll be inspired and informed by our guests who are absolutely the stars of the show!
We aim to showcase a diverse range of guests, including people whose voices have been less heard as well as established leaders in our field.
So, whether you are CEO, fundraiser, trustee, manager, practitioner, funder, or any other flavour of social leader, welcome to the Charity Impact Podcast!
*
For episode notes with links to resources and organisations mentioned in this episode, please visit https://www.kedaconsulting.co.uk/charity-impact-podcast/
For the opportunity to submit questions to future guests, sign up to our e-mails via the banner at the top of the website.
If you have any questions, feedback or enquiries regarding the podcast, you can reach us by e-mail at hello@kedaconsulting.co.uk
Follow the Charity Impact Podcast:
Twitter: @CharityImpactPd
LinkedIn: @Charity Impact Podcast
Facebook: @Charity Impact Podcast
Follow our host, Alex Blake:
Twitter: @alexblake_KEDA
LinkedIn: @Alex Blake
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FAQ
How many episodes does Charity Impact have?
Charity Impact currently has 35 episodes available.
What topics does Charity Impact cover?
The podcast is about Non-Profit, Society & Culture, Podcasts and Business.
What is the most popular episode on Charity Impact?
The episode title 'Sufina Ahmad MBE on grantmaking changes during Covid; racial equity; reimagining the art of the possible; and 4 leadership capabilities. (#5)' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Charity Impact?
The average episode length on Charity Impact is 52 minutes.
How often are episodes of Charity Impact released?
Episodes of Charity Impact are typically released every 13 days, 23 hours.
When was the first episode of Charity Impact?
The first episode of Charity Impact was released on Aug 18, 2022.
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