70 Nonprofit Trends for 2015

2. Stop worrying about your walk. Worry about your mission impact instead. A few years ago, the space was shaken up by the rise of mud and obstacle events. A palpable sense of concern arose within organizations that had done well by the walk — they wondered if they would be left behind by the shiny new car on the event block.

Over the last year, however, we found that pedestrian walks not only still dominated the landscape, compromising seven of the 10 largest fundraising events, but most also realized increased revenue. The simplicity of a walk allows cause-focused constituents with significant fundraising power to rally specifically around your mission — not a fiery obstacle course.

What matters more than ever, however, is the real silver bullet of fundraising: what you do with the money. What impact are you making in the world? Fundraising revenue is only a proxy for mission impact, so the real fundraising leaders will begin to realize that to do their jobs effectively they have to understand, assess and be involved in the program delivery side of their nonprofit.

STAFFING/HIRING/TRAINING
Rachel Armbruster, CEO, Armbruster Consulting Group
1. The issue of high staff turnover in development offices continues to be a hot topic. Trends I have seen recently include flexible work hours, more telecommuting, increased use of online meeting technology to reduce travel and alternating jobs within development departments to avoid burnout. One step I haven’t seen yet though is the rethinking of job descriptions and qualifications. Many organizations continue to use job titles and descriptions from a decade ago, and they really aren’t reflective of the work or the ideal candidate. I think progress will have to be made in this area for our fundraising dollars to raise significantly.

BONUS
Rachel Armbruster, CEO, Armbruster Consulting Group
1. More organizations are realizing the opportunity with endurance fundraising. While the market is crowded and it is harder than ever to secure spots in sell-out races, organizations can craft a strong strategy and use incentives, training support and a sense of community to create interest in open races.