Meet Our Award Winners: Jessica Harrington

Get upper-management buy-in. A project can easily become derailed when the ED or CEO or board president doesn’t agree with the concept, usually because they haven’t been brought in at the planning stages.

Fundraising success is a team effort — from the person who sets the strategy and the person who writes the letter copy to the person who prints the piece or codes the e-mail. Everyone plays a part in the overall success, and everyone should celebrate that success.

Fundraising accomplishment of which you are most proud: Seeing the people I’ve worked with and mentored over the years become as passionate as I am about what we do, and strong fundraisers in their own right.

How your co-workers would describe you: Fearless, quick thinker and a team builder. Nimble, fast and fun.

Greatest lesson ever learned: Staying true to the organization’s mission. So many times I’ve wanted to push an organization to do more or do something differently because it might have raised more money. I now realize that’s short-term thinking. Long-term, selling the "real" organization and the important work they do will always lead to more committed support.

Oh, and longer letters work!