Association of Fundraising Professionals, Washington Chapter E-News

Association of Fundraising Professionals

WASHINGTON CHAPTER

WASHINGTON STATE MEMBER E-NEWS UPDATE:
Winter 2005 edition

Quote for the Holidays:
Fundraising is the gentle art of teaching the joy of giving.
    --Henry A. Rosso, 1917-1999, Founding Director, The Fundraising School

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Table of Contents

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From the Desk of the President
, CFRE

2005 - 2015: $1 trillion in Potential
On Nov. 17, National Philanthropy Day, with an audience of 1,000, AFP Washington issued a national challenge to the country: To increase giving from $248 billion to $1 trillion annually in the next 10 years. (Read the challenge document) This shouldn´t be hard: we know the money is there, it will just require our organizations to have larger visions, solid plans and committed leadership if we want them to give more. We can do that. This trillion dollar challenge is fast becoming a national movement and I encourage all AFP members to share the challenge in your newsletter, board meetings, websites and coffee shop talk.

New Chapters in Tacoma and Spokane
I know that your AFP membership is most valuable when you can connect to a community of fellow members. Earlier this week, 60 people gathered in Tacoma to start forming an FAP chapter. We talked about the local, national and global trends that impact our profession as well as the tremendous potential in philanthropy. Since many of the textbooks were written for outdated models of fundraising for the World War II generation that will soon be gone, it is essential to come together as a profession if we are going to harness the next generation of giving. It will take leadership, not just tactics and techniques, if we are going to be successful in not only continuing the tradition of philanthropy in future generations, but harness its potential. I am excited about the potential of a chapter in Tacoma as well the efforts underway in Spokane. (Read my presentation about fundraising trends)

This year, being president of the WA State Chapter of AFP has matched my strongest core belief: That good development officers can change the world. In my 22 years of fundraising, I have seen hundreds of examples of examples of creating new philanthropists as a result of a fundraiser helping them realize what they can do. And the real joy? The donor feels great. I see our profession as one of the noblest callings in life: to help facilitate investment in community. It just doesn´t get any better.

As I get ready to turn over the reigns to Jane Keuchle, who brings the constant commitment, ethics, good humor and leadership needed to direct this ship, I close with 3 wishes for each of you in 2006:

1) Invest in yourself as a fundraising professional -- you deserve it: You have a great deal of power to change the world as a fundraiser. Your AFP membership is an abundant resource to help you in your journey -- but you need to explore it´s value yourself. Check out the resources available for free on the national website, use the career planner, look up other AFP members in your community, join a committee, start the process towards your CFRE, find a mentor within our 300 members.

2) Get familiar with the Code of Ethics: This will set you apart from the field and reassure your donors you represent the highest caliber of organization in what we call "the trust economy."

3) Take care of yourself: Boy we are a haggard bunch. Long hours with no Microsoft options at the end of the tunnel. The best advice I ever got about time management was to figure out what gives you joy and make time for it in your life. I promise you, it will make your 40 - 50 hour work week a lot more efficient and productive. I leave my brief case in my trunk on the weekends and go hiking.

Thank you for your support this year and happy Holidays.

Sonya Campion, CFRE

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The Hot Tip - Prioritize Your Time and Manage the Craziness
, CFRE

At AFP Washington´s Annual Meeting on a snowy December 1 at the Rainier Club, a colleague said, "We need a session on managing the craziness." Here are a couple of things to consider for the new year in terms of how you approach your work.

First, do an informal personal survey on how you allocate your time. Analyze as closely as possible how you spend your time. Not in hours, but how you allocate your time, on a percentage basis, to the necessary functions of your work. Think of a typical week or month and record the functions and the percentage spent in column one. (If column one totals more than 100%, then something is definitely wrong!) Next, in column two, indicate what you think is a desirable allocation of your time to be your most effective. For many, your desk is your worst enemy. You have become buried in minutiae. Never let the urgency of the moment take the place of doing what is important.

Functions and Actual % Desirable %

As you plan for the New Year, here are ten rules NOT to follow:

  1. Never ask for money.
  2. Never ask for help or advice.
  3. Be too busy to meet with each person on your board to find out what he or she wants to do.
  4. Never ask volunteers for money because they already give their time.
  5. Avoid anything new or different. "We never did it that way before" should be your motto.
  6. Be too busy to make long-range plans.
  7. Be too busy to write thank-you notes.
  8. Be too busy to evaluate last year´s fundraising.
  9. Decide you can´t afford to take any chances.
  10. Decide you can´t afford any training.

Work hard, work long, and work joyfully!

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Advocacy at the Washington State Level
, CFRE

Washington´s Secretary of State intends to submit a bill to the legislature in January that would amend the Charitable Solicitations Act, RCW 19.09. This is the first major revision of the act since it was created ten years ago. The Secretary of State´s staff has quietly circulated draft revisions of the act. The draft legislation contains many positive elements. On Nov. 11 the Puget Sound Business Journal published an article that reported the most controversial elements that should be of concern to all members:

Since the article was published, the Secretary of State has been persuaded to raise the independent audit requirement from $500,000 to $1 million. However, many people are deeply concerned about the potential impact of the provision that makes officers and board members responsible for the accuracy of financial reports, because it could make it very difficult for nonprofit organizations to recruit and retain good board members.

Representatives of your AFP - Washington Chapter board will participate in a discussion of the implications of the bill and an advocacy strategy with representatives of the Executive Alliance, Philanthropy Northwest and United Way of King County. If the negative impacts of the draft legislation are not resolved prior to its submission to the legislature, we will ask AFP members to testify. Watch for updates in your AFP-WA eNews. (Review the current proposed legislation)

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Hot Tips from the ePhilanthropy Workshop

What does your IRS 990 Form say about your organization?

The ePhilanthropy workshop, sponsored by AFP and United Way of King County November 10th, was attended by 52 fundraisers. Returning for a 2nd year, Ted Hart and the ePhilanthropy faculty delivered 4 hours of non stop information and tips about raising dollars online. The workshop was a resounding success and will definitely be repeated in 2006.

Don´t look at your 990 form as just a financial obligation filed each year by your accounting department. What does it say about your organization? Like it or not, it is posted on a number of internet websites that provide information to potential donors about non-profits that interest them. Fifty percent of those who receive mailed solicitations say they would not take further action without investigating the charity, including checking out their 990 and visiting the charities website.

Online giving is growing. In 1999 $10 million was donated online, $250 million in 2000, and the estimates for 2010 are $80 million or one third of all individual giving. Not ready to launch online giving? There are lots of free tools available. You have no excuse to not have a website with the opportunity to give. As you develop your organization´s programs and resources you can hire a designer and integrate your site. But you need to get started now.

Give visitors to your website the Disneyworld experience. Folks visit Disneyworld as tots and as teens, go back with their own children, return when they are empty nesters and again with their grandkids. Think about your website as a place where people come to experience what your organization has to offer over their lifetime. Will they find what they need when they need it and will they come back? And will they always find on every page the opportunity to give?

For more information visit www.ephilanthropy.org.

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Professional Education for Members in 2006

The Professional Development Committee of AFP Washington has planned an exciting year of programs for 2006. Here are the upcoming events for January. The entire calendar will be posted to the website beginning in January.

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