Getting the Right People on the Bus

A dependable revenue stream that grows—ah, paradise!

Have a fundraising challenge you want to crack? Weary of doing the same old, same old yet hoping for different outcomes? Do you want the over-the-top results that come from superior strategy?

Email me with your particular problem, and I'll arrange a quick consultation offering you a practical solution you can implement. I may even use your situation to share with my readers. Names are changed, of course!

I had a delightful conversation with Tiffany a few days back regarding her environmental lifestyle organization. I was impressed with the good work her organization does and in the thoughtful way the folks there engage their community.

Her challenge is to deal effectively with success. Founded as an all-volunteer organization with a small outreach, there wasn't a payroll and programs were almost self-financing. Marketing wasn't a factor as word-of-mouth was sufficient.

Now that the word is out and their impact is being felt in the community at large, expanding to serve the entire county presents an entirely new set of issues.

It's not surprising that the founder and small group of committed volunteers really don't have the skill set to deal with the business of the organization—hiring staff, expanding programs, creating marketing, organizing fund development.

They've taken the first step in hiring Tiffany. She's more than competent. She brings executive skill and business acumen along with a true believer's spirit to her tasks.

What she's seeing now, unfortunately, is an all-too-common dysfunctional view of money among the small group of original stalwarts. The word "business" conjures up visions of overweening corporate greed rather than the requirement that all—ALL—viable organizations must have a working business model with stable positive revenue flow.

The founder sees the need to raise "money" at all as some sort of moral compromise.