Advancement shops work hard to train their fundraisers when they’re first hired—and then stop. 79% of the MGOs we interviewed for our Gifted and Talented research project rated professional development as an important or very important factor in their decision to join their current institution, but most professional development opportunities stop at the end of onboarding.
To prevent their MGOs from leaving, advancement shops need to provide continuous and ongoing opportunities for professional development. This toolkit and the related resources have been designed to help chief advancement officers and directors of strategic talent management develop and refine existing professional development programs to ensure that they include three imperatives:
- Equip managers
- Diagnose skill gaps
- Deploy high-impact skill building
Imperative 1: Equip managers
Traditionally, senior leaders, managers, and fundraisers neglect professional development because it is detached from both organizational and individual goals. Formalizing professional development raises it to a strategic priority and ensures it gets the attention it deserves. At the same time, managers and fundraisers require tools to hold conversations that are accountable and forward-thinking.
Step 1: Formalize professional development
- Tool: Strategic Decision Guide
- Tool: The Talent Review Launch Guide
- Tool: Talent Review Leader Training Deck
Step 2: Facilitate talent conversations
- Tool: Talent Review Critical Conversation Guide
- Tool: Talent Review Template
- Tool: Career Map Template
Imperative 2: Diagnose skill gaps
Since advancement staff possess various levels of experience and skill, the status quo, one-size-fits-all professional development approach wastes time and provides little return. Advancement leaders can target professional development to fundraisers’ wants and needs by understanding the skill gaps and strengths among their fundraiser populations.
Step 3: Establish a list of core skill sets
- Tool: Major Gift Officer Skill Set Picklist
- Tool: Skill Set Generation Session Agenda
- Tool: Skill Set Generation Session Facilitator Notes
Step 4: Identify skill gaps and strengths
- Tool: Major Gift Officer Interest Map Template
- Tool: Skill-Based Needs Assessment Question Picklist
- Tool: Work Product Review: A Guide for Managers
Step 5: Understand the overall talent pool
Imperative 3: Deploy high-impact skill building
With traditional training models, fundraisers do not always retain or use what they have learned. Often, these trainings are one-and-done, and they fail to fit current understandings of adult learning styles. Turning traditional programs into ongoing and outcomes-oriented models can start to plug knowledge leaks. Integrating learning into workflows takes it one step further by ensuring immediate application of knowledge, while also adapting to fundraisers’ busy schedules.
Step 6: Optimize traditional training
- Tool: Professional Development Curriculum Review
- Tool: Major Gift Officer Onboarding Toolkit
- Tool: Development Opportunity Match Cheat Sheet
- Tool: Webconference Lunch and Learn Guide
- Tool: Pre-conference Form
- Tool: Post-conference Survey
- Tool: Targeted Mentorship Program Guide
- Tool: Cohort Learning Community Picklist
Step 7: Integrate learning into workflow
- Tool: Joint Visit Strategy Guide
- Tool: Joint Visit Debrief and Learning Integration Guide
- Tool: Real-Time Strategy Coaching Guide
- Tool: Crucible Role Picklist
Step 8: Provide practice environments
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