Leadership in Focus: Robert Drynan
By Elisa Birnbaum
December 6, 2010
After trading in his advertising shoes in 2004 to lead Camp Oochigeas — a summer camp and year-round programs for children with cancer — little did anyone know Rob would change the face of "Camp Ooch" forever. Under his leadership, the organization increased programming, raised its fundraising revenue and established a strong presence in Sick Kids Hospital. Chair of the board of Planned Parenthood and an active member of Emerging Leaders Network (an initiative of the Toronto City Summit Alliance), Rob's passion and hard work has earned him high regard and two prestigious awards: the 2009 New Fundraising Professional Award and Canada's Top 40 Under 40.
CharityVillage®: What prompted you to leave the private sector for nonprofit?
Robert Drynan:
Just before my father died of cancer, I decided to move back to Ontario to be around with him. And my grade seven teacher showed up at his wake. This teacher had a huge impact on my life; he saw something in me that a lot of people didn't. And after he showed up, we went out for lunch and I told him I felt the need to contribute back to the community. My father's death had an impact on me and working in advertising wasn't filling that need. I went to camp as a kid so he recommended Camp Ooch.
I volunteered there as a counselor in 2003 and it just had an incredible impact on me. It's a shining example of what true collaboration is like. I was working with 50-60 volunteers and all of us were focused on the exact same goal, which was giving kids the best experience of their lives that we possibly could. And to see people putting their needs aside to accomplish that goal was very powerful. I became executive director in Feb 2004.
CV: And after six great years you decided to pursue other things. Where are you heading?
RD: Yes, Alex Robertson has taken over. I'm going into cause marketing, leveraging what I learned from advertising and tying charities and causes to it.
"...there's more and more recognition of an asset-based approach; we're seeing the effectiveness of those kinds of solutions based in that perspective." |
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CV: You started a number of new initiatives while at Camp Ooch. What are you most proud of?
RD: In 2005 we were looking to grow from a program standpoint; we were looking to serve our population better. We were able to get McKinsey & Company to do a strategic plan for us pro bono and it was probably one of the best things the organization has ever done. They really helped us understand who we are. And we dug deep and what came out of that was that our constituents wanted more Ooch — more often and more conveniently. Meaning, coming up for camp for two weeks in the summer is fantastic but it's not enough. We let a part of them [children] shine during those two weeks, then they have to pack away for the rest of the year and that's really not acceptable.
So we looked for ways to keep that aspect of themselves alive. One being weekends at camp — they get to go up one or two more times in the fall and winter, to have a booster shot of camp. And a major step for us was putting staff in the Sick Kids Hospital who run camp programs. We had some volunteers there in the past, but to put a full-time staff member in there was a really big step. A lot of people were saying, "You can't do that, you're up north, you can't re-create camp." To a lot of people camp is nature, fires, sleepovers and marshmallows etc. But with a strong program team and volunteer group we were able to create a program that captured the essence of what we were trying to do — which is relationships — and bring it to hospital. We have five full-time staff there now.
CV: Did your background in the private sector influence your approach to this job?
RD: Ooch has always been a really strong organization. My philosophy when we came in is we were going to try and run it more like a business. What we know is if we're not doing a good job, we won't have our 450 active volunteers. If we're not doing the right work, they're not going to show up. And if we don't have our volunteers, we don't have anything. They are our customers, as are the families of kids with cancer and our donors. So if we look at all three stakeholders as customers and we make sure there's a constant feedback loop, and we adapt to their needs and what they're looking for, we should be able to be effective. So we're not the important part of the equation; we're just facilitating a community program.
CV: What do you think the private and nonprofit sectors can learn from the other?
RD: I think collaboration still has a long way to go in the nonprofit sector. I think there's a lot of duplication of effort, with different causes. Collaboration and consolidation has to happen. I think a lot of charities are driven by individuals or, at least an individual's idealistic view. And I think if people can get over that a little bit, there would be a lot better effect. For example, there are a lot of breast cancer organizations and they're all doing great work, but most of it is very similar. If, let's say, it costs each of those organizations, on average, 25 cents to raise a dollar, if they all consolidated, and you cut that down to 15 cents, that's more money going to the cause. And you cut out a ton of administration; you can have a really positive effect.
