The professional Interim Chief Development Officer is with an organization temporarily, focused on making the transition itself beneficial.

I have done it. I have seen it. I know it. A non-profit has a lot to gain by hiring a professional Interim Chief Development Officer (CDO) to shepherd the organization through a transition period, create stability, and develop a plan for achieving lasting results. As a temporary addition to the team, the Interim CDO can transcend office politics, offer honest insights, and develop aggressive strategies, all while keeping the department functioning at full capacity.

With the average tenure of a chief development officer somewhere between 16 and 18 months, it seems like non-profits are frequently in “hire mode” and suffering because of it. There are many potential costs —

• 3-6 months (or more) to hire a new director;
• About 3-6 months (or more) for a new development leader to learn the ropes;
• High expenses of hiring (e.g., recruiter);
• Often uncounted costs of other staff doing less of their own jobs to fill gaps;
• Low morale among development staff;
• Potential of lost fundraising revenue; and
• Loss of momentum in all activities and relationship-building.

When an organization needs a CDO, the hiring process is set in motion, hopefully, with little delay. First, they finalize the job description, then hire a recruiter or simply start advertising. Sometimes, to meet immediate needs, organizations temporarily assign a current team member to take on interim responsibilities. On occasion, they look outside to find someone to serve in that capacity so that the work continues. In some cases, the hope is to hire “temp to perm,” a win-win for the organization and the candidate.

These strategies often make sense, especially if there are perfect candidates waiting in the wings. But there is another approach that can offer long-lasting and cost-effective benefits.

Consider the professional Interim CDO, an experienced development leader embedded in an organization to keep the fundraising apparatus moving, all while leading, mentoring, planning, and improving. This approach allows the organization to take time to determine what kind of candidate is best suited for the permanent position before searching for that person. The Interim CDO can hold down the fort, while fortifying it for the incoming CDO who will ultimately take on the role permanently, greatly improving chances for future success. The circumstances and arrangements can vary. But the common thread with an Interim CDO is that the temporary leader is adding value that will have impact well beyond the months-long tenure. Some examples —

• Access to a strong and experienced professional with a short learning curve;
• Ability to get things done quickly — from the basics of development to the big projects (e.g., galas) and high-profile work (e.g., major gifts solicitations);
• Candor that comes with someone invested in success, but not seeking permanent employment;
• Opportunity to improve systems for the long-run (e.g., board reporting, end-of-the-month reconciliation, data entry process);
• Quality mentoring of staff, including the opportunity to groom someone to be the next CDO;
• Help from an experienced professional with inside knowledge, who can assist with a staffing plan, a targeted job description and recruitment for the incoming permanent CDO;
• The option of hiring a junior CDO, who can be trained before taking on the permanent role;
• The flexibility to create a detailed and realistic plan to carry the organization into the future (without the cost of hiring a separate consultant to create a plan); and
• The option to create a more flexible plan that the incoming CDO can use as a framework from which to build.

I often hear the phrase “purple unicorn” to describe the ideal candidate for CDO. Non-profits greatly depend on their development teams and seek leaders who can do it all. They seek CDOs who are good with numbers and good with people. They seek smart managers who are skilled writers and experts in the specific field in which the non-profit is engaged. They want candidates who have already raised millions, planned successful galas, and mastered social media for fundraising purposes. They also prefer people who will not be tempted to leave too soon. At the same time, organizations with limited budgets, seek candidates who do not command high salaries and, therefore, may not have many years of experience.

While it is understandable that non-profits are looking for right-brain/left-brain perfection in the people they hire to lead fundraising, the checklist of job requirements can be unreasonable. Engaging a professional Interim CDO can be more than a compromise or an emergency measure. It can be a strategic approach to building a strong and enduring fundraising function. In these days of limited resources and a seemingly limitless number of mission-driven organizations, the Interim CDO can be a wise short-term investment that can yield long-lasting results.

Originally Posted on LinkedIn on May 17, 2017

Ah summer! Time to relax. Take a vacation. Enjoy those summer hours you’ve been anticipating all year. It’s been a busy year and you deserve some down time.
Down time? What’s that?

