What Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean does

Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean is a registered Canadian charity (BN 106885312 RR 0001) founded in 1981 and headquartered in Chicoutimi, Quebec, operating as the regional affiliate of the international Centraide/United Way movement. The organization raises funds annually through workplace giving campaigns at 300+ regional employers, individual donations (including a Major Donors Circle for contributors of $500+ and a Leaders Challenge Fund that matches gifts of $1,200 and $2,500+), planned giving vehicles such as bequests and life-insurance donations, and material-goods contributions. Funds raised locally are redistributed to approximately 100–123 community organizations annually, with an 83% pass-through rate, supporting services in youth development, food security, social isolation, mental health, and housing across the four MRC territories of the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region. In 2024, social investments totaled $2,922,421, reaching approximately 85,000 beneficiaries — roughly one in four regional residents.

The organization's core technology stack is modest and operational rather than product-oriented: it consists of the Clicdon digital platform (used for donation processing and workplace-campaign management, including payroll-deduction tracking, solicitor assignment, and prior-year donor history) alongside a WordPress website produced by external vendor La Web Shop. There are no disclosed APIs, SDKs, AI features, or proprietary software products beyond Clicdon. The organization also serves as a designated deployment agent for government social-investment funds, including a $319,000 emergency homelessness allocation from Quebec's SACAIS secretariat.

The business model is donation-driven and community-led, with no commercial revenue. Annual fundraising campaigns run from September through year-end, supported by a volunteer campaign cabinet of business and public-sector leaders who open doors to corporate partners. Major corporate workplace campaigns at Rio Tinto ($760,853), Banque Nationale ($366,734), Hydro-Québec ($328,191), Desjardins ($286,488), and the CIUSSS health authority ($128,252) anchor the revenue base, complemented by individual donors, private foundations (Fondation Lucie et André Chagnon, Fondation Marcelle et Jean Coutu), and government workplace campaigns. The organization operates with a lean staff of approximately 8–12 personnel and is governed by a volunteer board currently presided over by Mélissa Bergeron, with Martin St-Pierre serving as Director General.

Name

Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean

Legal name

Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean

Website

https://centraidesaglac.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean is a Chicoutimi-based registered charity and United Way affiliate that raises approximately $3 million annually through workplace campaigns and individual donations to fund roughly 100 community organizations serving 85,000 vulnerable residents across the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Philanthropy Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Civic and Social Organizations (8134)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Federated Giving Organizations (e.g., United Way-type) (BPAGAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB), Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB)

Keywords

• Community fundraising services
• Workplace giving campaigns
• Nonprofit philanthropy services
• Social investment funding
• Charitable donation management

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicoutimi

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Annual Fundraising Campaign: Primary revenue stream through annual campaign raising over $3M annually from individual donors, corporate workplace campaigns, and special events. Funds are locally raised and reinvested in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region.
2. Corporate Workplace Campaigns: Over 300 workplaces conduct internal fundraising campaigns among employees, representing a significant portion of annual revenue. Major corporate partners include Rio Tinto, Banque Nationale, Hydro-Québec, and Desjardins.
3. Cercle des Grands Donateurs (Major Donors Circle): Individual donors contributing $500 or more annually. This circle generates approximately one-quarter of total funds raised. Membership grew from 660 to 714 persons in the 2022 campaign.
4. Planned Giving: Planned giving options include in memoriam donations, testamentary bequests, life insurance policy donations, lifetime annuities, and foundation creation for long-term donor relationships.
5. Material Goods Donations: Accepts donations of furniture, office equipment, and functional items which are then distributed to supported community organizations. Transportation coordination is managed separately.
6. Government Social Investment Funds: Manages government-designated funds including the Fonds d'aide urgente en itinérance ($319,000 from SACAIS), Community Services Recovery Fund (in partnership with Canadian government), and various provincial social initiative funds for distributing to community organizations.
7. Fonds Défi des Leaders (Leaders Challenge Fund): Matching fund program where new donors of $1,200+ or $2,500+ have their donations fully matched, and existing major donors who increase contributions by 10%+ receive matching on the increase. The fund reached $110,000 in 2022.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean is a regional non-profit that raises funds through annual workplace and individual giving campaigns, then redistributes those donations to approximately 100 community organizations addressing poverty, food insecurity, social isolation, youth, mental health, and housing in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec. Its offering combines fundraising campaign management, donor stewardship (including major donors and planned giving), administration of government-designated social investment funds, and the Clicdon digital donation platform.

Product overview

Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean is a charitable nonprofit organization that operates primarily as a fundraising and community support organization rather than a technology product company. Their main digital product is Clicdon, an online application used for managing fundraising campaigns and collecting donations, including features for workplace giving campaigns with payroll deduction. The organization also maintains a website platform for donations and community engagement. The product portfolio is focused on enabling charitable giving and community support in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clicdon Digital Donation Platform An in-house digital donation and campaign management platform that enables donors and workplaces to make one-time and recurring gifts online, supporting the organization's fundraising operations.
• Annual Community Fundraising Campaign Region-wide annual fundraising campaign engaging more than 300 workplaces and individual donors across Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean to raise funds for redistribution to community organizations.
• Social Investment Grants Program Multi-year grant funding program that redistributes donations and government-designated social investment funds to roughly 100 community organizations delivering frontline services in the region.
• Workplace Giving Campaign Coordination Turnkey service for regional employers to launch and run employee giving campaigns with payroll deductions, co-branded materials, recognition events, and impact reporting, in partnership with Centraide.

