Archives

A Masterclass in Discovery Work

Learn what to say and how best to say it by exploring the practices of inquiry and authentic curiosity in order to qualify major donors. Overview Discovery work is an essential part of the fundraising process because it’s your first access point to learning how to optimize a potential donor’s philanthropic interest. Refining your approach and strategy is a great way to continue gaining confidence in your ability to be conversational as a fundraiser. The ability to ask insightful questions that keep prospects and donors talking and sharing will ultimately lead you to align your donor with the best possible opportunity for their philanthropy goals. Join us in this online training to deepen your skillset around discovery work and improve upon your first impression as a representative of your organization. Go into donor conversations equipped with the right questions to ask that will build trust and enable you get to know your donors more intimately.   Who Should Attend This training will be beneficial for new gift officers beginning their work with donors as well as seasoned gift officers who want to refine and hone their skills in discovery. This program is also ideal for development professionals who either want […]

Advancing Your DEI Strategy Across Viewpoints

Advance equity, inclusion, and belonging efforts by employing values-focused communication strategies to move conversations forward. Overview Leaders of diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts are continually charged with spearheading initiatives that require them to navigate critical conversations with stakeholders who may have divergent or even radically different views and opinions than their own. In some cases, these views can run counter to the goals of the initiative at hand. In these possibly contentious spaces of dialogue, you might wonder how you can: Employ effective communication strategies to maximize participation from all parties involved; Model the process of becoming partners and encourage open and honest dialogue; or Work to flip the lens by engaging key supporters and minimizing negative voices. This one-day virtual training is designed to help leaders who are advancing equity and inclusion efforts on their campus to better identify and apply effective communication strategies to move conversations forward. The workshop will help you to keep your work “values-focused” by avoiding pitfalls and demonstrating how to lead openly and courageously.   Get Practice with Real-Life Scenarios Throughout the event, with the help of our expert instructors, we will provide you, our participants, with real-life roleplays, scenarios, and case studies that […]

Faculty Performance & Conduct: Reframing the Conversation

Build the infrastructure you need in order to address faculty conduct issues as they occur and ensure collective faculty success.  Overview Faculty conduct has significant implications for the overall morale and climate in a department, division, and institution. Faculty conduct can contribute positively to the success of students, colleagues, and the department. However, faculty conduct issues can impede individual faculty success, as well as the success of others, and disproportionately impact underrepresented groups in academia. Oftentimes, faculty conduct issues go undocumented and/or are never formally addressed, thus passively condoning the continuation of problematic behavior. Faculty affairs and academic leaders responsible for addressing faculty conduct issues need training and the proper infrastructure in order to implement consistent policies and practices that prevent the occurrence of problematic faculty conduct as soon as it starts. Join us for this interactive training about creating an institutional infrastructure for addressing faculty conduct that is consistent, clear, and supportive for those who need to address these issues. You will walk away from this training with valuable tips, tools, and strategies that support faculty accountability.   Who Should Attend Central-level faculty affairs leaders, such as VPs of Faculty Affairs/Faculty Development, and unit-level academic leaders such as Deans, […]

Securing Transformational Gifts: A Conversation About Engaging Principal Gift Donors

Gain a behind-the-scenes understanding of family dynamics in relation to philanthropic giving to secure the most transformational gift possible. Overview Securing a principal gift can have an immense impact on the way an institution is able to meet its mission and serve students effectively. However, identifying and cultivating relationships with potential principal gift donors takes patience, intentionality, and compromise. In this useful question-and-answer virtual webcast, our expert instructor, Mitchell Spearman, will call upon his experiences working with philanthropic families who shared transformational gifts with institutions across the country. By engaging with participants and sharing his own insight and advice, Spearman will help advancement professionals to understand how to more effectively approach engaging principal gift donors and their families to secure transformational gifts. As a participant, you will have the opportunity to submit your questions in advance and we will do our best to incorporate these questions into the live event.   Who Should Attend This webcast is for advancement professionals and other institutional leaders who may engage with prospective principal gift donors. If you are hoping to identify these donors in your pipeline or are looking to better cultivate an existing relationship to secure a transformational gift, this training is […]

Deconstructing and Growing from Negative Past Work Environments

Learn how to reframe negative past experiences and set boundaries in an emotionally intelligent way. Overview As you move between jobs or finish projects, it can be all too easy to carry negative past experiences and the habits associated with those experiences along with you to new roles. This can lead you to unknowingly reinforce counterproductive habits or perceptions that don’t contribute to your continued success or to new opportunities. While it is useful to learn from past experience, it’s important to not let those experiences cause self-doubt or an excess of caution in the new experiences to follow. So, how do you hold on to the lessons you want to take away while letting go of the past negativity? Join us for a two-hour interactive virtual training where you’ll learn how to unpack past experiences, take what you need from them, and focus on your future. Our interpersonal communication expert, Dr. Cié Gee, will walk you through some of the science of perception, professional identity construction, and emotional intelligence around your past experiences. By connecting the science to practical experience, you will learn how to set boundaries, develop a growth mindset, and focus on the lessons learned without bringing […]

Leading and Influencing Change from the Middle: Change Management for Mid-level Leaders

After participating in this online training, you will be able to address the challenges, opportunities, and actions needed for implementing a change initiative from a mid-level leadership role. Overview Leading change requires involvement and engagement from people across a wide range of roles and functions, and oftentimes, change initiatives are tasked to people who must lead from the middle. Mid-level leaders serve as connectors, mediators, and navigators between the external stakeholders mandating a change or executive leaders initiating a change, and the faculty and/or staff who are responsible for, or impacted by, implementation. In sum, the team leaders and managers in the middle make change happen. How do you lead change authentically—especially when the change may not be one that resonates with you? How do you lead direct reports who may be resistant to the change? How can you be the voice for your direct reports when tasked with a change initiative? Join us for an interactive training that tackles some of these key questions for mid-level leaders. During this virtual training, we will take a case-study and consultative approach to leading change from the middle. Extend Your Learning This training builds on our initial training, Taking a Proactive Approach […]

Advocate For Your Department by Using Data Effectively

Do you struggle with using data to help you identify and present the greatest needs within your department? Overview Given the current context of higher ed, you are likely defending and justifying your department’s expenses relating to revenue, and you’re having to make important decisions, including budget cuts, that impact people across your department. You know that data can be a powerful tool to help you lead through these decisions and changes because data can help you paint a clear picture of how your budget supports the mission of the organization. However, analyzing and presenting data can be a tricky task, and it’s not always clear how to assess data in a way that helps you to identify the most impactful trends and patterns that matter most to your senior leaders, faculty, and students. Join us online, where you’ll learn how to acquire and assess data in ways that can help you to better advocate for the right changes and resources throughout your department. We’ll begin by highlighting some of the most critical data sets you should be looking at — those that matter the most to senior administration. Through a case-study approach, we’ll discuss how you can assess and […]