Ruth Mantle talks to Jenny Ramage about her new role developing philanthropy at Cass Business School
What drew you to the job at Cass Business School?
I’d been aware of Cass Business School through the charity talks it ran on key sector issues. When I was approached about the role, I realized the potential to bring philanthropists and the business school together. It was a new role, and I was attracted by the opportunity to use my ten years’ experience of working with foundations to set up a sustainable programme for the business school. I’m a complete learning addict too, so working in a university environment really excited me.
What challenges are the school's fundraising arm facing at the moment?
The role of development is becoming much more important in higher education (HE). Cass is expanding, and space and staffing are key challenges. Another challenge is that a high proportion of our students are international. We have 35,000 alumni around the world, and we are working with foundations in many different countries. Developing those relationships and stewarding them poses challenges.
What problems arise when working with trusts and foundations based overseas?
Due diligence. In the UK, foundations registered with the Charity Commission have audited accounts and go through a certain level of checking for corruption and illegal activity, so you’re reassured by this. But in some countries without that level of compliance, you might not even get audited accounts. It’s an ongoing challenge.
Another concern is reputation risk. Charities have recently been criticised in the press for taking donations from certain individuals. There have been a number of high-profile cases in the media recently so reputational risk is very much at the forefront of many organisations’ minds. Before you get involved, you have to do your research and decide how much risk the organisation is willing to take.
What is your strategy for building on the school's relationships with trusts and foundations?
We a strong network of alumni and corporate partners, many of whom have relationships with foundations. We’re also engaging across the school with academics and senior management to really develop links they already have and communicating the value we can bring to partnerships with foundations. Some foundations, for example, are interested in ethical lessons coming out of the financial crisis, or Corporate Social Responsibility, and there is a lot of interesting work that could be done in this area.
How different is working for an educational institution compared with other organisations?
It’s very similar in many ways, more so than some people might think. HE as a sector is investing in development has become very professional about fundraising. There are some things the HE sector does incredibly well that charities can learn from, such as running campaigns for unrestricted gifts, which is something that small- and medium-size charities often struggle with. HE organisations are becoming very good at working with individuals and taking them on a philanthropic journey, from first donation to significant gift.
How can we best tackle donors that expect to be treated as insiders, or to set the agenda?
You need a two-pronged approach. First, you should have a strong policy in place on what you will and won’t do in your donor development work. Secondly, make sure your development team has training in negotiating and influencing for those tricky situations.
What have been the most interesting points to come out of the IoF major donor special interest group in the last few months?
I’ve been really interested to see the number of individuals joining from overseas: the internationalisation of fundraising is fascinating. I’m watching the growth and development of philanthropy advice with great interest too – seeing accountants, lawyers and bankers providing advice to their clients on how to be good philanthropists.
What are your current priorities in your role as chair elect of the group?
My first is to grow membership by reaching more people working in major donor fundraising in the UK. The second is to continue to run a successful series of events for our members. The last three sold out, and we’re aiming to continue that trend in 2013. My third is to offer more funding for members to undertake development opportunities through developing more partnerships with sponsors.
What job would you be doing if you weren't in fundraising?
I think I’d be an academic. I’ve worked for nearly ten years and have always loved studying. I’d probably be researching philanthropy rather than working in it. But I’ve been very lucky in that all my roles have all incorporated a lot of research. Especially at a university where I’m surrounded by academics the whole time!
Ruth Mantle is trust and foundation manager at Cass Business School
This article was first published in The Fundraiser magazine, Issue 22, October 2012
