Most people know Serve the City through the moments happening out in the community: volunteers serving meals, tutoring children, or sitting down for conversations that make someone feel seen again. What is less visible is everything happening behind the scenes to make those moments possible.
Serve the City has grown quickly across three cities, with more than 3,000 volunteers joining our projects on a yearly basis. It is exciting growth, but it also pushes us to ask important questions. How do we keep growing without losing ourselves in the process? How do we create stronger more robust and standardised systems while staying human and close to the people we serve?
That is where our collaboration with Intys begins.
What started as a pro bono collaboration quickly became something much more meaningful.
Instead of arriving with ready-made solutions, the Intys consultants sit down with different members of our team, listen to our realities, and take the time to understand the challenges hidden behind the day-to-day work of a nonprofit. Those conversations create something we rarely give ourselves: space to reflect and rethink the way we work.
Gema, our Head of Communications, remembers how surprising that feels:
Usually, at work, I’m very focused on the present and the tasks to be done. Sitting down with Hugo and Alessandro from Intys help me realise that some behind the scenes ‘things’ sometimes very small could be improved and this would help me organise myself better.
And that is what makes this partnership so impactful. Intys does not simply offer expertise; they offer perspective. They help us see things we have stopped noticing because we are so focused on taking action day after day. As Jeremie, Associate Director of Serve the City Belgium, shares:
In many ways, Intys is doing for us what our volunteers do in the field: bringing their experience and guidance so we can focus on what matters most.
One of the most valuable aspects of this collaboration is the work being done at the organisational level to structure our growth and make us more resilient. Together, we are thinking more intentionally about processes, documenting knowledge, and making sure important information is shared and accessible instead of remaining in someone’s head. This helps us build an organisation that is not only effective today, but also resilient for the future.
Over the past year, we have been rethinking the organisational model of Serve the City in Belgium. The collaboration with Intys helps us bring greater clarity and structure to it. By using tools such as the RACI matrix, we are able to clearly define roles and responsibilities within our processes: identifying who is responsible, accountable, consulted, and informed. This not only improves communication and collaboration but also supports healthier and more effective ways of working throughout the organisation.
For us, this collaboration is a reminder that growth is not only about reaching more people. It is also about building more robust foundations, creating healthier systems, and making sure the people carrying the mission have the support they need too. Sometimes, the most valuable thing a partnership can offer is simply the space to stop, reflect, and grow together.
Because when businesses and non-profits truly collaborate, both sides grow stronger. And behind every stronger organisation, there are thousands more people who can be reached, supported, and included.
We are grateful for the work we are already doing together with Intys and look forward to continuing this collaboration in the future. Together, we hope to keep building a stronger, more reliable, and more sustainable organisation that can continue to Serve the City for years to come.
