Coping with Crisis - a Live and Interactive Workshop
Universities face crises and threats to their reputation at any time. On-campus emergencies, academic controversies and student misdemeanours are played out in the full glare of the 24/7 media environment. As a communications professional, you need to be up to the challenge of providing the best advice in an instant and manage crises that can reach well beyond the traditional Press Office. In this fully interactive session, you will face a simulated live incident where you can hone your communication and crisis management skills. Working with fellow delegates, you will develop your responses to press, social media, staff and students as the incident unfolds. Sharing experiences and testing yourself, this session will have pulses racing and nerves stretched - a 'must do' session for any senior communicator.
Justin K. Shaw, Chief Higher Education Consultant, Communications Management Tim Watkinson, Director, Communications and Advocacy, University of Nottingham
Session: Workshop Level: Senior
The Best or Worst of Times?
In these turbulent times marketing leaders need to take their place at the top tables in our Universities. Understanding and utilising data to make better strategic decisions will help make this happen. When sector data, audience insight and new technology combine the results are game-changing. SMRS and dataHE will show delegates how to understand and utilise all this data to identify future opportunities and explore practical ways to deliver more effective strategic marketing campaigns.
Andrew Hargreaves,Founder, DataHE Dan Beynon, Head of Education, SMRS Jane Chafer, Director of Communications and Corporate Affairs, Exeter(Chair)
Session: Panel Discussion Level: Senior
Communications Showcase
Alicia O'Grady, Director, External Relations, University of Bristol Philip Pothen, Associate Director of Communications, De Montford University
Well-being Fringe Events
Helios Yoga and Wellbeing with Helen Sanderson
Start you day the right way with some morning yoga - take some time out for yourself ahead of a busy day of sessions and networking. Mats will be provided, sign up beforehand is required as numbers are limited. Sessions will run in Hall 8a in the ICC from 07:00 - 08-00 on Wednesday and Thursday.
Lunchtime mindfullness with Ruth Hickinbotham MFHT MNCH (Reg.) HPD IIHHT ART (Regd)
Our 10 minute informal mindfulness sessions will allow you some time and space to relax, unwind and recharge your batteries.
During our short sessions we will be taking some time to pause and clear our minds with visualisation and bringing focus to our breath and body.
We welcome those who would like to experience mindfulness for the first time along with those that have practised before.
If you are considering practising mindfulness on a regular basis, benefits include improved health and well-being, focus, concentration, resilience, communication, memory and reduced anxiety, depression & stress.
Well-being sessions
Attracting and Engaging the Best Talent in a Transforming World – Building Your Employer Brand and Enhancing Employee Pride
Universities are hotbeds of creativity, innovation and brilliance. They offer amazing opportunities for rewarding careers in countless specialisms. But it can be a challenge to attract the best people to consider a career in Higher Education, and to ensure that they engage with your university once they arrive.
In this session you'll be taken on the University of Warwick’s employer brand journey, then discover how Solent University has enhanced employee engagement and sense of pride through its Love Solent campaign.
You’ll then take part in a workshop to discuss how we can pull together as a sector to help build the profile of careers in HE, and promote a sense of pride among our existing and new employees.
Claire McCann, Brand Manager, The University of Warwick Jessica Gow, Senior Comms Advisor, Solent University Rosie Inman, Communications Advisor, Solent University Sally Sykes, Director of Communications and Marketing, The University of Manchester
Session: Presentation and Workshop Level: Mid-career
Is Your Goodbye as Good as Your Hello? Final Year Transition, Graduate Wellbeing & Gos Engagement Strategy
Learn how a chance encounter with a bunch of (actual) clowns inspired what has become LJMU's very first Grad Fest; a university-wide event for final year students, created in consultation with final year students and recent graduates.
As HE professionals, we recognise the need to constantly look for ways to improve the student experience, while we talk about the student journey as a continuum, which absolutely includes our alumni. Despite this focus, there is a noticeable gap when we reach the point where HEIs support and prepare our final year students for the practical realities of life after their last exam has been completed and dissertation submitted.
