Social Entrepreneur blog for the world changers
Careers in Fundraising
What Does it Mean to Be a Development Professional?
Jan 12th
As fundraisers, we often refer to ourselves as “development professionals” or “development pros.” I like this terminology, because at their best, fundraising staff members, consultants, and development directors are professionals. But it got me thinking… in terms of fundraising, what exactly does it mean to be a “pro?”
To many people, the term professional just means someone who is paid to do something, or someone who has been doing something for a long time. For example, when we say “sales pro” or “professional poker player,” we often mean someone who is experienced, and who is paid a living wage (or better) for what they do. I find this definition severely lacking, however… we all know people who get paid for what they do, or who have been doing it for a long time, who are anything but professionals.
The True Development Pro
To me, a true development professional is defined by two things: a commitment to the profession, and an ethical and mission-based approach to fundraising. Much as with the cream of the crop in other true “professions,” such as doctors, lawyers and teachers, the best development officers and managers make a long-term commitment to fundraising, and exhibit true passion for what they are doing.
Let’s take a look at each of these two components of professionalism to see how they apply for modern fundraisers:
A Commitment to the Profession
True development pros see their profession as a “calling,” and make a long-term commitment to the role. They don’t see this as a “job,” they see it as a “career.” They learn, attend seminars, find mentors, read books, and figure out ways to become better fundraisers and better non-profit employees.
Likewise, they try to advance the profession by getting involved in professional organizations, mentoring other, younger development staff members, and being not just good, but phenomenal representatives of their organizations and their profession to the curious public.
An Ethical and Mission-Based Approach to Fundraising
The best development professionals uphold high ethical standards in their fundraising work. They play by the rules, because they know the rules work. They respect donors, because they know that disrespecting donors hurts not only their organization, but other non-profits as well.
Similarly, fundraising pros bring a mission-based mindset to their work. They know that their non-profit’s mission matters, and use that mission as the basis for all of their prospecting, cultivation, and appeals. For them, fundraising isn’t just a numbers game, it is an effort that has a very real and very positive effect on human lives.
It’s Time to Step Up to the Plate
Here on A Small Change Fundraising Blog, Jason often highlights development professionals in his Featured Fundraiser posts. I love these profiles, and often find inspiration in the work of others in the non-profit field. Use stories like these as inspiration for your own work and career.
If you haven’t yet made the commitment to becoming a true development pro, now is the time to step up to the plate. You may be hoping for a 40 year career in development, or you may be looking for a “2nd act” of 10 years in fundraising before you retire. Whatever your career path, now is the time to make a commitment to the profession. Start learning, networking, and growing, and bring your love for your organization’s mission into everything you do.
____
Joe Garecht is the creator of The Fundraising Authority, a free source of fundraising advice and tutorials for non-profits of all sizes.
Related posts:
- More Than Fund Development
- Mixing Personal and Professional
- Fund Development Job Websites
- Development Fatigue
- Mission or Opportunity
The System Is Down
Nov 15th
When you leave a job, one of the best things you can leave behind is a working system and instructions on how to use that system. I was recently amazed at the number of tasks and jobs I do I never thought about until I had to write them down. It is also amazing how hard it can be to decipher someone else’s system without any notes or explanation.
I’ve always thought I was methodical and that everything I did made logical sense. Then someone else took a look at what I was doing and raised a number of questions that introduced a new perspective. Writing down your mental process provides you an opportunity to improve your regular flow of work and helps everyone to be on the same page. I found that this process allowed me to take the time to think critically about what is really essential in my processes and what is not essential.
Creating tried and true systems can be incredible for an organization. A good system makes our everyday tasks more efficient so we can spend our time growing the organization by talking with donors. Setting up a good system can be as simple as creating an acknowledgement process for donors or creating a checklist for an event. This is why capital campaign fundraising often allows an organization to move to the next level. Not only does campaign fundraising allow you to reach out to new donors, but it also creates a system to engage them in a meaningful ongoing way.
