Is fund raising like "selling" a product?

Two veteran fund raisers are discussing this question, saying that the answer will help shape the mindset of how to ask for donations.

Jennifer McCrea, a senior research fellow at Harvard University's Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations, writes on her Exponential Fundraising blog that seeking money for charity should not be seen as selling because it diminishes the process.

"Selling implies that money is the most important part of the relationship. When money is at the center of the relationship, it distracts us from our mission because we are worried that we won’t have enough or that we’ll make a mistake," she writes. "It sets up a false power dynamic that requires that we talk shell-to-shell."

Sasha Dichter isn't quite so sure.

On his personal blog, the director of business development for the Acumen Fund, agrees that fund raising...

Arts organizations, educational groups, and other charities that seek grants from the Ford Foundation take note: The philanthropy has hired a new person to oversee a significant portion of its grant making.

Darren Walker, who now works at the Rockefeller Foundation, will be joining Ford as vice president of its "education, creativity, and free expression" grant making.  That means he oversees three of Ford's nine major grant-making programs, including those that support cultural institutions, reproductive health, education causes, and scholarships.

According to Ford, Mr. Walker will guide more than $150-million in grants. The Ford Foundation, with $10.5-billion in assets as of December 31, is the nation's second largest foundation.

Mr. Walker joined Rockefeller in 2002 and led its efforts to help impoverished neighborhoods. When Judith Rodin became the foundation's president in 2005, ...

In philanthropy as in business, supporting the right people is more important than all other factors, according to the billionaire financier Warren E. Buffett.

During a panel discussion last week on antipoverty work in New Orleans, one of the world’s most generous philanthropists was asked how he picks the charitable efforts he gives to.

“When I buy businesses, it’s the same as investing in philanthropy. I’m looking for somebody who will get the job done and is in synch with my goals,” he told the gathering of about 100 nonprofit leaders. “You can have the greatest goals in the world, but if you have the wrong people running it, it isn’t going to work. On the other hand, if you’ve got the right person running it, almost anything is possible.”

He said fund raisers should seek out donors who already have shown an interest in a specific cause.

“There are an unlimited...

President Obama today encouraged corporate executives and the companies they run to continue their philanthropic giving.

"Today's challenges demand solutions that come not only from government, but also from entrepreneurs and business leaders around the world," said Mr. Obama in a letter to the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy. "Through their skills, ingenuity, financial support, and dedication, corporate philanthropists and their employees have answered the call to serve, giving back in meaningful ways that help those in need."

The president sent the short letter to mark International Corporate Philanthropy Day, which is meant to promote giving by businesses. As part of the day's events, the committee is gathering 50 chief executives from big companies, including Alcoa and General Mills, to discuss the future of corporate philanthropy. The committee has been conducting an ...

New research shows the public’s dislike for door-to-door charitable appeals.

The New York Times Freakonomics blog looks at a recent study in which a flyer was dropped off at the houses of potential donors. The flyer announced the date and time when a fund raiser would stop by, giving people an opportunity to ignore the solicitor when they arrived.

Stephen J. Dubner, co-author of the book Freakonomics, writes that the experiment “enables the researchers to measure the degree to which altruism is affected by social pressure.”

Perhaps to no surprise, the flyers led to a decline in the number of households answering their doors.

Mr. Dubner jokingly speculates that such research could lead to a “do-not-knock” registry like the do-not-call list for business telephone solicitors.

The research was led by John A. List, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago. Mr. List...

Bank of America is trimming its employee matching-gift program, a move other companies have made during the economic downturn.

According to the Charlotte Business Journal, the financial-services corporation will no longer match the donations made by former employees who retired from the company. The Journal said the bank matched up to $5,000 in gifts made by its retirees.

A spokeswoman told the newspaper that the decision was prompted by the bad economy and the fact the large company has a growing number of employees.

A Chronicle survey in July found that other companies have made similar moves. Ten businesses reported that they reduced or cut their employee matching-gift program.

Some corporate-giving experts have said companies are likely to trim matching gifts in the future, though they expect such programs to continue because they are important to employee morale. ...

Thanks to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, American foundation support for HIV/AIDS-related causes grew 11 percent last year, to $618-million, says a new report.

But when the Gates organization is excluded, foundation giving actually declined 3 percent compared to 2007, said Funders Concerned About AIDS, a coalition of grant makers in New York.

In a new report, the coalition is urging foundations to step up their support for HIV/AIDS vaccine research, prevention, and other projects, saying the economic downturn threatens to erode recent gains in fighting the pandemic.

According to a survey of 79 foundations, 42 percent say they expect their AIDS giving to decline in 2008, 38 percent say it will remain steady, and 15 percent expect it to increase.

For the second time, Funders Concerned About AIDS issued its annual study of foundation giving on the same day as its European ...

A new report offers a decidedly mixed picture of corporate philanthropy.

It says a majority of companies increased their giving in 2008, but overall the total amount of corporate giving dropped that year.

The report says 53 percent of the 102 large companies surveyed expanded their philanthropy despite the bad economy, while the rest decreased their charitable contributions. The growth was primarily in donations of products, services, and other noncash donations.

“These findings demonstrate that supporting community partners remained a top priority in 2008 despite the hurdles imposed by tight credit markets, a reduction in consumer spending, and widespread economic uncertainty,” says the report, which was produced by the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, a research group in New York.

However, it seems the increases did not outpace the decline in giving. Since 20...

With today’s news that the unemployment rate has breached 10 percent, most Americans, including nonprofit workers, are probably thankful they have a job.

But CNN is calling one charity position — fund raiser — one of the worst jobs in the country.

On a list of 15 jobs that pay poorly and are stressful, fund raiser is No. 7, not too far from parole officer and high-school teacher. “No matter the cause, asking people to part with their money is not easy. And it doesn’t just happen at cocktail parties,” says the cable news channel on its Web site.

Using a survey of 36,000 people by Payscale.com, CNN says the median pay for a fund raiser is $42,700 and 67 percent of fund raisers polled said their work is stressful.

Fund raiser isn’t the only nonprofit job listed. In fact, it seems CNN went out of its way to mention work that is often performed by charities. They include: assisted...

It seems some needy Indonesians will be wearing Philadelphia Phillies T-shirts in the months ahead.

After each World Series, Major League Baseball is left with merchandise that is unusable because it touts the losing team as world champions. (Like other sports organizations, the league produces apparel before the outcome of the championship games.)

To make sure the hats and other items don’t go to waste, Major League Baseball donates them to World Vision, an international antipoverty group in Federal Way, Wash.

On its Web site, World Vision says the discarded Phillies apparel will go to children and families in Indonesia who are recovering from the earthquake that hit in September.

The clothing is in addition to the 1,300 pieces of Los Angeles Angels’ and Los Angeles Dodgers’ apparel that World Vision received when those teams lost the American League and National League...