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From local natural disasters to national market fluctuations, every community experiences unexpected crises. As many organizations (re)start campaigns, parishes and dioceses are developing plans now to stay agile and maintain fundraising momentum during future emergencies.

Previous crises served as valuable context for how best to navigate philanthropic activity. During the 2008 recession, CCS saw that organizations that proceeded with their campaigns and long-term plans found success, out-hustled competition for the philanthropic dollar, and were better positioned to thrive afterward. From a 2007-2009 study of 254 campaigns, the 119 that CCS managed (that started or kept up their efforts during that time) raised $6.7 billion, with 86% exceeding their fundraising goals.

COVID-19 was an unprecedented event with many unknowns, but there are some lessons from the past that hold true in today’s context:

Organizations who stop fundraising activities altogether get left behind
Donors and stakeholders understand the circumstances; they are willing to adjust with the organization
Donors drop causes when they no longer feel connected to the cause or the organization; this emphasizes the need for over-communicating during this time
This can be an opportunity to strengthen bonds with stakeholders (donors, pastors, parish staff)

Case Study

In 2019, the Catholic Community Foundation of the Diocese of Cleveland, Ohio embarked on an 18-month, $30 million campaign effort designed to support capital projects and an endowment. The campaign was off to a strong start with $13.7 million committed by the time churches closed in early March 2020. It was clear that without adaptation and flexibility, the campaign could not continue. Three key questions emerged in the early days of the pandemic:

In what ways should the campaign model shift to address parish needs?
What are the key considerations around a modified campaign timeline?
What assistance is needed for parishes to be sustained financially?

Keeping the lessons of previous crises top of mind, the Catholic Community Foundation chose to focus on what they knew they could control in the weeks ahead:

Increase communication with key audiences: donors, campaign leaders, and parishes
Plan a series of steady communications with each stakeholder group over the next several weeks
Develop an action plan that addresses local needs and reinforces the needs of the campaign
Display empathy and concern for donors and the most vulnerable members of the community

These tenets shaped what came to be known as the SECURE program, which was a partnership between the Diocese, CCS Fundraising, and each parish in the Diocese of Cleveland to assist with connecting parishioners with their parish during and beyond COVID-19, as well as opening channels for virtual and alternative offertory giving. The SECURE program is a focused effort to provide real-time support in parallel with other Diocesan recovery efforts taking place at the time, including a Universal Offertory Program, a COVID-19 Emergency Fund, and Increased Offertory Programs offered through the Diocese.

SECURE stands for: Support from the Foundation and CCS; Evaluation and triage of parish offertory and capabilities; Connection to parishioners; Utilize Resources, and Engage the parish community.

The goals of the SECURE program were three-fold:

Rapidly connect the Foundation staff to Pastors to better understand parish needs
Develop customized plans for each parish to recover lost offertory as a result of COVID-19
Build a stronger system of online and communication tools to sustain parishes over the long term

In lieu of local parish campaigns, the SECURE program ran for approximately 10 weeks in parallel to an ongoing major gift effort. Of the 50 reporting parishes, weekly offertory from March 8 (pre-crisis) to May 31 (churches re-opening in Ohio) was, on average, eight percent higher than pre-crisis levels and over two times higher than the all-time offertory low on March 22. Parish offertory for the first three weeks in June exceeded the first three weeks in March by approximately 45 percent. Most notably, the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland has been able to stave off more significant offertory losses in Fiscal Year 2021.

Aside from the financial benefits of the program participants, the pivot to a modified campaign model allowed the Foundation to restart the campaign in Fall 2020 with a cohort of parishes who had a positive financial outlook, stronger technical capability, and a sense of earned trust in the Foundation to remain flexible and responsive to parish needs. The return to parish campaigning post-SECURE program has resulted in more dollars raised and more donors engaged than was previously expected.

Lessons Learned

The remainder of this article will share some specific tips and lessons learned that may be helpful if your organization is considering emergency planning as you (re)start or reconfigure your fundraising efforts:

Embrace Change: A shift in your planning does not mean a break in your fundraising efforts. Embrace learning and adaptation in your campaign model in order to remain responsive to an ever-changing post-pandemic environment.

Build Trust: Explore ways your organization can best support parishes as they navigate a hybrid model of in-person and virtual worship, even if it runs parallel to or in support of your larger fundraising efforts.

Maintain Major Gifts: Continue to engage your major donors meaningfully during this time to ensure they remain closely connected to the work and the mission of your organization.

Bolster Resources: Investigate where and how your organization can strengthen its tools and resources for a post-pandemic environment.

Communicate Success: Maintain consistent communications with your constituents and celebrate the small wins.

CCS offers our congratulations to the Catholic Community Foundation of the Diocese of Cleveland. To date, the campaign has raised $49 million from 11,900 donors—far above the $30 million campaign goal.

Interested in learning more about how CCS works with parishes and dioceses? Contact us today.

“If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” So goes the adage often attributed to management consultant and thought leader Peter Drucker, which succinctly summarizes why data and analytics are critical for any organization. This isn’t to say that only things that can be measured or quantified are valuable, but having a yardstick to measure performance against makes it easier to track progress and ensure success over time.

