In both life and business, purpose is the foundation of fulfillment.
IMPACT STRATEGY
* DESIGN * DEVELOPMENT * PLANNING * IMPLEMENTATION *
In the modern world, there can be no profit without a well-defined purpose.
At whatever stage you may be on the journey to fulfilling the potential of your organization, I am eager to support driving your business — or charitable cause — with a sense of purpose in order to create a positive impact on both your values and bottom line — or funding.
More specifically, I am supporting entrepreneurs and organizations such as start-ups, social entreprise, SMEs, NGOs, and foundations, in designing, developing, planning, implementing, and leading disruptive and sustainable strategies, expanding businesses or raising awareness of charitable causes – without losing track of WHY they are doing what they do.
WHY SHOULD I HELP YOUR ORGANIZATION?
About Aurelie Dupont
Allow your passion to become your purpose, and it will one day become your profession.
Having gained a Master’s Degree in Business Communication, I started my career in advertising, working as an Account at Leo Burnett and, with Google in Belgium. After a couple of years in the advertising sector, working for major local and global brands, I felt at that stage I should use my professional experience gained in the private sector for the development sector, working for and with smaller organisations (such as NGOs)as Operations Director.
From Europe I then moved to Asia, with a variety of roles, such as Strategic Developer and Head of Development & Communications, collaborating with inspiring organizations and individuals, from a variety of backgrounds and industries.
I am now working as an Impact Strategy Adviser & Consultant supporting entrepreneurs and organizations such as Start-Ups, Social Entreprise, SMEs, NGOs, Foundations in designing, developing, planning, implementing, and leading disruptive and sustainable strategies expending businesses or raising awareness of charitable causes, without losing track on why they are doing what they do.
With my accrued experiences, I am placing my analytic and pragmatic thinking, creative and structured approach, interpersonal skills, hands-on outlook to deliver, no-nonsense organizational skills, and my international network at the service of organizations that are starting up, expanding, or re-thinking their business — or charitable cause.
HOW CAN I HELP YOUR ORGANIZATION
Think-through approach
We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.
Most of the time, organizations know what they do and how to do it, but very few organizations know WHY they do what they do.
Starting from this assumption and using a think-though approach, I am actually enabling Mr. Content and Mr. Process to be aligned with Mr. Sense.
Finding out, knowing and understanding who are your stakeholders, what is your specific niche, who are your competitors or peers, who are your customers/supporters? etc… are essential questions to build content.
Sometimes we are to busy in our day-to-day work to reflect on some of these strategic issues, which need reflective detachment and require us to leave our comfort –zone.
Finding out, knowing, and understanding how you organize yourself internally in order to make things happen, what is working for your organization, what is possible given the available resources, how you measure the results of your work? etc… are essential questions to get things done.
For organizations lacking resources (people, money, and time), no-nonsense, low-cost solutions need to be implemented in order to expand businesses or to develop charitable causes.
What is the purpose and belief that inspire you within your organization?
Finding out, knowing and understanding the “why” injects a whole new element of passion into the work, whatever it is. The why is the essence, enabling the appropriate content, and a seamless process so that you can achieve your objectives.
Through our collaboration I will thus leverage, with great dedication, energy and passion, what I have been doing for over 15 years: challenging organizations to unleash their true potential in order to build more impactful, sustainable, innovative, cost-efficient, structured content and expert processes, expanding the business or developing the charitable cause – without losing track of the sense.
A four steps process
Although all the projects on which I work are individual and fully bespoke to the specific context, a typical collaboration involves the following 4 steps:
This step involves an exchange on your objectives or current challenges for your organization, or on a specific project within your organization. Throught this step, the idea is to embed your organisation to learn on how you are working and WHY you are working that way. This step helps to clarify the situation to define the scope of work and areas of collaboration we will work on together.
Based on the needs assessment, this step defines in details the terms of our collaboration, including my recommendations in order to achieve your objectives, the specific tasks, the time frame, the budget, and WHY we are collaborating.
Defined in the scope of work, the deliverables are provided following a fixed time frame, that you will have approved beforehand. The report always includes a comprehensive explanation on the objective/challenge, allowing any stakeholders to understand the reason WHY we conducted this work initially.
This last step enables the determination of whether the work has been done in accordance with the initial assignment. What the next steps will be and WHY they are so. It can involve the continuation of the collaboration or a guidance to a more specific consultant/organisation for a special field of competence.
WHAT CAN I DO FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION?
Expertise and areas of collaboration
I will accept your influence, guidance and direction if (and only if) I believe that you and I share similar goals.
Through my different professional experiences working for/with MNCs, SMEs, start-ups, NGOs, foundations and entrepreneurs, I have accrued expertise and can support your organization in the following areas:
ACCESS TO CAPITAL / FUNDING
Money is not the goal. Money has no value. The value comes from dreams money helps achieve.
