The Jay Love Blog : afp

Ethics in Northern Indiana

Jay Love — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:45:00 GMT

Last Thursday was the celebration of National Philanthropy Day in beautiful Fort Wayne Indiana. I say that because it was truly a warm sunny day for so late in the year in Indiana's second largest city. Perhaps that helped draw nearly 140 fundraisers together to celebrate the best and brightest in Philanthropy. From students to fundraisers to philanthropists, the stories of their accomplishments were outstanding, if not truly heartwarming!

I was delighted to be part of this celebration in several ways. First, Blackbaud provided sponsorship by being an exhibitor at the event. Secondly, I was honored to address the "Master's Track" of senior fundraisers with a presentation on Ethics. Just as I had figured, my presentation to such senior professionals quickly turned into a group discussion. This was especially true with regards to the four case studies I presented. Each case study was adapted from those provided by the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Here is a link to the section of the web site where the Code of Ethics guidelines are found here.

What truly separates the fundraising profession from many others is not only the Code of Ethics, but the ability to enforce them via a specified appeal and hearing process. Being involved with several of those hearings as part of the AFP Ethics committee did allow me to help bring the case studies to life. Of course, very little prompting was required to bring the thoughts and opinions of the senior group to the forefront.

Please find below the case studies we discussed. As you glance through them, do you think you know the proper and ethical answer or answers to each one? If not, please refer to the link above for the specific guidelines. No matter what, I think you will enjoy the scenarios. Perhaps many of you will be better equipped to prevent them with proper policies at your organization after you review them. Here you go:

Ethics Coming to Life at Blackbaud Conference

Jay Love — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 18:09:00 GMT

One of my recent posts referred to the AFP Ethics Committee and the vital guidelines they keep updated and enforced. Please allow me to say thanks to those of you who commented so positively about those guidelines and the role AFP places in our sector.

At our recent meeting we viewed an on-line ethics survey that anyone in the business or non-profit world would find interesting to take. Here is a brief overview:

eInsight Ethics Quiz

eQuiz is designed for executives wanting ideas on how to incorporate a culture of business ethics and corporate social responsibility. eQuiz takes approximately 20 minutes to complete and scores are compared against industry peers. Action steps are provided to help improve future scores.

How did you score? I am pleased to say I felt good about my score!

I also mentioned the upcoming ethics session at the Blackbaud Conference for Non-Profits.

Our session is one of many outstanding ones being offered this year.

To provide an even better overview Joy Simpson and I created a podcast with the help of our moderator Sarita Myers. You can enjoy this preview via this link. You will not want to miss the point/counterpoint approach we are taking to the case studies being highlighted.

We hope to see many of you there in November!

Ethics Never Takes a Back Seat at AFP

Jay Love — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:32:00 GMT

Last week one of the regularly scheduled meetings of the AFP Ethics Committee took place. I came away energized and impressed with the extreme care and diligence that goes into the care and feeding of the AFP Ethical Guidelines. In fact, the ethics section is one of the most widely used areas of the newly designed AFP web site. I strongly encourage anyone involved with non-profits in just about any manner to peruse.

Directly related is the Donor Bill of Rights developed in conjunction with AHP, CASE and the Giving Institute. These rights have stood the test of time since their release and are such a must read I have them listed below.

The Donor Bill of Rights

Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To ensure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the nonprofit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights:

I. To be informed of the organization's mission, of the way the organization intends to use donated resources, and of its capacity to use donations effectively for their intended purposes.

II. To be informed of the identity of those serving on the organization's governing board, and to expect the board to exercise prudent judgment in its stewardship responsibilities.

III. To have access to the organization's most recent financial statements.

IV. To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.

V. To receive appropriate acknowledgment and recognition.

VI. To be assured that information about their donation is handled with respect and with confidentiality to the extent provided by law.

VII. To expect that all relationships with individuals representing organizations of interest to the donor will be professional in nature.

VIII. To be informed whether those seeking donations are volunteers, employees of the organization or hired solicitors.

IX. To have the opportunity for their names to be deleted from mailing lists that an organization may intend to share.

X. To feel free to ask questions when making a donation and to receive prompt, truthful and forthright answers.

I am proud to part of the organizations responsible for the creation of such a critical set of rights to be followed by those in our sector. It is hard to believe with so many of the ethical guidelines being based on common sense and honesty that they could ever be violated. However, just like the laws which govern any country they are violated from time to time. It is also reassuring to know that AFP has complete and proper hearing procedures in place to address such breaches. Being part of the hearings has been some of the most eye opening experiences I have had in this sector. It is also been some of my most wisely invested volunteer time!

