Getting Organized for Fundraising

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Getting Organized for Fundraising

• NGO School - Moscow
• Workshop
• 8 October 2008
• Kay Sprinkel Grace, Presenter

2
Agenda

• Welcome and introductions
• The challenges and opportunities of being a
  professional fundraiser
• What we have to organize
• How we can organize
• Special strategies and requirements
• Using your skills for success
• Close

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A Challenging Profession

• But very worthwhile work

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Why Development is Such a Challenging Profession

• Many constituencies
• Many different people to work with
• In your organizations, the need to engage program
  and administrative staff in the development
  program
• Many bosses to report to
• High expectations sometimes unrealistic
• Confusion people have about what fundraising is

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Why Development is Such a Challenging Profession
- 2

• Constant deadlines
• The need to develop donor relations while raising
  money
• People are impatient with the process
• Staying focused on long-term results
• Ensuring that your mission, vision and values are
  in all the messages of the organization

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What We Have to Organize

• People (including ourselves)
• Paperwork
• Technology
• Time

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Organizing People

• People who work with us
• People who work for us
• We need to staff our programs adequately
• People who are sources of revenue (including
  those who represent government or corporations)
• Ourselves need to know basic management
  principles

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Organizing Paperwork

• Records management is very important
  fundraising begins with accuracy of records about
  donors
• Requests for money and thank you letters when
  money is given
• Marketing and fundraising materials
• Interoffice exchange of memorandums and requests

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Organizing Technology

• Technology is a powerful tool
• Email can be a time-saver or a time-waster
• Technology can help make a fundraising office
  work smoothly Internet, email, fax machines,
  interactive and passive web sites
• Having a staff person for technology is important

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Organizing Time

• The time demands on a fundraising professional
  are extreme
• Make sure you have time for planning, thinking,
  writing, reviewing materials and interacting with
  people
• Keeping your life in balance is very difficult
  here is a typical day in the life of a
  fundraising professional

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A Day In the Life.

• 730 a.m. breakfast with a donor
• 830 a.m. meeting with CEO
• 900 a.m. start doing what needs to be done
  today
• Research information for proposal for major
  project
• Telephone call with government funder about
  renewing grant

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A Day - 2

• What needs to be done, continued
• Problem-solve a software situation
• Review/sign off on direct marketing campaign
  materials
• Lunch meeting with colleague you want to partner
  with on a program
• 230 p.m. Meet with program staff to get latest
  fundable ideas share potential funders with them

13
A Day - 3

• 4 p.m. Interview with potential new staff member
• 5 p.m. Oversee set up of tables/chairs for next
  mornings full staff meeting and make sure LCD
  projector is working and presentation is on the
  computer (with flash drive back up)
• 7 p.m. Join donors for a thank you event at a
  private home

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Issues in Managing Your Day

• Little time in the office
• Little time for planning
• Little time for thinking
• Little time for reviewing progress or evaluating
  activities
• Need to make sure that every day is not like the
  day described

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How We Can Organize

• Ideas from 25 Years

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What We End Up Organizing

• Ourselves first
• Staff
• Deadlines and priorities
• Relationships with donors, program staff,
  development staff, executive staff
• Planning and budgets
• Vital records

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How To Organize for Results

• Engage donors in ways that motivate them
• Work in a supportive way with staff
• Communicate with donors often and honestly
• Enroll program and administrative staff in your
  vision and plans
• Keep yourself renewed
• Speak up and speak out for what you need
• Set realistic goals that require effort but are
  attainable

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Special Strategies and Requirements

• Getting Good Results from Building Relationships

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If You Are to Meet the Challenges, What
Strategies Will You Need?

• Build your staff resources as your financial
  resources grow
• Engage your staff in vision and tasks
• Become better at keeping donors informed and
  involved
• Understand philanthropy (love of humankind,
  voluntary action for the public good)
• Understand what donors look for in organizations
  they fund

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Three Guiding Principles

• People give to you because you meet needs, not
  because you have needs
• A gift to you is really a gift through you
  people are investing in their community and they
  see you as a good way to invest
• Fund raising is not about money, it is about
  relationships build the relationships, and the
  money will come. Ignore the relationships, and
  the money will go away.

