In
addition to welcoming the Oakland Chamber’s new Membership Director and
Roundtable Liaison Nikki Mendez, the April Nonprofit Roundtable launched into an
enthusiastic conversation based on the recent national study, UnderDeveloped:
A National Study of Challenges Facing Nonprofit Fundraising. With more
than 10,000 nonprofit organizations serving Alameda County alone, the study
provides significant information for the entire community.
To
begin, Steve Lew, Project Director for CompassPoint (www.compasspoint.org), the Bay Area nonprofit that serves other
nonprofits with classes, workshops, studies and consultations, introduced the
study and the results.
UnderDeveloped (www.compasspoint.com/underdeveloped) is a joint project
that CompassPoint undertook with the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund to
examine the status of fundraising in the nonprofit sector. CompassPoint
surveyed approximately 2,700 Executive Directors and Senior Development
Officers and compiled the results.
According
to CompassPoint, “With startling clarity,
the national study reveals that many nonprofit organizations are stuck in a
vicious cycle that threatens their ability to raise the resources they need to
succeed.” The study succinctly reveals the instability of the role of the
Development Director throughout the sector and in organizations of all sizes.
Key
findings were divided into three specific areas: 1) Revolving Door – high
turnover and long vacancies in the Development Director position; 2) Help
Wanted – lack of qualified candidates, performance issues and a lack of basic
fundraising skills among lead development staff; and 3) Organizational
Structure – lack of capacity, systems and culture to support fundraising
success. The statistics are alarming:
·
Vacancy
length in the chief development position of six months on average, with nearly
half even longer;
·
50%
of Development Directors anticipate leaving their current jobs in two years or
less;
·
50%
of Executive Directors said their last search didn’t produce enough candidates
with the right mix of skills and experience;
·
25%
of Executive Directors fired their last Development Director;
·
25%
of Executive Directors said their Development Directors have no experience or
are novice at current and prospective donor research and at securing gifts;
·
23%
of the organizations have no fundraising plan in place; 21% have no fundraising
database;
·
75%
of Board Member engagement is insufficient; and
·
Less
than half of Development Directors say they have a strong relationship with
their Executive Director.
However,
the study goes further by providing several “calls to action” to strengthen
fundraising within an organization and the sector as a whole:
·
Embrace
fund development at the organization, or, as consultant Simone P. Joyaux
states, create a “Culture of Philanthropy;”
·
Elevate
the field of fundraising;
·
Strengthen
and diversify the talent pool (like Executive
Directors, Development Directors are predominantly over 40, female, and white);
·
Train Boards of Directors differently (again creating a Culture of
Philanthropy);
·
Set realistic development goals; and
·
Share
accountability for fundraising results (the
Development Director’s success is inextricably linked to staff, Executive
Director and Board success).
Discussing
the study with Lew and each other led to an even broader conversation on the
status of the Oakland area’s nonprofit sector. This conversation enabled those
representing organizations of all sizes to ask questions, posit answers,
complain, share ideas and support each other. The enthusiasm and diligence of
those in attendance created a marvelous atmosphere that was only limited by
time constraints.
Roundtable
Co-chairs Âna-Marie Jones, Executive Director of CARD (amj@CARDcanhelp.org) and Jerry Metzker, Development &
Marketing Manager of Biotech Partners (jerry.metzker@bayer.com) invite those in and outside of the
nonprofit sector to join us as we continue this critical conversation.
* * * * *
The next Oakland Chamber Non-Profit Roundtable meeting will be
held on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, from 2:30-4:30pm in the Chamber Boardroom. All
Chamber members and non-profit organizations interested in networking are
welcome.Stay tuned for more details!
Labels: Biotech Partners, CompassPoint, non-profit roundtable, UnderDeveloped Oakland area’s nonprofit sector