Benchmarking is a data-driven management tool that can be particularly valuable to nonprofit organizations across sectors. Benchmarking involves comparing a current data set to historical data sets or data from industry peer organizations. Nonprofit organizations can benefit from benchmarking in varied ways, from program evaluation and performance measurement to identifying potentially valuable partnerships and strategic alliances to developing a sustainable funding model. CCS also utilizes benchmarking during feasibility and planning studies to compare participant response rates. An area where benchmarking can be especially useful is when it comes to making decisions concerning the Board of Directors.

Methodology: How to Compile a Board Benchmarking Report

To develop a board benchmarking report, take the following steps:

Identify the decisions that will be informed by the benchmarking report: Board benchmarking, and benchmarking in general, will have the greatest impact if it’s done to inform strategic decisions. Figure out which policies or procedures the report will be used to change.
Figure out the data you will need to acquire: In order to make those decisions, ask yourself what sort of data you need to find. For example, if your goal is to figure out a reasonable board give/get minimum, you’ll want to find the give/get policies of leading organizations in your sector.
Decide which organizations to benchmark against: Think about peer organizations in your sector that provide similar services to your organization, have a comparable budget, have a similar number of staff members, and are located in your geographic area. It’s also important that the organizations you benchmark against are well-regarded and seen as high-performing in the sector. It will be helpful to have a connection to the organization, since some of the data you end up looking for may not be public.
Find the data: Some data about the organizations you’re benchmarking against – like total revenue and expenses, contributed revenue, fundraising expenses, size of the endowment, and the number of board members – will be publicly available via the organization’s 990 form and financial statements, annual report, or website. Other data – such as the board giving total, the amount of donations solicited by the board, the board’s give/get policy, and the size and structure of the development department – may require more work to find. You can get access to this type of data by conducting site visits or interviews. You can also simply send the organization a survey to fill out with answers to the questions you need answers to. CCS can be especially helpful in finding this data given our experience working with thousands of nonprofits across philanthropic sectors. It is vital that you get approval from the organization before using this data in the benchmarking report. If the organization is hesitant, you can suggest not using the name of the organization but only their sector and geographic location (for example, a New York-based religious organization).
Analyze the data and draw conclusions: Review the data to identify best practices among peers. If peer organizations’ boards are outperforming yours in a certain area, you’ll know that processes need to be improved in that area. For example, if you have a give/get minimum of $500 and peer organizations have a policy of $5,000, your organization may consider raising its give/get minimum.
Implement and monitor progress: Follow through on the decisions made as a result of the benchmarking analysis. For example, if you decide to require participation in board giving as a result of the study, make sure this is communicated to board members by the board chair or someone in a good position to make the case to the board. Have each board member sign a letter of intent whereby each member agrees to pledge a certain amount each year. The board chair or chair of the development committee can keep track of contributions and contact board members who have failed to give.

Why Board Benchmarking?

Board benchmarking is just one type of benchmarking that nonprofits can conduct with regard to fundraising, but it can be one of the most important. A qualified, dedicated, and engaged board is crucial for any well-run organization. On top of a board’s traditional roles such as its fiduciary role (e.g. budget approval and financial oversight) and providing governance and strategic oversight, the board plays a central role in development. Ensuring adequate resources and building a culture of philanthropy is a key responsibility of nonprofit boards. Personal donations from board members are important not only to provide a reliable base of critical resources for the organization, but also because major funding sources and potential donors will take the board’s financial contributions into account when making funding decisions, some requiring 100% board participation.

Performance improvement is the ultimate goal of any type of benchmarking. Board benchmarking can help you identify where your board may be lagging behind as a source of motivation for change. If you know that your board members are not personally giving or soliciting donations on behalf of the organization at the level of peer organizations, decisions need to be made to improve outcomes. Board benchmarking can be used to make key decisions regarding board diversity (age, gender, race, professional background, wealth capacity, residence), the give/get policy for board members, board size, board meeting attendance policy, size of the fundraising committee, board term lengths, fundraising return on investment (development expenses as a percentage of total fundraising), and more.

Case From the Field

ADAPT Community Network (formerly called United Cerebral Palsy of NYC), for example, is a leading human service organization providing vital services and programs for people with developmental disabilities. It is one of the largest organizations of its kind. Most of its revenue comes from the New York state government but, partly due to the state budget deficit caused by the pandemic, ADAPT was looking to move towards a model with more of an emphasis on individual donations and philanthropy, starting with the board. CCS identified four organizations in the social and human services sector that were comparable to ADAPT in terms of size and the reach of their programs. One of the organizations also had a similar level of reliance on government funding. CCS looked at data like the size of the development department, fundraising expenses, development expenses as a percentage of fundraising, contributed revenue, contributed revenue as a percentage of total revenue, board giving participation rate, board give/get policies, total board giving, board giving as a percentage of total contributed revenue, and more. This data informed CCS’s customized recommendations and will continue to play an important role as ADAPT reforms its board and makes key board-related strategic decisions regarding its give/get policies, board meeting attendance policy, board size, and diversity.

