Articulate a Clear Vision. Being ready for a message refresh goes beyond recognizing that the current language is outdated. Your organization also needs to know who you are, why you exist, and where you’re headed. What is the organization’s overarching purpose? What does the future you’re trying to build look like? Often this clarity comes […]
Lead with strategy. Tighter purse strings can mean fewer resources in 2024, and communicators will have to choose what activities to focus on to maximize impact. A strategy-first approach that supports your organization’s broader objectives is a must to ensure the greatest “ROI” on your communications efforts. Leverage your strategy to narrow your priorities, protect […]
Authors: Kristen Caloca and Vanessa Schnaidt Contributors to this article include Anu Yadav, Community Codirector, WE RISE; Robin Garcia, Community Codirector, WE RISE; Danielle Brazell, Arts and Cultural Leader and Former General Manager of the Department of Cultural Affairs at the City of Los Angeles; Kaile Shilling, Nonprofit Collaboration Expert; and Andrea Jarrell, Author and […]
7,400+ free tools and resources accessed by communicators across the globe to meet them where they’re at and enhance their communications capabilities, 100% satisfaction from our training programs that build skills and cultivate connection among nonprofit leaders from 100+ organizations, 80,000+ attendees at WE RISE 2022 community-led events, a collaborative impact initiative centering healing and […]
Bordering Chinatown and Olvera Street, two of the oldest and most culturally significant neighborhoods in the city, the LEED-certified building has served as an important hub of social change work for more than a decade. Cause has history here, too: for many years we have hosted nonprofit communications training programs at the Center’s conference spaces, […]
Our hallmark efforts in 2021 included: Impact Project: WE RISE – Produced a series of community-driven experiences developed to destigmatize mental health conversations and connect communities to resources in LA County Communications Trainings – Celebrated a 10-year partnership with the Dwight Stuart Youth Fund, supporting youth-forward nonprofits by training them to use communications more effectively to advance impact Communications […]
In recognition of its continual efforts to lift up community voices, amplify impact, and use communications for good through the WE RISE campaign, Cause Communications received 10 awards during the month of October. The firm was honored by the Los Angeles County Quality and Productivity Commission, the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP), and […]
The second ComNetworkV conference in early October 2021 was the ideal occasion for the growing network of communicators to check in, review recent case studies, and solidify tenets and methods for manifesting equity and inclusion in our communications and impact at large. ComNetworkV21’s diverse program of speakers, sessions, dialogues, and gatherings amassed both new and […]
Many organizations are experiencing the same communications challenges. Are financial constraints limiting your communications efforts? You’re not alone. More than 2/3 of survey respondents said that a lack of financial resources and a lack of staff are barriers to prioritizing communications right now. And half of you cited a lack of staff skills/training as a […]
Chris Hershey (RCH): Over the last year and a half, we’ve watched nonprofits, foundations, and the impact-driven sector amplify their efforts amid a barrage of global and local challenges. At Cause Communications, we’ve expanded our team to best meet the evolving challenges in our communities, which is where you come in, Kristen—you’ve recently joined our […]
For the last four years in May, during Mental Health Awareness Month, Cause Communications has helped the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (LACDMH) produce WE RISE. This month-long initiative encourages wellbeing and healing through art, connection, community engagement and creative expression. WE RISE 2021 was the most expansive and collaborative yet, reaching tens […]
What follows is a set of questions we are developing – first, as a collaborative exploration, and then ultimately, as a capacity building tool for the field. This is not a checklist, rather a set of prompts to invite deep thinking, reflection and discussion. It is a foundation for a process that can help us […]
Chris Hershey (RCH): You were early to the idea of capacity building and even pushed me to start communications trainings, which have now become a mainstay of our work. How did you come to see the need? Wendy Chang (WC): Our vision at the Dwight Stuart Youth Fund is helping communities’ most vulnerable children. When […]
Know the larger history of your cause Your focus may be civil rights, education, mental health, sustainability, democracy, or some other social mission. Who was thinking about and acting on the issues you care about before your organization came on the scene? Is your organization one of the original pioneers? Are you a recent arrival […]
Practice Beginner’s Mind The Buddhist concept of beginner’s mind means letting go of preconceived ideas even in areas we know well. We approach our work, people, and challenges in the way a beginner would — alive to possibility with no sense of inevitable outcomes or “the way it always is.” Because the beginner’s mind doesn’t […]
This idea can be applied to social change organizations and the role of communicators – and the implications are quite powerful. And as The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander underscores, you can lead from where you are within an organization or cause – or as they suggest, “any chair in […]