Most entrepreneurs, small business owners, NGOs, and foundations need financing help for starting up, opportunities for growth and planned expansion. This can be for the organization as a whole, or for a specific project. I can help you to decide upon appropriate levels of funding, and to determine precisely and feasibly how those funds will be used. I can support you in creating a compelling story, based on market research and analysis, about why someone should invest in your business/charitable cause. I can review, create, or edit your pitch, help you to create a new business plan, or edit the one you have, and in compiling all the documents necessary to win an investor’s/donor’s approval.
BUSINESS / FUNDRAISING DEVELOPMENT & ADVISE
If you want something you’ve never had, then you’ve got to do something you’ve never done.
Business development is the creation of long-term value for an organization from customers/stakeholders, markets and relationships. Whatever they do, it is important for organizations to establish strategies for expanding the business/creating greater awareness of the charitable cause and thus, generating more income. Partnership development is an essential part of Business Development. In addition, I can also help you by identifying and qualifying potential prospects/donors. I can even support you in creating a target-focused elevator pitch (e.g.: for a specific industry, or special funding).
FEASIBILITY ANALYSIS
It always seems impossible until it’s done.
Before investing precious time, money, and human resources in starting a new business, expanding the geographic location of your existing activities, or adding new services or products/projects or programmes, it is important to ensure that you are on the right track. A feasibility report is not an inclusive study of the anticipated business, project, or idea that is a business plan, but it is a snapshot preview, and preliminary assessment. It will assist you in gaging whether or not the business model works, or if anticipated solutions to perceived problems are viable from a financial and organizational perspective. Feasibility analysis may help you to decide whether or not to move forward and develop a complete business plan. The purpose of feasibility analysis is to set out parameters, and to define potential solutions and possible outcomes of a new opportunity. Whether you need a “deep-dive” or “helicopter” view of your new project, I can assist you in this task.
GOVERNANCE STRATEGY
A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity.
Board/Corporate governance refers to the role of a board of directors. The position boards hold in organizations (for profit or not-) is generally sandwiched between shareholders/owners/founders on the one side, and the CEO and staff on the other. Since the ultimate authority for the company or organization comes from the ownership, naturally the governance role of the board comes down to aspects such as an on-going dialogue with the ownership to discern expectations of the results that the organization should generate, translating those expectations, and other information, and the CEO’s own perspectives and values, into written criteria for success, and ultimately ensuring that those criteria are met. I can help you with issues, challenges, and changes that you may wish to address with the Board.
GRANT RESEARCH AND APPLICATION
Fundraising is an extreme sport.
As an NGO, there are several situations that might require you to undertake grant research. You might be seeking funding for your organization as a whole, or for a specific project/programme. This many involve private funding, public funding, global funding, regional funding, family foundations, individual donors, corporate foundations… The number of opportunities for which you are eligible will vary, depending upon your own set of circumstances and charitable cause. Grant research involves a certain amount of strategy and thoughtfulness, which no software can provide, and this is where I can help you.
ORGANISATIONAL STRATEGY & EFFECTIVENESS
Change is inevitable. Progress is optional.
When your organization undertakes projects or initiatives to improve performance, seize opportunities, or address key issues, they often require new processes: changes in processes, job roles, organizational structures, types and uses of technology…etc. However, it is actually the individuals in your organization who ultimately have to change how they do their jobs. If these individuals are unsuccessful in their personal transitions, if they do not embrace and learn a new way of working, the initiative will fail. If employees embrace and adopt changes required by the initiative, it will deliver the expected results. I can guide you in this process of change by preparing, equiping and supporting individuals to successfully adopt change, in order to drive organizational success and outcomes.
SHARED VALUES/CSR PROGRAMS
It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible, but also for what we do not do.
As a key ingredient in business strategy and execution, Shared Value and CSR plays a central role in helping organizations to be seen as leaders. Nevertheless, true Shared Values/CSR requires systemic change, including various “thinking through” essential criteria, such as having a business-based social purpose, enhancing a clear theory of change, providing quality and depth of information, focusing effort, and developing partnerships with experts. I can help you in building shared values and CSR strategies translated into strong programs that will last in sustainable partnerships.
IMPACT STRATEGY & JOURNEY
Be the Change you want to see in this world
Either it is designing a Theory Of Change strategy , becoming a B Corp certified or United Nation Global Compact organisation, or working on the Sustainable Development Goals, the process of becoming a social purpose organisation for/with impact can be challenging. Planning ahead, setting up an action plan and identifying key working areas are essential.
STRATEGIC / BUSINESS PLANNING & ADVISE
A Goal without a plan is just a whish.
