Are Fundraisers Stupid?

I just had another talk with a fundraising director who was getting micromanaged by a nonprofit executive director. She was out visiting sponsors for an event and getting e-mails questioning whether being out of the office was the best use of her time.

This happens all the time.

Even when fundraising professionals specifically ask a question like, “Are you expecting me to simply warm a seat?” in the interview, EDs still seem to freak out when they aren’t at their desks.

Why is this?
I don’t have it figured out. But here are my ideas.

• Everyone else is at the office when they are working. This is probably a big one. For most organizations, butts in seats is visible proof that employees are working. (Or at least are physically present. They may be mentally elsewhere!) Empty seats = no work getting done.
• The ED wants to pop in and ask a question. This has to be frustrating for an ED. Most other employees are available for a quick question. If we’re doing our job engaging, soliciting and stewarding donors, we aren’t at our desks. So when she comes in to ask us a question, she’s reminded that we’re not there — which pops back to the butt-in-seat issue mentioned above.
• Most other revenue is billable. It might also be that fundraising isn’t a consistent monthly income. It usually comes in chunks at different times of the year: in response to direct mail, an event or a major-gift project. It becomes a “receivable” only after it’s pledged. Only then can the ED show it to the CFO or board and feel reasonably confident that it’s coming in.

I don’t think we’re stupid
I don’t think fundraisers are stupid. But I think we stink at “impression management.” In many ways, we need to “steward” our bosses (or boards if they are our bosses) just as well as we steward donors: We need to prove their investment in us is a good one.

We are usually the only person at our organization, or the only department, that thinks like we do. So we need to translate our activities in a way our employers understand.

The weekly call report
Years ago, I developed what I call a Weekly Call Report. It had places for the date and a weekly focus. But the rest of the page (and the back) was filled with spaces to record the names of people I contacted. There were something like 120.

This was just how I “kept score.” My goal was to fill up the sheet every week. At the end of the week, I’d make a copy of this and put it in my boss's inbox with a simple “FYI” scrawled on it.

I also included how I was contacting people, why I was contacting them and any relevant notes. All this helped me then put the information into the database so others would know.

I didn’t have to do this. No one was forcing me to keep score. I simply needed to prove to myself that I was doing the right actions. Seeing how I was contacting people and why helped me make sure to mix up my communications. If I were too reliant on e-mail, I’d quickly see I needed to pick up the phone or get a face-to-face. If I were too focused on thanking, I’d easily see I needed to step up my solicitations.

I was at a school when I created this, so I also looked at who I was contacting. It got really easy to contact people who graduated around the time I did. This sheet served as an early warning system, reminding me to talk to a variety of alumni.

And it went into my boss’s inbox every week. A simple, nonverbal reminder that 100 to 120 people were contacted that week without her having to lift a finger.

If we do our jobs well, we will not be at our seats all the time. This might help you with your “impression management.” Click here get a free PDF of this Weekly Call Sheet for yourself.

Marc Pitman is a fundraising coach and consultant. This article originally appeared on his FundRaising Coach website.