Kerry Rickarby, Alumni Engagement Manager, Liverpool John Moores University
Track: Schools and Small Shops
Session: Lecture
Level: Senior
Digital Innovation showcase
Innovation showcase – Digital Marketing
Come along for a fast-paced presentation that keeps speakers concise and you inspired. Our three speakers will present cutting edge ideas and best-practice from within and outside the sector.
1. Unboxing academia- working with social media influencers to communicate research
At a time when the reach and influence of the traditional media is less dominant and the opportunities presented by social media are becoming more established, this session will explore how can university communications teams can move beyond media relations and work with subject-specific influencers to share content and research across their powerful, established communities, communicating university research to an audience beyond academia.
Hannah Postles, Media Relations Officer,The University of Sheffield
2. Hi, my name is: Why personalisation is the key to effective relationships
Personalisation is incredibly disruptive to universities. Not only does it demand resource and knowledge, but also an awareness of the environment in which we work, where we are competing against the services provided by multinational conglomerates who seem know everything about us. This session will explore the ways that personalisation is reshaping the Higher Education landscape and redefining how we engage with our key stakeholders, showcased through real-world examples from both HEIs and the commercial sector.
Jonathan Williams, CRM, Creative Services and Content Manager Keele University
3. 2019 is the year of the podcast – here’s why Higher Ed needs to be involved
You can’t help but notice that everyone is starting a podcast right now. In the last 12 months we’ve seen a range of big hitters join the audio playground – from Love Island through to Mark Zuckerberg, the agency Social Chain has started its own podcast network and companies like the BBC and Spotify are making podcasting a keystone of their future planning. But, the big question has to be this; why aren’t Universities jumping on the bandwagon?
In this session, renowned podcast consumer and creator Dave Musson will set out the case for podcasting in the sector. He’ll explain exactly why this is a space Universities need to be part of, he’ll offer some ideas of how you can do it and he’ll flag some shows that are already killing it. He will also keep you on track and highlight a bunch of reason why you shouldn’t start a podcast and he’ll probably try and plug at least one of his own shows too – sorry about that.
Dave Musson, Head of Community and Content, The Access Platform
This invigorating group session offers you the unique opportunity to take part in a singing workshop under the expert guidance and tuition of RADA's singing coach. You'll learn about pitch and volume, tune and harmony, choreography and movement and the importance of working towards presenting your work to an audience. Skills that are fun and energising but also applicable to our professional lives.
The group will experience an enormous sense of achievement after the piece is performed and will continue encourage a 'can do' and supportive attitude back in the workplace
Tom Wakeley, Tutor, RADA
Off the Cuff: Unlocking creativity and being in the moment
This fun-packed, creative and practical session will teach you the building blocks of creativity and improvisation. Through a series of reactive, fun games and exercises, the group will be shown how to let go of fear, take risks and get into a creative mode. By understanding how improvisation truly works, the group will discover what unlocks creativity and what they can do to unlock creativity in others. The session will show the group how to get 'into the zone' of performance, building techniques that will enable you to perform for when the focus is on you.
Kate Walker Miles, Tutor, RADA
Communicating Research Reputation Internationally Through Campaigns
By launching integrated online and offline campaigns The University of Manchester has successfully expanded their sector-leading research beacons campaign to reach international audiences. Using Graphene as a focus (the isolation of which led to two Manchester academics being awarded Nobel Prizes), this presentation will explain what they’ve done, how they’ve done it, the benefits of campaigning and why they are now taking this approach to enhance their global reputation.
Vicky Taylor-Plane, Communications and Marketing Manager, The University of Manchester Valerie Essien, International Campaigns Coordinator, The University of Manchester James Tallentire, Communications and Marketing Manager, The University of Manchester
Track: Marketing, Communications and Recruitment
Session: Presentation Level: Mid-career
Becoming World Class for Student Engagement
So much effort goes into recruiting your students and then keeping in touch with them as alumni but what about WHILE they’re with you? With increased fees, student satisfaction ratings and more feedback (including via social media) “student engagement” is now a hot priority across Europe. How are you involving and enthusing your students? How well are you creating a sense of identity, belonging and advocacy? This session explores what it means to be ‘world class’ at student engagement, citing the key ingredients and the best practice from the world of education and beyond and considering the role of marketing and communications professionals in getting it right.
