On May 11, to kick off this year’s annual Fundraising Institute of New Zealand (FINZ) Conference, Hon. Bill English will address a CEO Forum to outline his social services plan.

The CEO Forum is part of the annual FINZ Conference. It will be held at the Icon Function Centre at Wellington’s Te Papa Museum.

In an environment of measured accountability, Mr English is expected to outline his plan for the next two years in social services, including outsourcing housing and other services. He will also explain the Government’s short and long-term expectations of the charity and not-for-profit sectors, including how they must work in partnership with the Government.

“Mr English is the Government’s intellectual powerhouse, so we’re thrilled that he’ll be speaking at the forum,” says FINZ CEO, James Austin.

Not-for-profits attending

Mr Austin says the CEO Forum is important because fundraisers need active support from their CEOs to be successful.

This year there is a large list of leading not-for-profits attending, including NZ Red Cross, Arthritis NZ, The Fred Hollows Foundation and Stroke Foundation.

Leading speakers

“The forum and conference will bring the best of the world to New Zealand,” says Mr Austin.

In addition to Mr English, there will be a host of world-class speakers. These include Suzanne Snively ONZM (Chair of Transparency International), David Crosbie (Communities Councils for Australia), Hon. Peter Dunne (Minister of Internal Affairs) and Nigel Harris (CEO Mater Foundation).

Changing funding landscape

The rapidly-changing funding landscape has added complexity to the governance, management, operation and reporting requirements of charities. These things often conflict with their natural desire to focus on the causes they were created to serve. So, the forum will address issues facing the charity and not-for-profit sectors, and enable CEOs to share their knowledge and concerns.