As seen in SIRC. Alumni are the heart of any sport organization and have the passion, experience and drive to champion the growth of the sport they love - if they are authentically engaged. It is not uncommon for former athletes to feel disenfranchised from their club, federation, university, association, or sports organization – a sentiment that can be reversed with concerted and strategic effort. Whether your targeted group of alumni are Olympians, athletes or volunteers, d

Recently, we had the pleasure of chatting with one of our industry’s most knowledgeable fundraisers when it comes to corporate philanthropy – Jay Shapansky, Director, Corporate Partnerships for Canada Children’s Hospital Foundations. As we know, corporate partnerships have changed dramatically over the last decade – shifting from transactional partnerships with the benefit of the intangible ‘halo effect’ promise (the notion that a company benefits from the goodwill associate

What is the value of sport to a community? As seen in a Sport England report, sport is a powerful and transformative tool that can play a role in bringing communities together, having a social and cultural impact, developing social capital and reducing crime and anti-social behaviour. From youth engagement to newcomer settlement and regeneration of the economy - sport builds leaders in a community and enhances the quality of life. Sport develops great people, not just great a

Today, on International Women’s Day, we are sharing the incredible work of Girls Inc., a North American organization that inspires girls to be Strong Smart and Bold. Working in partnership with schools, Girls Inc. focuses on the development of the whole girl. She learns to value herself, take risks, and discover and develop her inherent strengths. The combination of long-lasting mentoring relationships, a pro-girl environment, and research-based programming equips girls to n

Part three of a series on the role of crowdfunding in fund development. When people talk about sport, philanthropy isn’t top of mind. Neither is crowdfunding. Sport funding is changing and government support is becoming harder to come by, but the money is out there - you just need to find it. One of the best – and most effective – tools is crowdfunding. When you think about it, a crowdfunding campaign is similar to sport - it’s time sensitive, there’s a very clear goal and it

Part two of a series on the role of crowdfunding in fund development. When people talk about sport, philanthropy isn’t top of mind. Neither is crowdfunding. Sport funding is changing and government support is becoming harder to come by, but the money is out there - you just need to find it. One of the best – and most effective – tools is crowdfunding. When you think about it, a crowdfunding campaign is similar to sport - it’s time sensitive, there’s a very clear goal and it’s

Part one of a series on the role of crowdfunding in fund development. When people talk about sport, philanthropy isn’t top of mind. Neither is crowdfunding. Sport funding is changing and government support is becoming harder to come by, but the money is out there - you just need to find it. One of the best – and most effective – tools is crowdfunding. When you think about it, a crowdfunding campaign is similar to sport - it’s time sensitive, there’s a very clear goal and it’s

We can't believe it - the 2018 Winter Games are officially 6 months away! As Canadians, we love watching our athletes represent the nation on the world stage. As passionate sports philanthropy professionals, we love the opportunity the Olympics present to National Sport Organizations to engage and communicate with their fans and alumni. To celebrate the 6-month mark, we've put together this practical how-to for all NSOs to make the most of the the time leading up to and incl

5 Things We Learned in Our First Year as Entrepreneurs In what seems to be our new normal – here we are celebrating our one-year anniversary four months late. Better late than never we say, especially when it comes to celebrating our surviving this past year (and four months). Nothing could have prepared us for life as entrepreneurs. Being both one of the scariest and exciting things we have ever done, starting our own business and jumping right in was one of the best decisio

[ the cost of rio ] Throughout the first week of the Olympic Games, you’ve likely heard that our Canadian athletes are in debt - huge debt. And as a nation, we should be concerned. According to Global News, our federally-funded athletes are in debt to the tune of $27.5 million, and the government’s support isn’t growing. Athletes themselves (and their parents) are picking up the tab to fund their careers, and we may be missing out on some of our finest athletes because of it.