Michael Lavery, CEO, Brand and Reputation Justin Shaw, Chief Higher Education Consultant, Communications Management
Track: Marketing, Communications and Recruitment
Session: Lecture Level: Senior
Thinking Global - Collaborating for Success
For many years, the alumni team at the University of Kent have recognised the impact that alumni can have on student recruitment and conversion, telling their stories and sharing the experiences that made Kent so very special to them.
Over the past year, this has fed in to the collaborative development of a series of events and academic activities showcasing current internationalisation and global engagement being carried out by the University of Kent both in the UK and abroad – the Think Kent Global Showcase.
Each Global Showcase celebrates a specific region or set of countries and follows a variety of exciting activities from across our students, staff, alumni and international partners across the globe and at home, and connects with the recent success of the online Think Kent video series, which presents the research and teaching of the University’s globally-minded and experienced academics in bite-size video form.
This panel discussion will highlight lessons learned along the way to this collaborative partnership, how working together has transformed the impact of our collective departmental budgets, and how alumni are playing a role in supporting recruitment and partnerships to show tangible impacts on University priorities.
Julia Baxter, Alumni Relations and Supporter Engagement Manager, University of Kent Anthony Manning, Dean for Internationalisation, University of Kent
Save the Data - Building a Compelling Case for Your Events
Events are a critical part of your organisation's communications mix, deployed and delivered well they will help you reach your strategic aims. Yet so often we don’t see them as part of a wider organisational strategy we see them as an add on, a nice to have or something that we should just do.
In this masterclass Rachael, Chief Operating Officer of Wonkhe, will share insights on what data we can use when making a case for, or indeed against, events and how we know something has worked. We will discuss how to build a successful events programme which not only complements the organisational strategy it leads and enhances it.
She will talk about the key building blocks to an events portfolio such developing budgets, 1-3-5 year strategy, developing KPIs and how evidence can help. In the session we will discuss why and when you should use events, how you recognise, and play to, your organisational strengths and working with partners and sponsors. We will also address that event elephant in the room of when we should not use an event and when the evidence suggests you should be focusing your resources elsewhere.
Drawing on her experience in the corporate, not for profit and higher education sectors within organisations such as Universities UK, ITV, NUS, Emap and currently Wonkhe, she will talk about how she has developed diverse events portfolios and successful teams to deliver them. How she has done this with and without budget and how she has won organisational support for developing events.
This session is for everyone who has events as part of their communication mix and is keen to develop them into a more powerful and effective channel. It will provide lots of practical tips and advice which can be taken back to your organisation and put into practice.
Rachael Firth, Chief Operating Officer, Wonkhe
Track: Alumni Relations
Session: Lecture
Level: Mid-career to Senior
Koc University 25th Anniversary Celebrations
Koc University celebrated its 25th Anniversary through a series of 25 events. All our different academic units came up with wonderful activities, from panels to conferences to seminars, so true to their work and significant for their own disciplines. Koc University used this celebratory program as an opportunity to create events and projects that make a real contribution to science, research, humanity, and society at large, while also serving as an excellent way to express and honour the founding philosophy that has guided the institution for 25 years! Not only have we accomplished what we set out to do and more, but we also certainly finished off with a final bang on October 4th, 2018 that would stay in the minds of all who were there to witness a truly magnificent celebration of 25 years. The events of our birthday were set to acknowledge not only our past but also our future.
To view all the videos and see photos from our celebrations on October 4th and all our other anniversary events on our now archival website 25.ku.edu.tr.
We would like to share a summary of the events, the initial strategy and the impact of the celebrations on stakeholders.
Hande Sarantopoulos, Corporate Communications Director, Koc University
Track: Marketing, Communications and Recruitment
Session: Presentation Level: Mid-career
Anniversaries and After: Linking the Past, Present and Future to Build an Alumni Engagement Programme for Every Age Group
Building an alumni engagement programme that appeals to all age groups and supports your school's fundraising objectives is no easy task. In this session, Laura Firth and Laura Rooney explore how they used Bolton School's centenary celebrations to bring their Alumni community together and kick-start an ambitious fundraising campaign in aid of the School's Bursary Fund, how they built on that foundation of engagement to reach the 100 Campaign's £5m target once the anniversary celebrations were in the past, and the lessons they learned along the way.
