The saying is true; it’s not always what you know, it’s who
you know. Let me expand on that a
bit. It’s important to have people in
your network who know what you’re capable of doing.
I owe much of my success to the people I know personally and have worked with. My first job in development came because the director of
development called the vice president of advancement at a former institution I
worked at (not in development) and she advocated on my behalf. I didn’t even know the two knew each other.
When all is said and done, the highlights of my professional
career will; in all likelihood, come down to the place I work now and the years
I spent at The City of Hope. Both
opportunities came about because of who I know.
In the case of City of Hope, when friend and long-time
colleague - Suzanne Szalay, left that organization to take on a new position; the
leadership asked her to recommend someone to replace her. That ended up being me.
As I mentioned in my first post on this blog – my current position
came about because of the relationship I established with our current vice
president of development who I worked with at The City of Hope.
The benefit of having a network and circle of friends goes
both ways. Since arriving at the
Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, I’ve been able to help recruit 3 people I
know and have worked with to this organization.
It’s all about relationships, but even more – it’s about developing
those relationships to maximize opportunities.
This doesn’t necessarily happen by accident. It takes effort, collaboration and time.
When I first started working in development doing prospect
research I needed help. Boy, did I need help!
I reached out to individuals who had established themselves in the field
to see if they would meet with me so that I could learn about prospect
research.
I met with Napoleon Hendrix, who was at U.C. Irvine at the
time, Marsha Krauss at U.C.L.A. (I actually went to meet another individual
there, but it was Marsha who took me under her wing) and Cathy Terrones who was
at Cal Poly Pomona at the time.
All three were great and helped me learn a lot not just
then, but throughout the years.
In the case of Cathy – she's a great friend (and a mentor). I tell her from
time to time that in addition to being a great friend, she's always going to be a mentor too! Cathy has been a constant source of
encouragement and an inspiration. She
has even encouraged me to write; telling me I have a “gift” and need to do
this. It’s amazing what a little
encouragement can do and I have had many provide me that over the years.
I really began to expand my circle of friends and my network
when I got involved in the California Advancement Researchers Association(CARA). That wasn’t something I jumped
into head first. I wasn’t looking to get
involved, but one day I got a call from Michael Seymour who flat out told me, “I
think it’s time for you to get involved.”
Michael is great that way!
Michael asked me to serve on the nomination committee for
their board elections. The rest is sort
of… well, history.
CARA has meant the world to me. If you are new to prospect development or
even if you’re not – you need to get involved with your local APRA
chapter. If you are willing to put in
the effort, you will establish personal and professional relationships that
will last your whole career and beyond.
There are so many amazing people in our field who are absolute gems.
We often tell people “No one says, I want to a prospect
researcher when I grow up.” Most of us
come into the field by accident. We don’t
necessarily seek out this arena. We kind of, sort of just end up here. Maybe we had some writing skills that got us
in the door. Maybe we knew how to do a
little bit of research. Every path is
unique.
Once we get here we might be asked to do things we never had
to do before. That’s where CARA and APRA
come in. It’s the training ground for
us. It’s where we learn best practice
and even beyond that, what’s “next.”
More importantly it’s where we meet people who have the same challenges
and opportunities.
I’m biased, but I think some of the very best people working
in the non-profit world are in prospect development.
Our field has a culture of sharing through teaching. A lot of nurturing and encouraging takes
place through organizations like CARA and APRA.
Again, since most of us come to the field by accident – many of us have
a common story and a sense of what it’s like to be asked to do something new
and not always familiar to us.
I know I speak for many when I say CARA and APRA has been a
career/life enhancing experience. It is
our life line in many respects. These
organizations have introduced me to so many wonderful people; not only people
who helped me, but people who I could help as well.
Through the years, I’ve encouraged colleagues to speak at
our conferences and seminars. A few took
those opportunities to heart and have blossomed in the field since. I’ve nominated people for the board and even
served as references for some of them along the way.
While at the City of Hope we often had visitors who were
either new to the field or interested in learning how we did things. I’d like to think I’ve given as much as I
have received, but I’m not sure that’s possible.
If you are new to prospect development or even if you’ve
been tooling around in the field and haven’t made up your mind if this is what
you want to do, I encourage you to get involved in a local APRA chapter. If possible, you also need to attend the
annual APRA International Conference.
I remember my first APRA conference well. I hate to admit it, but I went reluctantly. It changed everything for me.
That conference really cut the learning curve for me and
introduce me to great people like Cecilia Hogan, David Lawson, and Joe Boeke
all of whom I saw speak for the first time.
I came away from that experience thinking; yes, I can do this.
APRA has allowed me to expand my community. Through the conferences, serving on the board
and volunteering I now know people around the country and even outside of our
own borders.
Together, we are an army working for the common good. We do many things to make our organizations
successful. We identify potential
donors. We help qualify prospects to see
if they have the capacity and inclination to give. We help ensure our donors are followed up on
and that no donor is forgotten.
We are the engines that drive our major gift programs. We all have different missions, but we share
a common goal; to make the world a better, healthier and safer place.
It’s hard to imagine my career without this army because
they don’t just help the organizations they work for, they help one
another. Together, we teach. We advocate.
We encourage. We network; boy do
we network.
While serving on the CARA board, I was even able to convince
many of my friends across America to come out to speak to our chapter in
California. One of the first chapters
(if not the first), Lawrence Henze of
Target Analytics ever spoke at was CARA.
He’s just one of many.
Fundraisers who come to our conferences are often amazed at
how well we network. It’s funny when you
think about it. I might even venture to
guess some of us have better networks than our fundraisers.
So again, if you are new to prospect development or even if
you’re sitting there trying to decide if this is what you really want to do,
please consider going to a conference; better yet, get involved as a volunteer,
speaker or board member. It just might
change your life and how often can you say that?
James, good advice about getting involved. It is the best way to meet people and build relationships. I would add that the culture of "sharing through teaching" is unique to this field. I've always appreciated the people who were willing to help me by generously sharing what they know. These relationships have proved lasting and continue to be a source of information, advice or encouragement when needed. Thanks all!
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