Lucent is three - what we've learnt and what's coming next
Lucent was launched on a sweltering summer’s evening in 2019. We thought times were challenging then, but no one at that reception could have guessed the three years that were to come.
Building a business through the pandemic has been an extraordinary experience. Even with all the challenges, we have loved working on issues that matter to us as people - using our expertise in women and girls, racial justice, health and mental health, disability, climate change and children and families to support our clients to deliver greater impact.
And these three years have been full of learning.
What we’ve learnt through our work with social change organisations
Working with our charity and foundation clients over this past three years has shown us the power of taking time out to reflect on the good things already in organisations. We have seen organisations fly when they recognise and harness all of their assets – be they knowledge, relationships, infrastructure or time and money. And focussing on what’s strong has given the organisations we’ve worked with a renewed sense of confidence.
The pandemic has also been a stark reminder that social issues are bigger than any organisation can address alone. We have been particularly thankful for the opportunity to support partnerships to grow. We’ve been able to offer the tools and space required to help people move beyond the immediate priorities of their individual organisations and think about how much more can be delivered through coordinated action and pooled resources.
Finally, dealing with a sense of overwhelm has been part of the daily reality of organisations we have supported over the past three years. For many leaders, strategy work seemed to be just another thing to add to the to do list. In reality, however, we’ve seen that when organisations carve out the time for strategy, they are better able to focus on what matters and what has most impact, with the whole organisation embracing the same set of priorities and pushing towards the same goals.
What’s ahead for social change and for Lucent
With this learning in hand, we have taken time out as a business to think about where we want to head next. We’ve identified three areas where we’d love to work in partnership with you through the months ahead:
We know that strategy, equity and diversity, and addressing the climate crisis have often been seen as separate issues, dealt with in separate processes within organisations. But these issues are strongly interconnected and it’s only by addressing them together that we can galvanise rapid and powerful change. We want to work with organisations who see that connection– and want to ensure that their organisational strategy helps create a more just and sustainable world.
We have had the pleasure of working with large charities and small campaigns and with trusts and foundations operating locally and globally. We are conscious that there are barriers between these organisations and unspoken power dynamics that get in the way of honest and open conversations. That is why we’d like to super charge our work building bridges between organisations large and small and across funders and those they fund.
Steering organisations through conditions of great complexity and ambiguity is hugely demanding. The final area we would like to work with you on is building evidence and fresh insight that supports clear and actionable decisions, allowing you to develop more targeted impact measures and work programmes.
If this plan for future work resonates with you, drop us a line at hello@lucentconsultancy.co.uk and we’d be happy to meet for a coffee (virtual or real) to hear more about your plans and how we might help you deliver even greater impact.