October 28, 2025 | 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Eligible for 1 CFRE point.
A Ladder and Lattice Perspective
This session explores the distinct yet interconnected paths of growing as a fundraiser and growing as a leader. Using the ladder (upward, linear growth) and lattice (non-linear, multidimensional growth) models, participants will reflect on how each path develops unique strengths and opportunities, while also considering their natural overlap. Growing in a fundraising role often means climbing the ladder through progressively senior positions, managing larger portfolios, and driving ambitious revenue goals. Growth can also take the form of a lattice, by developing specialized expertise in areas such as planned giving, corporate partnerships, or analytics, or by building cross-functional collaboration to expand donor impact.
Growing in a leadership role, by contrast, involves ladder growth through management and executive responsibilities, with greater authority over people, budgets, and organizational vision. Lattice growth in leadership might mean building influence across the organization by mentoring others, leading cross-departmental initiatives, or shaping culture and strategy without necessarily moving “up.”
At the same time, these paths are deeply interconnected. Fundraisers are leaders, and leaders are fundraisers. Successful fundraisers inspire, influence, and mobilize others around a vision, while effective leaders must understand and champion fundraising as core to organizational sustainability. The key insight is that while fundraising growth sharpens technical craft and donor engagement, and leadership growth broadens perspective and organizational influence, the two are inseparable. The strongest professionals embrace both, moving fluidly between ladder and lattice opportunities to deepen expertise and expand impact.
Presenter:
Emily Leitzinger, MS, CFRE, ACNP, is the Senior Philanthropy Officer at American Farmland Trust, where she helps donors protect agricultural land and the planet, one chicken at a time. Always curious, she has a Master of Science in Nonprofit Administration from LSUS, a certification from The Lilly School of Philanthropy, and is working toward her Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP) certification. She also enjoyed being part of Cohort #2 in AFP’s Leadership Institute, and serves as a mentor and volunteer with the WII initiative and co-hosts the AFP Emerging Leader Podcast.
A doer at heart, Emily chartered the Rotary Club of Mid-City, New Orleans, in 2015 and is over the moon about becoming District 6840’s Governor in 2026. In 2019, the State of Louisiana dubbed her a Champion of Volunteer Service, though really, it just means she loves teaming up with others to make good things happen.
When she’s not fundraising or managing projects, you’ll probably find Emily training for a race, planning her next adventure, or laughing through The Office reruns with her Elvis-impersonating husband in the heart of Mid-City, New Orleans.