Quantifiable outcome

• 85,000+ people helped (1 in 4 residents of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

22 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and supporting.

• Rio TintomajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor campaign partner conducting workplace giving campaigns. Rio Tinto employees raised $760,853 in the most recent campaign. Representative Chloé Boudreau (Advisor, Value Creation) serves on the board of directors.
• Banque NationalemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor campaign partner with employees raising $366,734 in the most recent campaign. Co-president Josée Carrier (Vice-President Associate) led the 2022 campaign. Representative Maude Vallée (Director, Business Services) serves on the board.
• Hydro-QuébecmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor campaign partner with employees raising $328,191 in the most recent campaign. Significant corporate supporter of regional fundraising efforts.
• Entraide DesjardinsmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor campaign partner with employees raising $286,488 in the most recent campaign. Desjardins group supports workplace giving across the region.
• CIUSSS du Saguenay-Lac-Saint-JeanmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional health authority conducting workplace campaigns, raising $128,252 in the most recent campaign. Multiple representatives serve on various committees including Justine Fillion (Service Chief) on the board.
• Gouvernement du QuébeccoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGovernment of Quebec workplace campaign raised $121,036 in the most recent campaign. Provincial government employees participate in workplace giving across departments.
• Gouvernement du Canada (CCMTGC)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerFederal government workplace campaign raised $117,155 in the most recent campaign. Employees across federal departments participate in workplace giving.
• MNP Service ConseilcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional accounting/consulting firm. Co-president Jean-François Leblanc (Regional Managing Partner) led the 2022 campaign. Supports workplace campaigns and provides strategic counsel.
• ElkemsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerIndustrial company operating in the region. Supports workplace campaigns and community initiatives.
• Industrielle AlliancesupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerInsurance and financial services company. Supports workplace giving campaigns and community philanthropy.
• Sotrem-MaltechsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional technology/services company participating in workplace campaigns and community support.
• Eugène Allard Cuisine et TendancessupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal business. President Jean-Samuel Allard serves on the board of directors as Campaign Cabinet Representative.
• Construction GauthiersupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional construction company supporting workplace campaigns and community initiatives.
• Inter-Cité Construction / Groupe RiverinsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional civil engineering and construction company supporting community campaigns.
• Promutuel Assurance / Du Lac Au FleuvesupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional insurance company supporting workplace giving and community initiatives.
• Wild BlueberriessupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional agricultural company participating in community support initiatives.
• JamecsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional company supporting workplace campaigns and community initiatives.
• NolicamsupportingTechnology or IntegrationTechnology solutions provider. Logo partner supporting campaign initiatives.
• Centraide United Way CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational umbrella organization for Centraide network across Canada. Coordinates national initiatives including Community Services Recovery Fund ($400M federal investment) in partnership with Canadian Red Cross and Community Foundations of Canada.
• Canadian Red CrosscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational humanitarian organization. Co-partner with Centraide United Way Canada and Community Foundations of Canada for the $400M Community Services Recovery Fund.
• Fondations communautaires du CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational community foundations network. Co-partner with Centraide United Way Canada and Canadian Red Cross for Community Services Recovery Fund.
• Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional university. Professor Sabrina Tremblay (Coordinator of Regional Research Interventions Group) serves on the board as President of the Social Development Committee.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Réseau québécois de l'action communautaire autonome: Quebec-wide network of community action organizations that interface with Centraide chapters for funding flows. Adjacent ecosystem participant representing the community organizations Centraide SLSJ serves through its grantmaking.
• Moisson Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean: Regional food bank that is itself a recipient of Centraide SLSJ funding ($88,750 in 2023). Not a peer in fundraising terms but a downstream beneficiary organization illustrating the model of community organization distribution.

Direct peers

• United Way Greater Toronto: Largest United Way chapter in Canada with analogous workplace giving, major donor, and community fund deployment model. Comparable in GTM and donor pyramid structure but operates at materially larger scale in a major metro.
• Centraide Outaouais: Regional Centraide serving the Outaouais region with the same workplace campaign and community organization funding approach. Direct peer with very similar regional scope, demographic profile, and budget scale to Centraide SLSJ.
• Centraide du Grand Montréal: Largest Centraide/United Way chapter in Quebec, operating under the same federated model with workplace campaigns, major donor circles, and community organization funding. Direct model peer for fundraising GTM, allocation methodology, and donor stewardship practices.
• Centraide Québec / Capitale-Nationale: Regional Centraide chapter serving the Quebec City region with similar workplace campaign model and ~100 community organization funding structure. Closest geographic peer within the same Quebec Centraide federation.

Broad incumbents

• United Way Centraide Canada: National umbrella organization overseeing the Centraide/United Way movement in Canada. Provides brand standards, national partnerships (e.g., Community Services Recovery Fund), and best-practice frameworks to all regional chapters including Centraide SLSJ.

Emerging players

• Fondation communautaire du Grand Québec: Community foundation operating in overlapping Quebec geographies, focused on endowment-based grantmaking. Comparable in funding community organizations but uses a structurally different asset-management model rather than annual campaigns.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/centraide-saguenay-lac-saint-jean

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Centraide Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean