Author: Alicia Miranda

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 6 of 11 Awareness — Being Seen Before Being Solicited What awareness is›The Status Check›Reflect Practice the Framework — Resource 6 Awareness — Being Seen Before Being Solicited CDRF Phase 1  ·  Awareness What do you know about your donor as a whole person? Awareness is the foundation. It’s not about research — though research helps. It’s about genuine curiosity: what do you actually know about this donor? What’s missing? What would help you understand what they care about, not just what they can give? Donor outcome: The donor feels seen — recognized as a person, not a prospect.Institutional outcome: You understand this donor as a potential change-maker. What Awareness Requires An MGO in the Awareness phase is asking: What do I know about this donor’s history with the institution — and what might that mean to them? What do I know about who they are outside their giving record? What’s the story underneath the data I have? What would I need to know to show up as a genuine partner in this relationship? The Five Paths in This Phase Critical Thinker Wisdom:Thorough researcher — comes prepared with good questions Watch […]

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 7 of 11 Interest — Unlocking Values to Find Shared Ground Field guide Facilitation guide Practice Practice the Framework — Resource 7 Interest — Unlocking Values to Find Shared Ground CDRF Phase 2  ·  Interest Where do our interests genuinely intersect? Awareness tells you what a donor has given. Interest tells you why — and why is the most useful thing you can know. The Interest phase is about the story underneath the label. Donor outcome: The donor feels their personal values are understood and honored.Institutional outcome: You uncover how their values connect to their desire to create a legacy. The Distinction That Matters “Environmental” means something different to every donor. “Student success” means something different to every donor. The label isn’t the value — it’s the door to the value. Your job is to understand what’s behind the door. You’re not trying to find out which initiative to pitch. You’re trying to understand what animates this particular human being — and what they’re hoping their giving will make possible in the world. The Five Paths in This Phase Relator Wisdom:Connects quickly — builds the comfort that makes this conversation possible […]

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 8 of 11 Connection — Bringing Values to Life Through the Institution The concept›The scenario›Your portfolio Practice the Framework — Resource 8 Connection — Bringing Values to Life CDRF Phase 3  ·  Connection What are the portals of purpose that bring this donor’s values to life? Connection is where values meet mission — but it’s experiential, not theoretical. The donor needs to experience the connection between their values and the institution’s work. That experience happens through people, through stories, through being brought inside. Donor outcome: The donor feels energized by relationships that allow them to live out their values.Institutional outcome: You identify the specific portals of purpose where this donor’s passions connect to the institution. What a Portal of Purpose Is A portal of purpose is the intersection where a donor’s animating values and the institution’s work genuinely meet. It’s not an initiative you’re trying to fund — it’s the specific place in the institution’s life where this donor’s values become visible. Portals of purpose are discovered, not assigned. They emerge from the Interest phase and usually involve a person — a faculty member, a student, a researcher — not just […]

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 9 of 11 Partnership — Telling the Story That Brings the Donor In Storytelling as a skill›The structures›Build your story Practice the Framework — Resource 9 Partnership — Telling the Story That Brings the Donor In CDRF Phase 4  ·  Partnership How can the donor become part of the institution’s story? Partnership is built through story. Not a pitch, not a case statement — a story that places the donor at the center, that connects who they are and what they care about to what the institution is trying to accomplish in the world. The key distinction: In a pitch, the institution is the hero. In a story, the donor is the hero. The institution is the vehicle through which their values become visible. Donor outcome: The donor feels they are part of the story, working toward a shared goal.Institutional outcome: You establish a common goal that emerges from the relationship. The Five Paths in This Phase Visionary Wisdom:Tells a compelling story — naturally frames the donor as a hero Watch for:May over-romanticize or lose the donor in abstraction. After the inspiring frame, always land in something concrete: a specific person, […]

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 10 of 11 Investment — Keeping the Donor in the Story After the Gift The concept 90-day plan Practice the Framework — Resource 10 Investment — Keeping the Donor in the Story After the Gift CDRF Phase 5  ·  Investment How will the institution invest in this relationship long after the gift? The gift is not the end. In the Collaborative Donor Relationships Framework, the gift is the beginning of the next cycle — the moment when the donor has said yes to a shared vision, and the institution’s responsibility is to honor that commitment by keeping the donor inside the story they helped create. Donor outcome: The donor feels excited about their commitment and remains connected to its outcomes.Institutional outcome: You celebrate the donor’s partnership and create a long-term vision for the relationship. Investment vs. Stewardship Stewardship asks: “How do we thank the donor and report back?” Investment asks: “How do we make the donor feel like an insider in the work their gift made possible?” Both are real obligations. Investment requires the higher standard. Donors who feel like insiders give again. Donors who feel properly thanked move on. The […]

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 11 of 11 Synthesis — Working the Framework Across Your Portfolio Select donors›Status Checks›Priority view Synthesis — Resource 11 Working the Framework Across Your Portfolio This resource brings everything together. Apply the CDRF Status Check to three donors in your portfolio and identify where you are in each relationship. This is the tool you’ll return to most — not a one-time exercise, but a regular practice. How to use this resource Choose three donors — ideally at different stages in your portfolio. Work through the Status Check for each one, capturing your answers in your own notes. Then use the portfolio-level questions to identify your highest-leverage next actions. Return to this resource at the start of each quarter, or whenever a relationship feels stuck. Your Three Donors Donor 1 name or initials Capture in your own notes — keep this private, initials are fine. Donor 2 name or initials Capture in your own notes — keep this private, initials are fine. Donor 3 name or initials Capture in your own notes — keep this private, initials are fine. Begin Status Checks → Status Checks Where is each relationship? Work through the […]

The Collaborative Approach to Major Gift Work  ·  Resource 12 of 12 Connecting This to Your Work Look back › What’s changed › Your next move Synthesis — Resource 12 Connecting This to Your Work Resource 1 opened with a premise: the traditional fundraising cycle tracks institutional activity, not donor experience — and that gap is what leaves both MGOs and donors feeling like something is missing. Eleven resources later, you have a different way to work. This last one is about carrying it forward. The Arc, in Brief 1 Reframe Named the gap between institutional process and donor experience, and made the case that this work should be joyful, not just transactional. 2 Know Yourself Introduced The Five Paths to Leadership® — because you cannot read a donor well without first reading yourself. 3 Practice the Framework Went phase by phase through the Collaborative Donor Relationships Framework — Awareness, Interest, Connection, Partnership, Investment — each with a real field tool. S Synthesis Brought the framework to your actual portfolio, and now, to you. Continue What’s Changed What’s Changed for You Before you plan what’s next, take a moment to notice what’s already different. Not everyone reads this series the […]