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The Fundraising Times They are a Changin’: Lead the Way!

Posted on  October 3, 2019
  · No Comments

Yes, Virgil, there is a lot of change going with regard to fundraising:

·        There are five generations in the workforce (and one would think donors) and

·        There are a mind-boggling number of ways to give,

·        Yet the overall number of donors is on the decline.

·        We used to be the fundraisers, but now

·        Everyone is a fundraiser,

·        Maybe even robots (with the use of AI on the rise!)

This is a short list. What would you add?

At the AFP Central PA Capital Conference I led a discussion with 40+ professionals about leading through change. We didn’t talk about any one change, rather how to lead through all types of changes.

We explored a concept called Change Intelligence© (the brainchild of Barbara Traultlein of Change Catalysts.*

Session attendees discovered their own change leadership styles. Some led more with their head, others with their hands and some others with their hearts. (And yes, we noted that people might use some combination of the three).

The most interesting part involved a case study. What made that interesting? People had to work together with people who had different change styles.

This might seem a simple task but think about it:

·        We talk about diversity. But I wonder, when was the last time you sat with team members and spoke about how each of you deals with change?

·        Have you used the knowledge of how you each manage or lead through change to your advantage?

·        Put another way, by engaging others who possess diverse styles of change intelligence have you come up with better solutions to a problem than you might have working on your own?

Want to know more? I offered a few tips about leading through change in this piece. I didn’t have an opportunity to hear him speak but know that Dave Tinker spoke about fundraising after a tragedy. I too have led discussions about fundraising in times of crisis (and a crisis definitely results in change!).

·        What have you found to be an effective way of dealing with change?

·        Do you have a story to tell about how you or your team successfully navigated a change?

I hope that you will comment because we can all learn from one another. If you want to know more about my AFP session give me a shout out here.

*I don’t receive any remuneration for recommending Barbara or her work. Change intelligence is for me a fascinating concept, maybe for you too. 

Sophie is the President of i5 Fundraising and the Senior Program Coordinator and a Lecturer for Penn State programs in fundraising leadership and fundraising and advancement.

Categories : Blog
Tags : #fundraising #fundraisingleadership #leadership #change #changeagent #changeagents #changeleadership #leadchange #nonprofitleadership #nonprofitchange
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