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

If you are uncertain if you and your president are on the same page, ask yourself these 10 questions:

1. Does your leader have a history of successful fundraising campaign leadership?
2. If you asked your leader how important philanthropy was to him or her, would you get the answer you need?
3. Does your president tell you how much he or she loves asking for money?
4. Are you given the time required to take your leader on community engagement calls?
5. Do you sit down with the executive team and review ongoing major fundraising priorities agreed upon by all concerned?
6. Do you receive the time and access with your president and board chair to review funding plans and prospects?
7. Do you and your CEO role play and strategically rehearse "asks," plus go on significant asks as a team?
8. Does your president give you scheduled time each month to meet one-on-one to discuss your agenda?
9. Does your president praise you publicly in front of others and have confidence in you?
10. Do you and your leader have chemistry, and do your personalities blend?

These are tough questions, but you have a tough job. Have a green and red marker handy. Answer the 10 questions, and if you have positive answers mark the questions green. If you have negative answers, mark the questions red. If you have red lines, sit down with your president or CEO and strive to make all 10 lines green. You have no choice in this matter.

The dynamics of a relationship between two people are amazing and fluid. There are so many factors involved in the engagement of a senior development professional and his or her president. Unfortunately, you do not have total control of most situations. By knowing your leader and being proactive to his or her strengths and weaknesses, you should be given an amount of time to make the marriage work.