Laura Firth, Head of Development, Bolton School Laura Rooney, Development Manager, Bolton School
Track: Schools and Small Shops Session: Lecture Level: All
GIVING Tuesday - Global Workshop
GIVING Tuesday, the internationally recognised day of generosity. Join an interactive workshop presented by a diverse team from around the world, to learn more about this specific Giving Day. You will hear how 3 small shops are using a big global idea to raise awareness for all kinds of giving, build and develop a culture of giving and reach some specific fundraising goals. Take note of the creative examples of GIVING Tuesday collateral, learn what worked and what didn't as well as hear what was achieved with limited budget and resources. Using case studies from the International School of Brussels, Belgium, Solent University, UK and the International School of Curitiba, Brazil, don't miss this opportunity to set you on your way to a successful GIVING Tuesday at your small shop, school or institution of any size.
Emma Zigan,Chief Development Officer, The International School of Brussels Robert Wayman,Alumni Relations and Philanthropy Manager, Solent University Ruth Andrew,Alumni Relations and Fundraising Officer, Solent University Gustavo Segui,Director of Marketing & Advancement, International School of Curitiba (ISC)
Track: Schools and Small Shops Session: Workshop Level: All
Is Your Goodbye as Good as Your Hello? Final Year Transition, Graduate Wellbeing & Gos Engagement Strategy
Learn how a chance encounter with a bunch of (actual) clowns inspired what has become LJMU's very first Grad Fest; a university-wide event for final year students, created in consultation with final year students and recent graduates.
As HE professionals, we recognise the need to constantly look for ways to improve the student experience, while we talk about the student journey as a continuum, which absolutely includes our alumni. Despite this focus, there is a noticeable gap when we reach the point where HEIs support and prepare our final year students for the practical realities of life after their last exam has been completed and dissertation submitted.
Kerry Rickarby, Alumni Engagement Manager, Liverpool John Moores University
Track: Schools and Small Shops
Session: Lecture
Level: Senior
Sponsored by: Alveo Consulting
Here are a few sessions specially picked by Development Services Conference 2020 planning committee - Kate Brook, Director of Services, Development & Alumni, The University of Edinburgh and Sarah Baker, Head of Prospect Information and Analysis, University of Cambridge.
How Soon Is Too Soon? Engaging Your Future Alumni If GDPR has prompted you to follow the consent model for alumni communications, you're likely to be putting renewed effort into engaging current students. Achieving sign-ups before students leave campus reduces the risk of losing touch. But how soon is too soon? A badly timed message can fall flat, but it also has the potential to confuse and disappoint. Come along to share your experiences and to learn from others.
Jonathan Goode, Head of Alumni Relations, Bournemouth University
Co-Track: Alumni Relations
Session: Breakfast Roundtable Level: All
The Virtuous Cycle: Inspiring Students to Become Engaged Alumni
From the point when a student first considers their academic future, through to Graduation and beyond, alumni enrich the full student life cycle. In turn, those students will become the most dedicated ambassadors, volunteers and leaders in our community.
In this lightning round session, we will explore the life cycle of the student-alumni journey and identify the touch points where alumni can share their experience, connect and offer guidance. Three unique alumni teams will showcase some of their most successful campaigns, from wooden spoons and good luck cards to embedding alumni networking in the curriculum.
Join us for an exchange of creative ideas and real-life examples of student engagement in action.
Whether you are working in student recruitment, student experience, academic research, careers and employability, or alumni relations – this session is for you.
Joanne Gardner,Alumni Relations Manager, Imperial College London Jenn Rowater,Alumni Marketing and Communications Manager, Imperial College London Hannah Pratt,Senior Alumni Manager, King's Business School, King's College London Xiang Li,Alumni Manager, University of Glasgow Adam Smith Business School
Save the Data - Building a Compelling Case for Your Events
Events are a critical part of your organisation's communications mix, deployed and delivered well they will help you reach your strategic aims. Yet so often we don’t see them as part of a wider organisational strategy we see them as an add on, a nice to have or something that we should just do.
