Kenny Sigler

There’s a common saying in the industry that there is an art and a science to fundraising. The art reflects attributes such as the ability connect with people, listen carefully, and build trust among many others. You may already associate these skills with an effective fundraiser.

The science of fundraising is less obvious. However, it is just as important. The most recent Giving USA Report conducted by the IUPUI Lilly Family School of Philanthropy reported almost $500 billion in contributions in 2022, $499.33 billion to be exact. Additionally, sources such as the Association of Fundraising Professionals provides fundraising data on a national and international level.

While there are sources for fundraising data at the national level, there was not a local source for nonprofits in East Texas with similar information reflecting local trends and activities in the fundraising sector.

In February, we launched the East Texas Fundraising Survey. The purpose is to provide board members, nonprofit executives, and fundraising professionals with data they can use to see how their organization compares to the results and make more informed decisions about their own activities.

The survey closed with exactly 100 unique participants. In conducting an initial review the data, a couple of things begin to stand out.

The first is how nonprofits performed in 2023. 39% of survey participants indicated their organization did not hit their fundraising goal. 24% said they were “well short” of their goal. Organizations who fell short of their fundraising goals tended to be smaller with annual operating budgets under $500,000.

Nonprofits have a big heart, but still face the financial realities of the world. When resources become less available, they must make difficult decisions that affect those who depend on their services and our community as a whole. We all benefit when local nonprofits have adequate resources to support their mission and meet the needs of our community.

We can also start to see evidence of the famously high turnover rate in the nonprofit sector. The survey found 63.3% of CEO’s or executive directors have been in their role less than five years with 42.9% being in their role less than three years.

Those numbers increase when we look at fund development. Over half, 54.6%, of chief development officers and development directors have been in their position for less than three years. That number jumps up to 77% within five years.

So, why is turnover so high in the nonprofit sector and particularly within fundraising?

One of the most common reasons is due to the reluctance of nonprofits including their boards to invest in the infrastructure of the organization. It’s mostly in a good faith effort to allocate as much as possible to the “mission” of the organization. Thus, money spent on overhead and administration is kept as minimal as possible. However, providing competitive compensation and investing in the administration of an organization is essential to have a growing and sustainable nonprofit. Constantly cutting corners in the operations of the organization while maintaining high expectations can lead to the burnout and frustration we see in the nonprofit sector.

When you support an organization’s general operating fund, you are supporting the mission. You are allowing the organization to make the right investments that support and grow the mission in a sustainable manner. To current and future board members in the community, make sure you are adequately valuing the people and systems that need to be in place for the organization to thrive over many years.

A full and detailed report will be available for download on Tuesday, April 23 at www.siglercrist.com, and a free webinar featuring a discussion with fundraising expert Cristina Wineinger will be held on April 25.

Register at www.siglercrist.com/training/etx-fundraising-survey-discussion/