Redefining Success in Planned Giving: Embracing Change and New Realities

Redefining Success in Planned Giving

Embracing Change and New Realities

A Fresh Perspective for Fundraisers

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Forging a New Path Forward

Whether you’re new to fundraising or have recently taken on planned giving responsibilities, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the shoes you’re being asked to fill. You may find yourself comparing your current team or resources to those that existed before you. Maybe you feel ill-equipped with knowledge and experience. The reality is, the landscape of nonprofit staffing and planned giving expertise has transformed dramatically in the past few years.

Instead of trying to recreate the programs and campaigns of the past, this is an opportunity to reimagine how we approach planned giving and to recognize that the path to success now looks very different from what it once did.

The path to success now looks very different from what it once did.

Understanding the Evolving Landscape

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Adapting to Hybrid Roles and Collaboration

Nonprofits of every size have felt the impact of staff turnover, retirements, and downsizing over the past few years. Teams that once included dedicated planned giving officers, planned giving administrators, and even in-house legal counsel may now operate with abbreviated staff or hybrid roles. You may even be asked to wear several different fundraising hats.

While this adjustment can be daunting, it’s important to let go of the misconception that you must somehow replicate the staffing structure, years of experience, or institutional knowledge that left with departed colleagues.

Key Shifts in the Nonprofit World:
  1. Staff Turnover: A notable increase in movement within fundraising teams.
  2. Retirements: A wave of experienced professionals stepping down.
  3. Downsizing: Teams operating with reduced capacity due to budget or strategic shifts.

Beyond Old Metrics: Focus on Connection

An older woman and a younger woman having a warm, authentic conversation at a coffee shop table. Represents meaningful donor engagement and the power of authentic conversations.
The Power of Authentic Donor Conversations

We’re here to tell you that it was never the size of your staff or years of technical training that ensured a successful planned giving program. It was the engagement, stewardship, and the ability to meet a donor’s needs at the right time. Rather than striving to “replace” what was, focus on building relationships and nurturing donor intent within the current context.

Success is not about matching the past work hour-for-hour but about making meaningful connections and leveraging the strengths you have now.

Success is not about matching past work hour-for-hour, but about making meaningful connections.

Redefining success in planned giving means adapting to current realities, building strong relationships, and focusing on donor needs rather than replicating past structures or staffing models.

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