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Organizing for Success

• With staff
• Clear communications
• Specific assignments that will motivate them
• Coaching, training and rewards
• With donors
• Information about the impact of their investment
• Treat them like investors
• Remember that the gift is a symbol of the
  relationship

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Organizing for Success

• With administrative and program staff
• Clarity
• Communication
• Respect
• Be the reminder of the mission
• With those who serve you or sell to you
• Engage them in your mission
• You are not just another customer
• Give recognition for special service

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Organizing for Success

• Personal relationship-building with donors
• Appreciation
• Education about philanthropy
• Meetings that are enjoyable
• Engagement in programs, not just fundraising
• Technology to enhance relationships
• Website
• Emails, E-newsletters
• Telephone and cell phone

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Organizing for Success

• Educating the community
• Help people with wealth understand the benefit of
  giving
• Offer examples from other countries where giving
  has transformed communities
• Listen for the donors dreams and helping them
  find a way to fulfill them through giving to you
  or others

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Using Your Skills to Achieve Success

• Your organizational responsibilities
• and your career

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Succeeding With Your Organizational Tasks

• Find someone who is experienced who will help you
  if you are new to the field (a mentor)
• Build good relationships with other staff
• Be a good listener
• Be willing to do what you ask others to do
• Ask for a clear explanation of what is expected
  of you
• Understand the need you are meeting in your
  community so you can measure your success against
  your results

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Succeeding With Your Organizational Tasks - 2

• Be patient with the time it takes to fully
  implement a fundraising program
• Learn your organizations mission, vision and
  values and use them in all your messaging
• Help others grow professionally as you become
  more experienced
• Keep and convey a spirit of abundance and
  possibility
• Be respected as a person who is making a
  difference through your work

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Organizing Your Own Career in Fundraising

• Be sure you have a good fit with your
  organization (values, vision, mission,
  environment)
• If it doesnt fit, do what you can to change it
  or move on
• Ask for what you need and want, including regular
  evaluation
• Pay attention to your intuition (subconscious
  intelligence)

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Organizing Your Own Career in Fundraising - 2

• Learn the ethical standards of our profession
• Read the literature of the field
• Take classes
• Ask to be part of meetings that set budgets,
  deadlines or limits for work for which you are
  responsible
• Maintain excellent professional and personal
  records

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Why We Must Be Organized for Success

• Why systems liberate
• Summary and Conclusion

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Good Systems Liberate

• When systems are in place and we are organized,
  we are much better able to be out of the office
  and making relationships with people
• Our internal systems (technology, non-technology
  communications, others) also have to work
• Good systems help us manage

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Why Our Work is So Important

• We connect peoples dreams with opportunities for
  dreams to come true
• We are an excellent community investment
• We inspire with our vision for our society
• We attract donors with our mission
• We offer people opportunities to make a
  difference in the future

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Why You Are Important to Your Communities

• You are connectors with organizations that can
  help fulfill a donors dreams
• You provide, through your efforts and
  accomplishments, programs and results that affect
  people in whatever community you serve (local,
  national, global)
• As agents of philanthropy, you ease human
  suffering and/or enhance human potential
• As NGO leaders of a new Eastern Europe, you have
  significant potential for impact

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Leadership

• Where ever you are in the organization, you can
  lead by example
• If you are organized and inspired, others will
  become organized and inspired
• Donors look to NGOs for leadership and action
  we must commit to organizing for success

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Closing Thought.

• Be organized. Be ready. Here is a great
  quotation
• The secret of success in life is for a man to be
  ready for his opportunity when it comes."
  Benjamin Disraeli, British Prime Minister

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Getting Organized for Fundraising

• NGO School Moscow
• 8 October 2008
• Kay Sprinkel Grace, Presenter
• kaysprinkelgrace_at_aol.com