Making a real difference projects and problem solving

1. Making a real difference projects and problem solving Jean Murray BPW South Australia

2. Projects and problem-solving • Take a good idea • Research it thoroughly • Establish a project team • Work up a business case • Secure funding • Run your project responsibly • Deliver on outcomes • Make a real difference

3. Where do projects come from? • Ideas at BPW meetings • Challenging speakers • Individual passions • Local issues • Media reports • Resolutions from conferences • Collaborations with other organisations • ??????????????

4. First steps – the good idea • Is it relevant to BPW? • Is it BPW core business? • or should you be partnering with another women’s organisation for whom it is? • If it’s relevant: • Is this a new idea? • Has it all been done before? • Is there a gap here? • Is a new policy or program required? • Or more funding? Research the issue – be real, be right

5. ThinkFertility • A BPW Adelaide meeting • Members with contacts and knowledge • An engaging informative speaker • A topical issue – a big turnout • A big surprise! • Women in their 30s, even educated professional women, don’t realise their fertility is declining – fast • They are making life plans without all the information So what could we do about that?

6. Research Check if you’re right • Work out what might be known already • Libraries, internet, universities, government reports, ABS statistics • Check with members, local experts • Develop a report • Collate your research findings • Organise your arguments • Point out gaps in knowledge, in policy, in services, in funding

7. ThinkFertility We checked • ABS stats and government reports • Aust Institute of Family Studies studies • the internet for research papers • international trends • the media portrayal of delayed fertility • and consulted with national experts

8. ThinkFertility We learned • Women • are born with all the eggs they will ever have • fertility starts to decline after 30, is half at 35, and half again at 40 • at 40 the IVF pregnancy rate is <10% • IVF can’t fix old eggs • and men too • male fertility declines from 35 • sperm deteriorate with poor lifestyle • associated with higher risk of miscarriage and birth abnormalities

9. ThinkFertility • Australia’s fertility rate • replacement rate is 2.1 • 3.5 babies per woman in 1961 (precontraception) • 1.7 in 2002, 1.8 in 2005 • some European countries have birthrates of <1.5 • Age of first births 2005 • 30.7 for mums, 32.9 for dads • Fertility declines with age • delayed first child = fewer second and third babies Young people say they want 2 or 3 children • but many will end up with 1 or none

10. ThinkFertility Is there a gap here? • Community perceptions vs reality • 88% of men and 57% of women aged 30-40 believe they will have no problem conceiving • 1 in 6 couples experience fertility problems • Women and men need information about • how fertility declines with age • when it declines • the limitations of IVF • the lifestyle risk factors for infertility Healthy busy young people are not getting the message

11. ThinkFertility What’s the challenge? • Is this information widely available? • Yes : in doctors’ rooms and on infertility websites • Is it reaching the audience that needs it? • No : they are well and don’t know they need it • Fit healthy young people don’t pick up information they see as irrelevant to them • How do we fix that?

12. Reality check Test your ideas so far • Present your findings and proposal to a sceptical group of intelligent women • If you can convince them, maybe you have identified an issue that needs to be investigated properly • Pool the passion – get a group • Invite members and non-members • Co-opt local experts

13. Establish a team • Harness the passion • Seek diversity – in age, outlook, skills, knowledge, experience • Look outside BPW, engage new members • Collaborate – make it a 5-O project • Offer opportunities to contribute and support: students, researchers, family and friends BPW members and clubs achieving outcomes attracts attention – so make your project obvious

14. Write a business case • Start at the end – work backwards • Be outcomes focussed – what would success look like? • Agree the project aims • Determine what skills would be needed • Name the milestones • Plan a timeframe – be realistic about time commitments • Estimate the likely cost – including opportunity costs, donated time and resources Be flexible – nothing ever goes to plan

15. ThinkFertility ThinkFertility project aims • to develop clear, informative materials for women and men • tailored to different ages • in different formats • distributed from a range of locations • that they might actually pick up and read • even when they don’t think they need it

16. ThinkFertility Skill set • Expert advisor, researcher, policy writer • Drafters to develop and test the text • Designers to develop materials and website Plan • Develop drafts and designs • Focus groups to test materials • Print, launch, distribute “Should take about a year all up”