In this masterclass Rachael, Chief Operating Officer of Wonkhe, will share insights on what data we can use when making a case for, or indeed against, events and how we know something has worked. We will discuss how to build a successful events programme which not only complements the organisational strategy it leads and enhances it.
She will talk about the key building blocks to an events portfolio such developing budgets, 1-3-5 year strategy, developing KPIs and how evidence can help. In the session we will discuss why and when you should use events, how you recognise, and play to, your organisational strengthsand working with partners and sponsors. We will also address that event elephant in the room of when we should not use an event and when the evidence suggests you should be focusing your resources elsewhere.
Drawing on her experience in the corporate, not for profit and higher education sectors within organisations such as Universities UK, ITV, NUS, Emap and currently Wonkhe, she will talk about how she has developed diverse events portfolios and successful teams to deliver them. How she has done this with and without budget and how she has won organisational support for developing events.
This session is for everyone who has events as part of their communication mix and is keen to develop them into a more powerful and effective channel. It will provide lots of practical tips and advice which can be taken back to your organisation and put into practice.
Rachael Firth, Chief Operating Officer, Wonkhe
Co-Tracks: Alumni Relations and Events
Session: Lecture Level: Mid-career to Senior
Infiltrating Policymaking: Communicating Research to Inform Policy Processes
Impact is yet again an element for assessment in REF 2021 and with a larger weighting this time around, it is evident it is here to stay. With policy impact being highly sought after, yet somewhat elusive, universities are developing impact and policy support functions to bridge the gap between researchers and policy audiences. But with no rulebook on how to achieve this, what is best practice in this emerging field?
This session will use Kahoot! – a game-based learning platform using mobile devices - to engage participants in a multiple-choice quiz on how professional services can best support academics to engage in policy processes. The quiz will facilitate a discussion around strategies and tools to engage with policy processes and to communicate research and impact for institutional distinctiveness. This workshop is a knowledge-sharing exercise that its organisers hope will be mutually beneficial for all who attend.
Charlotte Humma, Research Communications Manager, University of Sussex Katherine Davies, Research Impact Officer, University of Sussex
Advancement has come to mean many different things in schools around the world. In this interactive workshop, we will define Advancement as the strategic business of "helping organisations move forward". We will then introduce the Periodic Table of Advancement™ as a unique tool for thinking about the story of our organisation, the people that we want to play a part in this story, and the processes that support us along the way.
All participants will: (1) Discover the idea of a Periodic Table of Advancement™; (2) Explore the Table as a practical tool to audit the work of Advancement in their own organisation; (3) Deep dive into some of the Elements of Advancement, exploring best practice principles; (4) Play with new combinations of Elements, with a view to re-designing Advancement in new and contextually appropriate formats.
David Willows, Director of Advancement, International School of Brussels
Dread or Alive: Training Your Brain to Reckon with Risk
With their Natural History Museum hats on, Chris and Hanna will guide you on a journey from prehistoric times in search of the secrets – and science – behind effective risk management, a ‘must-have’ skill for success in the fast-changing, increasingly uncertain world of today. This interactive and creative session will take you into the complex, critical and chaotic world of risk-taking and leave you with a better understanding of how we perceive risk, who takes risk, and how to manage it more effectively.
Generally, our sector has more of a reputation for its aversion to risk than its embrace of it. But our environment is deep in the throes of massive, rapid change. New regulations on data protection, the proliferation of social media, increasing levels of public scrutiny, and diminishing government funding will force us to embrace our new reality and avoid common responses like the “dread factor”, or our tendency to avoid thinking about risk because of the pain and fear it can evoke.
Whether responding to a communications crisis, developing a data protection policy, or devising far-reaching strategy, our session applies insights from the natural world, psychology, and sociology to help you make decisions about risk.
