A man dressed in jeans and a rumpled shirt walked into the lobby and asked to see the executive director. Thankfully the receptionist greeted him and found the executive director who was willing to go out and greet the plainly dressed visitor. It is a good thing she did—he proceeded to give her a check.
The most important determining factor in your job security, job satisfaction and job success is being on the "same page" as your CEO or president. If you are uncertain if you and your president are on the same page, ask yourself these 10 questions.
Leaders with good judgment know when to force conformity and when to celebrate individuality. That sounds a lot like a great parent doesn't it?
I hear from fundraisers and nonprofit executives alike bemoaning how they wish their board members were engaged and eager to fundraise. I'm sure you've heard it, as well. Bill is eager—or was, that is.
While it is rare, Richard and I have found some of the best MGOs and managers are ones who collaborate, who go out of their way to seek counsel and have real confidants at work.
We all could work in for-profit, and make bigger money and go buy things and experiences that make us happy. Or, we could just work at what we love in the nonprofit sector and be happy.
Kudos to those dedicated nonprofit development professionals who celebrate their volunteers. Those who know — and believe — that it's about people, not money.
What if we are making the world a better place by simply trying to raise money? In our quest to get people to raise more money, we might be making them nicer people. This is the latest social science treasure that the Turnkey resident neuropsychologist, Otis Fulton, noted to me (yelled from the kitchen).
Nationwide, donor retention has dropped to just under 40 percent for one-year renewals. Compare that to 95-plus percent for commercial firms. Sense a disconnect?
Fundraising employment transition becomes a pothole in a sense that it causes disruption, loss of revenue, loss of relationships and many other negative implications. Think about your job experiences. Do you mandate a complete debrief of information when your employees leave employment? Do you ask board members to help bridge significant relationships to keep engagement and donor momentum in place? Do you provide new fundraising professional hires with solid prospect and donor information gleaned from former employees? How can this issue be dealt with in a positive way, especially when some departures are negative in scope?
