The Development Debrief

Hello! It’s great to be back. Season 7 was a whirlwind of landmarks for the Development Debrief. We surpassed 50k downloads and 100 episodes, we are officially an LLC, and along the way, I have been working on a partnership with EverTrue which will last the duration of FY23. I am so excited to be part of EverTrue Studios- aligned with colleagues I respect and trust.

My partnership with EverTrue is the reason I am currently at the CASE Summit in Chicago. Check out my instagram @devdebrief for live updates on my story and posts of the amazing leaders who are convening as you are listening now.

I wanted to start Season 8 with Lydia Fenet because her story transcends industries and generations. As I read Lydia’s book and knew I wanted to share her story with all of you. Lydia is a global thought leader and Christie’s Ambassador who has led auctions for more than six hundred organizations raising over half a billion dollars for nonprofits globally. Lydia is represented by CAA and travels internationally as a keynote speaker helping people unlock their sales potential and empowering women in the workplace. She was named one of New York’s most influential women by Gotham magazine and has been featured in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes and Crain’s, and has appeared in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Vanity Fair and Town & Country. Her widely acclaimed book, ‘The Most Powerful Woman in the Room is You’ was published by Simon & Schuster and optioned for TV by Netflix. Lydia’s second book Claim Your Confidence will be published in March 2023.

To learn more, you can find me on LinkedIn or get in touch through my website. I look forward to hearing from you! 

This episode recounts my experience attending AFP’s NYC chapter of Fundraising Day on 6/17. I talk through the questions I was asked on a panel with Adam Doyno, Leigh Reid, and Stan Smith titled "Making The Ask and Demystifying the Process". I share how I do individual giving outreach, work to get a meeting, prepare for a meeting, and important rituals for the day of the ask. At the end, I share a few "pro tips" that have served me over the past 1,000+ visits I have conducted. 

Ultimately, this session will either be a refresher, or provide some new ideas for you as you prepare for/continue solicitations and building relationships.

Please connect with me by liking the LinkedIn page, following the instagram account @devdebrief, rating and reviewing the podcast on Apple or Spotify, or sharing your favorite episode with a friend. 

Let's Celebrate 100!! We've made it so far. Over the past 100 episodes, we have had over 60,000 downloads. Our listeners are 90% in the US with the most popular states being New York, California, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Massachusetts. However, people are listening to the Debrief in all 50 states and over 60 countries!

In this episode I reflect on what inspired this podcast as well as why it is so important to me. I also feature a conversation with my Dad, Fred Van Sickle-- Vice President of Alumni Affairs and Development at Cornell University. We talk for about 20 minutes about what we would like to amplify, sunset, and continue to create in our respective institutions. I close with some hopes and visions for the Development Debrief in the future. 

More to come on my brand new website: www.devdebrief.com please also follow us on instagram @devdebrief

Special thank you to all of the amazing guests who gave their time to this project. I am grateful for the connections and support and will continue delivering fresh content your way! 

This week, we hear about the Capital Campaign Toolkit from Amy Eisenstein. Amy created a support system for non profit leaders to empower themselves within their campaign work. Amy talks about why her business model has always been online, and how she supports her clients.

Amy Eisenstein, ACFRE, has been a development professional and fundraising consultant for more than 20 years. She is also the CEO of the Capital Campaign Toolkit. Recognized as a leading expert in her field, she helps small and large nonprofits alike raise millions of dollars through major gift and capital campaigns.

Amy received her Master’s Degree in Public Administration and Nonprofit Management from the Wagner Graduate School at NYU and her Bachelor’s Degree from Douglass College at Rutgers University.

Join us tomorrow—May 26th at 3pm ET for a webinar on the future of Major Gifts. Here is there registration link: https://www.case.org/conferences-training/future-major-giving-schools

Welcome to the final episode of our Independent School miniseries. We wrap up with some big questions such as, how does culture inform the strategy? And how do leadership transitions impact teams? Especially during the pandemic. This week's guest, Thomas P. Lockerby is the Secretary of the Academy at Phillips Andover. He leads the alumni engagement, development, and communications initiatives for the school. 

