Universities Canada

A century of member dues, and the funding model to go beyond them.

Nearly 100 universities paying dues to an organisation that needed new non-dues revenue, and a four-month engagement that gave it a funding strategy funders could buy.

Consulting engagement

Funding strategy
Non-dues revenue
Associations

Value propositions: government, corporate, foundation

15–20

Qualified prospects identified

How it worked

The value that only existed between the two of them.

01 · The gap
For more than a century, Universities Canada ran on member dues. Nearly 100 universities paid in each year, and the question was getting harder to answer: what were members getting back?
Programs sat in silos, and the organisation needed new non-dues revenue. With the 2026 to 2029 strategic plan in development, it was the moment to rethink the approach.
02 · The fit
Four months with the Partnerships and Programs team: six years of program performance reviewed, stakeholders interviewed, the funding landscape assessed, and 15 to 20 qualified prospects found across international mobility, domestic scholarships and research excellence.
Then propositions funders could invest in: distinct cases for government, corporate and foundation partners, on a funding staircase from early pilots to long-term commitments, with revenue potential mapped at each stage.
03 · What it compounded into
I presented the strategy to the CEO and leadership team with a four-phase roadmap. Universities Canada restructured its team around it, deepened existing partnerships, and opened new corporate scholarship and program opportunities, including with RBC.
The result: a clear model for turning existing programs, relationships and reach into sustainable non-dues revenue, and a roadmap for building that capability over time.