Kjaer Group and the Danish Red Cross have launched an untraditional cooperation that aims to reduce the response time during emergencies.

Co-operation with private enterprises has for many years been an important part of the fundraising strategy of many humanitarian organisations such as the Danish Red Cross. A variety of successful projects in cooperation with the business community in Denmark is a key element in fundraising of the Danish Red Cross. Through these engagements the organisation continues to raise funds to help vulnerable people around the globe.

In that sense it is hardly surprising that the Danish Red Cross is involved in a close cooperation with Kjaer Group. However, it is a new dimension that a partnership with a business-partner aims to develop the Red Cross response to emergencies.

The cooperation contains three main points. Kjaer Group offers free space in its warehouse for relief. The Danish Red Cross can draw upon the expertise of Kjaer Group staff for short assignments to the field during emergencies - and in return the Danish Red Cross offers training to qualify staff members for these assignments.

“Space in the warehouse does safe us a lot of money for storage. But even more important is that it will reduce the response time to emergencies. Since we don’t have to pay we can keep more relief items in stock and we have 24 hours access to the warehouse. This means that we can get relief on the road only few hours after the emergency. I believe this will help us safe lives,” said Lasse Meldgaard, head of the relief department of the Danish Red Cross.

He also stresses the importance of getting qualified staff. This is often a challenge in sudden disasters. Even though the Danish Red Cross has some 300 people in its roster, the organisation often struggles to find the right people within few hours to take a short time assignment in times of emergencies.

“About 100 of them are out on missions and not available. You also have to remember that most of these people are employees - and it is often difficult for an employer just to let his or her staff leave for some weeks or months with just a few hours notice,” explains Lasse Meldgaard.

By making staff available Kjaer Group might help the Danish Red Cross to solve one of the major challenges during a sudden disaster.

Many employees of Kjaer Group work in a field which Lasse Meldgaard calls “interesting” for the Red Cross. Many work in logistics and with the expertise and willingness to work in an international - and often difficult - context.

Interesting employer

The cooperation is not only important for the Red Cross. Kjaer Groups life manager Palle Maschoreck is very pleased with the co-operation so far. First of all he says it is very much in line with the values of the company to work with the Red Cross. On the practical level the cooperation offers possibilities for the staff.

“To keep qualified staff you need to offer challenges and opportunities. Short Red Cross assignments match very well some of the challenges requested by our staff members. I believe that Kjaer Group becomes more interesting as an employer due to this cooperation," Mr Maschoreck said.

The first members of staff have already participated in Red Cross emergency training. According to Palle Maschoreck they are very enthusiastic.

No commercial obligations

It is essential to the Danish Red Cross as well as Kjaer Group to stress the fact that the cooperation does not commit any of them to any kind of commercial obligations. Since they both work in a field where the Red Cross is a natural customer to Kjaer Group is clearly stated in the contract.

“The Danish Red Cross operational activities are only guided by the needs of the vulnerable - and Kjaer Group needs to remain free to do business with other organisations working in the humanitarian field,” says Lasse Meldgaard.

In the fundraising department of the Danish Red Cross, its head Mogens Damgaard hopes that this kind of cooperation will develop over the years to come.

“This is a new - and interesting - road for us to go. We are definitely interested in explore this road in the future”, he said.