PASSING THE BATON

 

During an election season we are constantly reminded of leadership transitions. Many of our clients are preparing for their own leadership transitions. Long-serving CEOs and CDOs are now retiring and welcoming the next wave of leadership to move their organizations boldly forward.

We know that one of the most important fundraising axioms is that “people give to people” or the DBD translation: “Relationships matter.”

As you prepare your institution for a leadership transition, consider the following:

  • Identify the most important 50 donors, prospects or influential people for your institution. Begin files on each of these folks and start to develop a relationship timeline for each prospect with your organization.
  • Next, have your transitioning leader take 5 of these files a week and provide an oral history / relationship summary of the prospect. This information includes likes, dislikes, political leanings, other causes they support, other important relationships within the board or institution (good and bad) etc. You get the idea. Only 5 at a time over several weeks or months.To make this as easy as possible, I would encourage you to set up a voice mail box where your outgoing leader can dictate their ideas. You can also have them use a smart phone and dictate audio files which then can be forwarded and transcribed.
  • Have your development team review these files and schedule some time for the outgoing leader to answer questions and provide other insights.
  • Lastly, schedule a “transition” tour where your outgoing CEO/CDO is “passing the baton” and relationship to another key staffer – this could be the new CEO or CDO.

Remember, relationships matter. Donors want to lock eyes with our leaders and make sure the mission will continue as leadership transitions. The orderly transition of leadership is key to keeping our donor friends connected to our cause.

Posted by Bruce Berglund
Bruce Berglund

Written by Bruce Berglund

For nearly 30 years, Bruce Berglund, CFRE, has been a successful professional fundraiser in the fields of higher education, arts and culture, and social services. Bruce is the CEO and Founder of DBD Group (formerly Donor by Design Group), a national firm providing comprehensive fundraising services to nonprofits, churches, community colleges and schools. DBD is currently managing more than $3 billion in capital, annual and endowment campaigns. Bruce is a highly sought-after writer, speaker and teacher.

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