Managing Up – How to get your boss, or anyone!, excited about fundraising:
A strong, trust-based relationship between the CEO and the organization’s chief fundraiser is vital in the overall success of any fundraising effort. In fact, poor relationships with the CEO are one of the main reasons development professionals cite for leaving a position. And poor relationships between the CEO and chief fundraiser play a substantial role in development office turnover. Whether you are a CEO, CDO, DOD or Major Gift Officer, this presentation will offer some easy tools to employ to create a collaborative and productive partnership between the corner office and the development office.
In this interactive session, participants will learn tools to strengthen their relationship with their boss, and entice even the most reluctant solicitor to excel--and even enjoy asking for a gift!
Virginia Thumm, President, Virginia Fundraising Consultants
Virginia Thumm has worked in the nonprofit sector in New York and Virginia for more than 30 years, expanding the financial capacity of organizations in the arts, education, the environment and social services.
A veteran of dozens of fundraising campaigns that have met or exceeded their goals, she has personally solicited hundreds of millions of dollars to enhance the mission of nonprofits through the identification and solicitation of new funding sources and the conception and development of new funding opportunities.
Virginia has been a prominent figure in the nonprofit field and has been involved in many regional nonprofit boards. She recently developed the curriculum and served as chief trainer and coach for the Major Gift Officer Certificate program for public media development professionals. Virginia is a longstanding member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, where she currently serves on the Board and as chair of the Ethics and Mentoring committee. She is an alumnus of the CIVIC Leadership Institute and was recently appointed to the Norfolk Arts and Humanities Commission.