New fundraisers, whether new to the profession entirely, new to your organization, or new to a discipline or role, can feel like they don't receive enough guidance, direction, and onboarding from their supervisors, mentors, and peers. This session provides practical, clearly defined suggestions for setting up your new fundraisers for success from Day 1! Learn the most important elements of onboarding a new staff member to ensure that they understand your organization and their role.

It’s been almost nine months since the world’s first fully autonomous fundraiser interacted with its first assigned donor. During that time, 11 higher educational institutions joined together as a cohort to engage donors with an AI-powerered Virtual Engagement Officer (and a second cohort is now live), but more importantly research, develop, and accelerate the deployment of autonomous fundraising for our entire industry.

All higher education institutions can relate to the fact that they have more donors and alumni than they have fundraisers with capacity to build relationships. This is precisely where autonomous fundraising changes what’s possible.

In this session, Susan Lewers, Associate Vice President, Major and Planned Gifts, of Illinois Institute of Technology will present the results her and her team have seen from autonomous fundraising – donors engaged, dollars raised, and pipeline built, in addition to their experience being the first organizations in the world to deploy a Virtual Engagement Officer to a portfolio of their donors.

We’ll present what we learned, what we got right, where course corrections were needed, and how we navigated AI in a field defined by relationships. We’ll share all of our findings including portfolios for autonomous fundraisers, sourcing engagement content independently, accuracy, transparency, ethics, and more.

Finally, we’ll conclude by looking at where we are going, how we can continue to further personalize donor journeys, push the outer limits of technology, and more.

Discover how to amplify your annual giving efforts through the power of social media. Anna Davis, Assistant Director of Annual Giving & Digital Strategy at Grand Valley State University, will share proven strategies to engage donors, boost visibility, and drive donations using platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Learn practical tips for creating compelling content, leveraging paid digital campaigns, and measuring success effectively. Whether you're new to social media fundraising or looking to refine your approach, this session equips you with actionable insights to enhance your organization's outreach and impact.

Imposter syndrome is the buzziest of buzzwords. From seasoned professionals with 30+ years in the advancement field to new grads, we often find ourselves struggling to find true confidence and certainty in who we show up to be in the workplace. Targeted towards those new to the field or new to post-grad life, this session will dive into what imposter syndrome is, how it is extraordinarily prevalent AND relevant in the advancement field, and what we can do to navigate the ebbs and flows of feeling "good enough". This session is structured to be a vulnerable conversation about self-worth and value as a professional; while also discussing ways we can find confidence in who we are, even if we don't completely have it figured out.

In this session you'll hear from Kristine Lo, Director of Fundraising Performance Analytics at the University of Chicago, how her team revolutionized fundraising management reporting to ensure managers and staff at all levels had the insights they needed to effectively manage up, down and across. The session will include best practices of effective management reporting, how consistency in management reporting can improve results, and suggestions for how you can audit (or start) your own data-delivery program.

Join in a conversation about the context and experiences of women in advancement leadership. Explore research on the field, hear from a panel of women leaders, and explore best practices and resources to encourage and support women’s journeys to leadership. This session aims to motivate, empower, and energize--whether you are looking for networking, planning for career growth, seeking to enhance your leadership skills, or creating organizational environments where women leaders can thrive.

In today’s philanthropic landscape, donor expectations are evolving. Traditional institutional giving models—such as scholarships, endowments, and unrestricted contributions—are becoming less effective as donors seek more direct impact and alignment with their personal values. This session will explore the shift from giving to a university to giving through a university, focusing on cause-based fundraising strategies that engage donors in meaningful, mission-driven ways. Attendees will learn how to reframe fundraising appeals to emphasize tangible outcomes, leverage storytelling to build trust, and implement digital engagement strategies tailored to next-generation donors. The session will also provide practical insights on navigating institutional challenges, gaining leadership buy-in, and utilizing technology to enhance donor connections.