We Explore in Depth Each of the Following:
Part 1: Using Effective Stewardship to Cultivate Continuing Support
Donors’ perceptions of the quality of the exchange relationship is a key correlate with building long-term connections. To increase loyalty/satisfaction it becomes necessary to understand donors’ opportunities for assessing the quality of the experience. Stewardship is the consistent delivery of services which fully meet donors’ needs and expectations. As fundraisers interested in stewardship, we must reconcile what our donors expect and what they receive. During this session, we discuss two modes of communications— and study two social/psychological theories important to stewardship.
Part 2. Storyliving— Creating Transformational Major Donor Experiences
Traditional storytelling often puts the donor in the role of the passive listener. Storyliving invites the donor to roll up their sleeves and jump into the story, engaging in a way that leaves them inspired and passionate about giving.
Part 3: Managing Your Major Gifts Program in Preparation for a Major Gift Initiative/Campaign
How do you define a major gift initiative/campaign in your organization? You will learn the critical decision points in selecting the appropriate funding model. We discuss the 21 significant factors in assessing the right time to launch your program and how to prepare staff, administration, and board members to optimize success.
Part 4. The Intentional Fundraiser
Too often the work of major gift fundraising falls behind urgent event deadlines and the constant barrage of incoming email and internal meetings. How do we consistently prioritize the critical work of donor development? Whether you’re in a small shop or managing a large team, The Intentional Fundraiser is a system for taking control of your time; establishing role clarity, priorities and performance metrics for busy fundraising pros. Participants will receive The Intentional Fundraiser Toolkit of templates for high performance. Tammy Zonker
Part 5. Effective Listening— The Key to Closing the Major and Planned Gift
Listening skills can be broken down into three basic components. Attending Behavior— nonverbal communications that show the other person you care about what they are saying. Passive Listening— silence is powerful because it shows attention to the speaker and more. Active Listening— the use of questions. We will explore these basic components in depth, and study those methods to improve your skills as a listener.
Distinct Activities During Our Seminars
ParkBenching
Mark Twain once wrote that the most profound learning experience a person can have is to have a great teacher on one end of a log and a student on the other. Well, we do that, but we skip the log! In ParkBenching, registrants at the Institute have the opportunity to speak to faculty during all breaks throughout the time you are with us. There’s no prohibition on the topic. How to advance in the profession, how to deal with a Chair that’s not effective, having a problem with the boss, looking for a new job. You name it— whatever you would like to discuss.
Faculty
The faculty is now set and includes an exciting group of the best and the most empowering coaches offered anywhere. Visit this link to read expanded bios on all of our faculty.
Seminar Dean: William T. Sturtevant was Senior Principal Gifts Consultant at the University of Illinois Foundation, a position which guided relationships with individuals and families capable of gifts at a level of $5 million and above, until his retirement in 2013 after 33 years of service. From 1980 until 2004 he served as Vice President for Planned Giving and Trust Relations at the Foundation and built what is considered by many to be one of the nation’s preeminent gift planning programs.
Bill is a nationally recognized specialist in major and deferred gifts and planning and solicitation strategies. He now devotes his time to his fundraising consulting and training practice.
Douglas Dillon is Chief Executive Officer of Jerold Panas, Linzy & Partners— one of the nation’s highly regarded firms in the field of campaign services and financial resource development. He has been actively involved in the management of nonprofit institutions since 1988. In addition to being a campaign and development program specialist, he has particular experience in conducting board retreats, development audits, strategic planning, and feasibility studies. Doug serves as a fundraising consultant for organizations throughout the United States, Canada, and Australia.
Joe Ellsworth serves as a Senior Consultant for Jerold Panas, Linzy & Partners. He heads the Division in the firm that serves clients with their branding strategy. In 1981, he founded a company, Fire and Rain. Its initial work included branding activities, product launches, training, and education programs. Under Ellsworth’s leadership, the company gained expertise in the creation of strategic communication plans, development of creative platforms, and the production of messaging tools.
Jerry Linzy is Senior Managing Partner and Chief Operating Officer of Jerold Panas, Linzy & Partners—one of the nation’s largest firms in the field of campaign services and financial resource development. A major force in the industry, the firm has offices in Chicago and Boston. Since its founding in 1968, the firm has served over 2400 client institutions.
Colette M. Murray, JD, CFRE, is CEO of Paschal-Murray, Inc., an executive search firm with associates in four states and two countries. As CEO, her goal for Paschal•Murray is to remain the most dedicated and ethical executive search firm in the nation and provide clients with exceptional personal services. Colette has a long history in leadership positions with professional philanthropic organizations. She is the only professional in history to serve as board chair of both the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), an international organization with 30,000 members and Council for the Advancement & Support of Education (CASE). She received the nationally acclaimed Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for her leadership as a CASE Trustee.
Terry Heilman Sylvester has the University of Richmond in her DNA. Her father was President of the University for fifteen years. He was regarded as one of the most outstanding college Presidents in the nation. Terry is a graduate of the University’s Robins School of Business. Her four daughters are graduates and her husband David is a 1977 graduate. The University has been her life. She has done it all. She served on the University’s Board of Trustees for two terms. She is now the Director of Parent Giving. Full Bio
Tammy Zonker is Chief Philanthropy Officer, The Children's Center, Detroit.
She is recognized as one of America’s Top 25 Fundraising Experts, Tammy is an inspiring international speaker and trainer in the discipline of transformational philanthropy and an innovative fundraising practitioner. She has trained, coached and led nonprofit teams to raise more than $450M including a single gift of $27.1M.
14 Reasons You Should Attend
- Understand meaningful, creative silence
- Learn to probe and ask questions
- Learn the most helpful and effective questions for your donors
- Define a major gift initiative for your organization
- Critical decisions in selecting the appropriate funding model for major gift initiative
- Understand the difference between Storytelling and Storyliving
- Learn what is takes to leave your donors inspired and passionate about giving
- Learn to consistently prioritize the critical work of donor development
- Learn a system that will change the way you approach your work, The Intentional Fundraiser
- Learn how donors’ perceptions of the quality of the exchange relationship is a key correlate with building long-term connections
- Learn to manage donor expectations
- Understand why donors may abandon a charitable organization
- Do a better job of packaging opportunities for major and endowed gifts
- Understand the role of gift agreements and letters of understanding
Seminar Format
Agenda
7:15 - 8 am - Breakfast
8:00am - 12 noon - Morning sessions
12noon - 1:30 pm - Working Lunch
1:30 - 4:00 pm - Afternoon sessions
2019 Dates and Location
Detroit, MI – June 19, 2019
Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center
400 Renaissance Center Dr. W
Detroit, MI 48243-1003
Phone: (313) 568-8000
Room rate: $174 plus tax - Cut-off date for special rate: May 24, 2019
Book online here or call 877.901.6632.
Registration Fee
Standard Individual Registration: $545.00 US
Online Registration does NOT allow for discounted rates. There is a special rate of $500 per registrant for a group of 4 or more from the same organization. Please download registration form and complete a form for each registration. Scan forms and email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Seminar Scholarship Application
A limited number of partial scholarships available for $500.00. The Review Board of the Institute will be particularly encouraging to relatively new organizations, those that serve primarily a minority constituency, or those especially affected by cutbacks in government funding.
Download Registration Form (PDF>> for checks, POs and credit card to mail.
