What if Advancement was just folded into the President’s Office?
That’s right, advancement as a separate entity goes away but all the people in it now report to the office of the president. Everyone on the outside would only be approached by president’s liaisons.
And what if the function formerly known as advancement was tasked primarily with listening on behalf of the president and exploring strategic partnerships, alliances and coalitions?
When conceptual alignments were reached, what if another group called Partnership Negotiators stepped in – but only when potential partners agreed to begin negotiations. Wouldn’t that reflect better on the president and the organization?
Yes, philanthropy would still be pursued but it would be one of many options in the partnership building process. There would be no fundraising for fundraising’s sake. That would not be befitting the office of the president. All fundraising would now be in the form of explanations as to how the organization could better serve.
Broad annual appeals could still be made but now would come in the president’s name and be more clearly in the context of the president’s vision and greater strategic purposes. Donors would be given clearer explanations as to where specific amounts of money could make specific differences. It would be more thoughtful, in that it now comes directly from the president, in the voice of the president.
Stewardship, now a function of the president’s office and a symbol of institutional accountability, would certainly be taken more seriously and elevated to a strategic function.
Can you see how I’m making both serious and satirical points about how advancement could be so much more effective if it were positioned as a central, strategic arm of an organization empowered to build coalitions and partnerships not just produce annual fundraising results and if it were supported and embraced within as essential to the success of the president and therefore the entire organization?
Jim Langley is the president of Langley Innovations. Langley Innovations provides a range of services to its clients to help them understand the cultural underpinnings of philanthropy and the psychology of donors, and with that knowledge, to develop the most effective strategies and tactics to build broader and more lasting communities of support. Jim has authored numerous books, including his most recent book, The Future of Fundraising: Adapting to New Philanthropic Realities, published by Academic Impressions in 2020.
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