Sightsavers Orr Group partnered with Sightsavers to design and implement a fundraising strategy to expand existing and develop new relationships with US-based foundations, trusts, and corporations.
Situation Sightsavers works in more than 30 countries globally to eliminate avoidable blindness and empower people with disabilities to participate equally in society. The organization brings effective and innovative solutions to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion in health, education, employment and governance programs. Sightsavers enables access to quality health and education, leads the elimination of debilitating diseases, and fights for disability rights. To date, their accomplishments include conducting 8.3 million cataract surgeries, providing vocational training to 298,000 individuals with disabilities, and distributing 1.5 billion treatments to prevent incapacitating blindness.
Challenge In November 2022, Sightsavers engaged Orr Group to develop a strategy to enhance the organization’s capabilities related to foundation, trust and corporate fundraising within the United States.
Solution Orr Group undertook a rigorous analysis phase to help Sightsavers understand its philanthropic landscape, and to collect perceptions of the organization related to fundraising and accessing US-based foundations, trusts, and corporations from various stakeholders including funders, employees, and board members. Based on our qualitative and quantitative analysis, interviews, and research, Orr Group identified several key areas: Activate the US board to aid in fundraising through the development of new relationships and recruitment of new board members. Augment messaging collateral to be bolder and more broadly appealing to US-based foundation, trust, and corporate audiences. Increase staff capacity and resources to ensure the team can properly prioritize and maintain the activities needed to build and deepen relationships for expanded fundraising.
Impact Throughout the assessment phase and as our recommendations were being developed, Sightsavers began implementing new strategies around organizational positioning, communications, and US-relationship building. Following our final report to the US Board of Trustees in the spring of 2023, Sightsavers continued our partnership into the implementation phase. As an embedded partner, Orr Group is providing hands-on capacity and support through prospecting, fundraising and moves management, as well as advising and overseeing the transformation of its US-Board to sustain and continue US growth.