News and Resources
Incorporating Analytics: Make Sure Your Bracket Doesn't Bust Next Year
Now that every 2017 NCAA Tournament bracket is officially busted, is it time to start planning for your 2018 bracket? Check out how industry experts are incorporating analytics into their picks.
Working with Data in R – Part I: Basics
What is R? R is an extremely powerful statistical & data analysis tool that can help you do your work more efficiently, enable you to perform advanced analyses for a large number of applications, and the new skills will impress your boss and colleagues! R is...
21st Century Cures Act: Opportunities to Leverage Philanthropy
If you represent a large academic medical center, medical college, or an institution with a deep medical research enterprise, the recently announced 21st Century Cures Act could offer you positive philanthropic positioning. Passed by overwhelming bipartisan support,...
Colleges and Universities Raise $41 Billion in 2016
Gifts to higher education reached $41 billion in fiscal year 2016, according to the latest Voluntary Support of Education (VSE) survey. This is only a 1.7 percent increase from the $40.3 billion in 2015, and almost no growth when adjusted for inflation. Harvard...
Socializing Data: Making Sure the Right Data is in Front of the Right Person
Interested in data socialization? Review this article discussing how data socialization is an attempt to tackle the ongoing process of making sure the right data is in front of the right person at the right time.
Introducing the Impact Maturity Model for Fundraising
Great fundraising places are data-driven and develop new approaches, but what sets them apart may be simpler than you think. In this month's Points of Practice, author Josh Birkholz reveals one of the key distinguishing characteristics of high-performing fundraising...
3 Questions for Understanding Fundraising Success
Proper investment in a philanthropy office is vital to success. With that investment comes increased questions, such as “What will success look like?” These questions come from the C-suite as well as the board. Being able to properly answer the “success” questions...
How Social Media Accelerates Fundraising through Digital Relationship Building
In this month's Points of Practice, read how digital and social technologies can help take your organization to the next level and allow you to share your mission in ways that are beyond past generations’ wildest imaginations. Where past generations influenced their...
Articles about ICO, GDPR, and, Data Laws in 2017
Review articles about the Fundraising and Regulatory Compliance Conference, EU-U.S. Privacy Shield on Health-Care Data Transfers and GDPR Guidance.
Performance Reviews: Increasing ROI
Several organizations have made headlines recently with the announcement that they are doing away with annual performance reviews and are using alternative strategies to evaluate performance. But the jury is still out on whether their alternative strategies will...
Using Social Media to Find Planned Gifts
It is becoming increasingly clear that social media can be a tremendous tool for annual giving shops seeking to engage donors. While annual giving has found value in social media, where does planned or major giving stand? Is there value waiting to be tapped? I believe...
The Forbes Nonprofit Council shares 5 ways to maximize your data insights
BWF's 7th annual survey of the fundraising analytics community found that the role of data analytics in fundraising is evolving. Successful shops are investing in more sophisticated tools and methodologies, and leadership is a growing consumer of data-driven insights....
Philanthropy Trends: A Look Back on 2016 and Towards 2017
2016 was a year of major world events from the U.S. presidential election to Brexit to the spread of the Zika virus to the Chicago Cubs winning the World Series! The world of philanthropy and fundraising was not without its own notable activities, trends, and events...
Can Machine Learning Crack This 4,000-Year-Old Mystery?
Be sure to check out this fascinating article about some cutting edge machine learning being used to decode the language used by the 4,000-year-old Indus Valley Civilization! For more than a century, thousands of examples of Indus "seals" - small tablets with a few...
Engaging High Net Worth Individuals and Families
Major Findings from the 2016 Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy In October, US Trust in partnership with the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy released the 2016 Study of High Net Worth Philanthropy. This report gives us insights into high net...