Growing Our Own

"Mommy, I'd like to be a fireman when I grow up"

"I want to be a doctor"

"When I grow up, I want to be a fundraiser."

Which of the above statements is still not happening?

Way back when a public relations job became available in my former university's development department, I applied and became a fundraising professional. At that time many people were sliding into fundraising the same way.

Today, with all the certificate, diploma and degree programs in non-profit fundraising, one would hope that more young people would be trained to be development officers.  But that is not the case.  There are less and less qualified people submitting resumes for good-paying, fundraising jobs, with plenty available.

Each April many non-profit organizations start a new fiscal year, my own organization included.  Last year was challenging, but through the art and science of philanthropy, the passion and dogged-determination of everyone on staff and in management, we've succeeded in steering through several storms and coming out ahead of goal.

However, with any growing staff who span the range from Millennials to the Baby Boomers, there have been missed days due to maternity leave, health and other related absences, people resigning for new career opportunities, and those who are retiring. We need to fill the vacancies, and this is one of the most difficult challenges. It is hard to find qualified, seasoned fundraisers to rebuild our ever-evolving, fundraising team.

My organization is not alone.  According to "Predicting the Future," by Marnie A. Spears, retiring President and CEO of KCI, in Issue 1, 2018, of "Philanthropic Trends Quarterly," the question of finding, hiring, managing and developing talent has long been an issue for our sector and profession, and these days it's taking up more time and energy.

Other senior, non-profit leaders are recognizing that while the average length of a fundraiser's tenure has always been 18 months, today there is even a greater problem as there is a deficit of seasoned talent in the fundraising pool.  More and more millennials are seeking career growth at a faster pace and are jumping between organizations.  Estimates are that it takes between two to seven years for a Major Gifts Officer to be fully functioning in their job.  Except for a few, solid staffers, that goal of keeping someone two to seven years is becoming harder for managers to realize.

Experienced managers are recognizing rather than looking outside the organization, growing one's own fundraising staff from within may be the best way to achieve stability.  Often this will take intensive training and pushing some newer fundraisers beyond their comfort boundaries.

Professional development and apprenticeship training are some of the best ways to grow bench strength.  I have build an extensive library of fundraising resources that I loan out, and every two months I prepare and provide two-hour, professional development sessions for my staff, regardless of their skill level.  Those who are less experienced benefit and the seasoned pros provide their own insights and refresh their skills.  For each new arrival to our fundraising team, regardless of skill level, I assign a staff member mentor/buddy to guide them through the systems and bureaucracy and provide them with someone to call upon for help.

The national and local chapters of Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Canadian Association of Gift Planners provide group and online training, and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education is another organization with regional, national, international and on-line training sessions.  Academic Impressions is one more group that has online resources available to build fundraising acumen.

This past year I took a hard look around my development department. Our career trajectory was flat-lining.  The jump from administrative assistant to coordinator was a relatively easy one, but the transition from coordinator to development officer was too great a distance to bridge.  Getting entry-level personnel was relatively easy compared to finding skilled development officers trained to raise major gifts.  I took a look at the bright, talented, eager people in my office and realized that it was time to nurture their nascent, fundraising talent.  They may not have been born fundraisers, but with a little help, they can learn to be great ones.

At a university, student callers and ambassadors looking to join the team as administration staff, is the most obvious way to recruit.  But, there are probably other individuals who may want to join the fundraising team. These individuals can be found in co-op recruitment, marketing, sponsorship, or government relations, to name a few. With the proper training, their skills can be morphed into helping build a culture of philanthropy. However, they cannot be expected to walk in the door and raise major gifts. For that, I have created a soft-landing with the creation of an associate development officer position.  The person in this position is expected to learn the ropes, but not to deliver strategies or have intra-organization impact during their first few years on the job.  Their learning curb will be more sloped and incremental, and at leadership giving levels during their first few years of training.

Once up to speed, they can be expected to apply for the development officer jobs that become available.  After three years as a full development officer, those with determination can build up to solicit transformational giving, and can apply to be a senior development officer.  This succession planning may hopefully help recruit my own (distant future) replacement as Director of Fund Development.