by Kris Kindelsperger

Unemployment is hovering at more than 9%. Significant layoffs have been seen in recent years in the nonprofit sector.  Many organizations are fighting for their financial lives.  So, how is it possible that some organizations claim that they cannot find qualified candidates for development positions?

The overall turbulence in the economy is causing many good candidates to hold tight and not make any moves at all.  Professional search firms will tell you that two-career couples are reluctant to move for fear that a spouse will be unable to find a job in today’s market.  Candidates who own homes may be underwater in their mortgage or concerned that they will be unable to sell their existing home.  The recession has put downward pressure on salaries making some moves less financially attractive.

As we have worked to help clients fill open development positions, we have seen several visible trends at work in the advancement job market:

A bird in the hand – Many of the best qualified professionals are not “in the market” for positions.  They have a good situation and are sticking with it.

Home Sweet Home – Some qualified candidates are not willing to relocate, especially to smaller communities, even for a significant career advancement.

Great Expectations – The expectations of some presidents/CEOs/boards for quick fundraising results are scaring away the best candidates.

What can you do about this?

• Many organizations are working harder to home-grow their staff.  Forward looking managers are doing more hiring and promoting from within to build future leadership.
• Good major gift officers are hard to find, so some organizations are more willing to experiment with individuals with sales and marketing backgrounds, as long as they embrace the mission of the organization.
• Lots of organizations are finding that their candidate pools are shallow so they have to exercise patience and be prepared to look longer and harder to find the right person.

One benefit of the recession is that new candidates are looking at the nonprofit industry who may not have in the past.  They look to the nonprofit world today as a safe haven from the perils of the economic storm ravishing many for-profit companies.  If they really care and believe in what you do, they may be the right person for the job at the right time.

Whatever your situation, remember three things:

1. Don’t settle for second best hoping that the person will somehow work out, they seldom do.
   
2. Do hire for the personality and work ethic characteristics necessary to do the job.  The resume can’t tell you this part of the human equation.
   
3. Do pay attention to your instincts about fit and dedication to your culture and mission. 

by Dan Schipp 

Johnny has been on the job – Assistant Director of Annual Giving – for nearly a year . . . and he just doesn’t seem to be getting it. 

He doesn’t appear to comprehend how annual giving fits into the overall picture of development.  He doesn’t seem to know where to focus his efforts. And he keeps bringing up ideas that just don’t fit the culture of the organization. 

Why is Johnny failing?  Perhaps, it has something to do with how Johnny was brought on staff.

Too often organizations and institutions do not pay sufficient attention to getting their new employees started off on the right foot. Effective onboarding is much more than a meeting with the Human Resources administrator and a tour of the campus or office. 

A quality, comprehensive onboarding experience is a long-term process that begins before an employee’s first day on the job and continues for several months.  Onboarding is more about positioning employees for success and retaining talent than getting them settled in their new jobs.

A well planned and executed onboarding process serves several objectives, including:

• promoting an understanding of the organization’s culture, values and priorities
• building positive relationships within the organization
• reducing new employee anxiety
• setting performance expectations
• decreasing the learning curve

What are some things to keep in mind when bringing on board a new worker in an advancement office? 

In addition to the usual steps — sending a letter of welcome before the employee’s first day, thoroughly preparing an office, and creating an onboarding plan/schedule (perhaps for the first six months), I suggest the following actions:

• Compile an orientation binder that includes:
  •  the organization’s mission and vision statements,
  • case for support, 
  • organizational and advancement office strategic plans,
  • job descriptions for everyone on the advancement staff,
  • organizational charts for the advancement office and the organization as a whole,
  • brief biographies of organizational leadership, board members and advancement staff,
  • brief history of the organization,
  • fact sheets on the organization and the advancement office,
  • advancement performance dash board, and
  • office policies and procedures.
• Arrange for the chief advancement officer or another senior advancement officer to meet with the new staff member several times over the first few months to discuss the organization’s history, culture, guiding principles, and philosophy of development.
• Assign someone on staff to serve as an onboarding peer to be available to the new staff member to provide support and facilitate introductions to others in the organization.
• Schedule orientation meetings with advancement staff members to have them explain their responsibilities and advancement objectives.
• For someone taking on personal solicitation of gifts for the first time, arrange for a major gifts officer to accompany the new staff member on several calls and model how to cultivate and solicit gifts for the organization.
• Schedule frequent meetings between the new staff member and her supervisor to discuss expectations, to review progress, and to assess the challenges and opportunities in the new staff member’s area of responsibility.