Related posts:
Lost in the Junk
Nov 10th
Don’t get lost in the junk of everyday work and fail to get the important work done. I find it tremendously easy to get stuck in the mindset where I have to finish every project no matter what the size. It is often surprising how hard it can be as a Major Gifts Officer to get out of the office. It is easy to stop the prospecting process and stop finding new donors and stick only with cultivating those you already have. But that can destroy your pipeline of new opportunities.
I prioritize my work with direct donor engagement as number one. If we are not creating and sustaining relationships with donors, then we are not serving our purpose as fundraisers. I will sometimes bump creating & sustaining relationships if I getting ready for a solicitation and I need to prepare something to make it successful. I rank solicitation meetings with donors as the very most important to schedule.
I found my first couple weeks on the job I had a dozen pamphlets to read, staff to meet, and orientation classes to attend. If you are not new to the job it is easy to get wrapped up in organizational committee meetings, answering the front desk phone line, budgeting, and much more. It has been helpful to prioritize my work so that projects that involve donors are put to the front of the line.
How do you manage all of the junk that gets in the way of work? A lot of it is important and can’t be completely abandoned, but it can be reprioritized. How do you prioritize?
Related posts:
Building Allies
Nov 3rd
I find the first few months are so important at a new job. I recently read the book The First 90 Days
- When I first started I began to try to figure out where natural ally relationships would be. Orientation is a great place to start. Everyone in this group has being new in common. As a new employee you want to find your way in the organization= you don’t know the existing attitudes (positive or negative), and have little ingrained thinking about the organization.
- Your immediate work team is a great group in which to build relationships. They already know good people to connect with and build solid relationships.
- Natural internal partners. Who does your team work with regularly that you might want to take a special effort to get to know?
- The executive team. A good time to meet them is when you are new, as they want you to be excited about the organization and know you are not going to ask anything of them. (Some bosses feel pressure if their staff talk with/meet the executive team. A good practice is to ask your boss if he/she would be willing to introduce you.)
Where do you find allies? How did you build up your relationships internally and externally? Building allies is happening all the time. What are you doing to continue to develop ally relationships in your organization?
Related posts:
- Keep on Keeping On
- Building Community Online
- A Big Give Again
- Question: Building Community
- Building Your Event Menu
Tips in a New Job?
Nov 1st
I’m not sure if I mentioned it yet, but I recently started a new job. So, that will probably be on my mind a little over the next number of posts. I am working as a Major Gifts Officer at a local hospital and am managing a portfolio of donors as well as launching a capital campaign. I thought I’d write this post to offer some tips and ideas I’ve tried when starting my new job and to hear some new ones from you. Here are a few things I’ve tried or wish I’d tried my first few weeks on the job.
- Temper my ambition my first week on the job. I’ve found that if I’m too gung-ho that it can frustrate my boss and co-workers. I try to relax and educate myself to the environment and get a feel for expectations.
- Ask co-workers the tactical & logistics questions. This frees up your boss for the strategic and hard to answer questions. Co-workers can help you discover how the office works and the expectations of your team and your boss.
- Try to figure it out on your own first. Try to answer the easy questions with simple research and reading. In the least, you can use that reading to inform how you ask questions to the rest of the organization.
- Figure out what kinds of things are considered extra credit and expectations. Does everyone go out to lunch regularly? Is there an organizational meeting you could attend that would be really valuable but isn’t expected?
- Take time to talk to everyone on your immediate team. Those initial first impressions are huge. Many of your co-workers make a decision about you in your first few days of work. People like you more if you’ve taken some time to get to know them. I often will make sure I say good morning to everyone in the office by walking around or doing a coffee run.
- Take time to get a tour of the organization and understand the client experience. What does your nonprofit do? Make sure in your first few weeks you have a chance to have some of those experiences first-hand. Maybe it makes sense to set up a couple of meetings with clients and get their perspective.
Those are only a few small things. I’d love to hear any tips from you on being successful in your first couple of months on the job. What do you think? What is your advice?
