The 100% Promise

 

 

“Over the last 15 years, I noticed there was a growing perception among people that funds given to charity were not achieving as much as they wanted,” Molly explains. “I felt that with the needs being so great in the developing world, if I was to be committed to helping them, I wanted to make a real difference otherwise it wasn’t worthwhile. I couldn’t see myself pouring my heart and soul into raising funds to help people without it being very, very effective.”

 

London-based Molly and her husband John, have over 20 years’ experience in the voluntary charity sector. 

“In the early years we were working with addicts in drug rehabilitation. We started taking people overseas to aid developing world projects like street kids, orphans, building schools, and these people finally had a sense that they could give back – part of their rehabilitation. Through that I discovered that I was a social entrepreneur. I loved going out and breaking new ground for others to follow. The 100 % Promise is a great example.”

Living in a technological age where everything is becoming transparent and knowledge is widely accessible, donors like to be engaged in all levels of their charitable giving. People want to know their donations go exactly where they’ve designated and expect tangible results rather than blindly trusting organisations.
“For example, in response to news that one in three children die before their fifth birthday due to lack of safe drinking water in parts of Northern Mozambique, a donor may decide to fund long term solutions that empower a whole village with the ability to lift itself out of poverty,” says Molly. “They might designate their funds to provide a water well, a school feeding programme or a medical clinic in a specific village, or they may choose to give a percentage to cover administration, marketing, fundraising and campaign costs, feeling they are investing in the bigger picture of the responding charity’s effectiveness. To meet this shift in thinking, we need new models of charity that raise the bar and challenge outdated methods within the charity sector, offering choice and transparency to all donors.”
 
The 100% model invites businesses and individuals to become ‘Angels’, donating their expertise, skills, time, facilities, in-kind support or cash to cover running costs. As partners they become part of our wider Global Angel Team.
 
“So many people see value in what we are doing and have become Corporate Angels. Our offices are donated, as are our marketing, website, accountancy, PR and consultancy. Companies are partnering with us by offering to donate a percentage of product sales as Corporate Angels.”
 
How well set up does your organisation have to be to execute this model effectively?
Any business or organisation needs to be run efficiently to succeed and this is especially true with the 100% charity model. As an organisation we only have two full time staff and many wonderful volunteers. We are very efficient and mindful of the special privilege we have in using other people’s money. Auditing how funds are used and maximising their effectiveness in our projects is vital.
 
How fast did the organisation grow from its early days to where it is now, with celebrities like Bear Grylls and Joss Stone getting on board to help the cause?
In 2005, we launched Global Angels with a concert in central London headlined by my children, Daniel and Natasha Bedingfield. Within a year, Bear Grylls had become an ambassador raising $1million for projects through his world record venture in the Himalayas for the highest para-motor. In 2007, we launched in the US at Times Square with Hard Rock Cafe making us their global charity for the year. This helped us to grow quickly, followed by us using the last few years to consolidate and strengthen our team and resources ready for the next phase of growth we are in currently.
 
Was setting up a not-for-profit organisation a difficult path to take?
Yes, it was difficult and required tremendous resources and energy. I worked six to seven days a week, 16-18 hours a day for the first five years pretty much. My family and close friends gave me huge support and encouragement and it would have been impossible without them.
 
What forms of communication do you use and which work best for a charity as large as yourselves?
 
We use the internet, website, social media, Vimeo, Youtube and word of mouth as our main tools of communication. It’s the way forward, it’s green, it’s cost effective and it’s sustainable. An important ingredient when looking to have major impact as a charity is being culturally relevant. This means live-streaming concerts, filming our projects and utilising hands-on social media is intrinsic to who we are.
 
Looking at your career, so far it seems you have always been in roles that have helped people, from being a teacher, counsellor, mother and then founder of a huge charity. Who, would you say has been influential in making you the person you are today?
My family and closest friends have always encouraged me in my belief that if we are united in our passion to help impoverished communities break the cycle of poverty we can change the course of history. Through music, business, charity, sustainability, friendship and love, each of us in our various fields have inspired each other to reach for the highest.
 
How important are your family to you?
They are my treasure, my life and my hope. At the end of the day, the joys of family and the legacy we leave behind us makes life worth living.
 
How have you been able to share your love for helping others with your children?
Children assimilate what they see their parents doing. We involved ours in all the community work we were involved in. They learned that you don’t have to have much to be able to give and make a real difference, so it is natural that they make philanthropy a central part of their existence.
 
What has been your proudest moment as a mother of highly successful children?
There are many moments when I‘ve felt proud of my children, like the times they’ve sung for princes, received standing ovations from people like President Obama and Stevie Wonder, performed at events like Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies or headlined the opening of the Vector Centre in Auckland. I’m proudest of the way they love and care for people and their passion to support those less fortunate than themselves.
 
What’s your next big idea/quest/goal?
To provide 100 villages in India with safe drinking water over this next year - that’s 100,000 people. Another is to launch Global Angels here in New Zealand and grow our base of Angels and Corporate Angels.
 
What’s your favourite holiday/dream holiday destination?
I live in London so my favourite holiday has got to be to come home to New Zealand and hanging out with friends and family at the beach. I love New Zealand with a passion.
 
How do you indulge yourself?
I’m still learning about how to do that, but I enjoy getting a massage, reading books, going to movies and carrot cake.
 
Quick facts:
Molly Bedingfield was born in Auckland, New Zealand.
 
She is a qualified physiotherapist.
 
Prior to launching Global Angels in 2004, Molly ran her own coaching business.
 
Molly moved to England in her early twenties with her husband John and son Daniel to follow her dream of charity work.
 
She is mother of four children including international pop stars, Daniel and Natasha, as well as Nicola (a singer and songwriter working to break into the industry) and Joshua (manages bands and artists – also a singer).
 
Her mum used to sing opera (just for fun) on the radio in the Waikato.
 
After three years away she recently returned to New Zealand to celebrate her father’s 80^th birthday.
 
While she is here she will be working towards achieving charity status in New Zealand. “This is really important to me.”
 
An international private health insurance company in England has recently made Global Angels their charity of choice, meaning Molly and her team will be able to empower millions of people in the developing world.
 
Infographic
My strategy for the charity was to do what I’m good at which is vision, strategy, passion, networking, loving and knowing people. I then surround myself with other people who are skilled in their areas and we work together to form a team that will change the course of history.
In that way it makes us more powerful because we have this vast network of advisors and experts who donate their time. However, this also weakens us slightly because they are so busy and we often have to wait a few months until we can get what we need.
As people come to me with offers to help I ask, “What do you love doing?”
 
I was invited to a business breakfast and met the owner of a company who has offered to design our new website for free.
Since then he has offered to do fundraising for Global Angels.
He has organised for the Red Devils, an England-based stunt company, to launch a campaign where 20 people for a 1000 pounds each, can skydive with the Red Devils. All proceeds will go to Global Angels.
A pop star, Amelle, who is one of the Sugarbabes, has offered to be an ambassador and will be joining the Red Devils.
 
When you involve yourself with charity work, you need to do things that come naturally to you and give back in that area. Because everyone is so busy it needs to be fun.
 
www.globalangels.org
 
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