Mighty Oaks from Little Acorns Grow

I remember presenting about women’s philanthropy at a general fundraising conference in 2012. I felt deflated after the session ended. First – there were only 20 people in the room set for 75, when other tracks had people spilling out the doors. This was an analog version of Facebook “likes” and my topic clearly wasn’t […]

Focus groups accelerate women’s giving

Why did Tufts University conduct 9 focus groups of women stakeholders this year, while Bowdoin College did 5 early this summer, Furman University did 6 last year and Elon University is about to conduct 4 this fall? They know the power of deeply listening to women’s feedback to learn what resonates with all those who […]

Significant Resources Grow from Women’s Philanthropy

I recently caught up with a well-known fundraising consultant who has been in business for three decades or more. He asked about my work with women’s philanthropy. When I mentioned the significant increase in the number of organizations wanting to learn how to grow support from women, he quickly dismissed the efforts and said: I […]

The Fifth Principle grows donations and engagement in surprising ways

In early 2006, right after an unprecedented response to Hurricane Katrina, a change in leadership, and deep budget concerns, the chair of the American Red Cross Board, Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, proposed a bold idea to begin an annual women’s giving program with an ask of $10,000 per year. This proposal was met with incredulity – how […]

The Power of
Leadership Champions

The President of a large Midwest state university recently called his Vice President of Advancement. “Tell me more about our focus on women’s philanthropy. It sure has our Board chair excited.” It turns out that the Board chair had cornered the President at a meeting and was sharing his enthusiasm about the potential of engaging […]

The Principles of Successful Women’s Philanthropy

The New York Times has called it: Women are changing the philanthropy game. They have always been givers, but now women’s influence as philanthropists is being given its rightful place in the national discourse. Thanks to extensive research from the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, and the growing volume of examples of impactful women’s philanthropy, fundraisers no […]

As Women Surge in Leadership and Philanthropy, Are They Among Your Top Fundraising Priorities?

With the election drawn to a close, it is undeniable that women were pivotal in this critical moment in our democracy. We now have the first woman, and a woman of color, for the second highest position in our country. The Ms. Foundation put together a list of historic victories for women on the local, state and national level. […]

We Won’t Raise More Money Unless We Stop Acting Like All Donors Are White Men

Worrisome trends are emerging in U.S. philanthropy. Although overall charitable giving is growing, the share of Americans who give is declining, and the incidence of giving is down in most every age group. This giving gap opened because of complex reasons, but one thing is clear: We are seeing fewer Americans give because we are applying the […]

Women Drive Philanthropy: Are You Adapting?

For the first time, the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) has investigated gender differences in giving across generations in their seventh annual report*, Women Give 2016. The results are extraordinarily clear: “Women Give 2016 finds that men’s and women’s donor behavior has changed over the past four decades, and that women now have greater influence over […]