Another tough year for fundraisers but thankfully another year means another Chartered Institute Fundraising Convention to attend. An event that gives me something to look forward to annually. The commute from Scotland and the overly warm London Underground journeys over the 2 days were made totally worth it when I arrived at the QEII Centre and saw the swarm of friendly fundraising faces and volunteers in green t-shirts ready to welcome me to Fundraising Convention.
I attended a variety of sessions across the programme tracks and as I reflect over my highlights, I review the impact the event has on my personal and professional development.
Hearing findings from MacMillan on restructuring ‘Regional Fundraising’ teams into ‘Relationship Fundraising’ with stats to prove personalisation can deliver exceptional ROI was a great confirmation of what I feel Scottish fundraisers and fundraisers for smaller charities have long believed.
There were lots of interactive sessions including Kevin Kibble FCIOF giving 5 minutes on the clock to write thank you letters, Dr Mark Hughes had me drawing my inner chimp to identify my fixed mindset and develop a growth mindset, the Fundraising Detectives used a rather questionable campaign video to make compliance fun! It all balanced out with the sensible and informative sessions such as Gerald Oppenheim delivering the Fundraising Regulator’s strategy and review of the code.
Having gone through a recent bereavement I decided to attend several In-memory/Legacy sessions and I was moved by the innovative stories of how charities continue to come up with new products and improvements for engagement.
A key moment for me was hearing Katie Docherty, the Chartered Institute of Fundraising’s CEO, acknowledge how challenging our jobs are, how challenging our lives might be, and how frustrating it is not to feel recognised or valued in our profession – but how the Chartered Institute plan to champion our careers and support us as individuals. The motivational speech combined with the celebrations of the 40th anniversary of the Chartered Institute was truly inspiring.
You don’t appreciate how much you need peer support and a good blether until you are surrounded by hundreds of people who “just get it” when you want to share challenges or successes of your day job. Convention allows opportunity for networking professionally and for me it has brought some genuine friendships into my life. I remain proud to be a fundraiser, a volunteer and member of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising.
Here is a photo of myself, Tom Dixon and Emily Casson who have the privilege of being ‘Chair of Chairs’ across all the Regions, Nations and Special Interest groups for the Chartered Institute, it was just what I needed to be able to attend convention and see these wonderful people in person.