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[Anonymous]

RE: changing directions in mid-stream

I have been in development for over five years. I started out as the development officer for a small private nonprofit group (grants, fund-raising events, membership, and public relations), then worked several years in development research for a larger organization. I moved a couple of years ago to a new area, hoping to break into major gifts work, and obtained a position, the scope of which has changed since I was hired. I am now responsible for some fund raising and some development-services work. Recently, the organization has been pushing me more toward development services, which I had hoped to leave behind when I left my last job. (And this is happening before I’ve had a chance to test my skills in soliciting major gifts).  It’s clear I have some of the skills desperately needed in the development services area, but I do not enjoy it.  

Any thoughts from this group on how to best approach my boss about this issue?  I realize I got where I am by being “very agreeable” (it all seemed like an OK idea at the time -– saw the need, recognized my skills can address some of the issues), but I’m feeling significant burnout at this point, don’t like that aspect of my job, feel less willing to merely go “where needed,” and would like to move in a direction that has more potential for me in the long term.  

I guess my concerns are 1) not to seem like a quitter (these projects are in early stages, and there are some significant organizational changes on the horizon), and 2) not to go too far down a path that has very real potential to make me miserable.  Also, I still would like to serve within this organization, as I’m in a small community and my spouse’s job is here. (Might consider more drastic/geographic changes later).

Thoughts? I'm seeking some constructive ideas before I discuss with my boss.

[Sympathetic]

This is long, but it could be worth it.

If you want to stay at your current organization, there is an option that you might try. This is based on something my own director did when she seemed to hit a brick wall with our new president (her supervisor). She wanted to get more into the major gifts. This is what happened.

She knew of a potential donor who had shown interest in our insititution, but who had had some less-than-spectacular interaction with the old president. She was unsure about the new guy in charge and had been burned. She also had repeatedly asked about receiving the documentation of her giving history (which was quite complex and would require some digging in the archives which no one had wanted to do). In essense, the former upper managment had abandoned this potential giver.

What my supervisor did was meet with her and develop a strong relationship with her, ask her what she wanted, what her concerns were and, on her own, did the whole research and documentation task. My boss presented the information to her and a sample document of what our institution could do. The donor was thrilled. Once they had worked up a sample document of what she wanted to do, my boss briefed the new president and brought the donor and the president together for a meeting. The donor made it very clear that she loved working with my boss (and wanted to continue to do so), wanted to make a big gift, and applauded her efforts going the extra mile to make her happy. Our president was thrilled after the fact, and has since let her make some serious inroads in major-gift work.

I asked my boss why the president initally hadn't seemed supportive of her desire to dig into another element of development (major gifts). She said that maybe some of some of the problem may be that he (the president) doesn't know how to mentor or "teach" and didn't know what to do about addressing her professional interests. That left her with one choice, doing it on her own to prove she could do it. Once she had proved her mettle, she would know if she needed to stay at the institution or move on.

Hope this story helps. It's true and it worked. She's still here, so is our donor, and so is our happy president.

All the best.