17. Recap • Idea • Identify the gap • Research • Reality check • Confirm the gap • Establish a team • Describe the project • Write a business case

18. Next step: $$$$$$$$$ You need funding • Check the sources • Approach federal, state and local governments • Not just women’s project funding, other departments • Investigate business, bank and community grants • Check university research collaborative grants • Collaborate with others, seek sponsorship • Apply to more than one source • Seek government funding but supplement with sponsorship

19. Funding proposal • Turn your business case into a proposal • Check your funder’s requirements • align your arguments with their criteria • quote key themes from their plans and platforms • identify outcomes that fit • Be realistic • about timelines and funding required • Seek referees and approach champions • Fill in their forms, submit and wait Keep pitching, don’t give up

20. ThinkFertility Funding sources • Government grant - OFW ~$35,000 • Student researchers and designers • Supplemented with sponsorship • Discounts from suppliers • In kind support and many voluntary hours

21. Jackpot!! • Now you need resources and support • Engage with stakeholders • Find a champion – office space and phone support • Collaborate with other organisations • Mentor students – you learn, they learn • Meet regularly • Write project plans with clear deadlines • Keep proper meeting reports and action lists • Check actions off each meeting, but be flexible Don’t forget to be kind : this project fits with your life; it is not your life

22. Publicise your project • Don’t leave publicity to the end • celebrate at every stage • Use a range of opportunities • present progress reports at conferences • write newsletter articles for BPW and other organisations • talk about your project to everyone you meet • Keep the media informed • always acknowledge your funding sources

23. Responsibilities • Report on time to your funder • be clear about their needs and requirements • deliver the deliverables on time • warn them of problems and delays in advance • conduct an honest evaluation • Seek extensions when needed • negotiate when reality bites • but tell them what’s going well too • Keep track of the finances through BPWA • negotiate with your funder about needed changes • allocate funds to cover BPW costs, auditing Communicate and negotiate

24. What did you learn? Evaluate your project in stages • Don’t wait until the end • what did you find out along the way? • who benefited? what changed? • Write a project summary • put it with your final report to your funder • add recommendations for follow up • how should the project be sustained? • what funding or support would be required? • who would benefit? what would change?

25. As you go … • Analyse your findings against what is ‘known’ • Test the assumptions in the media and policy • Assess whether it is a women’s issue or a family issue – or a society issue • Provide your findings to policy developers and key decision-makers with recommendations backed by robust research • Send out media releases, offer to talk about it Tell the world what you did, what you found, and what you changed

26. ThinkFertility Media assumptions : “It’s about women” • ‘normal’ women want babies • women are choosing to put their career and lifestyle ahead of babies - but men aren’t • women need more information about their fertility - but men don’t • women are married to dependable men in financially secure and stable relationships • women choose the situations they find themselves in • It’s a women’s issue

27. ThinkFertility Reality : “It’s about families” • Women are delaying family formation for many reasons other than ‘career and travel’ • Women need • a stable dependable relationship • a financially secure partner with reliable employment • to be sure they could raise a child if circumstances changed • Women are acting responsibly, not taking risks • women and men need societal structures and programs that reduce economic pressures and risks • It’s society’s issue

28. Idea Find the gap Research Reality check Confirm the gap Establish a team Describe the project Write business case Seek funding Report regularly Manage the money Deliver on outcomes Evaluate learnings Celebrate Lobby Make a difference Recap

29. BPW’s role and influence Don’t stop there - follow through • Ignore barriers and take risks • Put a resolution to conference • Put an article in the BPWA newsletter • Encourage other clubs to take it up • Share what you’ve learnt with others • Keep the good outcomes rolling • Lobby for sustained and sustainable change

30. Go for it! Projects enable us to use our combined abilities and strengths • to realise and accept our responsibilities to the community, locally, nationally and internationally • to undertake philanthropic projects that help women to become economically independent • to use our occupational capacities and intelligence for the advantage of others • to work for equal opportunities for women in the economic, political and social life of Australia • to collect and present the views of business and professional women to the public and to Australian authorities Make a real difference – you’re BPW women