With 4 weeks
to go until this year’s IOF National Convention, I asked some fellow
fundraisers to join me in reflecting on their top memories and best bits from
their previous convention experiences, to help us start looking forward to what
we can expect this year.
The sessions
Let’s face
it, you won’t come away from every session armed with a stash of insights you
can directly apply to your work. But
with the right approach to choosing sessions and an open mind, there are
absolute gemstones of useful info to be found.
Danielle reflects on a session she saw at her very first convention, ’20 top tips to developing a successful career in fundraising’ by Alan
Gosschalk. “I still have the notes and slides. And I share it with every member of
my team. It really resonated with me and I listened and adopted things he
talked about”.
And both Danielle and
I have strong memories of last year’s session on personal resilience run by
Sarah Lane, with Toni Learey and Jane Bardsley.
It was a fantastically personal session which delivered a huge amount in
terms of things to take away and think about – and, perhaps unusually, use in
everyday life, not just the workplace. There are over 130
sessions to choose from this year, and I can’t wait to see which sessions
everyone ends up talking about!
The career development opportunities
It’s always
fantastic if you have time at Convention to attend something that’s outside of
your specialism. Sessions on personal
development, lunchtime sessions – all of these offer a wealth of insight that
can help you in your current role and to move on to your next.
Sara attended a Guardian Jobs session about
what Chief Execs are looking for in Directors of Fundraising. Whilst this is still a little way off her
next job level, “some of the things said
there gave me real insight into what the career ladder looks like, and the
sorts of skills I should be looking to develop.”
Whilst you may be perfectly
happy in your current role right now, there’s no harm in looking at how you can
grow and develop, and having one eye on how you might make that next step.
The networking
Let’s face
it, most of us cringe when we hear the word “networking”. The contributor who
told me she recalls hiding under a table with colleagues to avoid the
networking will remain anonymous to protect the innocent!
But if we call it instead “chatting to shedloads of likeminded
individuals and making new friends in the sector” it doesn’t sound half as
scary.
Danielle says that she has gone “from hating it to loving it - it’s great to catch up
with so many fundraising friends, and make new ones.”
Convention is simply one of the
best opportunities to do this, and to meet fundraising peers of all levels. Over 2,500 fundraising professionals under
one roof and willing to chat. Definitely
something to make the most of – you never know, you might meet your next boss
too!
The awards
Last year a campaign that I had worked on was
shortlisted for one of the awards and I was beyond delighted when our name was
called out! For me it was a fantastic
moment and one that will stay with me.
Danielle trumps that though – with Merlin she and her team won a
stonking four awards in four years – “a
highlight to have our work and results recognised by our peers.”
Awards night, though, is about so much more
than winning (though, yes, the winning is AWESOME!) – it’s a brilliant
celebration of successes from across the sector. It’s so inspiring to hear about all the
amazing work that makes the shortlists, and the ones recognising individual
commitment to the sector in particular always draw standing ovations and
usually tears too. It’s a joyful night
to be a part of.
The volunteering opportunities
Those committed individuals who give up their time
to ensure that Convention runs smoothly are absolutely fundamental to its
success year on year. It can be a great
way for individuals who wouldn’t be able to go otherwise to attend.
And the experience is overwhelmingly positive,
by all accounts. Lianne recalls the “great sense of achievement being involved in
making something so huge happen” and Sara talks about “the amazing sense of
teamwork and camaraderie I got from being a volunteer."
The Convention Twittersphere
Twitter takes on a life of its own at
Convention. Though you can’t go to every
session, rest assured SOMEONE will be tweeting nuggets. In years when I have not been able to attend
it’s been fantastic to get a sense of what’s going on. Danielle’s a massive fan: “I love the twitter community, and at
Convention time it really comes into its own.”
Great to hear about other people’s memories. I’m starting to get really excited about what
this year’s Convention will bring! If
you have any other standouts from your Convention experiences do drop me a line
in the comments section below.
Lisa Clavering
Supporter Retention Manager at Breakthrough Breast Cancer
Thank you to: Danielle Atkinson, Head of Public Fundraising at Breast Cancer Campaign (@roxymartinique); Sara Thomas, Area Development Manager
(North) at Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research (@lirazelf); Lianne Howard-Dace, Community
and Events Fundraising Manager at RLSB (@LianneHD)
