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For leaders and ops team members at small to midsize nonprofits to get guidance, uplifting, and resources for nonprofit data, database, and operations.
Ops Insights #033 How to Say Goodbye to the Past Year
Did your last 30 days feel like this: go, go, go; make those calls, close those gifts, process those gifts, pump out those acknowledgments, make those thank you calls …all hands on deck.. go, go, go? It’s a normal part of fundraising, but it seems each year gets more and more intense with no break during any month of the calendar year. Let’s take a moment to take a breath, and as you head into another year, try not to clear the page and jump right into another year. Take a moment… what are you feeling?
Happy Holidays
It’s been an amazing year, and I am so grateful to you for doing the work you do, for tuning into these Insights each week, and for engaging with all of us in the philanthropy space.
As an FYI, you will not see another Insights edition until the new year. We are all hands on deck over here at PhilanthropyOps helping our clients end the year strong and ease their load to enjoy their holiday.
Thank you! Truly, thank you for being here. Have a wonderful year-end, and see you in the new year.
Ops Insights #032 Philanthropy Operations Areas
Philanthropy operations is an essential functional area that takes ownership of data, CRM, and processes, and effectively partners cross-functionally to propel an organization's fundraising forward. Often leaders think of philanthropy operations as only CRM database management, but it goes beyond this and primarily consists of eight key areas. Let’s dive into these eight areas.
Ops Insights #031 Building Your Grateful Patient Program
Building a Grateful Patient Program can be a game-changer for your nonprofit organization if you work in healthcare philanthropy. Over the years, the terminology has shifted from building a Culture of Philanthropy to building a Culture of Gratitude or Generosity. Nonetheless, building and nurturing this type of program is key to maximizing the opportunities for patients to express their gratitude and contribute to your cause. Let’s walk through a guide to help you get started.
Ops Insights #030 Addressing Burnout in the #Nonprofit Workplace
As we navigate the challenges of the nonprofit sector, it's crucial to address burnout to ensure the well-being of our teams and the success of our nonprofit missions. In the spirit of combating burnout, Stephanie and I have been running a series of posts throughout November on LinkedIn to provide awareness and actionable steps for fundraising professionals like yourself.
Ops Insights #029 4 Go-To Tech Tools
There is nothing like tech tools that make your life easier. I thought I’d share four of them that I use often to help you in your daily work. Some of these are free, and others have a cost to them, but they are worth their price for me. I’ll explain why they are worthy as when we can find tech tools that make our work easier and better, I’m all in. Let’s dive in.
Ops Insights #028 Use CUE to Strengthen the Partnership
We have tremendous opportunities in the fundraising sector to strengthen the partnership between data and frontline professionals. Gone are the days when the data team was the “back office.” Today, data professionals should stand side-by-side with frontline professionals as true partners to drive fundraising efforts forward. One way we can strengthen this partnership is by learning and using CUE - Communication, Understanding, and Empathy. Let’s talk through it.
Ops Insights #027 Screening and Scoring
Finding and using research tools that prioritize engagement and likelihood over wealth is important in your fundraising efforts. Just because someone is wealthy does not mean they care about your cause to donate anything. And those who care greatly about your cause may give everything they have. Which means it’s important to do both.
Ops Insights #026 Research Profiles
If you are a small to midsize organization and one of your many duties is prospect research, this edition is for you. If prospect research is your entire role, you can skip this week, as this is for beginners with multiple roles. Often, when tasked with various roles, prospect research tends to get pushed to the bottom of the priority list. I’ve been there and got it, and I am here to help you with the basics.
Ops Insights #025 My Wish for You
You have so much good inside of you. A thought, an idea, and a voice to share. The nonprofit space is already filled with enough pressure to go faster, do more with less, and innovate without investment (heard of AI?). Let’s help you find those positive-minded people to uplift you and fuel your ambitions!
Ops Insights #024 Data and Tech Innovation in Fundraising
It is an exciting time to be in fundraising as we have access to more data and innovative tools than ever before. Don't let this scare you. The devices have become much easier and more intuitive to use. Today, we’ll dive into the most popular buzzwords around data and tech in fundraising.
Ops Insights #023 Recurring Gift vs. Pledge
We are covering the differences between recurring gifts and pledges. A recurring gift/donation is different from a pledge, and your CRM should be able to handle both. As you continue looking for ways to increase fundraising dollars while having efficiency, I highly recommend doing recurring gifts. It’s gained lots of traction over the last few years, making renewing donors automatic.
Ops Insights #022 Continuous Learning
Continuous learning, also referred to as lifelong learning, is the ability to develop, build, and grow your skills on an ongoing basis. There is no way we can know everything already, especially as the data and tech landscape evolves and changes. Look at the cell phone you rely so heavily on… what version number are you on?
It’s a practice you can build in as a habit and it will support your growth as you continue to evolve in your role. Let’s go through some examples.
Ops Insights #021 Remote Work 101
I am an advocate of remote work, and I found it to be highly effective for me and for the ones I work with. For this reason, today we are diving into the basics of remote work. You can learn from what I experienced to either get started yourself or help your team get moving. Whether it’s fully remote or hybrid, these tips will help guide you.
Ops Insights #020 Your Story is Your North Star
Ever looked back at your career and thought how did I get here? Today, I want to encourage you to reflect on your start in the nonprofit sector. Why did you get into philanthropy in the first place? There are moments for us to remember, such as you witness a child’s life saved because of donations; Or you witness a single mother crying as she looks at the house that was re-built for her after a natural disaster because of donations. Why don't we talk about these moments more? Let’s help you take a few minutes to remember your story because it is your north star.
Ops Insights #019 Learn to Communicate with Leaders
We are diving into learning to communicate directly with leaders. As you advance in your career, the sooner you can acquire this skill set, the more valuable you will be. The first step is to understand different styles. Have you taken one of those personality tests? The ones where you answer a bunch of questions and it tells you your behavioral style? I’ve always been amazed at how accurate they are. Let’s dive in.
Ops Insights #018 Gift Processing and Finance
Finance should not dictate how you enter gifts into your fundraising CRM database. Yes, we want a healthy and collaborative relationship with our finance peers, but there are only a few fields in your CRM that need to be dictated by finance. Your fundraising CRM database is for fundraising purposes, not for finance purposes, and in order to be donor-centric, you need your CRM database to be donor-centric.
Ops Insights #017 Enhance Problem-Solving Skills
Are you ready to elevate your philanthropy operations skill set? In the world of nonprofits and fundraising, problem-solving isn't just about identifying obstacles; it's about presenting actionable solutions that empower positive change. Let's explore how the art of effective problem-solving can make you an invaluable asset to your leader and team members.
Ops Insights #016 Sink or Swim
Have you ever started a new role with little support, feeling like you were left to fend for yourself? The sink or swim approach can be daunting, and while some might thrive on the challenge, it’s time to take a different, more uplifting approach to onboarding a new employee. It’s time to replace “sink or swim” with “swim or swim.”
Ops Insights #015 Streamline Another Process
Time is one of our most precious resources, and in the world of fundraising, it’s easy to feel like there’s never enough of it. What if you can get more time back to focus on other tasks? Yes, it is possible through the power of streamlining. Streamlining your operational processes can make a world of difference. Make the decision today to streamline one more initiative. We’ll walk through an example to give you some motivation.