Moving From Data Results to a Strategic Roadmap
Most advancement teams do not suffer from a lack of data; they struggle with lack of clarity about what the data means and what to do next. BWF developed Engage Dx to bridge that “insights gap” by aligning who people are and what they do with how they think and feel. On its own, a well-designed engagement survey can surface powerful insights about how constituents feel, what motivates them, and where their connection to an institution is strong or fragile. But surveys do not change behaviors, impactful strategy can. And people need context, interpretation, and support to translate insight into action.
Engage Dx was built to answer questions that go deeper than satisfaction. It connects emotional drivers like pride, passion, and awareness to actual philanthropic behavior. It shows how engagement evolves into giving, how misalignment can stall loyalty, and how increased connection can unlock growth. The data is precise, predictive, and actionable. But the real impact happens when those insights are put into motion through thoughtful, sustained counsel. We see this most clearly when Engage Dx is not treated as a one-time exercise, but rather as a strategic tool embedded into how a team thinks, prioritizes, and operates.
Influencing Philanthropic Behavior: Three Institutions that Turned Data Insights into Action
Below we spotlight three institutions—Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Tufts University School of Medicine, and Western Washington University—that utilized both Engage Dx and strategic counsel. One created a roadmap to strengthen engagement so as to increase gift capacity, another embraced engagement as a means of cultivation, not simply measurement, and the third is using ongoing survey findings to inform major and principal gift cultivation strategies and refine marketing approaches for everyday donors. All three have realized positives outcomes for this approach.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
At Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), Engage Dx engagements revealed something both encouraging and challenging. There were significant pockets of wealthy alumni who reported being engaged or very engaged with the university, yet their giving did not reflect that level of connection. The data showed that the difference between someone who felt somewhat engaged versus very engaged translated into a six-figure difference in lifetime giving. That is not an abstract insight. That is the start of a roadmap.
BWF counsel partnered with WPI to isolate the group that sat just below the highest engagement tier. These were alumni who already cared deeply but had not yet crossed a psychological threshold. Together, we aligned marketing, stewardship, and frontline outreach around a single goal: move those individuals closer to the institution in tangible, personal ways. The result was not simply better messaging. It was sharper focus, clearer priorities, and a shared understanding of where effort would produce the greatest return.
Tufts University School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine approached Engage Dx from a different starting point. Like many schools, they knew who was giving but not why. They had even less insight into alumni who were not giving at all. Rebecca Scott, senior director of Development and Alumni Relations, wanted to move beyond transactional metrics and understand motivation, connection, and change over time.
By committing to biannual Engage Dx analysis over a three-year period, Tufts created both a baseline and a feedback loop. The survey data provided a new lens on donor behavior, but it was the ongoing counsel that helped the team interpret trends, ask better questions, and adjust strategy between survey cycles. As Scott noted, the goal was not just to understand giving, but to understand engagement and influence it deliberately. The combination of data and counsel allowed Tufts to see engagement as something that could be cultivated, not simply measured.
Western Washington University
At Western Washington University, the work is still unfolding, which is often where counsel matters most. Engage Dx has provided clear insight into how different segments of the constituency connect with the institution. Pairing that insight with ongoing counsel from BWF has ensured that data do not sit on a shelf. Instead, the findings are actively shaping major and principal gift cultivation strategies while also refining marketing approaches for everyday donors. The same data set is being used in different ways, guided by a shared strategic framework and regular conversation.
Insight is Intelligence. Counsel is Action. Together, a Dynamic Duo.
This is the distinction we care most about. Engage Dx delivers actionable intelligence, while counsel delivers movement. Counsel is not about telling clients what the data says; it is about helping teams decide what matters most, what to do first, and how to stay disciplined when competing priorities inevitably emerge. It is a sounding board, a translator, and a catalyst. It allows teams to test assumptions, adjust tactics, and maintain momentum long after the survey results are presented.
When engagement data are paired with sustained counsel, institutions build more than reports. They build confidence. They develop shared language across advancement functions. They learn how to use engagement as a leading indicator, not a lagging one. And over time, they create a culture that treats insight as a starting point rather than an endpoint.
In a sector where relationships drive results, the work does not end with understanding how people feel. It begins there. The real opportunity lies in what we do next, together.
Connect with the BWF team to discuss your fundraising and donor engagement data goals.