What would you add to this list of steps to take to ensure a positive onboarding experience for a new advancement staff member?

by Angela E. White

Chief Shoe Giver is the title of Blake Mycoskie, the founder of TOMS shoes. Blake was the opening speaker at the AFP International Conference in Chicago on March 20, 2011.

Blake’s interesting title reflects his entrepreneurial spirit – creating a for profit company that makes giving back the core concept of the company.

His story of creating TOMS Shoes is fascinating, including the role of women in test marketing the concept of marrying consumer purchasing and philanthropy and the powerful impact of storytelling.

Get online and read about Blake and the story of TOMS Shoes. TOMS gave away their one millionth shoe this year – amazing!

Blake’s title got me thinking of how we might re-title ourselves in the work that we do in philanthropy.

Perhaps instead of our common titles of Director of Development or Major Gift Officer, we might adopt the titles of Director of Making a Difference or Chief Life Changer.

Thinking about what our titles might be causes us to peel back our work to the core of what we do – the foundation of why we are engaged in this work of philanthropy.

Ponder your real title and the impact that you make in the world and how you can implement TOMS Shoes’ “one for one” concept in your work.

By “one-to-one”, I encourage you to think about how you can make certain that you incorporate giving into your for-profit partnerships.  While you ponder, I am on my way out to buy some TOMS Shoes!

P.S.     April 5th is TOMS One Day Without Shoes  – a day for you to go barefoot to experience what is like to go barefoot and for the hundreds of thousands of people who have to go barefoot everyday because they have no choice. April 5th also happens to be my birthday, and I ask you to join me in raising awareness for the health and safety needs of those children around the world who have no shoes. Who knows, maybe all of JGA will be barefoot that day!

by Dan Schipp

I was seated across the table from the chief executive officer, a highly successful fund raiser.  We were having a conversation about the record-setting, fundraising year his organization had just completed. 

He leaned across the table and said, “But I want more for this institution . . . I want to ensure that the success we are currently having in fundraising continues well beyond the tenure of the present team – CEO, advancement staff, and volunteers . . . I want to “systemize” a high-functioning, productive development program.”  

How do you do that?  How do you provide for continuity and on-going, long-term success in fundraising?  How do you build a culture of effective development?

For answers to those questions, I look to an organization, located in Indiana, that has had a strong, distinctive development culture since the 1960’s. 

How has this organization gone about systemizing its approach to development? I can identify four primary ingredients in its recipe for successfully sustaining a consistent, distinctive effort in fundraising:

1. A vision or philosophy of development.  Early on the architect of the organization’s program articulated his vision for development, captured it in writing, and passed this “philosophy” on to those who succeeded him.  For nearly 50 years, this philosophy with its foundation stones of planning, communicating values, and inviting support has guided the  program. 
2. Orientation, on-boarding and mentoring of new staff.  Efforts are made early on to familiarize new administrative and advancement staff with the organization’s tradition of development.  Through written materials and frequent oral reminders about the program’s basics, new staff members are instructed in the organization’s approach to fundraising.  The orientation often includes extended conversations or mentoring relationships with those who have previously worked in the development office. Lastly, a common frame of reference for staff is established by having the executive leadership and all development officers attend The Fund Raising School’s “Principles and Techniques of Fund Raising” course.
3. Emphasis on building relationships.  From the outset, the organization’s  development program has focused on building mutually rewarding relationships with benefactors.  The emphasis has been on long-term returns rather than immediate results.  Thus, cultivating and nourishing relationships with benefactors through frequent contact with institutional leadership and advancement staff is a hallmark of the program.
4. Longevity of staff.  For an organization to develop a culture of effective fund raising based on building relationships, it cannot have a constant turnover in executive leadership or advancement staff.  Over the past 50 years, this organization has had six presidents and four chief advancement officers.  Such stability in leadership comes about when the leadership is motivated by the mission and values of the organization and the organization offers a rewarding work experience and competitive compensation to the leadership.

