Leading Through Lockdown: Frances Benge
A series of in-depth interviews with inspirational business and not-for-profit leaders brought to you by Inspiration Point. We investigate the learnings, challenges and impacts of COVID-19, and how these will shape their organisation moving forward.
Frances Benge, CEO, Cure Kids
1. What is the best piece of advice you’ve been given recently?
Working remotely ensures we focus on the skillsets of colleagues and not their personalities. Personalities can be a distraction to productivity and remote working has provided greater collegiality and collaboration and respect for each other.
2. What’s been the most challenging part of the lockdown journey?
Loss of income and looking for a sustainable business model ensuring that we can hit the ground running once recovery begins. Cure Kids relies on major corporate partners for funding in the areas of retail, real estate and hospitality – as these industries have been significantly impacted by the lockdown with impact to staff and employment it is difficult to expect the same level of financial support from our donors.
3. What’s the smallest change that’s had the greatest impact?
The education of all generations to use online meeting forums such as Zoom – we have an older generation Board and it was refreshing to see all generations embracing technology.
4. What’s been your biggest learning?
We don’t need bricks and mortar to prescribe an organisation. I have put a group together to look at remote working for all with minimal physical office requirements in our future.
5. What have you been surprised by?
The way our team has embraced remote working. I felt after a while the novelty would wear off, but there is a reluctance to go back to working habits prior to COVID-19 days.
6. What’s the biggest opportunity lockdown has created for your organisation?
Greater productivity and opening our eyes to different ways of working – it has allowed us a new lens to take stock of a new way of doing things.
7. What are you most proud of?
Leadership in the most unprecedented circumstances. It has been unchartered waters, and I am proud that my team has thrived through the lockdown.
8. Have you implemented any changes that you will keep post-lockdown?
We are moving to a more flexible remote working model – longer term we will look to sublet our office with a view to terminating the lease.
9. Most non-profits have seen their fundraising opportunity shrink. How should the sector respond to this?
There is a real economic opportunity for non-profits to work closer with government and others to make social gains within our communities. Collaborating with organisations who have the same inherent purpose means we avoid overlap and together can achieve more. Cure Kids has a long history of partnering with others to deliver outcomes. One example is A Better Start where we collaborate with Virtual Health Information Network, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and more than 160 researchers who are committed to delivering excellent science to give our tamariki a better start in life. Working together as one not only means we use our scarce resources more effectively but leverages our areas of expertise for greater impact.
10. The future of the non-profit sector is ….
Bright – as long as we embrace a more flexible and collaborative model. Measuring impact in the areas we support is going to be increasingly integral to sustainability.
