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Every leader fears a crisis. So much time and effort are rightly invested in reducing risk, bolstering safety, and ensuring protocols are followed. All are essential to protecting your organization. But sadly, most organizations are at greater risk because they have not prepared – and never practiced – to communicate in times of urgency.  I remember a friend rightly pointing out, “Prayer is not a communication strategy.”

Over the years I’ve had the great joy of working with hundreds of non-profit CEOs/Executive Directors (EDs) and development staff. A few years ago, a young executive director called me. He was frustrated and worried that he wasn’t doing his job. Why? He wasn’t bringing in enough big checks.

One of our tenants at Donor By Design Group is that we have “a bias for action.” I’ve talked about this with prospective clients and most of them give me the “oh boy, here comes some consultant speak” eyeroll.

Are you the sum total of what you’ve accomplished in the past?

In Part I of this series, we discussed the hazards of being in the “special events business” versus true fundraising. If you recognized your organization in that post, your next question is probably: “How do we become an organization more focused on major gifts?” The answer is all about culture change.

Part 1 of 2

Recently while reading through the local business news, I noticed the profile of a local agency leader. One of the things this leader said that stuck out to me was “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” It was the first time I had heard this phrase, but I now know it has been around in for a while and is credited to Peter Drucker.

The origin of the phrase “getting down to brass tacks” is most often attributed to the haberdashery trade where “…in order to be more accurate than the rough-and-ready measuring of a yard of material by holding it out along an arm’s length, cloth was measured between brass tacks which were set into a shop’s counter.”* This technique allowed for more accurate measurement and a much more efficient process in custom hat-making.

My journey to loving fundraising starts with a story. I started my career as a young enthusiastic program director in the nonprofit world. I was hired by the YMCA and my area of expertise was fitness. Picture leg warmers, headbands, and those very becoming leotards. While I might be dating myself, some of you know exactly what I am talking about.

One of our best pieces of advice for major gift fundraising sounds a bit awkward and unnecessary at first. That advice? Ask for permission to ask.