Abstract
This dissertation examines what the strategic implications of the CRC scandal that occurred late in 2013 are Irish charities in relation to donor.The qualitative research approach collected primary data through in depth-interviews of seven Irish charitable organisations, specifically seeking information on what the implications were, which strategies were revised and implemented, if there are differences in strategy between corporate and individual donors and how donor recruitment and retention have been affected by recent developments in the charity sector. The analysis of this research presented a number of common themes. Across the sector there was a significant disconnect between standards of governance in charities operating in the international environment as opposed to the Irish sector, Charities operating nationally are addressing governance issues in direct reaction to the CRC scandal, as they try to become more transparent, accountable and credible. In conjunction with this,media and communication strategies are being used to deliver stories of impact and divert the focus from inputs into charities onto the effectiveness of their service delivery,something already achieved by international charities. There were differing impacts on funding and service delivery across the board with every charity in a unique situation in this respect, although they all considered reputation to be their greatest risk and the CRA being established as a welcomed development in the sector. The study confirms issues in governance cited in previous literature and contributes to this further as there has been minimal research into the impacts of the CRC on the Irish sector. It also opens up lines of further research in order to be able to be able to reach more accurate generalisations within the industry. It is recommended that charities should be pursuing better transparency and communication of effectiveness while the CRA should be educating the public on the charitable environment.