Benchmarking is a valuable service that CCS, given its expertise and experience serving thousands of nonprofits across sectors, is especially well-positioned to provide. If your organization is interested in internal or external benchmarking or considering board engagement strategy more generally, CCS Fundraising offers a suite of services that can help. For more information, contact CCS today.

As your nonprofit’s #GivingTuesday campaign comes to a close, it’s time to implement an effective follow-up strategy for your audiences. Don’t let too much time pass before considering these simple but powerful principles of post-giving day communication.

1) Say thank you

Acknowledge the people who gave, interacted, shared, or participated (even in the smallest ways) in your #GivingTuesday campaign. It is a best practice that you show genuine appreciation across channels.

2) Aim for future engagement

The goal is to create a long-term relationship out of this giving day. Focus on ways you can continue the conversation with those who participated.

3) Share your results

Your participants will be eager to see how their contribution impacted your overall goal and ultimately how their involvement will impact your mission in the near and long term. As soon as your data is ready to be analyzed and articulated, share the results across platforms and be detailed about every data point. Beyond dollars, what else did your campaign accomplish? Whether it’s new followers, new volunteers, or anecdotal successes, be transparent in your achievements.

4) Provide a long-term plan

With your audience engaged and tuned in from this campaign, what can you share about your organization’s vision for the future? Be clear about what’s next and how donors can continue to participate. Use messaging that details exactly what #GivingTuesday funds will do for those who benefit from your cause, as well as your organizational goals for the future.

5) Leave the door open for those who didn’t participate

Just because someone didn’t give or participate during this window, it doesn’t mean they aren’t still interested in your cause. Creating language that invites further participation for those who missed out can add the potential for a second wave of support. Language that encourages people to be a part of a growing movement (which you can show through data from this giving day) can inspire new attention, especially if you have exceeded your goal.

Utilizing Your Channels

There are different avenues and proven strategies to implement the five key principles above. Here are a few practical suggestions.

Video: Create a short video from a leader at your organization thanking everyone for their generosity and for taking time out of their schedules. These can be recorded easily over platforms like Zoom. The goal is to show sincerity in your appreciation. Remember to keep it brief and engaging.
Imagery: Use impactful imagery that shows the people who have benefitted from your cause to accompany your grateful messages. Make sure the images are high resolution and tell an accurate story of your cause at work.
Social Media: Just as important as it was to utilize all your social media channels during the ramp up to this giving day, leverage these platforms to thank your followers for their continued support. Once you have results to share, use these platforms to share celebrations (if you hit your target), or other data through visual infographics or motion graphics.
Email: Be authentic in your follow-up emails to your database. If time allows, personalized emails to donors of all levels go a long way toward fostering long-term relationships. Keep your subject lines direct, your email wording concise, and your message genuine at all turns.

Furthering Engagement

Create a call-to-action in all of your communications across channels. Whether it’s asking for feedback on what worked and what didn’t during this online campaign, or encouraging people to head to your website to learn more about your cause, don’t let the loop close so easily.

This article was originally published on May 8, 2020 and has been updated to reflect guidance for #GivingTuesday 2021.

More Insights

Article

Boost Year-End Giving with CARES Act Tax Incentives

November 23, 2021

In this article, we discuss how the tax incentives that are set to expire at the end of 2021 could encourage charitable donations. Read more about the steps you can take now to make sure your organization benefits by proactively engaging those who are most likely to donate.

Article

How to Decide if Your Organization Should Participate in GivingTuesday This Year

November 2, 2020

During a year of irregular giving, many nonprofits are questioning whether or not they should participate in GivingTuesday this year. CCS has developed recommendations for self-assessment as you consider the best giving day strategy for your organization.

Article

3 Keys to Implementing a Successful Giving Day Strategy

November 4, 2019

Executing a giving day strategy can be a useful tool to raise awareness and funds, as long as you make the right preparations and have reasonable and achievable goals.

EXPLORE ALL INSIGHTS

With Giving Tuesday just a few days away and nearly one-third of annual donations made in December, there’s still time to boost year-end giving to your organization. Tax incentives to encourage charitable donations as part of the CARES Act that are set to expire at the end of 2021 could be one approach.

While receiving an income tax deduction ranks low among reasons why people give, nonprofit leaders and fundraising professionals should be familiar with these changes to leverage them when possible. Please note that this information does not constitute tax advice. Encourage your donors to consult a tax professional to evaluate their personal situation.

What are the tax changes?

The one mentioned most often is the deduction for individuals who don’t itemize their tax returns. For the second year, they can claim a deduction of up to $300 for cash donations to qualified charities. A notable change for the 2021 tax year is that married couples filing jointly can claim up to $600.

Another incentive for 2021 allows individual taxpayers to deduct up to 100% of their adjusted gross income (AGI). That’s right – donors who itemize their taxes may be able to zero out their tax bill for the year!

One final provision pertains to corporations that make cash contributions to eligible charities. The 2021 deduction limit is 25% of taxable income, up from the usual 10%.

This sounds great! What’s the fine print?

There are a few important things to keep in mind for donors to receive the full benefit.

