Problem-Solving Meetings Elevate Fundraisers’ Skills

At the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco, no fundraiser goes it alone.

“We take the model of a team very seriously,” says Julie Rickert, the charity’s vice president of development.

She meets every week one on one with each of the seven people in her department. At weekly staff meetings, fundraisers are encouraged to report on their own progress in securing gifts and to air any challenges they’re facing.

“When you feel like you have no support, it’s easy to feel frustrated and overwhelmed,” says Ms. Rickert. “But we’re here to help each other out. When there’s a problem, we work together to solve it.”

The strategy seems to be working: Since Ms. Rickert joined the charity four years ago, her department hasn’t lost a single staff member.

Building Skills

The weekly staff meetings are an opportunity not only for group problem-solving but also for building knowledge and skills together. Each meeting features in-depth discussion of a different fundraising topic—staff members might share an article or talk about a trend emerging in the field.

Fundraisers also take regular field trips to the charity’s nine Bay Area clubhouses, something that helps them feel connected to the organization and its mission.

The group even works from a single shared electronic calendar, ensuring that the group’s fundraising efforts, which collectively bring in $3-million annually in individual and corporate gifts, are run like a collaborative project, with individual deadlines adding up to common goals.

Recognizing shared and individual accomplishments is another essential ingredient to keeping the nonprofit’s workers happy and engaged, says Ms. Rickert.

“When we exceed our goal as a group we celebrate, and when an individual does a good job we highlight that too,” she says. “Everyone needs to feel appreciated.”

Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco

Turnover rate in 2012: 0 percent

Key strategy: Working as a team