Managing Up
Meet the frustrated: So MANY fundraisers quit. They can't bridge the gap between learned "best practices" ... & the iron-bound "Ignorance Ceiling" common among bosses and boards.
I.e., Approvals Gone Wild.
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This was the promising tweet from first-term AFP president and CEO, Mike Geiger:
How to Manage Up for Fundraising Success https://bit.ly/2NbHuln. Without doubt one of THE most critical skills to have, ESPECIALLY in #fundraising dealing with CEOs and boards. Great piece by @hallholly & @InsidePhilanthr @AFPIHQ
Mike's right.
Great piece. By one of my favorite industry journalists, Holly Hall.
In my VERY favorite industry rag, Inside Philanthropy. The reporting's as useful as The Agitator's ... with lots more juicy gossip!
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So I enthusiastically responded to Mike's tweet:
I just told my MA fundraising class at St. Mary's U MN the very same thing. MANAGING UP is an essential skill ... especially because the "Ignorance Ceiling" is so stout in the nonprofit world.
WOW, I wanted Mike to know.
I'd just addressed a classroom of 21 mid-career fundraising professionals, all seeking Masters in Fundraising. The majority are AFP members.
Dead air.
That's sublimely OK: I know AFP is understaffed
somedaymaybe untilthen
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The Ignorance Ceiling
It resembles a "Glass Ceiling."
Only it applies to all genders, I guess. Though, on second thought? Fundraisers? Nonprofit work? Charity stuff? Maybe it is simply a THICKENING of an as-yet-un-PENETRATED Glass Ceiling.
What IS the Ignorance Ceiling?
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Well, it's REAL, for one thing.
The Ignorance Ceiling is common in the nonprofit world.
It's as common as sunrise.
A fundraiser's hand goes up ... in a workshop pretty much anywhere on earth where English is heard on the street (and where AFP hopes to lead).
"How do I convince my boss about ... [fill in the blank]?"
My answer has evolved over time. Or i dunno maybe "devolved."
- First understand, your bosses don't know crap. Measurably so. They're utterly, comically wrong, pretty much 100% of the time re: donor comms. You asked. They guessed. They rendered an opinion from their power-cloud. BUT, truth: no one can guess successfully at donor comms. In fact, there are severe financial penalties for guessing. Financial success requires training. Take just one serious workshop and apply yourself: You will now know WAY more than your bosses do or ever will.
- Second: Why ARE they undermining you? Have you ever wondered? After all, hitting fundraising goals means your neck is on the line, not theirs. Are you being set up to fail? Please treat the following as basic policy: The chief fundraiser [not the CEO, CFO, COO nor board chair] MUST absolutely, without question or interference, CONTROL/APPROVE every word and image in your donor communications." PS, management: Otherwise, don't bother to train people.
- Third: you cannot run a successful business this way. Officially, you might be a 'nonprofit.' You still need a viable business model. You still need to keep the lights on and the salaries paid; and if you want more competent help, you'll need to pay higher salaries. Have a plan. A plan for GROWTH. Let's face it: there will always be more demand for missions like yours, especially relating to society's basic needs: food, shelter, education, youth, disease, hope. Don't stunt your charity's growth. Put in place a sound business plan that nurtures fundraising.
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A systemic drag on donor commitment
Second-guessing by ignorant bosses (EDs, board chairs, fundraising committees) is a widespread problem in the nonprofit sector (which, in the US, now employs the third largest body of workers; after sales [#1] and manufacturing).
C-level second-guessing is widespread.
It's costly (in terms of squashed fundraising growth).
And it probably right now seriously curbs your mission's ability to expand with confidence.
Second-guessing knocks the kneecaps OFF your fundraising legs, reducing donations to a mere fraction of their potential.
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