Those are one organization’s key ingredients for systemizing a highly effective development program.  What other ingredients would you add to the formula?

by Dan Schipp

Last month I wrote about the critical relationship between an non profit organization’s chief executive officer (CEO) and chief advancement officer (CAO). 

I noted that the goal of a strong CEO/CAO relationship is to forge a partnership that enables each to be as effective as possible in their respective roles and with their unique skill sets. 

How do you do that?  Here are some practical suggestions.

Be clear about expectations.�
The CEO and CAO have expectations of each other relative to their roles in advancing the mission, values and goals of the organization.  They must communicate openly and authentically with one another about those expectations and be willing to hold the other person accountable for addressing mutually agreed upon goals. They must be committed to helping the other to be successful.

Understand the other’s work style.�
Every individual has his/her preferences for communicating, making decisions, managing, and handling conflicts.  For an effective relationship, it’s important for the CEO and CAO to acknowledge, understand, and respect the other’s preferences.  Is business best conducted formally or informally?  What communication is best done orally and what is best presented in writing (or email)?  Is the CEO or CAO more likely to make a decision on the spot or need time to process the information?

Agree to disagree and then commit.�
To state the obvious, the CEO and CAO are not always going to agree with one another.  At times they will need to agree to disagree but commit to a plan of action regardless of underlying disagreements.

Don’t take the other for granted.
It’s easy to get caught up in the work and the drive for results.  The CEO/CAO’s relationship needs to reflect concern and compassion.  They need to offer and receive from each other honest feedback as well as encouragement and gratitude.

A strong relationship between a CEO and CAO sets the stage for non profit success.  Let me know if there are other approaches that have helped you strengthen your leadership bond.

by Dan Schipp

Forging a Strong Relationship between the CEO and CAO

Recently I was asked to coach a new chief advancement officer (CAO) on how to work effectively with her chief executive officer (CEO).  The goal for a strong CEO/CAO relationship is to forge a partnership that enables each to be as effective as possible in their respective roles and with their unique skill sets.

The relationship between the CEO and the CAO has been called by some the most critical relationship in a not-for-profit organization. As Michael Gaylor outlines in his chapter in the book, Transformational Leadership, edited by Stanley Weinstein, the two leaders must have an authentic relationship, based on mutual respect, genuine interest in one another, and a deep commitment to the organization, its mission and values.  They must be comfortable spending time together and be able to work out the conflicts that inevitably will rise up between them. The CEO and CAO need to be headed in the same direction.  They may disagree on some of the tactics for getting to their destination, but they must be aligned when it comes to strategic goals.

The CEO and CAO have different roles to play in advancement.  The CEO is the visionary. She ensures that the organization’s mission is fulfilled efficiently and effectively.  She articulates the organization’s aspirations.  She exercises judicious oversight of the organization’s resources.  She builds relationships and seeks the resources necessary to fulfill the organization’s aspirations.

The CAO is the “bridge” between the organization and its external constituents.  He is the donors’ advocate.  He is the facilitator and supporter of the CEO, board members and other volunteers in their roles in advancement.  He is the developer, implementer and evaluator of fund development strategies.  He also is a builder of relationships and lead participant in seeking philanthropic support for the organization.

A strong relationship between an organization’s CEO and CAO is a key element of a successful advancement program.  What kind of relationship do your CEO and CAO have?  What do you see as the essentials for forging an effective CEO/CAO relationship?

Look for more info on this subject next month as I provide you with practical exercises on forging a stronger CEO/CAO relationship in your organization.

Let Dan know how helpful  “Forging a Strong Relationship between the CEO and CAO” is for your organization and share your results by posting in the JGA comments section below.