"Asking whether they're annual donors, monthly donors or major gift donors — to me that's like asking if you're paying with Visa or Mastercard." |
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As for what nonprofits can teach the private sector, I think, for me, I'm going to try and bring the level of passion and commitment that people see in nonprofits [to the next job]. They lead with a cause, they're proud of their association to that cause and the people they serve. And I think that's something a lot of people don't get to experience in the private sector. Which I think is part of the reason people get involved in charities on a voluntary or donor basis – to fulfill that aspect of their lives. But if you can make it more of your day-to-day, then you will probably be happier with your career.
CV: What are the signs of a good leader?
RD: Vision is huge. You need to have vision and you need to have a vision that people are excited to follow. And I think you need to make sure it's not about you. I think that's really important. Leadership is not about people following you, it's about people sharing a vision and taking the lead themselves. So a true leader isn't standing in front of everyone, a true leader is rallying people around a cause in this case, and letting them go and do their thing, giving them autonomy. That's when you see the best results, when you empower other people. Along those lines, integrity is paramount to good leadership. So if you say you're going to do something, you have to do it or you lose credibility — why would people trust you?
More about Robert Drynan... |
First nonprofit job: ED of Camp Oochigeas
Education: Dropped out of university before completing a psychology degree. But took a bunch of executive education courses at Rotman and Ivey.
Annual budget: $3.5 million
Number of employees: 22
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CV: What are the main challenges the nonprofit sector faces today?
RD: I think re-invention is a big issue. People are taking about how hard it is to chase down the dollar, and I think the problem is people are looking at it in the traditional sense. I think the traditional fundraising model is flawed. Especially when the market has grown so much. You have to figure out different ways to engage people and to tie them to your cause. Asking whether they're annual donors, monthly donors or major gift donors — to me that's like asking if you're paying with Visa or Mastercard. That's not the reason they're engaged, that's not the reason they want to give to you. And if you take that approach, it's pretty short-sighted.
So, although it's not everything, social media is a huge opportunity and vehicle to engage donors, especially the younger groups who don't have a lot of money to give right now. They will wear your brand and cause on your sleeve. Merchandising is a perfect example. You can't look to a 32-year-old for a major gift, but you sure can look at them to buy a jacket or post your cause on Facebook or raise money through the Camp Ooch's Sporting Life 10K, as an example.
CV: Have you had any mentors of the years?
RD: Mentorship for me has probably been a difference-maker. One mentor is my grade seven teacher, Brian Blackstock [mentioned above]. He's been a huge guide along the way. He used to own a camp, he knows a lot about camping and used to be the head of the Ontario Camping Association. And he has a fantastic view of the world.
The other mentor is Nigel Wright. He just got named to Chief of Staff for Stephen Harper and he was the outgoing board chair that hired me to Camp Ooch. And he really helped me. He knew all the issues related to Ooch but since he wasn't on the board, he able to have an unbiased opinion. I was able to talk about things freely and he's been instrumental in any success I've had.
And I look at all my board members who've been my mentors too. I've heard from a lot of executive directors that they have adversarial relationships with their board but it couldn't be further from the truth with mine. I am open and honest with them. I always knew where I stood and they always knew what I was doing. And that has paid off enormously. The amount of trust we built has really been effective. If they're supposed to be stewards of the organization but you're not telling the truth, how can they help?
I'm essentially going back to advertising so I expect I'll need some guidance from other people. But formal mentorship is a funny thing; I think the best mentors organically grow. There's a give and take to it, if you don't necessarily know someone or how the role is going to play out, it's really tough to build that kind of friendship. The mentors from my experience like to see the growth in their mentees — they get a different perspective, which is nice for them, though I still think I get more from them than they from me. Blackstock is a good example. He's retired and he gets to activate his brain to support me. And he's got a lifetime of wisdom to share.
Elisa Birnbaum is a freelance journalist, producer and communications consultant living in Toronto. She is also president of Elle Communications and can be reached at: info@ellecommunications.ca.
