With increasing regularity, nonprofit organizations seem to be at odds with their major donors. Rather than draw my own conclusions about what’s happening, I enlisted some other voices. Today’s podcast begins a two-part conversation about the UAB-Culverhouse story with two guests who are a lot closer to the story than I - Randy Kinder, former Executive Director of Annual Giving at UAB, and Daphne Powell, Director of Donor Relations at Birmingham Southern College.
Read MoreIt was certainly a pleasure to connect with Sarah Jennings who has enjoyed a twenty year fundraising career and is now completing doctoral research that is contemplating the dynamics of what makes for a healthy relationship between the chief development officer and an organization’s senior leader. She also wants to know how colleagues, other leaders, and the organizational culture contribute to this relationship.
Read MoreShawn attended my seminar in Worcester in early May and agreed to follow up with me afterwards to process some of the ideas that I presented. It is apparent that the three lanes made a lot of sense to him, and he enthusiastically introduced the concept to his boss. Shawn has been contemplating the foreseeable challenges and opportunities that arise as control of lane one is relinquished to high-capacity volunteers, he begins to focus his time in lane two, and he encourages his boss to operate primarily in lane three.
Read MoreAfter we exchanged notes on our experiences in Reno, Karen shared with me that she believes fundraising is due for a make over and that the titles we’re assigned may be a good place to start. I shared with Karen that I believe the job descriptions that accompany our titles could be a more strategic way to address some of the challenges we routinely encounter.
Read MoreWith more than 70 episodes and guests representing several countries, I am surprised that the ordeal playing out in Europe, and the impact that Brexit is having on philanthropy, has not been discussed sooner. As I am quick to admit, I am not especially versed on what Brexit means for Britain and the rest of the world; so I was very grateful that Sian Mexsom agreed to offer me and my listeners a primer.
Read MoreCoral Dill is my favorite grant-writer. Why? Because she’s got a great sense of humor, she’s usually good for some friendly banter, and she has always demonstrated that she understands how fundraising really works. Coral describes her relationship with her client as that of a shepherd - she doesn’t want to be the organization’s hero; she wants to guide and facilitate successful relationships between clients and their finders.
Read MoreMuch of our conversation begged the question of whether philanthropy has been designed for the macho white males who are often applauded for writing the big checks. Chase wants us to wrestle with the reality that racism, sexism, and homophobia has prevented some from having a seat at the table; consequently we are missing out on the opportunity for these marginalized groups to contribute in a meaningful way.
Read MoreWe began with the goal of describing what a really successful special event looks like. From the outset, Danielle knew that I wasn’t a fan of the endless number of galas and golf tournaments that clutter many of my client’s calendars. Danielle offered some very insightful observations about what makes or breaks an event and how organizers should go about planning them. Despite the fact that our original conceptions of what a great event looks like, I’d say we were more aligned than we might imagined.
Read MoreHeather has recently written an article for AFP‘s online magazine that begs the question of what more can an organization achieve by sharing leadership. The two of us agree that nonprofit leaders have much to gain by sharing more leadership with their fundraisers. Heather’s follow up article will drill further down into how leaders can incorporate the values of shared leadership in their organizations.
Read MoreAs Kenna points out, fundraising, like many professions, is certainly guilty of overemphasizing the external technique which allows us to overlook and ignore the game that is playing out in our heads. I tend to think this is very characteristic of the messy adolescence that our profession is navigating its way through. Like an unaware teenager, we prefer anything that rationalizes and externalizes our problems.
Read MoreI was anxious to connect with Melissa Siegfried and Rebecca McAtee this week. The two of them are co-chairs for the Lehigh Valley’s Philanthropy Institute which I will be a part of in mid-May. We will be giving away 200 copies of The War for Fundraising Talent, and I will be presenting a fast-track version of the How Fundraising Really Works seminar. I’m excited to see that Gail Perry, Matt Hugg, Shanna Hocking and Chad Barger are also in the lineup.
Read MoreMuch of our recent podcast conversation revolved around how to navigate the messy middle between a donor’s initial gifts and their most significant gifts. I believe the best fundraisers rely on an intuition that enables them to quickly determine whether a relationship is going anywhere, and it’s up to the boss to determine whether they can trust this intuition and not insist that their employees come back with a check every time.
Read MoreIt was a pleasure to connect with Tobey Fossey in advance of my upcoming visit. Tobey is a member of the Women in Development of Central MA which has invited me to present How Fundraising Really Works to their group in early May. Tobey and I both share a similar background in fundraising for independent schools, so we took this opportunity to share some of our experiences and compare notes on a few of the things that we believe are getting in the way of effective fundraising.
Read MoreI try to have meaningful conversations ahead of time with fundraisers in the places where I will be speaking. These conversations ensure I have a sense of where I’m going and better understand who has graciously afforded me a platform to speak about our maturing profession. This week I had the opportunity to connect with Suzanne Smith for a few minutes to talk about her involvement with Women in Development of Central Massachusetts and to hear her thoughts about why it’s important to be a part of a like-minded group who share a similar professional journey. Speaking for myself, I can recall many times in my fundraising career where my network of colleagues were my go-to source for encouragement and advice.
Read MoreMy recent conversation with Melissa Piece was a strong reminder that fundraisers are my people – I get them, easily relate to them and want nothing more than to ensure that they are recognized and admired for meaningful work. I’m just not about the large associations, software companies, and consulting firms that, frankly, only seem to get in their way.
Read MoreIt was a pleasure to connect with Dr. Steven Hairston, Vice President of Institutional Advancement, and Candice Murry, Director of Development, who will be hosting the How Fundraising Really Works roadshow later this month, to talk about fundraising at Saint Augustine’s University in Raleigh, North Carolina. This podcast conversation was an opportunity to learn how an experienced leader who has navigated our profession’s many potholes takes very seriously his obligation to create a path for aspiring fundraisers who are eager to learn and grow.
Read MoreI was delighted to catch up with Linda Lysakowski, a true champion of the fundraising profession. Linda is among the few who have earned the ACFRE credential; she has trained thousands of fundraising professionals and written several books on the subject. It was apparent that Linda and I could have taken our gardening analogy to all sorts of lengths if we had the time.
Read MoreOne of unfortunate realities of attending conferences is that after the breakout sessions and motivational keynotes are over, everyone has to return to the office and attempt to implement everything they have learned. What was most evident in my conversation with Cindy Wagman, Founder of The Good Partnership, is her commitment to and grasp of the challenges of small shops.
Read MoreAs someone who never shies away from an opportunity to ruffle a few feathers, I admire Heather Hill’s willingness, in partnership with Ian MacQuillin (Rogare- The Fundraising Think Tank), to also ask some of fundraising’s most difficult yet critically important questions. This morning at AFP ICON, Heather and Ian are encouraging fundraisers to ask whether donor centrism has become fundraising’s eight-hundred-pound gorilla.
Read MoreThis afternoon at AFP ICON 2019 in San Antonio, I had the pleasure of connecting with Tycely Williams, VP of Development at the YWCA USA and Chair of AFP’s Women’s Impact Initiative. Along with colleagues Linda Lysakowski and Suzy Hart, Tycely is encouraging fundraisers to ask why, in the age of Wonder Woman, are men still ruling so many of fundraising’s C-Suites?
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