John Lauck

If you're a regular reader to All Access' Net News section, you undoubtedly have read countless stories about radio stations raising money for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals through radiothons. As impressive as the total donations have been, more - much more - is needed. That's why Pres./CEO John Lauck has set lofty goals to raise the money that will literally save more children's lives. Here, with National Radio Day on August 20th, Lauck describes the process of doing successful radiothons and the challenges that lay ahead.

What were you doing before you joined Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and what made you decide to join?

I was CEO of Mrs. Fields Cookies and then TCBY Yogurt. An executive recruiter called me back in 2010, when the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals CEO was retiring, and said this was the perfect job for me. Initially, I had no interest. I had never worked at a nonprofit, let alone one for children's hospitals. But he persisted and sent me a DVD that showcased the miracle stories of kids who benefited from the hospitals. It really touched me in an emotional way.

I also realized that in my 33-year career, I hadn't really done anything to make world a better place. It's not just about leaving a legacy; all the organizations I've worked for have been great. But I looked into CMN Hospitals and the more I found out about it, the more excited I got. I decided to take the job in 2011, and it has been the most wonderful job I've ever had. I don't feel like it's work; it's just a privilege and opportunity to do something to help so many different kids.

How have funds raised through Radiothon impacted local hospitals?

In a number of different ways. First obviously, the funds we all raise together through the Radiothons stay local; they go directly to the communities that raise the money to help that specific children's hospital. That money is available to be used in an unrestricted fashion, whatever that specific hospital needs. In many cases, it's used for equipment such as a new MRI machine or incubator beds. Some of the money can be used in research, such as new cancer research or vital pediatric research. Some of it can be used for uncompensated care. One thing many people don't realize is that Medicaid only covers on average about 50%. The hospitals receive payments from insurance companies and Medicaid falls well short of what they charge. All 170 of our member hospitals are not for profit; they rely on the funds to be able to do great work.

How have the Radiothons evolved over the years?

We've developed great relationships with over 350 different radio media partners as part of our network. We raise approximately $50-60 million from radiothons alone every year in North America, $37 million raised in the U.S. alone, which has been vital to help kids. Over the years, our media partners have not only evolved in terms of being able to raise money, but also to help bring awareness to the fact that children's hospitals need financial support.

We're able to tell that story through the media's most powerful tool -- radio. This industry has the ability for storytelling; it's a great medium, in terms of reach and format, to tell all these amazing stories of kids in their communities, and how the funds we raise help them. The most motivating thing for donors who want to help out is to show how their funds are being used for specific children, and how the funds make a difference in the community.

The format can change from a multi-day event to a singular event across one day. Our Radiothons have also evolved by coordinating with many great local corporate partners, to raise money locally for on behalf kids in the community. Companies such as Costco, Walmart, Delta Airlines and IHOP ... they're all partners in local communities, helping us to raise funds over the years.

Are there certain things that make some radiothons more successful than others ... and if so, what are they?

A couple of things work in all markets; one is a format where you're able to tell stories of the kids in the most powerful ways, such as actually having that child, mom or dad on-air, sharing their personal experience, and what caused them use the local children's hospital -- literally to save the life of that child - and that specifically, the funds raised through the CMN Hospitals Radiothon actually make a real difference. If the funds weren't there, the story would likely be tragic - and that's consistent across every radiothon.

Every market has format nuances, as well as different tie-ins. Maybe the on-air talent had a personal experience, being treated at a CMN Hospital as a child, or maybe someone in their family went through it. Recalling a very personal experience like that is one way the radiothon becomes unique to that market.

Another good thing you can do is hold the radiothon inside the walls of the local hospital. Being able to broadcast from the lobby that's visible to the public, as well as have the opportunity to interview the kids right there, being treated ... that's a very powerful thing.

How do you foster the best relationships with your radio partners in terms of radiothon execution?

Obviously, we're always interested in radio partners that have the most reach, so we can spread our message to the most people and generate more fundraising. However, probably more important than just reach is the radiothon partnership itself. Our partners need to really understand our cause and feel a personal commitment to it.

One thing we recognize in every radio partnership is that at the end of day, we know it's a business. There are these things called ratings; listenership and revenue are critical to every radio partner, and we want to make sure that their partnership with Radiothon will help increase their bottom line as well.

How has the emerging digital presence on radio impact its relationship with CMN Hospitals?

We live in a digital world. In addition to the radiothons, our partners also have a presence online, whether it be social media, their own websites or whatever. We want to use that ability to reach out and connect with the listenership of the stations, so obviously we do things with digital media that offers us the ability to tell our stories and let listeners see the affected children and their families.

One of the things we pride ourselves in digital media is that it's all about local content. In fact, there isn't one national Children's Miracle Network Hospital website; we have a series of 170 local websites, all tied to each other under one URL, so we can provide local content for each hospital and their media partners, with radio clips about what's going on that community.

It's just another step in our evolution; 34 years ago when we first started, we were a media-driven charity that held a telethon. Then we branched into radiothons and other forms of fundraising. We carved up the U.S. and Canada by viewership and listenership areas so our current 170 member hospitals have boundaries to raise funds. It's not practical to add new hospitals unless you're talking about an exciting new territory or one hospital is exiting the Network. Right now, we feel good about hospitals we have.

How have the current heath care battles in Congress impacted CMN Hospitals? Do you feel compelled to speak out if possible legislation would detrimentally impact your Network?

That's not our mission. We try to stay out of the political arena. Obviously, we're always interested in how any legislation would impact our hospitals, but we're a nonprofit. We strive to remain apolitical; we're focused more on private-sector money and not money from the government.

And what of the future... do you set long-term goals or do you set new goals each and every year?

In 2011, we put a long-term strategy in place to raise a billion dollars by 2022. We can do that because over the past 34 years, we increased fundraising every single year -- except for one six years ago. We've gone from $200 million to $400 million a year in annual fundraising, which was brought about by going to stations and hospitals and asking them what's had the most success for them, and what kind funding gap it covers, or doesn't cover.

It's sobering and staggering to hear from them when, universally, they need about 400% more funding. I thought it would be 20% more; that explains our effort to quadruple funding from 2010 to 2022. When you set a big goal, that requires a lot of thinking, innovation and planning to take our great existing partnerships and programs, and innovate for the future.

We have assembled a whole R&D team of people who work on nothing but innovative ideas. Change, innovation and new ideas are our calling cards, starting from a singular telethon to a series of radiothons and telethons to online fundraising and corporate sponsorships. Now we're doing dance marathons at 250 colleges and universities, raising $35 million through college students on campuses across the country. We set very big, ambitious goals to meet needs that are huge and growing.