Turn Your Board Members into Effective Fundraisers with this Simple I.D.E.A.
Chapter Leadership Brief 4.4.25
by Sunil Oommen
President, Oommen Consulting, LLC
We are now one quarter of the way into 2025, and before we know it, we will be neck-deep in intense end-of year preparation and execution mode. This is especially true for those of us who focus on individual giving. The most organized shops already have our direct marketing calendars and plans set for the year, and our major gifts teams are doing the priming work necessary with our portfolios in time for solicitations and making our goals for the year.
But what about our board members and their fundraising efforts?
Oh, right. Them.
Many of us see engaging our board members in fundraising as a fruitless chore. I’ve heard plenty of reasons, but they all seem to boil down to: “We tried, but they don’t fundraise.”
Yet, we try and try again anyway. Whether it’s because we know at least some of them have great networks, or we feel like it’s their duty to do it, we try different ways of engaging our board members in fundraising.
Of course, not all board members are the same. Some are amazing at fundraising. Some others are OK at it. Others simply won’t do it. Mind you, I did not say “bad at it” – it’s because when board members actually do “the work,” they do succeed at fundraising. After all, board members will have a network of people they know personally where there’s often mutual respect, professional history, loyalty, love, or some combination of all of the above.
So, why do some board members choose not to fundraise?
Our board members are often busy and successful professionals whose expertise and leadership are in high demand. That’s one of the many reasons why they are asked to serve on our boards. Yet, behind that successful profile is a real human being who may not have done a lot of fundraising before, and therefore – like any human being – would be hesitant to engage in an activity that makes them feel vulnerable to rejection or failure. Board members are often at the highest echelons of their respective fields, so the idea of possibly failing at something is even scarier. Hence, they just won’t do it. And more often than not, we allow that, year after year.
So, how do we break that frustrating cycle?
First, let me tell you what I think does not work.
Some of us try demystifying fundraising for our board members by breaking down the key components of the moves management cycle: identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. We explain each of the components and give multiple examples of the types of activities that illustrate them.
While the moves management cycle is necessary for professional fundraisers to understand, I have found this approach to be overly complicated and unnecessary for board members. They are busy enough with their daily lives, and making fundraising seem more like a science may only make them feel like fundraising is a complex task.
Instead, I have used with great success a concept I’m happy to share with my AFP family today. This is “the work” I referenced above that helps make board members effective at fundraising.
The work distills into an easy to remember acronym, I.D.E.A.: Inspire, Discover, Engage, and then, Ask.
When I train board members, I tell them that their primary job is the first three letters in I.D.E.: Inspiring their prospects about why their organization’s cause is important to them; Discovering more about their prospects’ philanthropic interests and priorities; and Engaging their prospects in the organization‘s mission through programming, events, and other relevant channels.
Board members should be spending 90% of their time with their prospects doing these fun and least anxiety-producing activities because it’s NOT about the Ask during any of this time.
If board members are consistent doing the I.D.E. work without worrying about the Ask, they will be more inclined to reach out to their prospects and finally get a new set of prospects engaged and potentially become donors for your organization. Professional fundraisers can support their board members throughout this process by 1) helping board members develop their prospect list annually; 2) checking in with their board members on a regular basis on their I.D.E. work; and 3) helping board members assess when and how to cue the Ask.
In essence, I.D.E.A. is the same as the moves management cycle, except less complicated and easy for board members to remember. I often repeat “IDEA: I.D.E., and then A.” Hopefully this mantra is also a helpful reminder for professional fundraising staff to make sure we’re doing the right amount of discovery, engagement, and cultivation work with our own portfolios before we try landing the Ask or an upgrade.
If you orient your board members to this method now, they’ll still have a good chunk of the year to do good I.D.E. work and ideally have it bear fruit in the form of year-end (or sooner) contributions from their network.
If you give this a try, I’d love to hear about any feedback. Please write me at sunil@suniloommen.com with any feedback or questions about this approach.