Hanna Schieve, Projects & Policy Manager, Natural History Museum Chris Trevor, Head of Advancement Operations, Natural History Museum
Co-Track: Fundraising and From Crisis to Opportunity
Session: Lecture Level: Senior
Using Kindness as Your Guide. How Kindness Can Improve Your Leadership, Deliver Better Results and Create a Healthy, Happy Team
What if we reimagined how we lead a fundraising team using the guiding principle of kindness? Kindness isn’t soft or weak. Kindness is tough and powerful. Kindness challenges us to…
- see things from other points of view
- believe others are of equal value as us
- understand that others may need a helping hand
- not judge those in need of help
- put others needs before our own
- find time to ask and listen
Kindness can guide us to build healthier happier teams, improve performance and invigorate our fundraising. Kindness means we can trust one another, and that trust will allow us to try new things and challenge the norms. The fundraising profession needs to regain trust in these challenging times and we all need to recruit, retain and motivate our teams. This session will explore how you can lead your team through developing kindness 'rules' to guide your fundraising practices, and how this impacts strategy, KPIs, donor care and even staff recruitment."
Susie Hills, Joint CEO & Co-Founder, Halpin Partnership Shaun Horan, Joint CEO & Co-founder, Halpin Partnership
Survive and Thrive: A Fundraiser's Guide to Resilience!
Major gift fundraising can be tough. How can fundraisers remain resilient in the face of challenging targets, chilly prospect pools and the demands of the daily grind? In this forum session, Christine Harris, Oliver Taylor and Vicky Treherne draw on real-life examples from their careers where resilience was needed and help you develop your own thick skin to a productive end. Participants will have the opportunity to share their own experiences and coping strategies!
Christine Harris, Philanthropy Manager, LSE Vicky Treherne, Senior Development Manager (Legacies), University of Leeds Oliver Taylor, Development Research Manager, University of Manchester
Co-Tracks: Fundraising and Well-being
Session: Lecture Level: All
Building Trust between the Development Office and Finance Team
Have you ever thought that the Development Office and Finance Office are speaking different languages? Has the Finance Office ever asked you to include a full economic costing in a proposal to ensure the donor covers the budgeted expenditure? Have they ever wondered whether a gift agreement should really be a services contract because the donor receives a naming opportunity, annual report, or an invitation to a stewardship event?
We had a lightbulb moment last year when we realised that our terminology for "unrestricted" income was completely meaningless in accounting terms. We started to talk more with our colleagues in Finance and found there was a lot we could do to build trust between our teams. We embarked on a mission to rework our relationship and the outcome was rewarding. Increased collaboration, better understanding of our mutual interests, fuller appreciation of the impact philanthropy can have on the institution, and of course, lots of lovely new processes for Solicitation and Acceptance of Gifts, Gift Closure, Gift Agreements, Due Diligence and Fund Transfers.
In this session we will share our learning and the approach we now take to working with the Finance Office and ensuring things run more smoothly.
Andrea Crowley, Deputy Director of Development (Strategy & Operations), University of Warwick Kirsty MacDonald, Deputy Principal (Advancement), The Royal Academy of Music
Creating the Right People Culture for High Performance - Building Your Employer Brand Proposition
The average tenure of development professional in the UK is 18-24 months and staff turnover is consistently cited as one of the greatest challenges facing development in Education. In a sector where the reliance on building long-term relationships is key to financial sustainable success how can we build the right culture for employees to thrive and create an institutional brand proposition that will encourage the right people to apply and develop within?
We need to as a sector flip the norms on their head and shake things up!
Karen and Tess will share thoughts, ideas and case studies that will assist you in developing the right talent management strategy for your organisation. One that is all encompassing including areas of team resilience and agility to respond to change, ensuring that new starts “start well” and that performance both at the high end and non-performers are either rewarded or addressed.
They will explore how to not only attract the right talent but how to ensure you are not neglecting your high performers by always being on the recruitment treadmill. Tess will share why CRUK have invested in a role where the sole responsibility is to develop people and their high performance.
