Executive Issues

The last of the three articles on the roles in soliciting, this week I take up the role that many people see as the sum total of the ask: the individual that actually does the asking. I call it the “rainmaker.” What does the rainmaker do? In fundraising, the rainmaker makes things happen...

The messages you send early on in a project’s development, the leaders you involve, how you plan for and implement a campaign and when you break ground all impact the success of a major fundraising campaign. Throughout a campaign, if people think the project is taken care of, by the organization, or other donors or volunteers, they will happily pass and let someone else do it...

The last election provides a prime example of what I consider to be the loss of science in today’s fundraising campaigns. On any given day, I probably received 20 emails from the same organization. Its “strategy” amounted to nothing more than throwing spaghetti noodles against the wall to see what stuck. There was no conversation, and there was no appreciation of my past giving habits...

Nonprofit organizations often cite the high percentage of their incoming donations that go directly to the cause they support, not to administrative costs. However, a new study by Jeffrey Burks, associate professor of accountancy at the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business, found that nonprofits make accounting errors at a relatively high rate,…

Inside the Field Museum's recently unveiled Cyrus Tang Hall of China, a rare kingfisher headdress glitters in a new technological light. Touch screens allow visitors to view it and 350 or so other artifacts from every angle and to read the unique stories behind them. This sort of approach might not have happened if it…

The other day, I explored why so many funders love to back social entrepreneurs even though history shows that big changes are usually brought about by social movements—which today’s funders are decidedly less interested in backing. I offered up several possible reasons for this imbalanced funding picture, but here’s one I didn’t explore: Maybe there’s just…

Luna. That was the name voters chose for an adorable sea otter pup at Shedd Aquarium, a Chicago nonprofit. Nonprofits (including yours) make collective decisions all the time, and in a variety of contexts (admittedly more high stakes than naming adorable sea otters). So doesn’t it make sense to make those decisions in the smartest way possible...

Despite signs of increased giving since the economic downturn, the last recession gave nonprofits a strong wake-up call. In this episode of Fundraising Fundamentals, Paul Rosenberg, a partner at the Bridgespan Group, explains steps nonprofits can take to prepare for the next economic downturn. Organizations that map a clear strategy with specific outcomes they are…

Planned Parenthood's website went down Wednesday afternoon in what the nonprofit health services organization called "an attack by extremists." The hack comes in the wake of the publication of several undercover videos by anti-abortion activists seemingly showing Planned Parenthood officials discussing the sale of fetal tissue and organs for medical research. Selling fetal organs for…

Last week, I kicked off this series of unpacking the roles solicitors must assume when they seek a gift. They are: bag carrier, authenticator and rainmaker. The second soliciting role is the authenticator. The name says it. Essential qualities of the authenticator are a passion for the cause being pitched and a thorough, almost innate knowledge of the organization...