Teenage Cancer Trust
Conducting a light-touch operational review to identify performance challenges and recommend practical improvements
We worked closely with the Data and Fundraising teams to understand how data services were delivered, uncover operational pain points, and provide clear, actionable recommendations to improve efficiency, responsiveness, and alignment with organisational needs.
Background
Teenage Cancer Trust is a national charity supporting young people with cancer. Its Data Team plays a vital role in enabling fundraising and operational effectiveness through data reporting, cleansing, and transfers. However, the team was facing growing pressure, driven by evolving fundraising demands, a growing backlog of data requests, and upcoming changes to the CRM platform. With no formal request handling processes in place and limited capacity, the organisation needed a clear view of the root issues and a practical way forward.
Solution
We conducted a light-touch, high-impact review of the Data Team, engaging with the team itself and key stakeholders, particularly within Fundraising. Through discovery sessions and process reviews, we assessed workload management, team structure, and the effectiveness of current request handling. We also explored the likely impact of CRM changes on team roles and responsibilities. Our final output was a clear, concise set of recommendations across process, structure, skills, and tooling – tailored to the charity’s scale, maturity, and available resources. These included short-term actions to reduce the backlog, improvements to request triage and prioritisation, and options for refining team roles and ways of working.
Impact
Teenage Cancer Trust now has a clear view of where its Data Team is working well and where improvements are needed. With a practical set of recommendations, the charity is positioned to reduce pressure on the team, improve turnaround times, and ensure better alignment with fundraising needs. The review also helped anticipate future needs related to CRM changes, giving the organisation confidence to move forward with informed, achievable next steps.