Development Department heads know that there is no such thing as down time. Non-profits are typically understaffed and overworked and development staff often fall victim to unrealistic expectations. You’d think that the high stress would earn the development team some solid R&R during the summer months. But no such luck.
While there is always plenty to do in July and August, the rhythm and mood often reflect those lazy, hazy days of summer. Here are some projects perfectly suited for summer that will have benefits in the months and years ahead.

Spring Cleaning in Summer: At home, clean your closets and organize your basement. In the office, clean up that database. Take time at the start of summer to evaluate the most troublesome problems with your database. Maybe it’s duplicates. Maybe it’s having your staff catch up on that pile of “things to be put in the database when there’s a free moment.” Maybe it’s finally capitalizing on some of the features of the database that your team has not been using. If the tasks are voluminous and repetitive, it may be a good assignment for a summer intern.

Christmas in July: There is no worse time to map out your end-of-year plan than at the end of the year. Summertime is perfect (unless you have already done it). Consider how you will build up to December with communiques in September and October. Plan your Giving Tuesday strategy. Figure out who on staff will be responding to donor inquiries during that critical last week of the year. Consider new approaches, including challenge matches or complementary communications campaigns. Brainstorm creative themes, but don’t spend too much time on the specific content. Nail down the logistics. Write it all down.

Relax and Ask: While your annual goals may be preventing you from relaxing, your wealthy major gifts prospects are relaxing in their summer homes and enjoying their extravagant vacations. Summer is the perfect time to culminate your year-long cultivation efforts into the actual ‘ask.’ Getting to ‘yes’ may be easier if you are sipping lemonade by their pool in the Hamptons. Of course, if your donors are not ready, summer remains a great time to cultivate with friend-raiser events or one-to-one outreach.

Working from Home? Planning on a Working Vacation? Write a LOT: Probably one of the most productive things you or your staff can do outside of the office is write. That’s why the summer months are perfect for writing materials to help year-round. The more you get done in July and August, the better prepared you will be throughout the year. Consider drafting a “canned” proposal for general operating support to present to foundations or programmatic reports to share with funders. You can also use the summer to update your acknowledgement letter templates or one-pagers to give to prospects describing your organization’s programs.

With Memorial Day coming up quickly, you probably have your long weekend and vacation plans confirmed. At the same time, plan for a productive summer to help you start September ready to surpass your fundraising goals. Think about the resources you’ll need — an intern or a consultant, information from other departments, time on the president’s calendar. Then get ready for the lazy, hazy, productive days of summer!

Originally Posted on LinkedIn on October 26, 2015

I got a dog.

After a lifetime of not being a “dog person,” my family and I now share our home with Kyle, a five-year-old Chihuahua mix who hails from Miami. Who would believe it? Me…. a dog person!?!?

Revelation #1: I really like dogs…a lot. Despite years of identifying myself as a non-dog person, I have transformed easily and whole-heartedly into a dog lover, a role I never thought I would want and certainly never imagined I would enjoy. If you know me, you’d be surprised to learn that just as I was about to sit down and write this post, UPS delivered a Halloween costume I ordered for Kyle. I immediately ripped open the package and dressed him up in his little taco outfit and then, of course, took a photo. (To my credit, I have not posted it on Facebook — yet.) Yes…I am officially a dog person.

And here’s Revelation #2: I like consulting. After a fulfilling professional career leading development departments at some incredible mission-driven nonprofits, I have now taken on a new role, that of a consultant. Never would I have seen myself freelancing like this (just as I never pictured myself picking up dog poop on the streets of Brooklyn). Throughout my career, I fully enjoyed focusing on one mission at a time. I also appreciated the routines, the health insurance, even the periodic conference room birthday parties. Being an independent consultant appealed to me almost as much as the idea of picking dog hair off of my clothes. It just wasn’t “me.”

So, now it’s official: “Fulltime Employee Me” has been replaced by “Consultant Me.”

After a career of supporting the individual missions of many wonderful organizations, I now have my own personal mission: To use the expertise developed over my career to expand the capacity of well-meaning, life-changing organizations, enabling them to realize their visions for a better world.

Stay tuned. I’ll be posting regularly more personal insights and stories, as well as quick pearls of wisdom gained from a career in development and communications that has spanned 25+ years.