Next Topic: Building a Development Committee January 26, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

We've had alot of interest in learning about the role of the board in fundraising.  The obvious next step is building your organization's development committee.  I have served on multiple development committees, some highly productive, and others, well highly dysfunctional.  I have personally found that when the board and staff are fully working together and understand the value and expected contribution of each role makes for an exciting and truly successful committee.

So, how do you establish this successful development committee?  Who should serve?  What are the roles, responsibilities and desired outcomes?

I hope you can join us for a free webinar covering all of this are more on Thursday, February 11 at noon ET.  Our expert presenter is Linda Lysakowski, AFCRE and CEO of Capital Venture.  She's a true guru and also a very engaging speaker.  Board and staff alike will benefit and all are welcome to attend.  Space is limited, though, so please register now here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/494294552.

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The Role of the Board in Fundraising January 19, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

If this is a topic of interest to you, please come to our webinar tomorrow (January 20), Getting Your Board Onboard with Fundraising at noon ET. Our expert presenter is Ruthellen S. Rubin, CFRE. We invite you to sign up for the webinar at GoToMeeting.

If you are reading this after January 20, we would be glad to share the visual part of presentation with you—please e-mail us at info@missionresearch.com to request it.

Finally, below is an article on the role of the board in fundraising that Ruthellen wrote for the GiftWorks January eNewsletter. Do share your comments!

Success in Fundraising Starts with the Board of Directors

By Ruthellen S. Rubin, CFRE

The last decade was characterized as a time of plenty in the charitable arena: plenty of good causes, plenty of organizations, plenty of government support, plenty of corporate and foundation money, and plenty of individual giving.

Well, guess what? The party's over. Unquestionably, we are in the midst of a worrisome rebalancing and readjustment of charitable dollars. To succeed in this and the impending economic climate, nonprofits must renew their commitment to the basic fundamentals of fundraising. It starts with the board of directors.

Make sure that your board members agree to adopt best practices with regard to their responsibilities. In the area of fundraising, this means that the board must ensure that the culture of philanthropy and the commitment to the case for support of the organization start in the boardroom. Before board members can turn to their loyal donors and new prospective donors, they must clearly and unequivocally demonstrate their own support of the organization. This has never been more important than it is right now.

"The board must ensure that the culture of philanthropy and the commitment to the case for support of the organization start in the boardroom."

Donations are down, government funding is tentative and foundations have less money. At the same time, the demand for services, scholarships, programs and advocacy is soaring. Funders are asking, "Is your organization a good investment for me?" Potential donors are asking organizations to demonstrate how they have planned to meet the needs of the community and simultaneously positioned themselves to survive possible funding cuts. It is vital for board members to publicly demonstrate their confidence in and financial support of their own organizations.

Following are some tips for creating and maintaining the most valuable kind of board for your organization.

1. Board member giving
One of the key responsibilities of every board member is to ensure sound resources and finances for the organization. That means the board is responsible for seeing to it that the organization has the funds to carry out its mission. Before board members can begin to fundraise externally, each must make a personal financial commitment. The old ideas — "I give my time, so I don't have to give my money," "I'm on a lot of boards, so I can't give much," "You should appreciate me for my good ideas ... that's enough" — are out. O-U-T ... out. Each and every board member must make a financial contribution annually that is personally significant and meaningful.

2. Annual board orientation
No matter how mature, well-heeled or experienced your board is, there should be an Annual Board Orientation scheduled every single year. Ideally, this is when you bring in your new members, so everyone can start the year on equal footing. This is the time for a review of the responsibilities your organization has set forth for board members, reaffirmation of your board giving policy, agreement to a strategic fund development initiative and, above all, a recommitment to the mission of your organization.

3. Board expansion and diversification
The dynamic nonprofit board enforces term limits, rotates leadership and actively recruits new members. Thereby the board enlarges its circle of influence, attracts new skill sets, expands funding sources and strengthens its organization. The responsibility for new-member recruitment must be shared by all. Each board member should be an ambassador for the organization and dedicate the time and energy to cultivating new members in much the same way you would cultivate a prospect for a major gift.

4. Contingency plan
Every nonprofit organization, school, congregation and public benefit group should be actively rethinking its activities and creating contingency plans based on the new economic realities. Fiscal Management Associates and the Nonprofit Finance Fund offer tools, checklists, tips and a free webinar from their December 2008 event: The 2009 Nonprofit Economic Climate: Managing Through the Downturn. Take advantage of these free resources, and put these topics on your agenda for your next board meeting.

"The elevator speech won't be enough in this environment."

5. Board training
Budget and plan for training sessions for your board members to continue to build the skills needed to create and articulate the case for support (the elevator speech won't be enough in this environment), and learn how to be strong ambassadors for your cause. Training will help them learn how best to support your organization's fundraising initiatives and ensure your development office has the resources and technology needed to succeed.

Ruthellen S. Rubin, CFRE, is a consultant to nonprofit organizations specializing in fund development, technology and board training, and a professor of fundraising and philanthropy at New York University.

A Reflection on Change for Martin Luther King Jr. Day January 18, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

"An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity."  - Martin Luther King, Jr.

That Martin Luther King Jr. Day is becoming a national day of service is very fitting and most appropriate. Sometimes, though, I suspect that history and time collapse great historical movements into more simplistic short stories that are easier to grasp, tell and understand.  Great movements of social change, like the Civil Rights movement, are never simple and rarely brief. 