The process of creating a business plan is a strategic method for analysing where your organisation is today, and where you want it to go. A business plan is made up of three main parts: a market place analysis, an operational overview, and a financial plan. A business plan is most commonly used as a start-up guide, a management tool, and, most often, a financing document. It is an opportunity to learn about your competition/peers, your target customers/stakeholders, and your ability to generate revenue/funding. Researching the industry, learning target market trends, and determining the strengths and weaknesses of the competition/peers may be a daunting task if you have never done it before. If have already done this, you will be aware of the time and energy involved. I can help you through this process.
IN GOOD COMPANY
An international network
If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others.
Because exchange, collaboration and co-creation is essential to grow ideas, I am working with a global network of specialized consultants and organizations active in different fields such as finance, project management, marketing and sales, social media, public relations, graphic design, legal or IT.
Using my international network, I am excelling in putting people together transforming a simple idea into a real, tangible and sustainable project with mileage potential.
THEY COLLABORATED WITH ME
Some of my references
Professional is not a label you give yourself – it’s a description you hope others will apply to you.
« I had the great pleasure of working with Aurelie at HandsOn Hong Kong and was continually impressed with her thoughtful and strategic approach. She is excellent at organizational management and planning. Aurelie took on many different roles at HandsOn and successfully navigated them all–from communications and business development to grant writing and fundraising. I recommend Aurelie most highly to any non-profit organization, social enterprise or business looking to generate awareness or grow their business. »
« Aurelie and I worked together at HandsOn Hong Kong for around 18 months. When I received her CV I was hopeful that she was the new team member we were looking for; as soon as I met her I knew she was. Aurelie is extremely proactive and organized. She takes ownership of projects, maps out everything she needs to do to deliver them, diligently sees this through and delivers work of high quality. Aurelie has great communication and interpersonal skills and quickly establishes rapport with anyone. I thoroughly enjoyed working with her and would highly recommend her. »
« I have known Aurélie since many years as a key member of the management team of Close the Gap Int., as well as a sparring partner and sounding board in the creation of another social enterprise WorldLoop. Aurélie is a very driven leader, with great people skills. She is very well organized and has a clear vision for her work and what she wants to achieve. Aurélie can be summarized as a force for unity, keeping strong focus, even in challenging and difficult times. She always keeps the higher strategic long-term perspective in sight and navigates as a real entrepreneur towards her goal. A great motivator, a true leader and a really inspiring entrepreneur. »
« Aurélie is always pleasant to work with, ever joyful, respectful to anyone, she is open minded, listens to other people’s ideas and is not afraid of sharing her’s. Reliable in quality and timing of actions and delivers as promised. Very committed and caring for the cause she has chosen to dedicate her time to. »
« A true professional, I appreciated working with Aurélie for her openness, creativity and ability to have in depth C-level conversations on marketing and branding strategy. When launching Google in Belgium, Aurélie was one of the first Googlers joining the team and contributed significantly to the success of Google’s development in the Belgian market. »
« It was a real pleasure to work with Aurélie. Always positive, she finds the right operational solutions with a clear understanding of your strategic objectives. Aurélie is a person you can rely on. »
« Aurélie is a nice person to work with. She is very focused and process-oriented hard worker. She is a good project manager and will follow-up thoroughly. Presentations and one-to one meetings are also well handled by her. »
« As Account Manager at Leo Burnett, Aurelie’s contribution in the process of developing a successful multi-country communications toolkit for Leffe was instrumental. Her commitment to coordinate her team to deliver on time and continuos constructive attitude made a significant difference.
In essence Aurelie is a reliable and passionate professional with a unique « can do » mindset. »
« Aurélie was an invaluable business partner. Through her project management and relentless passion for our brand, we transformed the entire look and feel for Beck’s to a winning, consumer-loved, contemporary design.
She was very dedicated and 100% focused on delivering great work. I highly recommend her. »
« Aurelie is one of those rare gems. She has the ability to find creative solutions for any challenge she encounters without ever losing sight of the strategic intent of the brand or company she works for.
Her energy level and hands-on attitude are infectious, giving her the power to drive a whole team towards the same objective and lock in the desired results.
She manages that prefect balance between effectiveness and efficiency and I would re-hire her anytime. »
« Aurélie combines brilliantly leadership, strategic vision and sense of details. She is a complete senior account who gets things done, with a smile. But most importantly she is a very invigorating person to work with!!»
HOW TO REACH ME
My contact details
Most people doubt online meetings can work but they somehow overlook that most in-person meetings don’t work either.
I am a global citizen based in Brussels and travelling frequently to Hong Kong.
Please do get in touch to exchange on your current challenges and see how we could possibly collaborate.
BEL: +32 477 622 372 | HK: +852 69 76 09 05 |