These provisions require cash contributions only.
Standard limits still apply for other gift types like noncash donations and appreciated securities.
Contributions must be made to qualified organizations – sorry, donor-advised funds don’t count.

What should nonprofit leaders and fundraising professionals do now?

Contact your annual fund donors who have not yet renewed this year and remind them to take advantage of this opportunity. Nearly nine out of ten taxpayers use the standard deduction and can take the $300 (individual) or $600 (married couple) above-the-line adjustment.
Talk to your largest donors about maximizing annual gifts or accelerating pledge fulfillment. High-income taxpayers predominantly itemize deductions. The 100% AGI deduction provision is a great way to encourage generosity for select donors.
Reach out to your corporate partners to make sure they are aware of the 25% deduction and request increased support. For many corporations, 2021 was a very profitable year and they may want to reduce their tax burden.

Is this too good to be true?

For the most part, no. The incentives are straightforward for donors who don’t itemize and for corporations that do. The 100% AGI deduction is a little more nuanced. Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean that you should.

With graduated tax brackets, it might not be in a donor’s best interest to take the maximum deduction. The lower their AGI, the lower the tax rate that applies to each additional dollar donated resulting in diminishing returns.

Instead of deducting 100% of AGI this year, donors who carry a portion of their donation forward may end up paying less taxes overall. Even though it might be intoxicating to think about not paying taxes for a year, the total tax paid could end up being more than if one spreads those same donations over multiple years.

What’s the bottom line?

While not everyone can take advantage of these changes, those who do so can make a significant impact for their charity of choice this year. Take steps now to make sure your organization benefits by proactively engaging those who are most likely to donate. If you don’t ask them, someone else will.

There are currently 115,009 independent foundations in the United States with assets totaling $960 billion. And according to Giving USA’s Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2020, foundation giving grew at a faster rate than any other source over the previous year, now comprising 19% of total giving in the United States. This leads to an overwhelming number of opportunities for foundation funding—so it’s important to focus your time!

In order to best use your team’s limited resources, it’s advantageous for all organizations to develop a system to qualify and prioritize new funding opportunities. This process will ensure that your team spends their time cultivating foundations and applying for grants where you have the strongest likelihood of success.

Criteria to consider when applying for a grant:

As you determine whether to dedicate time and resources to submit a proposal for a new funding opportunity, organizations should consider each of the below criteria on a scale of zero to five.

Click here to download an Excel template for completing this exercise.

Mission Alignment: How well does your organization fit within the foundation or this particular opportunity’s giving criteria? 0 is a weak fit and 5 is a very strong fit.
Giving Capacity: What is the capacity of the foundation and what size grant could they give to your organization? 0 is a smaller grant and 5 is a large grant, as defined by your organization.
Relationship: Does anyone in your organization, either staff or a board member, have an existing relationship with someone at the foundation? 0 is no relationship and 5 is a strong relationship. Note: when scoring this section, be sure to consider how important a relationship may be in a foundation’s grantmaking. For example, does the foundation accept unsolicited proposals or is it necessary to form a relationship with the organization in advance?
Timing: How much time will it take your team to complete the application or next step? Will it take lead time to develop a relationship with the organization before you can submit a proposal? Is this a rigorous or straightforward application process? 0 is a significant amount of time or challenging process, and 5 is not much time or an easy process.

You can then total the score from all four categories to assign a priority level for the funding opportunity. We recommend utilizing the following ranges to assign priority:

High priority: 15-20 points
Medium priority: 10-14 points
Low priority: 7-9 points
Disqualified: Less than seven points

Criteria to consider when applying for a prize:

When applying for a prize, as in, there are only a certain number of “winners” for a specific funding opportunity, you may want to look at the above criteria differently.

Mission Alignment: Since prizes can be very competitive, you should ensure that your organization is a strong fit for the prize’s funding criteria.
Giving Capacity: Prizes often offer larger grants and come with great exposure for your organization. However, a prize may only lead to a one-time gift rather than consistent annual funding. If you are launching a new initiative with a ramp-up cost, this is a strong option, but you must be prepared to identify other sources to support ongoing budget needs.
Relationship: Your relationship with the foundation may not be as important when applying for a prize as it is when trying to get your foot in the door through the grantmaking cycle, especially when many foundations do not accept unsolicited proposals.
Timing: The application for prizes can be very time-consuming and include more steps than a general grant proposal. On the other hand, you may not have to spend as much time finding a connection to and forming a relationship with the foundation.

In conclusion, by taking time at the outset to develop a rubric and prioritization system, your organization will proceed through an otherwise overwhelming process with more confidence and with a greater chance of achieving success.

DOWNLOAD FOUNDATION PRIORITIZATION RUBRIC

More Insights

Publication

2024 Philanthropic Landscape, 13th Edition

September 9, 2024

This report provides a comprehensive look at the current state of US philanthropy, compiling and analyzing annual data from Giving USA and other prominent research to ensure your organization stays up-to-date on the most significant industry trends.

Publication

CCS Philanthropy Pulse

February 15, 2024

CCS’s annual Philanthropy Pulse report provides nonprofits with helpful data to navigate the ever-evolving philanthropic space.

