Covid19 Update
Over the next few weeks, here at For Purpose, we will be taking precautionary measures to help prevent the spread of Covid 19. We appreciate this is a difficult time and many of us are concerned for the health and safety of our colleagues, clients and our loved ones.
As a result, we will be delivering our services through the use of technology and are continuing to operate as normal with our staff working from home. Meetings, Workshops and Interviews can be held using For Purpose’s video conference software without our clients or candidates needing anything more than a phone. Social distancing will be observed to help keep everyone safe.
We will continue to work on all our projects and aim to deliver them as per agreed deadlines, we are taking the same approach with new projects, we are still working, just using online tools to minimise social contact.
We sincerely hope that you and your families stay safe and healthy over the coming weeks.
Queens University Grad Fair
Delighted to be in Belfast today at the Queens University Grad fair! Great to meet so many enthusiastic graduates looking a career with purpose in 2020.
Delighted to be part of gradireland Live! career fair in RDS
Here we are again at the RDS for the next is the series of gradireland Live! career fairs.
Great to meet some of the graduates of 2020 who are interested in making an impact with their careers.
Below is the panel discussion on how to feature your ability – making you more employable.
For Purpose Shortlisted for Best Graduate Training Programme
Its awards time again!
We are delighted to announce that For Purpose Graduate Programme is shortlisted for Best Graduate Training Programme by Education Awards 2020.
Details https://www.educationawards.ie/shortlist
Emma Morgan joins the For Purpose Mentor team
We are delighted to welcome Emma Morgan to our team of Mentors on the For Purpose Graduate Programme.
Emma Morgan has worked in the non-profit sector for 12 years. She has a background specialising in fundraising development and organisational strategy. She is business analyst for Concern Worldwide, the vice-chair and development board member for Helium Arts; career mentor and private consultant and public speaker for strategic development in the non-profit sector.
Emma holds an MA from University College Dublin in Cultural Policy and Arts Management, the focus of which was how charitable organisations use arts based programmes and products as part of their fundraising mix. In her spare time she is a painter and in the past has participated in community art projects and had illustrations published for a small not profit publication entitled “what not to say”.
Each graduate on the For Purpose programme has their own mentor. The mentor’s role is to nurture the development of the graduate over the course of the programme by offering impartial guidance and support. This feature of the programme sets it apart from other in-house graduate programmes.
We are looking forward to Emma joining the Mentor team at For Purpose and know she will share a wealth of knowledge with her graduate mentees.
Round-table: Impact of digital marketing communications
This week’s round-table session was facilitated by Craig Dwyer, Digital Campaigns & Strategic Communications Consultant and Founder of ‘ForaChange’.
The topic of this For Purpose round-table session was the role of digital marketing in communication campaigns. During the session, Craig demonstrated the impact digital marketing had on the ‘Yes Equality’ campaign in Ireland.
Craig was a key figure in the ‘Yes Equality’ campaign of 2015 in his role as Director of Social Media. Craig developed, designed and implemented the digital strategy, monitored over 40 social media accounts and managed all online advertising for the campaign.
Interested in Becoming a For Purpose Fundraising Mentor?
WHAT IS FOR PURPOSE?
For Purpose is Ireland’s not-for-profit graduate programme. We attract, mentor and develop the future leaders of the sector. For Purpose connects not-for-profit organisations with talented graduates who are searching ‘for purpose’ in their careers and the chance to make an impact on civil society.
HOW DOES FOR PURPOSE WORK?
• Graduates apply to the For Purpose programme and undergo a screening and interview process managed by the For Purpose team.
• Following on from screening, candidates are shortlisted to attend a panel interview with the partner organisation.
• Graduate trainees on the programme are selected from this process. Trainees are employed directly by the partner organisation.
• Graduates receive one-to-one mentoring and attend roundtable sessions throughout their traineeship.
INTERESTED IN BECOMING A FOR PURPOSE FUNDRAISING MENTOR?
Are you interested in helping to support and develop the future leaders of the sector? We are seeking an additional Fundraising Mentor to provide one-to-one mentoring to For Purpose trainees. The mentor will operate on a self-employed basis and is paid a fixed fee per mentoring session.
