This week, we hear from Matt Hutter, Assistant Vice President of Development for Duke Science and Technology at Duke University. He is a strategic initiatives fundraiser who is an expert in raising money for the sciences. Roles like his are primarily found in large research universities and drive large scale giving. We talk about how these kinds of gifts make ripples not just through their dollars, but the culture change they create. Matt breaks down strategic initiatives and transformational gifts for us in a very approachable way.

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BWF is the proud sponsor of Season 6, Innovation and Impact.

I have the absolute pleasure of speaking with Sue Cunningham, the CEO of CASE. Sue’s long relationship with CASE as well as her international experience really set her apart as a leader and visionary. We talk about her career to date, and then drill into CASE’s most recent strategic plan. Sue tells us how she facilitates joining the dots globally, expresses pride in her staff, and talks to us about the six key areas CASE will be focusing on as they recalibrate the organization into the next 5 years.

CASE is truly a community of volunteers and leaders aiming to evolve and grow the profession. Sue says it herself in the episode that she would love to hear from you and add you to the growing community that is CASE. We will be ending this season with a Webinar on March 29th. Mark your calendars to join us and keep the conversation going! More on that soon, but in the meantime, please connect on social and have a great week! 

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I can’t believe this episode will wrap up two years of the Development Debrief! I talk with Stephanie Posen about how she has recruited, trained, and grown a team of front line officers doing leadership gift work. She has worked with her team to build a great culture of work in a remote environment.

Stephanie Posen is the Director of Leadership Giving at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). Stephanie manages the mid-level giving program which includes donors and prospects giving $1,000- $250,000. The Leadership Giving team serves as a pipeline for the rest of the department- both for revenue and donors, as well as developing talent and strong gift officers.

Stephanie's professional career has been focused on Education and Academic Medicine with prior experience working at New York University (NYU) and Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM). In previous roles, Stephanie has worked in International Major Gifts, Leadership Annual Giving and Campaign Events. Stephanie holds a Master of Business Administration from NYU's Stern School Business and a Bachelor of Arts from Cornell University in History and French Literature.

I will be taking a break in January before returning with more episodes in February. Please share this podcast with your networks and follow us on social media @devdebrief and on Linkedin. Thank you for listening to the last episode of 2021. Warm wishes for 2022 and the great work I know we will all do! 

I talk with Dave Kayiatos, Assistant Director Leadership Giving (and fellow alum of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut) who received both a BA and an MA in history at Trinity, in 2002 and 2006 respectively. We discuss the value of working at your alma mater and how exciting it is to be working at Trinity today! This conversation prompts me to share some great opportunities at Trinity.

Trinity is moving toward the public phase of a $500 million dollar comprehensive campaign, and they are growing the advancement team. Frontline fundraisers – this is an opportunity to join a strong, collaborative team. Trinity is also looking for an inaugural director of digital media, as well as other communications positions. If annual giving is where you shine, some great leadership roles are available there, too. 

If you are thinking about your next move and want to have great impact, Trinity may be the place for you. To learn more, reach out to Vice President Michael Casey at [email protected]. 

Several months ago, a listener of the Debrief reached out and asked if I would please feature today's guest-- Daren Batke. She said, "Daren leans into his individuality and uniqueness more than anyone. He shares of himself first, before asking that of others. He sets the example that you don't need to be a blank slate or adopt a flat, robotic affect to be deeply donor-centric." So it feels fitting that at the end of the year, I ask Daren to reflect on his career journey and personal leadership style. 

Daren Batke is the Chief Advancement Officer for the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He has nearly 20 years of experience as an administrator of higher education, having served in leadership roles in advancement and external relations at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. He began his career in advancement at the University of Michigan's Law School. He received his bachelor of arts degree with distinction from the College of Wooster in Ohio, and completed graduate study at the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education at the University of Michigan, where he hopes to complete his doctoral work focusing on the intersectionality of philanthropy and pro social behaviors at colleges and universities. In 2017, Batke was a fellow at the Institutes for Higher Education at Harvard University. He volunteers for a number of not for profit organizations across Ohio, Illinois, and Michigan, and serves as an advisor for a small investment management group.

Today I interview Rich Berlin, Co-CEO of DREAM. I ask him about his origin story at the organization, leadership structure, board management, and his views on fundraising. There are lots of things that make DREAM stand out in New York City and an impactful place to work. This episode is special because DREAM is currently searching for their next Chief Advancement Officer. 