EXPLORE ALL INSIGHTS

You can listen to Authentically Inclusive on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and the Authentically Inclusive website.

Episode One: Organizational Cultures In Progress

Leaders are responsible for advancing equity and inclusion as core values in their organizations. In this episode, Bernie Banks and Minya Nance, Associate Deans of the Kellogg School of Management, and Dorri McWhorter, CEO of the YMCA of Metro Chicago, offer frameworks, ideas, and perspectives for leading change and building inclusive cultures.

Episode Two: Navigating Bias Across Organizations

To move beyond identifying bias, we must learn to navigate and mitigate it to address systems of inequity when engaging with stakeholders. In this three-part episode of Authentically Inclusive, Professor Nour Kteily of the Kellogg School of Management and Joy King, Chief Advancement Officer of Be the Match, examine how biases and power impact our lives and our work in the nonprofit sector.

Episode Three: Advancing Equity Through Empathy

Empathy is a critical component for advancing equity. In this three-part episode of Authentically Inclusive, Professor Gina Fong of the Kellogg School of Management and Franklyn Baker, President and CEO of the United Way of Central Maryland, talk about empathy, equity, and storytelling. Using examples from the nonprofit sector and beyond, they bring to life the role empathy can play in promoting equity at work.

Further Resources

Video

Everyday Donors of Color: Uncovering the Latest Research

August 27, 2021

CCS is proud to partner with the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy on the release of the Everyday Donors of Color report, funded by the Gates Foundation.

Article

4 Ways to Advance Equity with Strong Gift Acceptance Policies

October 15, 2021

At the heart of nonprofit development operations is the process of accepting, acknowledging, and recognizing gifts. Gift acceptance policies can be actively deployed to advance equity within your institution, diversify and educate your donor base, make giving more accessible, and reinforce the values of your organization.

Article

Who Funds the World? Girls: How Nonprofits Can Avoid Overlooking the Value of Women Donors

March 8, 2021

Data shows that women make larger and more frequent charitable gifts than men across almost every income bracket and are more consistent about monitoring their philanthropic impact over time. In this article, we offer three considerations for your organization when thinking about how to better engage women donors.

EXPLORE MORE DEI INSIGHTS

Please contact marketing@ccsfundraising.com with any questions.

Today, CCS Fundraising, the leader in nonprofit fundraising consulting, announced new additions to its Board of Directors. Complementing their ten internal leaders, CCS welcomes Elizabeth (Liz) Moore and Ron Lumbra to the Board.

CCS is honored to welcome Ms. Moore and Mr. Lumbra to the Board. Both executives bring a deep expertise in professional services and nonprofit leadership. Ms. Moore and Mr. Lumbra have both held leadership positions at reputable firms and have received honors and awards for their exceptional business acumen. As lifelong mission-conscious leaders who have both worked to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), Ms. Moore and Mr. Lumbra share CCS’s enthusiasm for a robust strategy around DEI and are equipped with highly relevant experiences to inform CCS’s approach. With roots in employment law, Ms. Moore has worked closely with senior leadership in the private and public sectors on a wide variety of legal matters and has helped countless nonprofits advance their missions. For over two decades, Mr. Lumbra has advised corporate boards on ownership strategy, generational transfers, and succession plans. Together, their talents and experiences will be invaluable to the growth and success of the firm as CCS enters its 75^th year.

Elizabeth D. (Liz) Moore, Former Senior Vice President & General Counsel, Consolidated Edison of New York: Until the end of 2019, Elizabeth D. Moore was a Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Consolidated Edison, Inc., and served on the Boards of its two subsidiaries, Con Edison Clean Energy Businesses, Inc. and Con Edison Transmission, Inc.

Ms. Moore earned a law degree from St. John’s University and holds a Bachelor of Science from the School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University. Ms. Moore served on Cornell’s Board of Trustees for 14 years and in 2013 was elected Trustee Emeritus. Ms. Moore has received various awards and recognitions, including the 2019 Most Powerful Women in Corporate America, 2015 Top Black Lawyers, Fourth Annual Power List, 25 Influential Black Women in Business, Leader for a New Century, and the 11th Annual Ida B. Wells-Barnett Justice Award.

Ron Lumbra, Managing Partner, Heidrick & Struggles: Ron Lumbra is a partner at Heidrick & Struggles and a member of the global CEO & Board of Directors Practice. Mr. Lumbra has more than 23 years of executive search and succession consulting experience and an extensive track record of recruiting board directors and chief executive officers. In June 2019, Mr. Lumbra was invited to testify in front of the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services and Diversity in the Boardroom: Examining Proposals to Increase the Diversity of America’s Boards.

Mr. Lumbra holds a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Vermont. Mr. Lumbra is chair of the Board of Trustees for the University of Vermont and serves on the UVM Foundation leadership council. He serves on the Board of two SPACs, CRIS II Acquisition Corporation and Prospector Capital Corp, and is a member of the Executive Leadership Council. Formerly, Mr. Lumbra was a Board Director for the Alumni Association of the University of Vermont, the Harvard Business School Club of Greater New York, the Houston Youth Symphony, and the Board Chair and Director of KaBOOM!

