Non-profit organisations often don’t have the same level of resources as their corporate cousins, but Bhawani Singh Shekhawat believes a compact, well-executed communications strategy is crucial for these organisations to meet their objectives.
As CEO of The Akshaya Patra Foundation UK/Europe, he advocates a lean communication plan for creating awareness and harnessing potential support. Communication Director spoke to him about creating productive communications environments in your organisation.
Why is “lean” the way to go when creating a communication strategy?
Lean is perhaps a mindset in the context of communications strategy. All communication is communication only if it is two way and an approach like this genuinely encourages a two-way or even a multi-pronged dialogue. It is perhaps more critical to listen, digest and distil value than to communicate, extoll and profess value. When you are lean in your DNA, you value all resources significantly more!
“It is perhaps more critical to listen, digest and distil value than to communicate, extoll and profess value”
What can for profit and non-profit organisations learn from each other when it comes to communication?
There needs to be far greater osmosis between these two sectors. At the heart of it, all organisations exist only to serve. Communication as a tool and a strategy should serve the purpose of service. There are some great models in the not-for-profit sector which corporate entities could learn from and the ‘for-impact’ sector could do a lot more with brand building
How can organisations create constructive communication environments?
You can only give out what you nurture within. To nurture an environment of great one to one, one to many and many to one communication externally one needs to nurture one internally as well. It needs to be a culture and then it becomes second nature to do it well, do it effectively and do it with impact.
