Structuring Your Capital Campaign Leadership

Inspirational leadership is imperative for any fundraising campaign! This leadership is not confined to one person, nor one campaign role. It is needed from at least three, or perhaps more, positions within a typical campaign organization. Read on to learn more about the different roles of capital campaign leadership and how their time, effort, energy, and enthusiasm will help your organization to reach its fundraising goals.

The Organization Leader

First, there is the leader of the organization. This could be the president, executive director, or chief executive officer. Whatever the distinct title may be, the person referred to as the leader is responsible for the organization’s successful operation. This person is most capable of articulating the institutional goals, needs, and vision for the future. While this person may not be, and probably would not be, the campaign chairman, this leader must be prepared to cultivate and educate the campaign committee, donors, and prospective donors. They must inspire these other people to give financially and to support the organization in other ways as well.

The Staff Fundraising Leader

Secondly, in many organizations, there will be a person responsible for ongoing fundraising and advancement. This staff leader is often titled director of development, vice president for advancement, foundation director, or chief development officer. This position is accountable for donor relations, fundraising through annual appeals, planned giving, and major gifts, special events and maintenance of donor records.

In the capital campaign, the staff fundraising leader supports the entire campaign effort with record keeping, meeting preparations, scheduling, materials preparations—all the myriad, and perhaps mundane, work that makes a campaign successful. While this leader’s description may sound somewhat passive, routine and without prominence, they also have a role to play in promoting the effort, making presentations, being the expert witness on solicitation visits, and being upbeat and energetic in promoting the campaign. This leader, too, inspires committee members while supporting their efforts.

The Campaign Chair

Lastly is the campaign chair. This leader utilizes the input and efforts of the two leaders already discussed, along with that of the members of their campaign committee, board members, and interested and involved supporters. Such assimilation of talent and ideas, mixed with rock-solid campaign leadership, pave the way for successful efforts. This person leads by example, working diligently and energetically to carry out the campaign plan, encourage and inspire the campaign troops, keep the campaign on schedule, prod the laggards, celebrate the successes and move the effort toward attaining that goal that others might have thought to be unattainable.

Summary

Capital campaign leadership is not a “one-man band.” Although some might say the campaign chair is the top seat in this regard, the truth is that there are a number of players, and each must play their part. Even beyond the few core members mentioned here, there are concentric circles of additional volunteers, board members, and staff. The campaign chair may stand at the center of that system, but the wise and successful campaign chair shares this leadership role with others, delegates responsibility, follows up, and shares successes as they unfold.

As fundraising campaign counsel, it is my privilege and good fortune to be able to work with, and try to coordinate and facilitate the efforts of, all three of these leaders. Together, we work to build a growing network of leaders and supporters that reaches well into the outer limits of the community we seek to serve. When these three key players commit to giving more of themselves than they are asking from others, who can turn them down?

CDS has been a leader in nonprofit fundraising for the past three decades. Contact us if you need more intensive help with your major gift fundraising, strategic planning, or in preparing for a capital campaign.