ROLE OF A MENTOR
Mentors meet with their assigned graduate trainees once a month for an hourly mentoring session. The role of the mentor is to help foster the development of trainees over the course of their traineeships by offering impartial guidance and support. Mentors work with trainees to help them proactively identify their learning and development needs and comprise trainee-led solutions to address them.
WHAT’S REQUIRED OF A MENTOR?
• Experience as a fundraiser at senior management level
• Extensive knowledge of a range of fundraising methods
• Ability to actively listen and strong communication skills
• Interest in supporting the development of graduate trainees working as fundraisers across the sector
CONTACT DETAILS
If you are interested in becoming a For Purpose mentor please email a copy of your CV to For Purpose Manager Adrian McCarthy at Adrian.McCarthy@forpurpose.ie
For informal queries please email Adrian or call direct on 01-234-3135.
Closing date for expressions of interest is Tuesday 6th August.
For Purpose Attends the gradireland Summer Fair
The For Purpose team was kept busy yesterday at the gradireland careers fair in the RDS, where we were joined by over 3,000 graduates and 40 exhibitors at the fair. There was a substantial level of interest at our stand throughout the day, signifying a strong appetite from third-level graduates for a career in the not-for-profit sector.
We were delighted to promote graduate opportunities with our partner organisations on the programme, ranging from traineeships in fundraising & communications to property surveying. The grad fair provides direct access to some of Ireland’s brightest graduate talent.
Graduates from a variety of different academic backgrounds including communications, business studies, maths, social science and further areas expressed an interest in the programme and sought advice on how to apply their degrees in the sector.
For Purpose Manager, Adrian McCarthy was also delighted to take part in a panel discussion on ‘Interview Tips for Graduates’, chaired by gradireland’s Employer Marketing Consultant Louise Keegan. On the panel he was also joined by Nessa McCarthy, Senior Manager in the ION Group, and Marie Skinner, HR Manager in General Motors. The session was very well attended and focused on how graduates can prepare for an interview and how they can stand out from the crowd.
We will now set our sights towards gradireland’s careers fair in October, which will have over 7,500 attendees and is the biggest annual careers exhibition aimed at third-level students and graduates. In the meantime, we will be offering a range of graduate traineeships on the programme with our partner organisations throughout the summer.
Adrian McCarthy Discusses the Topic of Future Leaders in the Sector
On Thursday 23rd of May, the For Purpose team were in Croke Park for The Wheel’s Annual Summit. The event, which coincided with The Wheel’s 20th anniversary, focused on how we can promote innovation in the community, voluntary and charity sector to unlock a brighter future for all.
A number of seminars took place throughout the day, with For Purpose Manager Adrian McCarthy joining a discussion panel on ‘Nurturing our Future Leaders’ that aimed to explore how organisations can create a working environment that attracts and retains the brightest talents to take on the next set of challenges facing the sector.
The session, which was chaired by Derek McKay, Managing Director of Adare Human Resource Management, also featured Yvonne McKenna, CEO of Gaisce and Sharon Hughes, CEO of TU Dublin Students’ Union.
During the discussion, Adrian spoke about the recent HEA survey which found that 90% of graduates are seeking employment in Ireland. Given this high percentage, Adrian stated that ‘there is no reason why the not-for-profit sector cannot tap into the best pool of graduate talent available in Ireland today’.
Adrian also touched on findings from 2into3’s latest Quarterly Recruitment Monitor. The report for Q1 2019 stated that there were 108 management level roles advertised in the sector during this period, which represented a 30% increase from the Q1 2018 report. Adrian highlighted that for the sector to meet this demand for leadership there must be a sufficient pipeline of leaders in place and that this can be achieved by attracting and developing graduate level talent in the sector.
Following the discussion, attendees raised some interesting points on prominent issues in the sector relating to early stage talent development and attraction including:
- How can small not-for-profit organisations attract high performing graduate talent?
- How can the sector compete with larger graduate employers?
- What can organisations do to develop their staff?
- How can the sector retain high performing staff?
In closing the session, Adrian surmised that ‘graduates want purpose in their careers, they want to make a difference and as a result they are seeking a career in the sector’.
