Leadership, Boards and Executive Issues
The Fundraising Talent Gap Is Approaching Crisis
The need for skilled fundraisers is increasingly outstripping the available supply. Turnover is rampant, and the number of nonprofits underfunding their missions increases. For the sector, 2016 will necessarily see the acceleration of creative approaches to addressing this challenge. Outsourcing, flexible work options, performance bonuses and other tactics long used by our for-profit peers will continue to grow within the nonprofit sector. That’s a good thing, and coupled with a long-term commitment to attracting, training and retaining new talent in our field, it will stall and eventually reverse this crisis.
—Craig H. Shelley, CFRE, vice president, board of directors, Association of Fundraising Professionals, New York City Chapter; and vice president, Orr Associates Inc. (OAI)
Amping Up Advocacy and Engaging Legislators
We had a lot of good news in 2015: record levels of giving, more organizations achieving or surpassing their fundraising goals and a firm 10 percent of Americans employed in the nonprofit sector. We’re all struck, and perhaps a little giddy, by how quickly our sector was able to recover from the 2008 recession. However, regardless of what last year’s giving tallies lead us to believe about the tradition of giving in the U.S., the portion of the gross domestic product attributed to charitable giving has been stagnant since the 1970s.
We predict much more collaborative work within the sector to engage government in sustaining philanthropy through responsible policy. Consider our scalability as a sector; we present a formidable network of community-based, community-minded solution providers. Active and effective advocacy among sector leaders is as imperative in the current environment as are professional and ethically minded fundraisers. At the Association of Fundraising Professionals, we’ll be stretching beyond our comfort zones to contribute more research and targeted data to inspire policies that recognize philanthropy as a coveted freedom—one that returns vital services and programs at an average value of $2.50 for every $1 of investment.
—Andrew Watt, FInstF, president and CEO, Association of Fundraising Professionals
Engaged Boards
Harnessing the power of volunteers is a perpetual challenge for many organizations and I expect 2016 to be a turning point for many. Even with a recovering economy, resources remain tight for most nonprofits and investing time (and perhaps some financial resources) in developing volunteer leadership will help bring the mission closer to those we aim to serve. An engaged board can not only evangelize your work—through speaking events, social media and water cooler conversations—but also impact the bottom line by contributing a larger share of their own wallets to the cause. That may require rethinking how we operate, but public recognition, genuine appreciation, accountability and empowerment may help tap this influential group and support success in 2016.
—Karin Kirchoff, deputy executive director, National PTA
Changing the Overhead Discussion
Overhead is a fact of life, but we have been too focused on reducing it at the expense of effectiveness. With more public attention on overhead because of both negative and positive media coverage, organizations will look for better ways to explain overhead, moving behind merely showing it as a wedge on the pie chart. Nonprofits will be learning to show the positive impact of overhead on results, instead of just apologizing for it. Being able to explain the importance of investing in infrastructure in a way that makes sense to the donor and demonstrates to him or her that this is essential for impact will separate nonprofits—not on the basis of who raises the most, but instead on the basis of who does the best job helping their donors understand the reality of operating in a way that makes donations more effective long-term.
—Pamela Barden, consultant and founder, PJ Barden Inc.
Turnover
Unfortunately, I believe we will continue to see rampant nonprofit employee turnover. This will be on both ends of the spectrum, with more experienced employees aging or maxing out and younger employees feeling that their energy and passion are underappreciated and/or undervalued.
—Dave Linn, chief operating officer, The Generosity Series
Consistent Branding and Messaging
With the presidential elections coming up in 2016, Americans will have their emotions tugged from every different angle. However, despite the uncertainties from the candidates, what people really want is consistency. People want to relate to a brand and feel comfort with the brands they interact with—the same goes for nonprofits. In the nonprofit world, we need to continue to avoid mission drift at all costs and show donors, both current and potential, that our message and cause are strong and unwavering. Having this consistent design and brand representation of graphics across all communication channels will be in high demand.
—Phillip Johnson, creative director, marketing, Smile Train
Requirements and Regulations at Every Corner
Even if the IRS proposal to make nonprofits collect and share Social Security numbers “voluntarily” does not come to pass, it’s clear there is going to be increasing regulation on charitable activities. Be it the FCC and telemarketing, the states and solicitation requirements, or the IRS on tax reporting, there are going to be more outside forces at play. What it will mean: higher costs.
—Tiffany Neill, CFRE, partner; and Amy Sukol, CFRE, executive vice president, Lautman Maska Neill & Company
Instant-Access Accounting
With more Millennials achieving mid-level and upper-level management positions in nonprofits, they are expecting instant access to accurate data from wherever they may be. With instant gratification from their hand-held technology, they are not willing to wait one to two weeks after the end of the month for data.
—Peter Stam, president, AccuFund
The Rise of the Gen X Board
Gen Xers will begin to take their place not just as coveted donors, but as the new generation of nonprofit shepherds looking to make change far beyond their pocketbooks.
—Dave Linn, chief operating officer, The Generosity Series
Boards Are Embracing Their Philanthropic Roles
The past decade has seen remarkable strides in nonprofit boards understanding and stepping into their fiduciary and governance responsibilities. That’s made for a sector that is better managed and more accountable. Next up: boards taking philanthropy more seriously, resulting in a better-funded sector. Board members are now taking the time to educate themselves about how philanthropy works and understanding their important role in giving generously, advocating and actively participating in the fundraising program. As this trend continues we’ll see a philanthropic tide that raises all boats.
—Craig H. Shelley, CFRE, vice president, board of directors, Association of Fundraising Professionals, New York City Chapter; and vice president, Orr Associates Inc. (OAI)
