Establishing St. Michael’s House Foundation: From Strategy to Impact

Understanding their requirements:

St. Michael’s House Foundation is an independently registered charity established to raise funds and build awareness for the services and projects of St. Michael’s House (SMH), one of Ireland’s largest providers of supports to adults and children with disabilities. SMH operates across over 170 locations in the greater Dublin area, supporting over 2,000 people through residential and independent living, clinical services, day and respite supports, and vocational training.

State funding covers core services, but unrestricted funds enable the organisation to go further – playground equipment for respite, accessible vehicles, and the initiatives that help people live a life of their choosing. In 2022, the Board of SMH recognised that establishing a dedicated fundraising foundation – and appointing an experienced leader to drive it – was essential to securing the unrestricted funds needed to deliver services beyond those funded by the state.

2into3 had previously partnered with St. Michael’s House on its mission, vision, values, as well as the development of a fundraising strategy and case for support. When the decision was taken to establish the Foundation, 2into3’s Talent team was engaged to recruit its first Chief Executive Officer.

Our recruitment strategy

2into3 employed a combined advertised and targeted search for this campaign. The Foundation CEO position required an experienced fundraiser and senior leader, capable of translating a fundraising strategy into action and building a new organisational identity from the ground up.

Candidates were assessed against the following skills and experience:

Strategic fundraising across major donors, public fundraising, corporates, and trusts/foundations
External and internal stakeholder engagement
Governance, regulatory, and compliance expertise
Leadership and management capability
Finance and risk knowledge
Lead generation and identification of growth opportunities, with ambitious fundraising targets

The campaign generated strong interest and the Board engaged with a number of candidates, leading to the successful appointment of a Foundation CEO with a strong track record in fundraising and the leadership ability to set up this new Foundation.

Building the Foundation’s impact

The Foundation CEO has been in post since February 2024 and has moved quickly to establish the Foundation as a distinct entity with its own identity, including the launch of a new website and a growing programme of fundraising activity.

Unrestricted funds secured from corporate, community, and individual donors are already enabling the Foundation to deliver tangible impact – from state-of-the-art playground equipment for respite services to new vehicles improving accessibility – facilitating people of every ability to live a life of their choosing.

“We’re incredibly proud of what the Foundation has achieved in a relatively short period of time. We’ve been delighted by the support and generosity we’ve received to date, and most importantly, we’re already seeing the tangible difference that fundraising can make for the people supported by St. Michael’s House. With the key pieces now in place, we’re looking forward to building on that early momentum, growing the Foundation’s reach and impact, and raising even more funds to support people of every ability to live a life of their choosing.”
— Jonathan Power, CEO, St. Michael’s House Foundation

To donate or to learn more about St. Michael’s House Foundation impact, visit the Foundation’s website: https://www.smhfoundation.ie/

Get in Touch

At 2into3, we offer a comprehensive breadth of supports to enable your organisation to have a transformative impact. If you would like to explore how 2into3 can support you with Talent Services, contact Shannon Barrett at shannon.barrett@2into3.com.

For more information on our services, visit our webpage here.

Dublin

2into3

Huckletree in The Academy,

42 Pearse St,

Dublin 2,

D02 YX88.

Ph: 01 574 0022

Belfast

2into3

Ormeau Baths,

18 Ormeau Ave,

Belfast

BT2 8HS

Ph: 01 574 0022

Cork

2into3

Republic of Work

12 South Mall

Cork

T12 RD43

Ph: 01 574 0022

Galway

2into3

Portershed 1

Bowling Green

Galway

H91 HE9E

Ph: 01 574 0022

Maps were disabled by the visitor on this site. Click to open the map in a new window.