Is Nonprofit Fundraising Underdeveloped?

I am a student of the nonprofit profession. I constantly attempt to practice and teach ways to enhance the nonprofit universe. I continue to work my day job while assisting other organizations with their needs. People that know me contact me on a regular basis with questions on how to improve productivity in their shops. I have given away millions of dollars of free advice and will continue this activity. All of us do the same thing all the time. It is in our blood and nature to attempt to better understand how we do what we do.

One of the main themes that I continue to tell new employees to their shops is to build a culture of philanthropy. I was recently meeting with someone in my office about that very subject at the end of a long day. When I arrived home and picked up the mail I was surprised and happy to read the new issue of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) publication titled The Steward.

The focus of this issue was a review of the national study titled "UnderDeveloped: A National Study of Challenges Facing Nonprofit Fundraising." This report was conducted by CompassPoint Nonprofit Services and the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund. The report revealed that many organizations are stuck in a cycle that threatens their ability to raise the resources they need to succeed. One of the main themes of the study indicated that the role of fundraising is not well-enough understood across the nonprofit sector. Susan Earl Hosbach, CFRE, chair of the AFP Foundation for Philanthropy and president/CEO of the Pearlpoint Cancer Center, Nashville, Tenn., noted that "promoting an understanding that fundraising is not solely the task of one department or one person can be a challenge. It requires thought leadership, patience, effective communication and a commitment to forge strong and lasting relationships."