If you have a chance to explore these ethical guidelines at any upcoming educational conferences I urge you to do so. Discussing them is quite fascinating and often revealing. For those of you attending the upcoming Blackbaud Conference for Non-Profits please note that just such a session will be offered with an interesting pairing of an AFP Ethics committee member in myself, a truly respected fundraiser in Joy Simpson and a journalist from NPT in Paul Clolery.

Philanthropy Gathering in Music City USA

Jay Love — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 19:18:00 GMT

I had the distinct pleasure of presenting to the combined gathering three different philanthropy organizations in Nashville, TN this week. The groups were AFP Nashville, the Partnership for Philanthropy Planning of Nashville and the CNM CEO Network.

What a fantastic idea of joining the groups together for NPO thought leadership in the community. The venue was even special with the use of a superb meeting facility at the Inman Center at Belmont University.

I have always found that anytime you bring together 70-80 top notch development professionals, and allow them to network, magical ideas start sprouting up. Such was the case here in Nashville with the conversations buzzing around me. My main task was to take my time to sprinkle a few more seeds about and see what germinated.

My two main topics to discuss with speeches to such development professionals are ethics and the use of technology in our sector. In Nashville I focused on the latter.

In particular, my presentation centered around the revolution we are in the midst of regarding communications with prospects, members and donors. I focused on three areas that have changed drastically in the last 24 months. There were:

The NPO Web Site
The Use of Email
The Use of Social Media

Here is a slide to provide a bit of an overview of each. First, the NPO Web Site...

Moving into the new realm of being open and willing to share the ability to add content on the web site is scary for many NPO's. (Especially those with no one younger than 60 on the board of directors...) By the way, the goal I am referring to in the slide is to obtain permission to communicate on a regular basis! This is certainly needed for email these days and can also equate for "friending" in Facebook or "following" in Twitter.

Secondly, we explored the use of email...

You will notice a circular communications cycle. Each "trip" around builds a stronger relationship. It also allows you to garner more details in the database. I emphasized, and a few stand up testimonials from the audience verified, such details in the database allow proper segmentation and personalization of the email. You can be every bit as sophisticated with email as you can with direct mail. You can even report back who opened and read the email, which would be a dream come true for those relying strongly on the direct mail world!

Lastly, we zeroed in on the newest communications tool that is growing rapidly by the day. Of course I am referring to social media...

The slides are referring to my last story I shared about charity: water. They have embraced the social media method of communications in a huge way. Here is a video with the full story. Notice how many folks they are communicating with daily! Check them out on Twitter.

In case you are wondering how to move into this exciting new world, I have two suggestions to jump start your quest.

Sign up for Beth Kantor's blog, her ideas are super.
2. See if your NPO's name has already been used on the most popular social media sites via this handy tool.

I wish all of you reading this post only the greatest of success in harnessing these wonderful new communication tools. Perhaps you will be like some of our eTapestry customers who are able via such tools to DOUBLE their Donor database each year!

Referring back to my last blog post "We’ve Come a Long Way Baby" I mentioned my first car was a 1967 Camaro. Ironically, the founder of Papa John's Pizza, John Schnatter was also pretty fond of his vintage Camaro. He recently found and repurchased his early car he obviously loved. Sometimes two different minds do think alike!

I think his Camaro would take my old robin egg blue six cylinder one at the nearest drag strip, but I did purchase mine for a mere $1,600 in hard earned $3.50 per hour cash, which is a bit less than John just shelled out...

The Annual Event Called AFP International

Jay Love — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:35:00 GMT

Virtually every industry, market, owners association and any other group of people chasing a passion together have some sort of annual gathering. Perhaps I should use another basketball analogy and refer to the "Final Four" which is going on as I type this, but I will refrain.

Within the nonprofit world the annual event for many of us has been the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) International Conference. This year the event returned to New Orleans. Even though the economy is struggling, the overall event was still not one to be missed. I am very proud to say that this was my 25th AFP International to attend! I honestly could write several blog entries just on the remarkable changes I have seen over the years. I have watched the organization stage its event in locales ranging from large hotels to small convention centers to some of the largest convention centers in North America. It has been a wonderful and exhilarating ride. Hopefully, I will be able to enjoy many more, since I do not plan on missing any of them.

