Another year of changing the world
As a company founded to change the world, becoming a B Corp™ was a natural step for Open. We are now a year into our journey and, as many organisations in our sector do at Christmas, we’re reflecting on our mission to use business as a force for good.
Here you’ll find our 2023 highlights, and be sure to read the full report to learn what we’ll do next.
A huge thank you to the clients, partners, and our incredible team who have already achieved so much and made 2023 a year to remember.
We’ll see you in 2024 to do it all again – and much more.
We doubled the number of students taking up paid internships at Open
People from minoritised backgrounds are under-represented in both marketing agencies and fundraising – we want to change that.
Through our partnership with Local Village Network and City and Islington College, we doubled the number of students working with Open over the summer. Helping us to develop high profile campaigns for our clients with a young person’s perspective and helping them get the hands-on agency experience they need to develop a career in our sector.
Since 2018 we have worked with 100 students and taken on 12 paid interns. And we've welcomed two permanent members of staff from the programme, Montana and Tanisha, into our team.
Changing the world one campaign at a time
In 2021 we made the pledge to increase giving by doing things differently, and 2023 saw it in action.
The appeals we’ve delivered are helping to build a hospital, get homeless people off the street, save the lives of beloved pets, support vulnerable children, and bring a smile to the faces of NHS staff whilst powering much-needed donations.
Giving away time, skills, and money
The most impactful thing you can do with ideas, skills and experience is share them – and in 2023, it didn’t end there.
We gave away thousands of pounds in our annual Giveathon, worked with Act-attain on a pro-bono rebrand, and provided Islington Giving with expertise to elevate their fundraising.
This year we also released our first book to help charities develop their own integrated campaigns, benchmarked their 2022 Christmas appeals for free, and supported other sector events, including I Wish I’d Thought of That and Fundraising Everywhere, to make sure great ideas go further.
“The appeals we’ve delivered are helping to build a hospital, get homeless people off the street, save the lives of beloved pets, support vulnerable children, and bring a smile to the faces of NHS staff whilst powering much-needed donations.”
Investing in our team
Of course, none of this is possible without a brilliant and talented team.
In 2023 we restructured how we work together to include more voices in our decision-making, increased the frequency of our staff surveys to actively respond to feedback, and supported all staff in their career and personal development plans.
We have also made online, on-demand training available to all of our team and regularly review their progress against their goals.
And in November, we released our latest Staff Handbook which includes our newest menstruation, perimenopause and post-menopause policy and information about our enhanced holiday leave and paid time off for bereavements.
To find out more about our first year as a B Corp, read the full report here. Thank you for an exceptional year.
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