We tackled the crucial topic of income generation at our latest conference, held at the Royal College of Nursing in central London on 12 May. Perhaps one of our most popular conferences to date, there was a fantastic turnout for the day, with delegates relishing the opportunity to discuss this all-important issue.
Chairing the day was Peter Lewis, CEO at the Institute of Fundraising (IOF). Peter provided great insights throughout the conference, summing up key learning points from each speaker as well as making his own (sometimes gruelling!) contributions to the question and answer sessions.
Our keynote speaker, Professor Paul Palmer, kicked off Diversifying Income Streams. Paul joined us from Cass Business School, City University London, where he is Professor of Voluntary Sector Management and Associate Dean for Ethics. Discussing the relationship between social investment and financial sustainability, Paul provided us with some very interesting statistics. Did you know that income from government funding at charities has reduced by nearly 10% in recent years?
Next up was Jacqueline Fowler, CEO at the British Institute of Radiology (BIR). Speaking honestly about transforming the BIR into an institution able to withstand financial pressures, Jacqueline outlined the key aims of their modernisation strategy: expand membership, develop education, grow publishing, build external relationships and improve infrastructure!
Margaret West-Burnham, Company Secretary at the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS), joined us next with her inspiring take on creating sustainable revenue. CIPS clearly has a sound approach to diversifying its income, advising us to reach beyond our community of practice and look for new ways to grow the corporate customer base.
Later on our headline sponsors, Clear Direct Debit, took to the stage to deliver a fascinating presentation on why exactly direct debit is the way forward when it comes to collecting membership subscriptions.
A PARN conference isn’t complete without our researchers showcasing the in-depth research our work is based on! After lunch, Senior Researcher Laura Tinner spoke about the findings of our research into the diversification of income at professional bodies. To read everything we discovered, order your copy of our Diversifying Income Streams publication, available as a free download on our Members Area, too!
Delegates then enjoyed a workshop where PARN CEO Andy Friedman encouraged us to muse on different forms of commercial activity. Do any risk upsetting members? Does commercial activity compromise the remit of professional bodies altogether?
Wrapping up the day was Jerry Avis, CEO at the Institute of Brewing and Distilling (IBD), with his discussion of sustaining financial growth whilst contending with a disrupted market and increasingly diverse membership – definitely no mean feat!
Thank you!
Thank you to our headline sponsor Clear Direct Debit and our other sponsors Core, Think Publishing, ASI and Chord for their support of this event!
Want to catch up on the full conference presentations? They’re on our Members Area!
If you’d like to find out more about PARN’s research on income diversification at professional bodies, visit our Members Area to download an exclusive free copy of our publication on the subject- available for a limited time only. It is also available to buy in our publications shop.
