We began by researching and identifying companies, organizations, and institutions whose mission and vision aligned with the focus of this year’s IGEM project. This alignment helped demonstrate to sponsors how their support could contribute meaningfully to advancing research in our field.
Finance
A good finance team is the backbone of any organization, for profit or not.
We as the Finance Team at iGEM Toronto play a crucial role in managing the club’s financial operations, ensuring that all financial activities are organized, transparent, and aligned with our 2024 goals.
How do we accomplish this?
Budget Management
The team prepares, monitors, and updates the club’s annual budget. This includes estimating revenue, managing expenses, and making sure all work stays within its financial means.
Seeking Potential Sponsors
We take the lead in reaching out to companies for sponsorships and partnerships to secure financial support, resources, and valuable collaborations. Processes include identifying potential sponsors, creating proposals and outreach strategies, and finally building and nurturing relationships between our partners and iGEM Toronto.
Financial Reporting
Regular financial reports are made to keep the leadership and members informed about the organization’s financial status, such as income, expenditures, and remaining balances.
Expense Tracking and Reimbursement
We track and manage all expenditures, ensuring that funds are spent appropriately and according to our budget, additionally handling reimbursement requests for members who have made purchases on behalf of our club.
Process of Securing Sponsorships for IGEM Toronto
At IGEM Toronto 2024, we embarked on a structured approach to secure sponsorships, ensuring that our project goals aligned with the values and priorities of potential sponsors. Here’s how we accomplished this:
Once a list of potential sponsors was identified, we reached out through emails, presentations, and meetings. We crafted personalized communications that highlighted the mutual benefits of collaboration, ensuring sponsors understood the impact their contribution would have on our project.
Our sponsorship model was structured into various tiers based on contribution levels, with each tier offering different levels of visibility and involvement. Sponsors who committed larger amounts received greater benefits, such as logo placement, public acknowledgment, and invitations to exclusive project events. This tiered system helped facilitate productive negotiations and offered flexibility to sponsors.
The funds we secured were crucial to advancing our experiments and research. Sponsorship contributions were strategically allocated to cover material costs, equipment, and lab resources, ensuring that we had the support necessary to push our project forward.