Development professionals naturally speak highly of their respective organizations. We speak with emotion and urgency. We share the desired healthy state of our community, of wellness, caring, research discoveries, innovation, compassion, state of the art facilities and advanced technology. We envision outcomes never before thought possible.
Finance professionals speak the language of FASB, expenses, revenues, accruals, due to from, endowment investments, and gains and losses. Yet, together we have the same goal in mind: capture more revenues so that our organizations may do more, better, faster, and safer for our patients.
That said these are indeed interesting and challenging times in healthcare. Some might call it a “perfect storm” with the struggling economy, reduced funding streams, and the targets of healthcare reform yet to be agreed upon.
The unsettled economy drives potential donors to question everything from the value of research, the rising costs of healthcare, and the expansion of medical centers, to who is responsible for the homeless and hungry and those without primary care or insurance.
This is not an easy time to be asking for donations, yet donors are still giving. In fact, giving rose overall by 3.8 percent in 2010 but due to the ongoing healthcare reform dialogue, giving to healthcare was down 10 percent over the previous year.
Donors are focusing their philanthropic priorities on what is most meaningful and worthy of their limited philanthropic dollars. The economy has created uncertainty, yet Little League calendars are still selling like hotcakes and there are more multi million and billion dollar healthcare campaigns underway in our country than ever before.
So why not your organization? “Go big or go home” is the current saying in the philanthropy world. If you are not seeking funds in an effective and professional manner, then you are doing your organization a disservice and your brand harm. If you are not investing in your development program then you are missing out. Where else in your hospital operations can you see a 50 percent – 800 percent return on investment?
Every not-for-profit organization must identify, build and strengthen potential donor relationships now and be prepared to make the “ask” when your organization’s needs are truly urgent and your donors are ready.
I make it sound simple, but there is really more to it than that. In not-for-profit healthcare organizations, philanthropy is not a function you gear up and down. It is essential to be professional, consistent and respectful of your donor relationships, and as such, the team you hire to steward such relationships must be highly skilled.
Donors can and will make formative contributions to your organization if treated as insiders. They deserve to know who and what they are investing in. In addition to making significant contributions, donors want to provide input and expect measurable outcomes from their donations.
In fact, today’s donors want to engage in planning and considering the vision and the direction of your programs. Bring them into your planning.
Today’s development professionals are a new breed. While strong candidates have the interpersonal skills you would expect, they must also be very bright, quick to engage, exceptional listeners, entrepreneurial and have a broad range of financial, technological and management skills. They must be able to articulate a multitude of strategic and programmatic information in greater detail than ever before.
Philanthropy is the purest of altruistic acts. Making a gift because you can make a difference in someone’s life is really quite dramatic. And should that gift inspire others, then all the better.
Yet, seeking such contributions is not easy. Healthcare fundraisers are under tremendous pressure to perform. The turnover rate of development professionals continues to be under 24 months due to the high and often unrealistic expectations of new staff immediately making the “ask.”
Research must be done, trusting donor relationships built and the case for your cause must be shared and open to feedback with potential major donors. This all takes time, patience and attention to the detail. For major gifts ($1 million or greater) this also takes the time of your President and CEO, key board members and physicians. That factor alone can delay actions by weeks if not months.
Development team partnerships with Presidents, CEOs and physicians are perhaps the single largest success factor in healthcare philanthropy.
Over $9 billion dollars were contributed to healthcare organizations last year. What is your organization’s piece of that pie? Comparative benchmarking data is readily available through the Advisory Board, AAMC and the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy. Investment in a strong development staff can and should reap exponential returns. Good luck!
Susan Doliner is the associate vice president for development at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine. She is the Chair of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy in 2011-12.