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Customer Success Manager at Blackbaud Canada

soar like an eagleOne of my most frustrating moments as a consultant came when I was working with programming staff, trying to collect some stories – stories that I needed in order to fundraise. I was working with excellent programming people:  they were good at their jobs and dedicated to the mission of the organization. Wow – was it ever challenging to get stories “from the field!” To understand people’s actions, you need to understand their perspectives.
  • Programming staff: rewarded for executing programming, project focused, well connected with their volunteers and their community, action-oriented (at least the good ones!)
  • Development staff: rewarded for getting personal, spending time with donors, telling compelling stories, and raising money by connecting emotionally with individuals.

leadershipAs a people-focused profession, fundraisers have a natural advantage as managers: we understand that people drive our projects, and that success begins with the people that work in our offices, move our mission forward, and communicate our messages externally in not-for-profit workplaces everywhere. If we are good managers, we think about the connection between these two things – people and projects – and how we can support our staff so that they can contribute as fulfilled, and unique members of our teams.