Many charities and social enterprises are under-using their trustees when it comes to fundraising.
Carlos Miranda
The competition for philanthropic funds has never been fiercer. Every charity and social enterprise dependent to any degree on philanthropic donations is acutely aware of this fact. That's why it's counter-intuitive to see that most UK charities and social enterprises are under-using one of their key fundraising assets – their trustees.
Now let's get one thing clear: what I'm advocating, and indeed working with all of our charitable and social enterprise clients on, is pro-actively involving trustees in the fundraising process, but not necessary in the solicitation of funds – there is a difference.
The three most common reasons trustees will cite for their lack of involvement in the fundraising process are:
1. We don't feel comfortable asking for money
2. We don't have any money to give
3. We volunteer our time and expertise and that's enough
In response to the first point: asking your trustees to get involved with the fundraising process at a high-level is not the same as asking them to solicit funds directly (unless of course they are willing and able to do so). Not everyone is comfortable asking others for money and not everyone should. However, trustees are part of the leadership structure of your organisation, and it is in your organisation's best interest that they are pro-actively involved in meeting revenue targets. Without fundraising, there would be no organisation. So ensure that you are providing your trustees with the appropriate levels of support, encouragement, and training (eg how best to communicate your impact) in order for them to be effective cogs in the fundraising machine.
For example, trustees can help you to identify prospects and facilitate introductions, even if it's through a simple email. Your trustees do not have to sit across the table from a prospect and ask them for money, as that's what a chief executive or a fundraiser is for. However they can cultivate high-value prospects – which in real life means periodically showing-up to meetings, tours, or meals.
The second point is always a bit trickier. It is true that not everyone has the capacity to make a philanthropic donation and that's ok – wealth should not be a prerequisite for trusteeship. However, if trustees can financially support the organisation they lead at any level, either because they can personally donate or encourage others to give, they should.
Trustee giving can take on a variety of different forms: a trustee can write a cheque to an end of the year appeal, encourage their company to make a donation, or run a 5K in benefit of one of your activities. Another example is that of an annual collective Board gift. This is when an organisation encourages a joint Board donation made up of smaller contributions from individual Board members.
Trustees should be encouraged to give within their means – remember never to ask cold, think of trustees as prospects and therefore cultivate them appropriately. Having your leadership financially support your activities, either by giving or getting, always makes your ask to an external audience that much more convincing and assuring. It makes for a powerful argument if a chief executive or fundraiser can confidently say to a prospect that the entire Board financially supports the organisation (putting your organisational money where your mouth is).
The third point, not considering fundraising to be part of a trustee's remit, is becoming more irrelevant as time passes. The voluntary sector is very different now from ten years ago. Today's funding climate is radically competitive. If you are not pro-actively, and enterprisingly, using all of your assets, including your trustees, for business development purposes and fundraising then you are missing a trick – possibly at the expense of your programmes, staff, and beneficiaries. You should appropriately communicate this to your existing Board and make it very clear to all incoming trustees – you may even consider recruiting a trustee with a fundraising background. Involvement with the fundraising process has to be part of everyone's remit, from intern all the way up to the Chair.
The reality is that rarely do trustees self-identify for fundraising involvement (usually because it has never been part of their perceived remit or because they've never been asked). So it is up to you, or the senior management team, to work with your trustees, and with your Chair in particular, to help them understand exactly how your organisation raises its funds and what they can do – given personal capacity and circumstances – to be actively involved in the fundraising process.
It's usually wise to discuss fundraising participation one-on-one with sympathetic trustees first and get them involved in some limited capacity before speaking with the Board as a whole. If someone among their ranks can speak positively about his or her experience, then it is more likely that others will follow suit. You can't change organisational culture and perceptions overnight. However, you can show that fundraising has to be a group effort and ensure that trustee involvement will always be strategic, targeted, and heavily supported by the organisation's chief executive and fundraising team – they will never be alone. The best part of all of this is that once a trustee begins to see their efforts bear fruit they will grow more confident and be more willing to be involved in helping you meet revenue targets.
Carlos Miranda is the chief executive of IG Advisors. You can follow him on Twitter: @IG_Advisors.
Trustees Hub, from the 'Voluntary Sector Network'
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