Related posts:
- Getting Settled In
- We Reflect Our Leaders
- Fund Development Job Websites
- Starting a New Job
- Tips & Advice with Janice Chan
How I Give
Jun 7th
Last Monday I gave a few of my personal thoughts on why I give to nonprofit organizations. I find it funny that we ask people for money all day but hardly talk about where we give it ourselves. Today I’m going to talk a little bit about where I give my money and why. I don’t want to give exact number but to give you a reference point my wife and I give about 7% of our gross income every year.
The majority of our charitable giving goes to our church. As a church member and someone who spends more than a day a week there, it is important to me that I am consistently giving to support the mission of my church. My personal belief is that God has been generous to me, and in response, I should be generous to his church.
When I started at my current employer, I felt that it was important for me to give a personally significant gift. There is something psychological that happens when you make a gift to the organization for which you work. Until I make that gift, it can be easy to keep fundraising at an arm’s length away. If you are not willing to make a significant gift to the nonprofit you work for, then you are probably working for the wrong nonprofit. The other organization I give to is a personal connection of mine. A friend built and runs a school in Africa and has asked me personally a number of times for fundraising tips and support. After my church (77%), most of my giving goes to The Wellspring Foundation (14%) and the Bellevue College Foundation (9%).
Every year I hear about hundreds of nonprofits, and I envy people who have more money to give away because they can choose to support more organizations. There is a lot of value in annual fund giving and I will, on occasion, respond to an appeal of my favorite organizations. I don’t like to give too many $25 to $50 gifts because the resources spent cultivating me as a donor, through thank you letters and additional appeals, exceeds the value of my gift. As a fundraiser, you have to be willing to make that kind of investment in all of your donors; I understand that. Organizations I gave to this year in that capacity range are: New Horizons Ministries and King County Library.
Related posts:
- My Philosophy of Giving
- The Multi-Year Gift
- Oprah’s Big… Give?
- The Fundraising Advantage
- A Big Give Again
My Philosophy of Giving
May 31st
I received an email from a reader at Actually Giving few weeks ago and she mentioned how rarely, as fundraisers, we talk about our own personal giving. Today I want to talk a little about my theories as to why I give, and first thing next week I’ll post where and why I give money.
I prefer to give deeply instead of giving broadly. When I first started in fundraising, I was shocked at how little money people actually gave. I realized that, through my giving to church, I could actually be considered a major donor at most organizations. Giving is about choosing a couple of organizations and making a significant gift. I’m a big advocate for monthly giving as it allows someone to give small gifts throughout the year that add up to one big gift.
In the back of my head, I’ve convinced myself that I’m a great fundraiser. In order for an organization to get money from me, they have to do as good of a job in cultivating me as I think I’m doing with other people. For example I expect to get a thank you letter within a week, if it’s someone I know I appreciate a thank you call or email. I love when I get a thank you letter and it has a little note on it even when the note just says thank you. So I’ve created a bit of a high standard. Because of this I find that it can be difficult for a new organization to acquire me as a new donor.
On Wednesday I’ll give some more specifics about where I give to and why. What is your philosophy of giving? Do you believe that fundraisers should be philanthropists too?
Related posts:
- How I Give
- What Motivates Giving?
- Monthly Giving
- The Rich Young Ruler: Transformational Giving
- Endowment Giving
The Technology Schedule
Mar 15th
Living in Redmond, Washington I have a number of friends who work for Microsoft. Many of them start work at 9 am or later. They have the ability to set their schedules and work from home. Many serve on nonprofit boards and are often some of the easiest board members to schedule meetings with because they have so much control over their schedules.
I must say I am rather jealous of the flexibility their employer has given them. Employees have a lot of freedom to work at their own pace. This sliding schedule has worked to the benefit of the employer as many employees work all hours of the day and night to get a project done when it comes down to a deadline.
There are certainly dips and troughs in my days in regards to the amount of work and the demands on my time. Surely, there must be some value in providing a Grant Writer the flexibility to work from home and that it might be harder for a Major Gifts Officer. Do you think the nonprofit community could benefit from a flexible schedule like that? Would it even be practical to set up a program with that much flexibility to work from home?
Related posts:
Recent Comments