10 Questions to Determine If You Are on the Same Page With Your CEO

How did we choose this crazy profession? For some of us it was a passion to make a difference. For others it was a lucky or perhaps unlucky choice.

Many of us did not grow up and state on career day in school that we want to be fundraising professionals. When I began this career many moons ago I thought development was real estate development. I had no clue it involved the process of asking for money.

When I was younger, the introvert in me was scared and could not consistently gather the courage to call for the question of a gift. The extrovert in me loved a challenge and was always striving for ultimate fundraising success. Life is always a balancing act, and you need to be in balance if you want to succeed long term in this demanding field.

As a senior professional in this career you will have a mountain of obstacles to overcome. In my opinion, the most important determining factor in your job security, job satisfaction and job success is being on the "same page" as your CEO or president. If this is not the case, quit reading this blog and begin polishing your résumé.

I have been blessed or cursed to work with a number of presidents at nonprofits in my career. These individuals displayed a variety of talents and abilities. I worked with young and old leaders. Many individuals, while saying they understood philanthropy, were in fact clueless. Some completely understood resource development and the role the chief development officer played in the institution. Others were indifferent to the global importance of generating time, talent and treasure for the organization. The factor of personality and style always came into play.

The best presidents I worked under knew that resource development goal attainment was critical to the institution's success and the chief development officer's success.