The Key to Hiring Fantastic Fundraisers?… Treat Them like Major Donors! (Part 2)
Part 2: Creating a prospect pipeline and flexing your discovery skills to find “the one” for this job
So you crafted your recruitment strategy and now you need to put it to good use to find that phenomenal fundraiser for the position?
Always remember throughout this process: You just need one good fit person for the role and the organization who will say “yes” to your offer. All of this hard work is just for one person who will (hopefully) be a part of your team for years to come. Sometimes it’s easy to get lost in having a great set of multiple finalists for the job to pick from but, at the end of the day, you just need one. Yes, it’s nice to have a back-up option who would also be great but that is often a luxury this job market does not afford. Reminding you and your team that they just need to find one will hopefully lower the pressure on the search process.
So how do you find that one great person that will say “yes”?
Don’t just rely on posting your position on your organization’s website and expect candidates to find it on their own and be compelled to submit their application.
The answer: Build your job prospect pipeline.
(It’s not all that different from doing great prospect research and discovery work in fundraising.)
The best bet: Ask your team and network for recommendations.
Offer referral incentives — a dollar bonus or even just “I’ll take you out to lunch on me” if that’s all you can afford in your budget.
Time intensive but definitely worth it: I have had a ton of success finding teammates by using LinkedIn’s Recruiter Lite.
Purchasing LinkedIn Recruiter Lite’s platform for the few months you’re recruiting along with a package of additional InMail messages beyond the free ones you can send as part of your membership is definitely worth the money.
Note: I promise I don’t not work for the company or financially benefit in any way by recommending LinkedIn – I’m just a big fan of this product. In addition to LinkedIn Recruiter Lite, there are a number of other platforms that you can use to build a job prospect pipeline, such as Idealist. While I have not personally used them I have heard these platforms can be a great way to connect with qualified fundraisers who are looking for new opportunities.
Customize your talent pool searches to build your pipeline.
Note: The bigger the network of people you are connected with through LinkedIn the better your search results will be.
Job title keywords I have used as talent pool search criteria include: Fundraising Manager, Director Of Fundraising, Foundation Manager, Vice President of Fundraising, Head Of Fundraising, Major Gifts Manager, Development Manager, Senior Major Gifts Officer, Individual Giving Manager, Director Of Development, Director Of Development, Chief Of Development, and Interim Director Of Development.
Keywords I have used as talent pool search criteria include: “higher education” and “major gifts”.
Keep your geographic region as broad as it makes sense.
If you work for a school, include a special round of your Recruiter Search to list yours as a “School attended” to find alumni as well as in “Companies” to find previous employees you may not be aware of.
Review the recommended matches that LinkedIn provides you.
Craft a compelling InMail/direct message to send to potential candidates, putting your recruitment strategy to work. Answer potential candidates questions online in a low stakes environment through InMail and direct messages.
Utilize my free template and samples below.
Direct email fundraisers in similar organizations in your area:
Find their work email address on their current organization’s website and message them directly (another great way to utilize my free template and samples).
Work a room:
Network at Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), and other relevant events and conferences.
Other quick and easy ways:
Utilize LinkedIn and Indeed.com’s free job postings.
Post on relevant field-related job boards.
For example, your local Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) chapter usually offers job posting services for fairly affordable rates.
Other job boards, like the Chronicle of Higher Education, are more expensive but might be worth it for higher level national searches.
Post the job with a personal note on your own social media and ask others to do the same.
My last and best secret to get the top potential candidates to apply: While you’re outreaching and connecting with qualified candidates, offer and conduct a 15 to 20 minute phone or virtual informal “informational interview” about the position.
Make the candidate feel welcome and comfortable. Be a good listener and give them your undivided attention.
Introduce yourself and give the 30-second pitch for the position (see the “articulate your value proposition” section of part 1 of my blog post on recruitment strategy).
Ask what questions they might have about the position or organization.
Get ahead of or address their concerns about the position or organization to work through roadblocks that may make them hesitate to apply (see the “establish trust” section of part 1 of my blog post on recruitment strategy).
Resist the urge to ask interview questions of them. If they decide to apply for the role and they are a good fit you will have your formal time to interview them down the road. Instead, treat this as an incredibly valuable opportunity where they can interview you to see if it would be a good fit for them personally and professionally.
If through the conversation you uncover that they would not be a fit for this particular role for any reason, potentially refer them to other open or future positions within your organization that might be a better match. They will appreciate the candid conversation and it will save you both time and effort down the line.
Follow up with them via email or direct message immediately after the informational interview (just like you would do with a fundraising prospect after a visit) sharing how much you enjoyed the conversation, sharing any relevant resources or requested information you two discussed, and confirming next steps (i.e. the link to apply for the position or the job description of an alternative position you touched on).
Congratulations! You’ve secured a viable pool of qualified candidates for the position. Now it’s time to grow (or lose) mutual affinity and professional affection for each other through the hiring process.
When you’re ready, read on to my next blog post: “Part 3: Leaning on cultivation skills throughout the interview process”
P.S.: If this process seems too daunting or time consuming for you, contact me to see if it would be a good fit to hire me as a recruiter for your position. Saint Martin’s University recently hired me to serve as executive recruiter for their AVP of Development. In two short months, using the methods I outlined in this blog post series, we secured a phenomenal fundraising leader who adds so much value to their team and community.
Get in touch with me!
Jen Stirling
Principal Consultant, Brighter Philanthropy —
Fundraising consulting for higher ed and K-12
As your partner, I’ll bring my considerable expertise, high-energy efficiency, optimistic realism, relational approach, and fresh perspective to guide your team and help your institution reach its goals, enabling more students to thrive. I offer support for campaign services, development organization assessments, staff coaching and board development.
