Danish NGO – turn-around, prize-winning brand and best annual results to date

mettethorsen.com was hired externally by the Kirkens Korshær (DanChurchSocial) located in Aarhus, Denmark, for leadership consultancy, strategy development and execution in business development, communications and fundraising in connection with a major project. The goal was to create a turn-around for the organisation which was threatened with closure.

 

In only three years and in a strong collaboration with the customer, we at mettethorsen.com managed to raise DKK 25 million, of which DKK 10 million came from A.P. Møllers Fond. The organisation delivered its best annual profits ever, two years after our efforts had been initiated. Massive local visibility, political impact and new partnerships are also the results of the strategies that had been implemented. Our brand – which consisted of 100 new elements that were produced within one year – won the Danish Communications Association's (Dansk Kommunikationsforenings) KomPris for the best project in the country.


The organisation has become a strong local player contributing to improving the living conditions of the city's most socially disadvantaged: The homeless, the mentally ill, and people struggling with loneliness.


Danish NGO – turn-around, prize-winning brand and best annual results to date

Customer

Kirkens Korshær (DanChurchSocial) located in Aarhus, Denmark.

Results

  • Turn-around in a very short time: DKK 25 million in fundraising in three years - of which DKK 10 million came from A.P. Møllers Fond.
  • Achieved the best operating profit in 2015 in the local department's almost 100-year history.
  • A modernised organisation.
  • Systematised streamlining of the organisation to achieve coherence between strategies, budget, plans, and daily operations.
  • New private and public partnerships and CSR collaborations.
  • Significantly increased visibility and political influence – fostered by:
  • A new brand with 100 new communication and campaign elements.
  • Winning Dansk Kommunikationsforenings KomPris (the Danish Communications Association's Communication Prize) in 2013 for the country's best project - both the jury award and the audience award – for the new brand.

mettethorsen.com’s responsibilities 2012 - 2016

Management, strategy development, execution, and operations

  • Day-to-day management of staff groups, management, volunteers, and other suppliers together with general manager Morten Aagaard (Morten Aagaard was general manager from 1st of January 2013 to the spring of 2016).
  • Leading the development of the organisation's new mission and vision.
  • Leading the development and execution of the organisation's first strategies in business and organisational development, fundraising, communications, networking, and partnerships, CSR collaborations and ensuring that all efforts point to the organisation's business strategic objectives.
  • Focus on developing simple, immediate, and actionable strategies.

Fundraising, networking, and partnerships and events

  • Co-responsible for strategy development and execution and for new initiatives to be anchored: Fundraising - from developing new partnerships, CSR collaborations, socioeconomic enterprises, collection letters to digital campaigns, organising events and writing fund applications.

Communication, photos, visual storytelling, press activities, brand and concept development

  • Co-responsible for developing communication strategy.
  • Responsible for managing, executing, and operating the strategy within internal and external communication, branding, press communication, stakeholder communications, SoMe, online communication, and online business.
  • Visual storytelling and photos: Delivered +300 images that make up the brand's visual narrative.
  • Production manager for all elements of the portfolio from idea to finished products in collaboration with graphic designer, digital consultant, printing company, etc.
  • Storytelling, press activities, text work, and quality assurance of content on all 100 new elements. 
  • Brand development, idea and conceptualisation in collaboration with graphic designer.

Recruitment

  • Responsible for the recruitment of external suppliers for the communication tasks.
  • Co-responsible for recruiting volunteers for fundraising and events.