A Look Back — and Forward

What major trends/philosophies have you seen over the past 10 years? What has stuck? What has disappeared?

MacLaughlin: The most hyped trend was the generational transfer of wealth that was supposed to happen. Fortunately, advances in science and better living mean people are living longer. Unfortunately, this means people are using up more of their assets, and the recession impacted the short-term giving potential of many families. Instead we’ve had several years of relatively flat fundraising with no miraculous windfall on the horizon for most organizations. Gimmicks and fads are unlikely to reverse this trend.