Strategic Development Assessment

Successful fundraising isn’t magic.There’s no one-size-fits-all formula. But organizations that consistently achieve or exceed their fundraising goals have key elements in place:

  • A strong organizational culture of philanthropy
  • An annual development plan detailing fundraising priorities and goals
  • A compelling case for support describing why funds are needed
  • Programs/services with measurable impact, and
  • Consistent outreach to donors and prospects
So how do you determine what’s needed to improve your development efforts? Whether you’re a solo fundraiser in a small shop or at a large nonprofit as part of a robust team, you must assess where you’ve been in order to map out a plan for where you need to go. In our strategic assessment engagements, we evaluate your fundraising tactics to examine where you’ve been effective and where you’re spending time with little reward. We also assess how your board and staff leaders are participating in development, and how well your communications and program activities are contributing to your efforts.  We use this information to create a customized assessment report and a strategic plan and roadmap (see Planning page for more details) to improve outcomes and increase funding.

Pivot Summary Assessment

Your nonprofit has had great successes, but fundraising has become increasingly challenging. Let us help you determine what’s going on and where you should be focusing your time and efforts.

In 2018, we created Pivot, a high-level summary assessment for small and mid-sized organizations (budgets up to $3M) that may not be ready for a full assessment but still want to evaluate their fundraising health and development program challenges. For a Pivot engagement, a staff member of your organization takes a detailed survey so we can evaluate your fundraising activities. Before and after the survey, we’ll meet with you and other leadership or development staff to understand your challenges and make recommendations to improve your development effectiveness.

In addition to the survey and our findings analysis, your Pivot assessment could include:

  • A series of consulting sessions to focus on development planning and budgeting to align your fundraising goals with your nonprofit’s needs, and
  • Structured group training for your organization’s leadership team, board, and/or development staff to create a roadmap for improved outcomes.

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