Let’s be honest – managing and reporting on donor funds is no small feat and advancement teams cannot do it alone. We rely heavily on our systems, processes, and organization partners to help us create the best donor experiences we possibly can. But if you ask yourself: Are our donor funds being utilized? Are they being used correctly and timely? Should we be worried when we send out our annual donor fund reports? And if you've shared some of these concerns, you're not alone. In recent years, many organizations have grappled with similar questions, finding little guidance on this vital aspect of any advancement operation. Join us in this session as we look at several case studies on how organizations like yours built the case for support to create and grow a fund management program. It's time to bring the discussion on funds management challenges out of closed-door conversations and begin an industry dialogue to identify what tools, resources, and standards need to be in place to successfully manage and steward donor funds. Whether you are new to funds management or seasoned in the field, come prepared to share your experiences and glean insights from others in this collaborative space.

In today's rapidly changing landscape of alumni relations and advancement, graduate-level academic units face the challenge of effectively engaging alumni through central programming, particularly when it is assumed that graduate-level alumni will not want to engage in centralized programs. This presentation will showcase innovative strategies and best practices for utilizing centralized programming to achieve graduate-level engagement and philanthropic goals.

As higher education institutions face increasingly complex fundraising landscapes, the role of campaign leaders has evolved significantly. Today’s campaign leaders must balance strategic vision, data-driven decision-making, and collaborative leadership to drive successful fundraising efforts. This session will explore how the role of campaign leaders is changing and what skills and strategies are essential for success in modern fundraising campaigns.

In this session, we will examine the following key areas:

• The shift from traditional to strategic campaign leadership
• The importance of data and analytics in campaign planning and execution
• Building and leading cross-functional teams
• Engaging stakeholders and fostering a culture of philanthropy
Key Areas of Focus:

• Strategic Leadership
o Evolution from traditional management to strategic campaign leadership
o Developing a clear and compelling campaign vision

• Data and Analytics
o Utilizing data to inform campaign strategies and measure success
o Leveraging predictive analytics for donor identification and engagement

• Cross-Functional Team Leadership
o Building and managing diverse teams, including development officers, communications staff, and volunteers
o Promoting collaboration and accountability within the team
• Constituent Engagement
o Engaging key constituents, including alumni, donors, and community leaders
o Creating a culture of philanthropy within the institution

Many organizations are hesitant to accept more complex gifts like real estate, cryptocurrency, charitable gift annuities, or various other gifts of assets that seem to be outside of their grasp. There are many valid reasons for this. The organization may not want to take on the risk of accepting a highly complex gift. Their gift acceptance policies may not even allow them to accept complex assets. Or they may simply not know whom to turn to for help. This session will explore the ways in which even fundraising shops of all sizes can accept large, complex gifts that have the power to transform their organization.

As CFR (Corporate and Foundation Relations) officers build extensive university networks to gain knowledge to construct compelling and concise proposals to fund campus priorities, Major Gift Officers can collaborate with CFR Officers to expand their offerings to individual donors with ready-made materials, data, and impactful stories. In this session participants will gain understanding of the value of Corporate and Foundation Relations and how Major Gift Officers can enhance institutional support through collaboration.

Buena Vista University has built and implemented a custom Alumni Engagement model based on CASE best practices and aligns with the CASE Alumni Engagement Survey and Metrics. Overtime this led to the development of a custom Affinity scoring model that combines not only engagement data but also giving as well as other prospect ratings into one quick and easy to interpret score. The two models help to build stronger donor pipelines by identifying prospects who are ready for the next step in the donor journey as well as potential alumni leaders. Come and hear how you can implement this easy system to boost your alumni engagement and fundraising results.