A Professional Development Challenge for Advancement Professionals
Relationships are the currency of Advancement. Whether you’re a donor relations professional or development officer stewarding and building relationships with donors, an alumni relations professional forging meaningful connections with alumni, or a prospect researcher seeking to collaborate more seamlessly with other parts of the shop, your work depends on your ability to forge and deepen connection with others.
We invite you and your team to participate in our inaugural Relationship Challenge, a professional development challenge designed to help Advancement professionals hone and improve their relational and interpersonal skills heading into the new year. Complete the requirements below to earn a free in-person conference seat to any of our upcoming 2024 events!
01.
Watch 3 On-Demand Trainings
Start Watching ⟶
02.
Read 2 Articles
Start Reading ⟶
03.
Do 1 Activity
Start Activities ⟶
04.
Complete a Reflection
Complete Reflection ⟶
On-Demand Trainings
WATCH 3 VIDEOS
Navigate Challenging Conversations with Donors
Engaging in Empathy: Balance the Emotional Demands
Engaging Deans and Academic Leaders in Alumni Engagement and Annual Giving
Increasing Emotional Intelligence by Identifying Your Triggers
Create Meaningful Volunteer Opportunities for Your Major Donors
Crafting Personalized Stewardship Plans for Top Donors
Cultural Humility: A Framework to Mitigate Personal Bias
Developing a Strategy for Equity-Based Fundraising
How to Maintain Trust in Teams During Transitions
Strategic Stewardship to Improve Donor Retention
Growing Women’s Engagement and Philanthropic Interest
Uncomfortable Conversations Are Necessary, Not Unkind
Engaging Faculty to Improve Corporate Relations
Honoring Names: A Simple Way to Promote Belonging
Keys to a Successful Relationship Between Deans and Development Officers
Articles
READ 2 ARTICLES
Donor Conversations: What’s Often Missing (and Needn’t Be)
What Development Teams Get Wrong about Donor Relations
Marginality and Mattering: A Framework for Diverse Alumni Engagement
Retention Through Onboarding: How Hiring Managers Foster a Sense of Belonging
Stay Conversations as a Retention Tool. Have the Conversations Now.
Activities
DO 1 ACTIVITY
At your next meeting with your supervisor, share 2 or 3 new strategies that you learned from these resources to strengthen your relationships with colleagues, alumni, or donors. Share what you learned after applying the strategies.
At your next meeting with colleagues, spend 15 minutes to recap what you learned by viewing or reading one of these resources. Lead a discussion to help apply the learning in your context.
Maintain a written or typed journal of at least three of your favorite resources from this challenge. Share reflections with a trusted colleague and how it will help improve your work.
Schedule a meeting with your on-campus AI membership coordinator and AI Account Manager to coordinate a community learning event (video + discussion) on one of these resources for your shop. (Actual facilitation can take place after challenge ends.)
*To earn a free conference registration voucher you must complete the challenge and submit the Challenge PDF document by February 16, 2024. Once reviewed, we will email you with a promo code for a Conference registrations must be used in 2024. Registration vouchers are nontransferable and have no cash value.