You see, just like any other large convention, our time in New Orleans for the nonprofit sector is when major announcements are made, like BlackbaudNow, and where you can meet virtually all of the key players. It is also where various affiliated groups meet either before, during or after.

One of the "before" gatherings that I attend is the joint Giving USA and Giving Institute board meeting. During the first evening meal of this gathering, we listened to some of the most heartwarming and dynamic stories, presented by a group of Katrina surviving charities. One of my friends within the sector is the current CEO of Ketchum, which is one of the oldest fundraising firms serving NPO's. In her blog, Kristina Carlson provides a splendid recap of those stories. They are well worth a few minutes of your time to peruse. Each story spoke of bravery and perseverance in the face of a situation that most of us could never imagine.

So many of the friends I have in this sector come back every year for the convention. The long hours in the exhibit hall always seem to speed by as the time is often spent catching up with so many of those friends. It is also such great fun to banter with the other vendors, especially those against whom we compete throughout the year.

You can always tell how well our products are serving the needs of the customers, as well as the strength of our customer support, by the open and honest comments made by everyone. Fortunately, for nearly every year of the 25 years, I have encountered virtually nothing but kind comments and smiles from our customer base. This fact alone makes me so proud of our team who sells, delivers and supports our products.

So until next spring in Baltimore where the old gang will come together again, I will offer my heartfelt praise for all of the fundraising professionals who make this annual event so special. Each of you bring so much to the forefront as you make most of North America's NPO missions come to life. Thanks for allowing me to be a part for so many years!

Random Acts of Kindness

The hero of this little segment is none other than one of the TSA staff at our local Indianapolis International Airport. A young mother with a cute little daughter was struggling with her bags, a car seat and the usual baby items. This particular TSA person went way out of his way to help. He offered to hold the baby or to just let her walk while the mother pulled everything back together. His kindness and extra effort made a wonderful difference in the evening travel of that mother and daughter. As they strive to protect us, the TSA staff so often catch the brunt of travelers' frustrations. Perhaps we should all smile and say thanks like that young mother did...

Social Media and the Presidential Election Revisited

Jay Love — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 12:25:00 GMT

If you recall during last summer and autumn, I referred to the unbelievable education we were all getting via the use of the web by the presidential candidates. By now, we all know that one of the candidates, the eventual winner and our current president Mr. Obama, was the most adept at harnessing the immense power and influence of this medium.

One of my past weekend perusals was the latest issue of Fast Company Magazine. The cover article truly caught my attention.

How could anyone who works with web tools for the public sector not dig into that article? Needless to say, I was not disappointed, nor will you if you have a few minutes to spare for some research. The link for the full article is here.

One of my favorite sections outlined web technology that might have changed the course of the outcome of the election if the vote had been a bit closer. Here is the actual paragraph below:

The second was the Vote for Change voter-registration site. The back end was a hellishly complicated dynamic database loaded with local voter-registration rules, while the user interface was a simple series of questions. There was a sophisticated strategy at work: If registrants were students, for instance, they were asked for both the state where they went to school and the state they came from. "We'd determine which state was most important for us to win," says Hughes, "and assuming that the law says that a full-time student can register there, we would suggest it." The site registered a million people, with only a handful of staffers working on it part time. Registering the same number by knocking on doors took some 2,000 paid staffers and volunteers.

Such an ability to make a huge difference electronically and to rally millions of volunteers could literally change the nonprofit sector in the future. When I watch how much time is spent updating and communicating via Facebook and MySpace it only seems inevitable that those tools or others like them will take communications within our sector to unprecedented frontiers. The so often claimed "viral effect" could literally take place in real time.

Looking forward, I am gearing up for one of the larger annual gatherings within our sector, the AFP conference in New Orleans, as I write this blog entry. It is always exciting to see what is new and to see how thousands of folks who network for a living in daily fund raising efforts take that key attribute or skill to a whole new level. I will be back with a full report outlining some of the neat new concepts. If you are going please slide by the eTapestry booth and say hello!

eTapestry is Proud to be a Huge Part of FEP

Jay Love — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 18:43:00 GMT

In 2006, AFP and the Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C., launched the innovative annual Fundraising Effectiveness Project (FEP) survey. By comparing gains and losses in annual giving reported by donor software vendors, the survey helps fundraisers fine-tune their strategies.

