All year’s a good time for giving

MANY of us seem aware of the importance of ‘giving’ only when those closest to us are in need, or on special occasions throughout the year, such as Christmas.

Sometimes even family members can come second to career and the relentless drive for job satisfaction and security.

But there are others among us who give extraordinary amounts of their time, money and energy to charitable or social causes for no reason other than a genuine desire to give something back.

Most of these people receive no public accolade or recognition for what they give, with most preferring it that way. They just roll up their sleeves and get on with it.

However, whether it be people sitting on boards, giving donations, business advice, or dedicating their careers to the betterment of society, Western Australians are among the most giving in Australia.

And naming one individual as ‘person of the year’, as planned, seemed unfeasible in the face of so many good choices. Instead we chose to highlight several individuals who represent the generosity and community commitment of WA’s business people.

Multiple board member Tony Howarth, who sits on the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnerships board, told WA Business News there was a great tradition in Western Australia of not just philanthropy, but businesses getting involved in community partnerships.

Corporate sector support and funding is an integral component in the survival of many organisations, and the competition is fierce to get a piece of the corporate pie.

“The partnerships operate at all levels of business, and it is often only the big ones that are known,” said Mr Howarth, who played a role in WA’s successful Super 14 Rugby Union bid.

“Business can only be strong and healthy if operating in a strong and healthy community.

“The partnership model has moved away from just handing over cheques to an alignment of strengths and how organisations can grow together.”

Increasingly, not-for-profit organi-sations must conduct themselves in the manner of businesses and have business-savvy people running them.

This year’s WA Telstra Business Woman of the Year, Anne Russell-Brown, is also the State manager of Mission Australia, something she says gives legitimacy to herself, the organisation she heads, and the sector generally.

“It was a huge personal honour for me to win the award, and now increasingly I am out in the business community trying to generate their support,” Ms Russell-Brown said.

“I have been aided from many mentors within the not-for-profit sector, but also many outside the sector.

“Applying business principles to not-for-profit organisations is not necessarily an immediate fit, and it is a challenge to take those business principles and apply them.”

In four years Ms Russell-Brown has helped turn Mission Australia from an organisation with revenue of $8 million a year to one turning over $15 million a year.

“You have to be opportunistic and constantly look at ways to access new and diverse incomes,” Ms Russell-Brown said.

“Corporations have increasingly larger roles to play in our sector, and a real knowledge and skills transfer can take place.

“I applaud Western Australians in the corporate sector who are becoming more robust about philanthropy, and I have no doubt that our future increasingly lies in corporate support.”

The involvement of high-profile individuals is one way to raise an organisation’s profile, something Edge Employment Solutions managing director Susan Robertson said her organisation has been focusing on since the 1980s.

“In order to get businesspeople involved, you need key people who connect with business,” Ms Robertson told WA Business News.

“Increasingly, a large number of not-for-profit organisations recognise that if they are to connect with the community and raise money for their organisation, they need people with a high profile.”

Among the high-profile names on the Edge board today are: J Barrey Williams, Des Pearson, Professor Ian Eggleton, Dan Smetana, John Osborn, Clare Power, Lloyd Stewart, Justine Bell-Morris, Priya Cooper, Mark Barnaba, and Ian Taylor.