Originally founded in 1991 as Harlem RBI, DREAM has grown to annually serve more than 2,000 youth across East Harlem and the South Bronx through a network of PreK-12, extended-day, extended-year DREAM Charter Schools and community sports-based youth development programs. DREAM’s Grow the Whole Child model embodies a commitment to rigorous academics, social-emotional learning, deep family and community engagement, and health and wellness, creating lifelong learners who are equipped to fulfill their vision of success in and out of the classroom.

The Chief Advancement Officer will develop and lead DREAM's experienced seven-person Advancement team to drive an ambitious fundraising strategy, raising over $20 million annually and spearheading a $50 million capital campaign that will lead DREAM into its next phase of growth. DREAM’s unique position within the education and nonprofit spaces—combined with   its best-in-class Board and donor base—make this an incredibly exciting opportunity for someone with a strong track record of impact as DREAM continues to deepen its roots in New York City.

To learn more about DREAM, and to apply, visit wearedream.org/jobs. You can also refer someone you know for a $1,000 reward!

This week I talk with Sarah Krasin (Executive Vice President at CCS fundraising) about her career journey. She made a big move right before the pandemic and found herself in a new city across the country, leading a team of people many of whom she had never met in person. Sarah describes fundraising as a “contact sport” and she explains how she was able to make contact virtually. She tells us how she built culture and lead a new team in the past two years of incredible change.

Since joining CCS in 2012, Sarah’s client engagements have spanned all major non-profit sectors and included campaign planning studies, major gift program development, interim development management, and capital campaign management. She has specific expertise in designing and managing national, comprehensive major gift campaigns, particularly for institutions with nascent or start-up programs.

In this week’s episode is reconnect with a college classmate who is doing exciting work in the world of sales. CeCe Aparo shares some great hacks with us as we think about emailing and communications with our constituencies. Later in the episode, she puts on her donor and trustee hat and lets us know what excites her on the receiving end of development strategy.

CeCe has dedicated her career to building, optimizing, and training top sales organizations across the United States. Starting her career in sales and marketing, CeCe quickly identified the benchmarks for success in a winning sales program. CeCe spent five years in venture capital where she was responsible for working with portfolio companies post-investment on their sales and go-to-market strategy. CeCe is Vice President of Corporate Training at HOFFMAN, working with corporate clients around the world to master our technique and increase pipeline and revenue. With a strong understanding of the sales process and a passion for the art and science of sales, CeCe delivers training that is tactical, engaging, and meaningful.

CeCe attended Trinity College in Hartford and is on the board of trustees at Providence Country Day school. She lives in Rhode Island with her husband in two daughters.

Click here to learn more about Hoffman: https://sellhoffman.com/

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone is enjoying family and good food. This Thanksgiving, are you looking to up your stewardship game? We learn from today's guest that sometimes it really is a simple as picking up the phone.

I am reporting to you from Ithaca, New York today. I am spending the holiday with my family upstate. I want to feature some great work being done in this region. Mary Jane Bray who is the Major Gift Officer for the Food Bank of the Southern Tier is with us, to share some stewardship strategies she has found effective. MJ’s food bank acquired 7800 new donors in 2020. 22% of their new donors gave again. 35% of that group has given more than one gift. 

MJ tells us how she thanked those individuals and built relationships with them over the phone. I also asked her how persistent she was with her  calls and how she works to have donors at all levels feel appreciated. MJ has some great answers! 

Thank you for joining us today. I am grateful for our debrief community. If you have effective stewardship strategies, share them with us! You can connect on LinkedIn or instagram @devdebrief. 

Enjoy the holiday and if you are liking these episodes please rate and review the show!

Colin Donovan Wyatt is the Director of Development at Santa Barbara Middle School. This week, I talk with Colin about the “other duties as assigned” that independent school professionals often find themselves doing. However, it’s not just duties—as we engage with our schools outside of development, we are able to be better at the work of storytelling and making a case for support for our institutions. I also think engaging deeply with your institution will serve you well regardless of which sector you are currently in. 

Colin and I also talk about the DEIJ (J is for justice) work at Santa Barbara Middle School and we brainstorm about ways we can continue to evolve our field into a more inclusive environment while still raising major gifts. To be fair, we don’t solve any of these quandaries—but hopefully it can guide some new thinking. We are all in the business of becoming whether it is as individuals, teams, or institutions. I hope this episode helps you think about how to continue to grow intentionally and strategically. 

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