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Working with the CHARITY and NfP SECTORS

With mounting pressures on reserves, growing competition on funding and an ever-increasing range of demands placed on them, Charities are facing hard choices. The need to reconcile commercial competition and business disciplines with the charitable ethos and traditions of the organisation and of its staff makes the strategic use of interims particularly effective and attractive to senior executives and Trustees.

Our Capability

Russam GMS has been successfully introducing interim executives to Charities and Not for Profits since our founding twenty eight years ago. Clients range from household names to smaller organisations, some local and some national or international. The Practice is led by a superb team in Stephen Brooker, Mike Whitlam and Ian Joseph – all senior sector leaders in their own right. Their combined experience means that they understand your business – and are able to provide a real solution.

The Role of the Interim Manager

Interim Management from Russam GMS can provide our Clients with cost effective solutions in areas as diverse as:

• Managing special or one-off projects
• Bridging the gap in senior management vacancies
• Testing senior vacancies with someone from outside the sector: hedging the risk
• Bringing in new skills or technology - short bursts of over-resourcing
• Developing and implementing new business processes
• Teaching and mentoring managers new to the charity sector
• Major turnaround
• Fundraising and responding to tenders

Some of the assignments we have handled:

• An FD for a national charity to fill the gap before the permanent appointment was made
• A top Sales Director from the retail sector brought in to manage a large fundraising department
• An HR Manager to handle a major reorganisation including a significant element of subsequent mentoring
• A General Manager with manufacturing expertise to turn round a subsidiary enterprise
• An IT Manager to install a new accounting and business control system
• A Marketing Manager to work with the CEO in developing marketing and business strategies

Why choose Russam GMS?

• We have a proven track record of delivering high quality solutions to the NfP Sector
• Whenever possible, we visit you to ensure that we fully understand your needs
• We understand the sector’s organisations - their differences and commonalities
• We can find professionals with skills and business backgrounds from outside the sector who can integrate and deliver
• We find people with the right balance of managerial and interpersonal skills and technical know how
• We have executives with substantial experience within the Charity and NfP sector
• Mike Whitlam and Stephen Brooker are available for coaching and mentoring on either a long term basis or to meet specific needs

Contact

Stephen Brooker, Chairman - Charity Practice. Stephen is a trustee of several charities and has worked at board level in the sector. He served on the executive Committee of CFDG in its formative years and has been associated with many important initiatives in the charity finance world. He ensures that our interim executives have a practical understanding of the importance of strategic change in Charities, assures quality and provides additional strategic direction and support to the executive/project, if needed. (Biog details and contact info on this page above left)

Ian Joseph, Head - Charity Practice. Before joining Russam GMS, Ian worked on high profile executive and non executive assignments with a leading search firm. Prior to this, he was Chief Executive of a social welfare and international development charity where he led pioneering work on homelessness and drug addiction and set up organisations in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Ian holds a masters degree in Voluntary Sector Management from Cass Business School and is a member of the Institute of Fundraising. (Biog details and contact info on this page above left)

Mike Whitlam, CBE, Specialist Advisor is one of the sector's most experienced leaders. Mike is widely respected as a gifted and charismatic leader who has been in at the start of many of the initiatives that, over the last 30 years have changed the face of charitable endeavour in the UK. Notable achievements include being founder chairman of ACEVO and the first ever Charity Finance lifetime achievement award winner.(Biog details and contact info on this page above left)