Resilience, Relationships and Results: Our 2025 Reflections

As 2025 comes to a close, it’s been another year shaped by change and challenge across the sector. Despite this, one constant remains: a shared commitment to learning, collaboration and improving outcomes for the causes we all care about. Across projects, partnerships and conversations throughout the year, that collective mindset has continued to drive progress.

Over the past twelve months, events and conferences have once again highlighted the value of coming together, not just to share formal insights, but to exchange ideas, experiences and practical lessons that help organisations move forward. With that spirit in mind, we’ve gathered reflections from across the team on the work, relationships and moments that defined their year. We look forward to continuing those conversations in 2026 and exploring how greater clarity in data can support even greater impact.

Jon Kelly

This year has once again taken me back to Dublin on numerous occasions – I even managed to get over there for my stag do.

On the work front, it’s been a year of momentum and meaningful conversations. I’ve had the chance to visit many of our growing roster of clients, as well as speak at several events focused on championing the power of data and insight for charities and other organisations. A particular highlight was sharing the findings from the Direct Dialogue benchmark we conducted with Golden Egg and the CII. It was rewarding to help members better understand the potential impact of this vital acquisition channel.

All in all, a great year – professionally and personally – just don’t ask me how many pints of Guinness it has involved!

Tim McKenzie

As it is the time to reflect on the year that has been, two elements stand out in 2025. On a technical front, my favourite project to get my teeth stuck into was working with About Loyalty to expand on the development from the previous year. Last year, we produced their Portal, whereas this year we focused on an automated ingestion, validation, and processing of survey and corresponding data. This type of end-to-end process is something I really love, as it presents many moving parts and challenges to overcome, and I enjoy being able to connect all the dots together.

On a less technical front, this year Sequoia pushed me out of my office and my comfort zone, and got me to travel to London to do my first conference talk alongside Andrew Sargent for the Insight in Fundraising Conference 2025. Far less nerve-wracking than I initially thought it would be, and lovely to meet others in the sector doing great things.

Andrew Sargent

This year I’m most proud of our partnership with Battersea. We’ve delivered genuinely exciting projects across supporter experience and fundraising, and by embedding myself in both the fundraising and data teams I’ve had the chance to collaborate with some brilliant people. And, obviously, the real highlight has been attending lots of meetings that included dogs.

It’s been a year of great relationships, learning, and meaningful work, all while watching a major CRM migration unfold from a safe distance!

Andy Lamb

Two highlights for me this year have both been web-application-based development.
Firstly, the extension of a client’s online reports portal to include organisation and user management and an online survey approval process. This has enabled our client to be self-sufficient in onboarding new organisations and adding their users, and has streamlined their reporting process.

Secondly, the development and deployment of our free Forecasting App which has been both challenging and rewarding in equal measure. I am looking forward to developing the next licensed version phase which will include client data integration, scenario saving and retrieval, phased recruitment and clawback metrics.

Lesley Duncan

This year has been all about delivering impact through smart, timely selections, and the numbers speak for themselves. With 20 selections across four clients, helping to generate over £1m for great causes, it’s been a year where careful planning and data-driven decisions have directly translated into real-world results. Working closely with fundraising teams to shape campaigns, refine targeting, and ensure everything landed on schedule has been both busy and hugely rewarding. Seeing those results come in, and knowing the impact each organisation can make with the income, has definitely been the standout highlight of the year. Here’s to even more impact in the year ahead!

Laura Leach

What has stood out most to me this year is how openly people across the sector continue to support one another in through the ongoing tough times. Charities are willing to share both successes and setbacks with peers, even those they might consider ‘competitors’, all with the aim of raising performance and learning collectively.

Attending conferences, both virtual and in person, throughout the year reinforced this for me. While the sessions themselves were valuable (of course), it was often the informal conversations, over tea breaks or in chat panels, that showed the supportive nature of people in the sector. Those moments are a reminder of how fortunate we are to work in a sector driven by purpose, and I’m optimistic about what 2026 will bring.