We strongly believe that to run any business, including a charity, it is important to ensure you have a space to work, good accounting and operational staff to make sure the business can run well and amongst other things, opportunities for staff to develop and grow.
However, running a charity we have an additional responsibility to you our donors. We have heard that one of the most important things to you is low overhead.
And so we go creative and made a promise that no more than 10% of your funds will be directed to overhead spend.
So, how do we pay our overhead?
We do everything we can to leverage probono and low bono services to reduce our overhead spend – from relationships with designers, printers and photographers, we try to maintain our high standard on the goodwill of many.
However, it is not always the most efficient and effective way to run a business and so where we do exceed our 10% commitment, we rely on a small group of generous private donors to fund the difference of our operating expenses.
It’s not always easy, but it’s an approach we believe in deeply. And year after year, our commitment to transparency inspires support from passionate donors, enthusiastic fundraisers, long-standing brand partners, and loyal volunteers who believe—like we do—that a living income truly changes everything.
The 10% Model is powered by a small and dedicated group of private donors, known as The Growth Fund
These entrepreneurs and business leaders fund our overhead costs – costs that include office rent, staff salaries and benefits, flights, and even the toner for our copy machine. By committing multi-year support for operations funding, Growth Fund Members allow us to plan for the future, creating efficiency and stability.
And members of The Growth Fund provide more than just financial support—they’re also some of our most loyal teammates, our most visionary partners, and our most outspoken champions. Since we can’t offer stock options or the promise of a big buyout to our generous investors, our Growth Fund Members’ ROI is measured in the number of people whose lives are transformed by accessing a living income
Gifts in Kind
From technologies to office furniture, much of what we have is donated by generous
companies. We’re deeply grateful to those who provide equipment and services to help us get the job done with quality and style.
We’re grateful for our in-kind donations