This project is truly unique in several key areas. First, the results are based upon actual data contained in literally thousands of real life nonprofit fundraising databases. Second, as you will see below, this is one of the times that ardent competitors came together to pool results for the good of our beloved sector. (I am still not sure some can believe we truly did it. However, I am personally so proud of our group of vendors for rising to the occasion for such a good cause and dropping most of the petty reasons for not sharing data.) Third, the results are startling and highlight some key courses of action for nearly every nonprofit engaged in fundraising.

Participating vendors in the AFP Donor Software Workgroup include the following (companies marked with an asterisk are charter members of the AFP donor software workgroup):
Blackbaud Inc. (The Raiser’s Edge®)*
Compass Technology
Donor2/Campus Management Corporation*
DonorPerfect Fundraising Software*
eTapestry*
MatchMaker FundRaising Software*
Metafile*
Mission Research (GiftWorks)*
PhilanthrAppeal (FundTrack Software)*
ROI Solutions
Sage Software*
SofTrek Corporation (PledgeMaker)
Telosa Software Inc. (Exceed!)

Quite a strange group of bedfellows, would you not agree? I have to take a moment and brag a little bit about the huge part eTapestry played. Since our online model of the database application made it literally a single push of the button to participate for our customers, over 2,500 of them did just that! This definitely helped make the project a success since we provided the lion’s share of the data. I guess if you are going to brag a little you might as well mention all the key facets. In addition, eTapestry suggested the key report format used by the project. It was none other than one of our application’s key Executive Reports called Giving Dynamics. (See chart below).

In addition, since the FEP project and eTapestry’s customer participation were so successful, we decided to build upon that original concept and create an entire series of reports. It has become one of our most sought after modules called Benchmark Reporting. More background details about this exciting module are discussed in the podcast located here.

Now for the results . . .

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, which is essential in the blogging world since we are not writing novels or for the NY Times. The chart below reflects the actual Giving Dynamics as of 11/14/2008 comparing the previous year for a random portion of the eTapestry nonprofit customers located in North America. (Please note: dollars shown are in $000’s).

The report reflects a startling bit of news. Even though all organizations involved in fundraising strive to achieve a majority of fundraising goals in order to extend their mission, most of them lose more dollars from existing and previous donors than they obtain from new and recaptured donors! This report reflects 1,631 participating organizations with the new, recaptured and upgraded donors in 2008 representing 33 percent of the donors, while the number of lapsed and downgraded donors represents 59 percent of the total! Similarly, for every new donor gained, the organizations lost more than twice as many.

The true power of such reporting is in comparing your specific organization to the aggregate or to some specific subset meaningful to you. Subsets such as other organizations in your state or region or in your vertical part of the nonprofit sector reveal just how you are doing and what trends may be affecting you. Have you ever been in a board meeting where a board member asks how your results compare to other like organizations? Now you have an easy to use tool to more than answer such a question. More importantly, you are equipped to respond to or adjust to changes in our sector. Lastly, you know where to focus your efforts. A little extra care of existing donors could go a long way in changing the results in next year’s report!

Ethics: Not Just a Word at AFP

Jay Love — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 18:00:00 GMT

This week I had the honor and privilege to see just how important ethics are to the fundraising profession and more importantly to the largest association in our beloved sector. Now I have true appreciation for how the words surrounding this important subject can come to life. Here is what I am referring to in regards to the ethical guidelines of AFP.

Many of you are aware that I have been involved with the Association of Fundraising Professionals for most of my career in this sector. Currently, my involvement includes chairing the Business Partner Council and being part of the Ethics Committee. When I accepted the latter role, part of me actually thought it might be a bit boring. I must admit the reams of documentation border on that; however the people surrounding the subject more than bring it to life!

When violations to the ethical guidelines are reported, AFP reviews each one in detail. Should the matter need closer attention or perhaps sanctions need to be levied, then several steps take place. First, is a large amount of research and fact finding. The CIA might even be proud of the care taken.

A key latter portion of the process is an actual hearing where both sides can present their case. Seeing the process unfold in person was enlightening and a testament to the great care taken. I was proud to be part of the upholding of those key ethical standards. We are all fortunate to work with such outstanding and caring professionals in the form of certified fundraisers. They certainly moved my already high respect up another notch or two this week.