Mel and Pearl Shaw

“I expect my development team to raise the money. That’s their job.” – nonprofit leader “I haven’t met with the president in the past five months. I can’t work like…

There’s a lot of pressure today to do something big, make an extraordinary impact, raise a lot of money. Nonprofits are feeling the pressure to respond to the needs of…

When people read about your organization there are two things that get their attention: emotions and numbers. A lot of focus has been placed on “telling your story” and we…

In today’s climate, nonprofits find themselves growing and transforming in unanticipated ways. Some are taking on additional responsibilities while many others are unable to operate as they did way back…

How are you progressing towards your fundraising goals? Can you take a moment to review and – if needed – reset them? Could your goals be too aggressive? Were they…

We hear the constant complaint from nonprofit professionals and board members “if we had more people, we could raise more money, build more capacity, engage more people, and make the…

Part two of a two-part series A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste. This nationally recognized statement of truth propelled the United Negro College Fund into American educational and…

Part one of a two-part series Visible leadership paves the way for powerful changes that carry forward for generations. So is the case of the United Negro College Fund. And,…

Part two of a two-part series While paying close attention to historic donors, organizations need to simultaneously cultivate new audiences, build relationships, and grow new donors. Organizational changes in governance,…

Part one of a two-part series How do we balance the realities of major gifts fundraising with the need to build a diverse donor base? Is this an organizational priority?…