These exceptional leaders join Caroline Chick (Managing Director), Derval Costello (Managing Director), Greg Hagin (Principal & Managing Director), Peter Hoskow (Principal & Managing Director), Eric Javier (Principal & Managing Director), Jon Kane (President), Tom Kissane (Principal & Managing Director), Sevil Miyhandar (Managing Director), Robert Rice (Principal & Managing Director), and Janine Triano (Chief Human Resources Officer) on the CCS Board of Directors. Learn more about the members of the CCS Board of Directors here.

The virtual environment has empowered many parishes to build a sense of community and engage more parishioners in deeper ways. As we approach the holiday season, CCS encourages you to leverage the momentum of your community to position yourself well for 2022. Now is an excellent opportunity to activate your parishioners who have been particularly engaged in parish life by inviting them to participate in a January 2022 visioning session.

The goal of a visioning session is to identify your parish’s aspirations, involve key stakeholders, and start to formalize a plan to meet your goals. Using our seven-part framework, your visioning sessions will undoubtedly bring your constituents closer to your mission and set you up for a successful year.

Step 1: Prepare for success.

Time: Days to Weeks

Prepare for your session by helping lead clergy create a shortlist of decision-makers that they would like to invite to the visioning session. You can also offer an open invitation to the full parish to ensure that all parishioners have a voice and feel valued. This should include clergy, volunteers, parishioners, staff, donors, and when relevant, community partners. We recommend a group of between five and fifteen individuals that represent different backgrounds and ways of interacting with your parish. Staff can be prepared beforehand to take an active role in supporting and facilitating your session.

Every interaction with a parishioner is an opportunity to thank them and show them how important they are to the parish’s mission. Be sure to send out preparatory materials beforehand and ensure that session attendees are comfortable, connected, and thanked!

Step 2: Set the stage.

Time: 20 Minutes

After an opening prayer, be sure to state the purpose of the meeting so all attendees are focused on the same goal. You will want to offer a formal overview of the financial and programmatic realities at your parish. For example, there may be anticipated changes to your parish’s income or costs that need to be addressed in your near-term plans. Next, center the group by reminding attendees about your mission and vision as a parish. Finally, be sure to identify key priorities for the meeting and commit to a strategy for next steps as a group.

Step 3: Brainstorm with the group.

Time: 45 Minutes

The purpose of this exercise is to begin dreaming and imagining future projects at your parish. Before you facilitate this brainstorm, be sure to have a plan for these four essential elements:

Identify three categories of your vision that you would like the small groups to discuss. For example, your parish’s vision might include: strengthen the congregation, welcome your neighbors, and serve the community.
Offer a prompt such as, “What do you want your parish to look like three years from now?”
Assign roles for facilitator and notetaker. Members of the staff often serve as helpful leaders for these exercises.
Conduct the conversation in multiple small groups. The groups will develop a list of possible projects within the scope of your vision.

Step 4: Review and prioritize ideas.

Time: 30 Minutes

At this point in the exercise, you will:

Review each group’s ideas.
Discuss which items to keep, change, or eliminate.
Identify additional ideas that have not been discussed.
Incorporate thoughts and ideas from parish leadership.
Identify opportunities for the group’s review.

The purpose of this step is to consolidate ideas from the previous step and begin to concretize which ideas are candidates for pursual.

Step 5: Identify points of intersection and divergence.

Time: 30 Minutes

As with any brainstorming session, there will be ideas that are pursued and others that are not. Everyone who has joined this session is undoubtedly a valuable contributor to your parish, so you will want to understand their emotional response and move forward as one enthusiastic unit with ideas that combine philanthropy and ministry. Some questions that could prompt this discussion include:

How did participants feel about this exercise?
How can philanthropy and ministry work together to accomplish our goals?
How can we align any differences in ideas?

After this step is complete, you should have group support for a shortlist of ideas to pursue.

Step 6: Define next steps and close.

Time: 30 Minutes

At this point, you should be ready to move your ideas from vision into action! Some helpful ways of doing this include:

Determine your timeline for each idea.
Discuss who will be responsible for the next steps for each initiative.
Develop themes into testable ideas and projects.
Identify your message from today’s workshop and how you will communicate this to the broader parish community.

Step 7: Follow up with contributors.

Time: Within One Week

After your meeting, you will want to follow up with a summary of your discussion, an overview of your timeline and next steps, and language that the group can share with other parishioners. We recommend using tools like the Cornell notetaking method, a Gantt Chart, and a RACI matrix to support next steps.

The above steps will help you align projects to your parish’s vision to ensure a successful start to the new year. If you would like to discuss best practices for a visioning session, or if you would like support with your parish’s strategy, please reach out to info@ccsfundraising.com.

Major gifts come with a bevy of benefits for nonprofit organizations. The most obvious is quantitative. The more money you raise, the greater the impact on the organization and those it serves. The ability to provide additional student scholarships is one example. There may also be a greater return on investment in staff time than the multitude of tasks that accompany special events. There are also qualitative benefits. A focus on individual giving allows the organization to build deep relationships with donors in which the donor learns more about the organization and its place in the community, and the organization better understands the donor’s passion for the organization.

