“Shave or Dye” makes its way to the boardroom

The Irish Cancer Society’s “Shave or Dye” fundraising campaign, where participants colour or even eviscerate their barnets in return for sponsorship, has returned for a sixth year. Run in conjunction with Today FM, it has raised €7.55 million since 2010.

The society is seeking to draw in more participants from the business community, however, where pink locks or self-inflicted baldness might get you a few odd looks in the boardroom. Natural baldness is okay, though, because there’s no shortage of that at the top tables of Irish business.

So, this year’s hairy campaign includes an, er, strand for people in business and elsewhere who don’t want to go the whole hog called Oh My.

Participants are urged to simply “have a bad hair day”, post their daft look on social media under the #ohmy hashtag, nominate a friend to do the same, and donate €4 by texting SHAVE to 50300.

Companies and individuals can register on the Irish Cancer website. John McCormack, ICS’s chief executive, wants businesses to get involved from chief executive level downwards.

“We are hoping to raise €1.4 million this year. We have a big commitment to cancer research,” he said.

Much of the cash raised will go towards funding the Breast Predict programme, which engages in collaborative research into breast cancer. Boots, Irish Rail, Penneys and Cineworld are among the well-known companies to get involved so far.

I can think of a few Irish chief executives who seem to permanently have bad hair days, so they may as well translate it into a few bob for a great cause.