Find out how a Common Purpose course in Cork, Ireland, helped
the founder of a small non-profit organisation to improve her
business model
Louise Opperman is the founder of Community Timebank, a
non-profit organisation that helps local people and businesses to
get involved with voluntary work in their area. It matches people
with the projects they will get the most out of.
She says that the cross-sector participant group on her Common
Purpose course opened her eyes up to new ways of working.
"The participants from the private sector left a big
impression on me. I came back determined that I would run my own
organisation more like a business. This would help us to set clear
goals and to present a more professional image to our partners.
With this in mind I set about making a number of important changes
to my organisation, including drawing up a business plan.
Previously, I'd been very frustrated with the amount of
bureaucracy within the public sector and I didn't have too much
empathy with people who worked in it. But, having learned more
about it through speaking to other participants I now feel like I
have a much better understanding. This puts me in a better position
when dealing with the public sector because I now see where they
are coming from."