The monetary threshold for what constitutes a major gift varies from organization to organization. For some, a major gift may be $25,000 or more; others may consider $10,000 a major gift. Regardless of your definition, savvy organizations and those newer to major gift fundraising may struggle with securing these high-level philanthropic investments.

One simple way to increase high-level gifts and ease the transition to major gift work is through pledges. Development professionals can maximize the philanthropic potential that already exists by asking for a multiple-year gift and documenting a pledge.

Why Pledges?

A pledge is a written commitment to making a specific gift investment over a set amount of time, typically three to five years.

For the donor, pledges can change the way they see themselves in relation to the organization. Their personal investment deepens their ownership of the organization’s success. Pledging can also consolidate the donor’s interests so they’re not constantly being peppered with requests. Additionally, less staff time requesting multiple smaller gifts means more time to provide a great experience for the donor through stewardship and conveying impact. It can also better honor their intentions and set recognition with one clear request and documentation at a higher level. A good example is a donor who intends to give $50,000 each year for five years. Without a pledge, your organization may recognize them at $50,000 annually. With a pledge, you would recognize them as a $250,000 donor to the organization, which could also inspire others to think bigger when considering their own support.

For the nonprofit, consistent income allows the organization to plan ahead. This is especially important as we remain in an uncertain environment regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and its ongoing ramifications. A solid foundation also provides the stability that organizations need to dream bigger and craft a vision for the next step. Additionally, pledges increase revenue over time because most donors only increase their support if and as they’re asked. The improvements to the donor experience will also serve the organization better.

Here’s an example of how effective a pledged multiple-year gift can be with the right process and stewardship:

Year	Donor Without a Pledge	Donor With a Pledge
2021	Gives $5,000 (recognized at $5,000)	Pledges $25,000, pays $5,000 (recognized at $25,000)
2022	Gives $5,000	$5,000 payment
2023	Gives $3,000	$5,000 payment, gives additional $1,000 annual gift
2024	Gives $1,000	$5,000 payment, gives $3,000 additional gift
2025	Gives $1,000	$5,000 payment, gives $5,000 additional gift (now giving $10,000/year)
2026	Gives $0	Asked for and pledges $50,000
Total Giving	$15,000	$84,000

Raise More Money

When considering how to approach documenting more pledges, it is most helpful to look inside the organization at your closest supporters and friends. Although you can certainly build a relationship that leads to a major gift from a brand-new introduction, faithful donors are the people most likely to make high-level gifts.

A process outline follows:

Identify regular donors, from direct mail, annual giving, and events.
Evaluate if a pledge is right. It may not be the best strategy to make this request of a foundation that makes decisions on a year-by-year basis, or a corporation that keeps their sponsor dollars separate from their other giving.
Inventory the donor’s giving interests from your records.
Identify an initial potential request amount to help you prioritize your outreach. For example, a donor giving $2,000 each year could pledge $10,000 over five years. If you have not asked them for a specific pledge before, you may use the opportunity to stretch to a higher amount.
Consider a blended gift, combining their interests into one request. This is a way to coordinate your approach, making it easier for the donor if they typically make a sponsorship gift in addition to a program gift. Also consider incorporating a planned gift request, if appropriate.
Cultivate – don’t take the donor or their interests for granted.
Solicit – make a specific request, ideally in person/by video with written support, based on their past gift levels, your research, and the conversations you’ve had to date.
Document the pledge.

A final process tip: plan ahead. A major gift typically requires more staff time at the beginning to build an authentic connection with the donor and respect the investment they may make. Articles to help you take it from here include “Five Steps to the Big Ask: How to Prepare Donors to Receive a Big Gift Request” and “Top Five Tips for Creating Robust Major Gift Portfolios Using CRM Data.”

The Right Fit

There are many additional factors to consider when determining the right fit between a donor and their gift pledge. The following may be helpful:

Pledge length: Five years is recommended; you may lose two years of impact if you ask for a three-year pledge. Five-year pledges are also short enough, in most cases, to maintain urgency toward their fulfillment. There are a few caveats, however, for both shorter and longer pledges. For event sponsorship requests, shorter (2-3 years) may be a safer bet since the event may run its course or evolve significantly over just a few years. Pledges longer than five years should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Consider acceptance in circumstances where there’s a long-standing relationship with the donor or an extended timeline is necessary because of other gifts. An example of this is if a donor is committed to another organization but willing to make their pledge now. Payments may not begin until next year but the gift will inspire others and build momentum.

Documentation: For gifts with few components, pledge forms are clear and easy for the donor. A pledge form is typically up to two pages with the donor’s contact information, gift amount and designation, and payment details (don’t forget their preferences for pledge reminders). A simple letter may stand in for a pledge form if the donor prefers. Longer gift agreements or addendums to pledge forms are recommended for gifts with multiple designations or restrictions, or whenever naming is part of the donor’s recognition plan. For example, donors to scholarships may need an additional form to indicate award distribution timelines, or their preference for students with financial need or academic performance above a specific level.

