The return of Macquarie Group Consultancy Sprint Challenge
After a successful pilot last year, BIG Alliance ran the Macquarie Group Consultancy Sprint Challenge programme again this month with five non-profits and 70 volunteers. The programme consisted of sessions where teams of volunteers (Macquarie employees as well as their summer interns) came up with potential solutions to strategic challenges posed by Islington-based community organisations.
The community organisations that took part were Affordable Workplace CIC, Healthy Generations, Middle Eastern Women & Society Organisation (MEWSo), Bloomsbury Football Foundation and Angel Shed Theatre. Strategic challenges put forward included external comms and fundraising strategies, ideas for supporting employees’ wellbeing, and suggestions on opening an arts shop.
At the start of July, we ran our first of five workshops where Macquarie’s Commodities and Global Markets division supported Finsbury Business Centre’s sister organisation Affordable Workplace CIC. The challenge presented was to develop Affordable Workplace CIC’s sustainable model to enable them to provide local community organisations with affordable office spaces as well as capacity building support. The three teams of volunteers had a few hours to come up with ideas on how this could be achieved, and they certainly delivered. From potential partnership suggestions, to fundraising ideas, and even budget estimates, the teams covered a great range of potential solutions to the challenge which were tailored to the community organisation, their budget, and their service users.
Ian Hudson and Hugh Hudson, Directors of FBC could not stop singing praises to the teams during and after the workshop. “We are really impressed by all of the volunteers, their positive approach and fresh ideas, thinking laterally, tactically and strategically from multiple angles to address a complex issue” – commented Hugh Hudson.
It was safe to say that the first group of volunteers set the bar rather high for the rest of the groups that would follow later in the month.
“This model of short sprint pro-bono consulting is proving to be a high impact programme of staff engagement. We are delighted to see our interns and staff collaborate with the BIG Alliance and use their skills to help solve the problems posed” – added Rachel Engel, Head of the Macquarie Group Foundation in EMEA.
To find out more about all five challenges, please see our Evaluation Report.
If you are an organisation who would like to receive strategic support, or an Islington-based corporate organisation interested in similar volunteering opportunities, please get in touch with Jonathan Tait at Jonathan.tait@thebigalliance.org.uk.