Strategic Fund Development: Building Profitable Relationships That Last, Third Edition

Look at Your Organization

Fund development is about much more than asking for money. Consider these issues—all of which affect fund development, but none of which stem from fundraising.

• Is your organization sufficiently relevant to the community to secure support (e.g., respect, clients, board members, volunteers, goodwill, and also donors and gifts)?
• Does your organization effectively foster relationships with diverse constituents, including clients, donors, community decision-makers, media, regulators, and so forth?
• Are your staff effective enablers, empowering volunteers to do the best they can—volunteers of all kinds, including direct service, fundraising, board members, and so forth?
• How effective is your organization at planning and decision-making, and securing quality information to plan and make quality decisions?
• Does your organization regularly examine itself and the external environment, discussing the findings and learning and changing when necessary?
• How effective is your organization at clarifying roles and identifying necessary skills and distinguishing between governance and management?
• What do your leaders do and what do you do to develop leaders?
• What are the values and corporate culture of your organization?

These are all organizational development issues. Yet, each of these—and more—affects your organization’s ability to raise charitable contributions. And each of these issues is connected, one to the other, in some manner.