Language: Consider using a different word, such as commitment or intention, if “pledge” is a culturally or individually sensitive term, or if it doesn’t translate well in the donor’s primary/preferred language.

An Example from the Field

Salt Lake Community College (SLCC) is a great example of the power of pledges. SLCC is the only community college in Utah and serves both students who intend to transfer and those in need of workforce training. It’s also the largest and most diverse institution of higher education in the state, with more than 60,000 students across 11 campuses.

SLCC is currently in a $40 million comprehensive campaign in support of its strategic plan. Faced with a significant goal to raise, their development team shifted focus from event fundraising to major gifts. Although fortunate to recruit and retain talented leadership and staff, this has not been a quick transition for SLCC.

Campaign success hinged on the first pledges to set the pace and inspire others. SLCC had many dedicated donors who gave each year, but who had not yet been asked to make a multiple-year commitment and document their pledge. An early conversation with a volunteer who had been giving annually led to a confirmed 6-figure pledge, which both motivated him to take a greater leadership role and ownership in the campaign, as well as inspired others to dig deeper themselves.

Make a Bigger Difference

Pledges for multiple-year gifts can help organizations raise more money and take donors to new levels of major giving. With more donor investments, nonprofits can have a greater impact and make an even more meaningful difference in their communities.

At the heart of nonprofit development operations is the process of accepting, acknowledging, and recognizing gifts. Gift acceptance policies can be more than a dusty procedure manual that outlines various methods of giving. Gift acceptance policies can be actively deployed to advance equity within your institution, diversify and educate your donor base, make giving more accessible, and reinforce the values of your organization.

Why Equity Matters

According to the U.S. Trust Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy, individuals are generous regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation. Making your gift acceptance policies more equitable is not only the right thing to do, but it is a best business practice.

Increase accountability and manage risk.

First and foremost, set a clear policy that your organization will not accept gifts with restrictions that unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, citizenship, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, age, marital or partnership status, military status, or disability.

Make sure your donors know that you will respect the privacy of each individual and that you are working to create an inclusive and donor-centric giving program. Support donors in their journey to become a part of your mission by including a confidentiality policy.

That said, you must also prepare for the unlikely event that a gift would compromise the public trust or adversely impact the reputation, image, mission, or integrity of your nonprofit. Your organization has rights and, while it’s unlikely that you will need to take legal action, your gift acceptance policies can help to set expectations. Including “morality clauses” can help protect your institution financially and ethically by outlining the termination of recognition agreements and by stating that your organization has no obligation or liability to a donor and would not be required to return gifts.

Educate donors about what your nonprofit needs to be successful.

Donors have long been key influencers of institutional decision-making, both through their financial power and through their desire to make an impact. We all know the pitfalls: while donors may desire to restrict funds to a specific program or purpose, it may not always serve the long-term goals of the organization or the needs of the community you serve. This is not a reason to abandon major gifts. Instead, we must acknowledge that each of our donors approaches philanthropy from different points of view. At the same time, donors have a duty to stay engaged intellectually and emotionally in the advancement of the nonprofit organizations they support.

As nonprofit leaders and subject matter experts in your program and mission, you can create policies that gently lead and incentivize your donors to make high-impact gifts. Keep in mind that these policies may prompt authentic conversations and bring generative conflict. Prepare for and welcome these conversations in order to advance each donor’s understanding of your mission or the needs of the community.

One example of misguided donor education that can be remedied through gift acceptance policies is the overhead myth. The overhead myth perpetuates the idea that vital activities like staff compensation and utilities are somehow frivolous expenses, as Dan Pallotta discusses in this 2013 TED talk. Using gift policies, you can outline the importance and value of unrestricted giving, allowing nonprofit leaders to make financial decisions that serve the mission rather than the current interests of our donor base. If you do maintain categories of restricted giving, ensure that those gifts are not so narrowly restricted that they prevent effective use or administration. Having too many restrictions – either immediately or that accumulate over time – can be problematic.

Invite donor and vendor participation to increase your capacity.

Who is involved in policy development matters; it’s as important as the outcome since true inclusion requires viewpoint diversity. Consider inviting a focus group of donors to inform your gift acceptance policies and appealing to a broader donor base and expanding the ways of giving. Using your constituent database, you can also take time in advance to evaluate your donor community with questions like: “Who is already giving (and how) and who is not yet giving to your organization?” This process will make sure a diverse set of voices are informing your menu of giving opportunities.

We also know that time and staff capacity are precious in any nonprofit and that accepting these types of gifts may not always be straightforward. There are so many ways to give these days, from retirement assets, to vehicle and property donations, to stock and cryptocurrency. Consider partnerships like Donate Stock, Car Easy, The Giving Block, or Every.org to help make gift processing easier for your nonprofit.

Make your policies public.

Finally, don’t forget to make your gift acceptance policies public to ensure transparency and accountability. Making a gift acceptance policy public can also help your organization broadcast which types of gifts you are able to process. By showcasing a variety of giving vehicles, you may facilitate more diverse philanthropic activity at your organization.

This piece has been prepared for informational purposes only and is not to be construed as legal advice.