Thom has spent his entire career working in and consulting with charities, focusing on major and planned gift fund raising as well as organizational leadership. Prior to joining Andover, Thom was the Vice President for Development at Boston College and directed its $1.5 billion comprehensive campaign. Previously, Thom served as Director of Gift Planning at Dartmouth College, Relationship Manager at Kaspick & Company, Vice President at PG Calc Incorporated, and Director of Development Relations at Harvard Business School. Thom serves on the Board of William James College, an independent graduate school of psychology based in Newton, MA. He is also a former Board Chair of Polaris, a leading organization fighting to eradicate human trafficking in the United States and abroad; a former Board Chair of the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning; and past President of the Planned Giving Group of New England. Thom is a graduate of Harvard College.

This week, we hear from Jennifer Kaplan Burns, Assistant Head of School, Advancement and External Affairs at Solebury School in New Hope, Pennsylvania. Jenn provides our first parent perspective within the world of independent school fundraising. She tells us about the history of Solebury and about her current campaign which is breaking historic records!

Prior to her current position at Solebury, Jenn was the Director of Advancement at Wilmington Montessori School. She also spent nine years as the Director of Philanthropy at the Nature Conservancy.  Jenn is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross. She is also a dedicated CASE volunteer having served as the committee co-chair for CASE District II for five years.

This is episode 3 of a four-episode miniseries in partnership with CASE. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education is the global nonprofit association dedicated to educational advancement professionals who share the goal of championing education to transform lives and society. Now let’s get started.

Please connect with the debrief on instagram @devdebrief. I would love to hear from you. Next week will be our final episode spotlights at Independent School Advancement leader. See you then!

This week, Harold Brown, Director of Advancement at Cranbrook Schools, talks to us about the multiple elite institutions he has served and what he has learned along the way.

Harold previously served as the Director of Development at Salisbury School, a boys college preparatory boarding school for 325 students in Salisbury, CT. Before joining Salisbury, Harold served for 25 years in various roles in the Office of Institutional Advancement at Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, NH. As Executive Director of Alumni Relations and International Gifts, Harold led a program serving more than 21,000 alumni and 5,000 parents, strengthening ties to the school and one another.

Before dedicating his career to the world of education, Harold was in the financial sector, where he held various positions including Vice President at Connecticut Bank and Trusts, and the Bank of New England, both in Hartford, CT.

This is episode 2 of a four-episode mini-series in partnership with CASE. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education is the global nonprofit association dedicated to educational advancement professionals who share the goal of championing education to transform lives and society. 

Follow and learn more on instagram @devdebrief 

Hello listeners! I am thrilled to announce a four-episode mini-series in partnership with CASE. The Council for Advancement and Support of Education is the global nonprofit association dedicated to educational advancement professionals—in alumni relations, communications, development, marketing, and advancement services—who share the goal of championing education to transform lives and society.

The next four episodes will feature Independent school advancement leaders. I couldn’t be more excited to kick off with Emily Stone, Director of Development at the Spence School. Emily works at an all-girls independent school just blocks from the one where I work. I have known her for a while through our alma mater’s alumni network. You will hear Emily talk about how important those networks are and her career trajectory. She has worked in alumnae relations, and can keenly analyze the differences between working with alums and parents. Emily is high energy and filled with good ideas.

Follow us on instagram @devdebrief or connect on LinkedIn for more information. 

This week I talk with Colin Stewart, the former EVP, Strategic Partnerships & Philanthropy, and current member of the advisory board at Arjuna Solutions. I learned several new terms from Colin such as the "non-profit starvation cycle", and donor’s "giving elasticity". Arjuna inspires non-profits to work smarter not harder. Colin talks about the algorithm Arjuna uses to determine annual giving asks for large databases and how to look at donors as long term supporters from the annual giving lens. 

Arjuna Solutions uses behavioral economic modeling and AI services to help leading nonprofits lift their direct response fundraising by an average of 12%. Arjuna’s simple-to-adopt services improve giving over a donor’s lifetime without the nonprofit having to change fundraising practices or staffing. To learn more about how you can sustainably increase your nonprofit’s fundraising, please visit www.arjunasolutions.com.

Next week will mark the beginning of a 4-week mini series in collaboration with CASE. We will hear from four leaders in the Independent school space. Follow us @devdebrief (instagram) or on LinkedIn to learn more about what is to come!