Karen Cairney, President, Cairney & Company Limited Tess Nixon-Spiller, Head of Philanthropy - People and High Performance, Cancer Research UK
Attracting and Engaging the Best Talent in a Transforming WOrld -Building Your Employer Brand and Enhancing Employee Pride
Universities are hotbeds of creativity, innovation and brilliance. They offer amazing opportunities for rewarding careers in countless specialisms. But it can be a challenge to attract the best people to consider a career in Higher Education, and to ensure that they engage with your university once they arrive.
In this session you’ll be taken on the University of Warwick’s employer brand journey, then discover how Solent University has enhanced employee engagement and sense of pride through its Love Solent campaign.
You’ll then take part in a workshop to discuss how we can pull together as a sector to help build the profile of careers in HE, and promote a sense of pride among our existing and new employees.
Claire McCann, Brand Manager, The University of Warwick Jessica Gow, Senior Comms Advisor, Solent University Rosie Inman, Communications Advisor, Solent University Sally Sykes, Director of Communications and Marketing, The University of Manchester
Co-track: Marketing, Communications and Recruitment
Session: Presentation and Workshop Level: Mid-career
Creating a User-Focused Website That Saves You Time
We all want our institutional websites to meet the needs of our users – but it can be challenging to do this when you are faced with competing audiences, content overload and influential stakeholders with strong opinions on priorities. We are all faced with a significant digital content challenge. But it is possible to improve your content quality by focusing on audience needs, defining relevant user journeys, removing duplication – while saving yourself time through structuring and connecting your content so it works as hard as possible for you.
Using case studies from redesign projects at the Francis Crick Institute, Imperial College London and St George’s, University of London, we will look real examples of institutions who have tackled this challenge and peek under the bonnet to see how they did it.
Together, we’ll consider:
* User research techniques to help you prioritise user needs online and convince internal stakeholders to buy-in to your content decisions
* How to identify opportunities to structure and connect your content so you can reuse it across your site for a range of purposes
* Approaches for using taxonomies to ensure your users see content that’s relevant and appropriate across your site"
Pamela Agar, Associate Director for Projects (External Relations, Communications and Marketing, St George's, University of London
Co-track: Marketing, Communications and Recruitment
Session: Track Session Level: Mid-career
GIVING Tuesday - Global Workshop
GIVING Tuesday, the internationally recognised day of generosity. Join an interactive workshop presented by a diverse team from around the world, to learn more about this specific Giving Day. You will hear how 3 small shops are using a big global idea to raise awareness for all kinds of giving, build and develop a culture of giving and reach some specific fundraising goals. Take note of the creative examples of GIVING Tuesday collateral, learn what worked and what didn't as well as hear what was achieved with limited budget and resources. Using case studies from the International School of Brussels, Belgium, Solent University, UK and the International School of Curitiba, Brazil, don't miss this opportunity to set you on your way to a successful GIVING Tuesday at your small shop, school or institution of any size.
Emma Zigan, Chief Development Officer, International School of Brussels Robert Wayman, Alumni Relations and Philanthropy Manager, Solent University Ruth Andrew, Alumni Relations and Fundraising Officer, Solent University Gustavo Segui, Director of Marketing & Advancement, International School of Curitiba (ISC)
Co-track: Schools & Small Shops and Events
Session: Workshop Level: Mid-career
8:45 – 9:45 Divas, Drama – and that’s just the Donors!: Everything you want to know about an Arts Fundraising Career
Being an arts fundraiser is exciting, and the sector is growing fast. But for many of us, the path from charity to arts fundraising is as mystifying as a Jackson Pollock. What skills do you need? What differences should you expect? Where to start? By the end, you will have the tools you need to determine whether a career as an arts fundraiser is right for you. Kurstin Finch Gnehm,Head of Individual Giving and Legacies, The Royal Academy of Music
Breakfast Roundtable Discussion
10:00 – 11:00 President’s Plenary Panel: Leadership in an Era of Disruption: What your Leadership needs from you
Senior leaders reflect on what’s ahead in this new world of Brexit, political disruption and shrinking resources Sue Cunningham (chair), President and CEO, CASE Charlie Jeffery, incoming VC at York and Vice Principal at Edinburgh Shearer West, VC University of Nottingham
