DAVID COE
Member Profile: DAVID COE
september 2004
Name: DAVID COE
Position: Managing Director
Company: Cascaid Consulting
e-mail: david(at)cascaid.com
Web: www.cascaid.com
FACT FILE | |
Main business areas: Fundraising, Marketing and Management Consultancy | Date business started: 1999 |
Number of consultancy staff: 12 | Countries of operation: UK, Spain, India and worldwide |
THE BUSINESS
What range of clients do you serve?
We generally work with charities, either national or international, or NGOs. The range is from small community organisations to major international NGOs.
How has your business evolved since it was started?
We have been successful in building up an in-house team of experts who are able to cover any particular area of fundraising, marketing or management. We have also invested heavily in developing extensive databases, so that we can offer our clients reliable in-house prospect research, e.g. into trusts or foundations and wealthy philanthropists.
Where will your consultancy be in a few years time?
We certainly want to grow the international part of the business, but not at the expense of our domestic client base, as this was the base that we started with. We would also like to move into other sectors, in some cases through strategic alliances. For example, we could effectively work with a partner specialising in fundraising services for universities, as we could bring a great deal of expertise in the area of direct marketing.
Which opportunities and threats do you see for your work in the sector and for the development of NPOs?
As far as consultancy is concerned, the more complex the world gets, the more opportunities arise. The present time is full of opportunities. These are also provided by some aspects of globalisation - internet fundraising is an important example. The counterpart to this is the threat for NPOs, who face the challenge of keeping up with all the new possibilities that the multi-media world has to offer. The sector faces a number of technological advances, making the prospects for consultancy very rosy. There are definitely advantages for those few who have the skills to support this move away from tin rattling, which anyone can do.
EUCONSULT MEMBERSHIP
Why did you join EUConsult?
On the one hand, we joined because we have European and international ambitions and, on the other hand, because of EUConsult’s Code of Ethics. It is important to us to subscribe to the Code and be able to assure our clients of our commitment in this area. Another aspect is the possibilities that EUConsult membership offers for networking and skills-sharing.
With which other EUConsult members have you found the opportunity to cooperate on projects?
We hope to take advantage of this opportunity in the near future.
BACKGROUND INFO
Where and what did you study?
I studied in the UK and France. I took Business Studies at the University of Portsmouth and then did a Post-Graduate Management Studies course, specialising in marketing, at Lyon Business School.
How did you first get involved in NPO consultancy?
I had been chief executive of a couple of organisations and had worked in the private, public and NGO sectors. So the question was: ‘What to do next?’ My aim was to try and apply all that I had learned and give something back. Consultancy has been a good way of achieving this.
What interests you most about staying in the field?
The wealth of possibilities involved in consultancy work and all of the great causes and people you get to know and work with.
What do you do to relax and forget your consultancy work? Music, dancing, food, travel and tennis.