A few years ago I read the Pulitzer Prize winning Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-1963 by Taylor Branch (the first in a trilogy).  For me, one of the most striking aspects of the book was how many years so many individuals in this movement toiled behind the scenes and in relative obscurity.  The movement faced huge external obstacles, but also internal obstacles, that at every turn seemed insurmountable.  Dr. King, along with many great people, were willing to take unimaginable personal risks for their cause; day after day; year after year - it's hard to fathom this level of courage. 

Some of us may be called to this level of courage in our lives; others may not.  Either way, it is both comforting and challenging to recognize that history shows that achieving real change is neither easy nor quick.  Whether you are working toward large or small change; patience, determination, and dedication to a vision over the long run is essential.

So while we take one day to recognize a great leader and a great movement, let's also remember that Dr. King's work and the social movement he led, encompassed many lifetimes. 

And on this day, we at Mission Research extend our thanks to all of the dedicated participants in the nonprofit world who continue the daily struggle toward positive change. As you wade through the individual tasks and activities in pursuit of your larger goals, we applaud you, and encourage you on your mission.

Helping Haiti January 14, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

Here are links to our GiftWorks clients doing direct work in and for Haiti, if you are seeking a way to help:

Friends for Health in Haiti:  http://www.friendsforhealthinhaiti.org/

Haitian Christian Ministries:  http://www.hcmin.org/home.html

Health and Education for Haiti:  http://site.hehonline.org/

Servants for Haiti: http://audeodesignsolutions.com/joomla/

How to Eat an Elephant? January 11, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

You know the answer, don't you?  One bite at a time!

If you know you need to get your data organized, consistent, and well-managed, and it's currently none of the above, just the thought of tackling it can be overwhelming.

We have a conversation going on in our GiftWorks User Group on LinkedIn that is relevant for the many who find themselves in this situation (another great reason to join our community - you can join an active and supportive group of GiftWorks users and consultant partners!). 

If your data is incomplete, inaccurate and inconsistent and you don't know where to start, what should you do?  In this case, the conversation initiator has 5000 records that are in some form of this "3-i" state.  She asked for advice on how to tackle the project.  Should she wait until after her upcoming fundraiser to start?

The advice was detailed and varied , but all agreed that she should use the fundraiser as the starting point.  Take the attendees and contributors to the event and ensure that their records are correct, consistent and complete.  Start managing these in GiftWorks going forward.  As GiftWorks guru Duke Speer pointed out, "If you don't you will be repeating this scenario a year from now as without a deadline, the harder work just gets postponed."

A fellow nonprofit, who had a similar situation, decided to hire a consultant to clean and get them on a fresh start, and also made the decision to invest staff time to getting done more quickly.  If she can't do this now, his advice is to get started with GiftWorks either through her fundraising event and current records.  "While it's painful to deal with the shortcomings of either approach, the worst spot to be in is to continue to be tied up by the crummy data and not see the light at the end of the tunnel."

I share this with you so that if you find yourself in this situation, you are not the first, last or only.  But deciding to take the leap and deal with your data problems, rather than ignoring it (or waiting until you have "more time"), is absolutely necessary and critical if you want to take your organization the next level.

Enjoy that elephant and good luck! 

 

Get a Fundraising Education! January 8, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

Fundraising is an art and a science. 

While the art portion may be more aligned with individual talents and strengths, the science portion is absolutely within everyone's control.  To be as effective as possible in raising funds for your organization, you owe it to yourself and your organization to learn about fundraising as a discipline.  There is a wide body of knowledge and experience available you can and should access to ensure you know and understand the principles, strategies, and best practices associated with this professional field.

A great place to start would be your local AFP chapter.  AFP is the Association for Fundraising Professionals and they have regional chapters worldwide.  Visit http://www.afpnet.org/ to find your local chapter and to access lots of education resources.  When I started as a Development Director, I enrolled in the Philadelphia chapter's excellent Fundamentals of Fundraising 10-week course offered at Villanova. What I learned there proved to be invaluable over my career, and well worth the small cost for attending. 

Another resource is your state nonprofit association.  While state associations provide resources on all nonprofit matters, fundraising resources are prominently featured.   Find your state association here:  http://www.councilofnonprofits.org/salocator, and take a look at all of the webinars and regional trainings they offer.  You won't be disappointed.

Of course, there are more opportunities out there.  Please share your thoughts on the best way to become educated in the field of fundraising! 

2010 Is Here! What's Your Plan? January 3, 2010 By Mary Pat Donnellon

2010!  No matter what the challenges your organization faced in 2009, it's time to start a new year fresh with optimism and an eagerness for hard work. 

Along with your positive outlook, there is no more critical component to achieving your fundraising goals than creating your Development Plan.  If you haven't yet done this for 2010, it's not too late!  What do you need to accomplish and how do you plan on doing it?  Make sure staff and board are all in alignment soon, before you are tempted (or pressured) to go on any tangents. There are many excellent resources - both books and online templates you can find with some quick searches (I do recommend reading The Development Plan by Linda Lysakowski, ACFRE).

The GiftWorks Team is committed to helping you increase your knowledge and achieve your fundraising goals, through great software, of course, but also by offering free monthly webinars by nonprofit and fundraising gurus (Next up on January 20 at noon ET:  Getting Your Board on Board with Fundraising by Ruthellen Rubin, CFRE). 

Our team too is optimistic for 2010, and are excited to give our very best toward stregthening and empowering the nonprofit sector!  Let's go!