10:00 – 11:00 Maximizing your Donor and Affiliate Groups
Cultural Institutions depend on upper-level donor groups for stable annual operating support and to deepen engagement with potential major gift donors. This session will explore best practices in establishing or managing your donor and affiliate groups to ensure that you are reaching your fundraising goals and maximising the impact of these groups. The panel will talk about common pitfalls and success stories in building leadership annual giving programmes. Christine Begley (chair), Senior Vice President, GG+A Charlotte Appleyard, Director of Development & Business Innovation, Royal Academy of Arts Rebecca Preston, Director of Development, RSC Fern Potter, Interim Director of Development, Birmingham Royal Ballet
11:30 – 13:00 Fundraising Plenary: #Change collective: Redefining the Identity of Fundraising
Amanda will speak from her experience as a senior fundraiser at a range of charities, including currently as Director of Fundraising at the British Heart Foundation, and as Chair of the Institute of Fundraising, on the current challenges facing, and opportunities opening up for, fundraisers around the UK. She will cover everything from the opportunity to make your team more equal, diverse and inclusive, to stamping out sexual harassment, from GDPR to providing truly excellent supporter experience that inspires people to give. Amanda Bringans, Director of Fundraising, British Heart Foundation
11:30 – 12:15 Crisis Communications in Arts Institutions
Koen Brakenhoff, Director of Marketing and Development, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen
12:15 – 13:00 Unlocking cultural assets to enhance reputation with your local community
All universities, colleges and schools have cultural and sporting assets which can be shared with local communities. Theatres, museums or galleries attract external visitors to campus but walking trails, outdoor events, retail and talks can also be valuable in enhancing your reputation amongst local community members. Using “Destination Warwick” as a case study this session will explore the benefits and challenges of sharing a university campus with those living nearby. With Coventry poised to be UK City of Culture in 2021 the session will preview plans for both of the City’s universities to collaborate with local authorities, business and the cultural sector to promote the City as a visitor destination and enhance its reputation as a place to live, study and work. Ian Rowley, Director of Engagement Group, The University of Warwick
14:00 – 15:00 Secrets from Small Charities: Creative Ways to Build Relationships with Small Donors
Small charities are using their strengths to build strong relationships with major donors. This session will share case studies from small charities that are leveraging their unique assets to engage with major donors in creative ways. It will provide inspiration and practical ideas you can implement at your organisation. Christine Harris, Philanthropy Manager, London School of Economics and Political Science
14:00 – 15:00 Corporate Giving Panel Discussion
The panel shall highlight the do’s and don’ts when it comes to corporate giving, and how to make an innovative case for corporates and your institution; what are the trends and new models, what are the pitfalls, how to manage expectations and what are the narratives for the pitch. Katarina Hägg, Vice President External Relations, Stockholm School of Economics Caroline Hart Sehested, Head of Global Early, Talent (Global People & Organisation), Novo Nordisk Charlotte Reeves, Head of Corporate Partnerships, Tate Nick Marsden, Head of Development, Design Museum
15:15 – 16:15 Stewardship Panel
Are you doing enough to steward your donors? To inspire and engage your donors with what really interests them to keep loyal and supportive, this open panel will bring together three leading directors of development. They will discuss how to improve stewardship throughout the whole donor development cycle, whatever your budget. Learn top tips, hear case studies and have your questions answered. So you too can build a community of passionate donors and ambassadors to advance the mission of your organisation. Kary Kelly, Director of Development, The Courtauld Institute of Art Lee Rodwell, Director of Development, University of the Arts London Joanna Newell, Head of Philanthropy, Southbank Centre
14:00 – 15:00 A University-Led Partnership Approach to Culture-Led Regeneration
University of Sunderland’s leadership in transformational, culture-led helped Sunderland become the first UK university to be funded by Arts Council England to lead a successful Creative People and Places project – after six years The Cultural Spring has worked with more than 40,000 people in and around the city.
This session will be a case study in how creative partnerships between Higher Education and Arts and Culture can collaborate to support community-based urban renewal. Graeme Thompson, Pro Vice-Chancellor, University of Sunderland