THE LAST WORD
Fergus Finlay launches Chambers Ireland’s Corporate Social Responsibility Awards 2010.
VALUE IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP
He says he has learned that even in the charitable sector there is great value in being entrepreneurial in everything you do. “I want to offer a great product to the highest possible standard. In my world, this translates into something different but the principle is the same – I want to assure our funders that they are getting value for money. You need to focus on results rather than just respond to a need.” The recession has inevitably affected donations, particularly from corporate sponsors. “There is still great uncertainty in the commercial world. I have met many people who want to help but feel constrained. Individual contributions have improved because people realise that an extra €10 makes a much greater difference to us than it does to them, but at
“oNe of the thiNgs
we lost iN the boom
years was that
people became
obsessed with
possessioNs.”
corporate level, many businesses are bumping along the bottom of a trading curve and are not sure about the scale or timing of the upturn.” Despite this, Barnardos’ CEO remains upbeat. “I am convinced that if you are doing the best you can and working as hard as you can to deliver a value for money service, it has to pay off in the longer term. At the start of last year,
we made three promises – to do our best to ensure no one was turned away, that the quality of our work would be maintained and improved, and that every job in the organisation would be protected – and we managed to keep those promises. We are making the same promises in 2010 and the only thing that will really sustain that commitment is quality.”
MORE PROFESSIONAL VOLUNTEERS
He says there has been a notable change in public opinion towards volunteering in recent years, with a much greater number of professional people offering their skills on a voluntary basis – partly because they want to broaden their experience and don’t want to be idle, but also because they can see the personal and wider value of making a contribution. “One
InBusiness May 10 79
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