8:00-9:00 a.m. Breakfast and Networking
Continental breakfast and networking in the Sponsor Lounge.
9:00-10:15 a.m. Breakout Sessions
DIY Your Digital Engagement Program
Michelle Poesy, Tessa Haden and Leslie Fitzpatrick, UC Davis
Auditorium Room
In today’s evolving philanthropic landscape, digital engagement officers are proving to be indispensable in enhancing fundraising strategies and cultivating robust donor pipelines. This session explores how digital tools—such as video, texting, email, virtual meetings, and even traditional phone calls—can transform donor interactions and drive substantial results. Gain insights from a successful program that developed a digital engagement strategy from the ground up, now generating over $1M annually. Learn actionable tips for streamlining your digital outreach efforts, discover valuable resources, and receive practical samples to implement in your own organization. Benefit from the experiences of seasoned development officers who have navigated this digital frontier, and leave equipped with the knowledge to elevate your donor engagement and fundraising success.
Evaluating Your Workplace Giving Practices to Grow Your Fundraising
Colleen Carroll, Double the Donation
Mountain Vista Room
Are you fully leveraging the potential of workplace giving to enhance your fundraising efforts? Between matching gifts, payroll giving, and volunteer-based initiatives, there is a huge opportunity to drive donations through this channel. Whether it’s been a while since you’ve revisited your strategy or you’re seeking actionable steps after a recent evaluation, our upcoming workshop is designed for you. Join us for an immersive session where we’ll delve into the myriad of workplace giving strategies available to grow your institution’s fundraising. This workshop will guide you through a comprehensive review of your current practices and help you address any gaps that might be hindering your success.
From Nice-to-Have to Must-Have:
How to Know When It’s Time for a CRM Change
Caroline Chang, Kindsight
Valley Vista Room
Are your current systems helping you hit your goals, or are they holding you back?It can be hard to stop and answer that question while juggling campaigns, data governance, reporting, and all the other challenges your team faces every day. But taking a step back and asking “Is it time?” could be the best decision you’ll make all year. In this session, Caroline Chang, Kindsight’s VP of Product Evangelism, will lead a conversation with advancement leaders who have taken that leap into technology transformation, and have stories to tell. You’ll walk away with practical tips for taking those first crucial steps in auditing your tech stack, exploring your options, and getting the whole team on board.
Prospect Development – Herding Moves Management Cattle (& Keeping Track of Them)
Eddie Padilla, Cal State LA
Campus Vista Room
Fundraisers have much to do, and updating the database with data isn’t at the top of their list! From entering contact reports to updating prospects’ statuses, classifications, and proposals. Help them help you keep track of their performance and needs! Join this session to dig in on ways Cal State LA addresses the urgency of keeping good fundraising data in the donor database to produce accurate reports and pipeline projections using dashboards. From the dashboards, fundraisers can see how they are performing, what data may be missing or inaccurate from their portfolio and pipeline of gifts, and where they are not aligned in the moves management process.
10:30-11:45 p.m. Breakout Sessions
When “Yes or No” Answers Aren’t So Simple – An Ethics in Advancement Forum
Bob Burdenski and John Taylor
Auditorium Room
Fundraisers can often find themselves in tricky (and murky) situations. What if a casino business wants to support your organization? What if a donor wants an explanation of your “prospect research?” What if a prospect in your portfolio takes a little too much of a liking to you? Or picks up your dinner check? Or leaves you something in their will, but not your institution? What about the fundraiser who switches organizations, and takes donors with them? Or even what about those frequent flier miles you collect from your business trips? Join a discussion about the many ethical considerations in our work, and some (usually) effective ways to manage the murky in fundraising ethics.
Segments of One: The Art of Personalized Communication
Kristine Barker, La Sierra University and TBA, Evertrue
Mountain Vista Room
Picture this: Donor communication as personal as a living room conversation. Pieces whose stories resonate, convey a genuine thank you, congratulate milestones, and ultimately increase giving. Join our presenters as they show you how you can treat your donors as “Segments of One”.
Preparing for a CRM Conversion: Large or Small, We All Feel the Same Pain!
Jeff Callaghan, UC Berkeley and Natalie Greenhouse, Occidental College
Whether you’re a small hospital, a large university, or somewhere in between, the challenges of CRM conversions are universal. Transitioning from outdated legacy systems to modern CRMs brings unique pressures to public, private, and independent institutions. While the process may seem daunting, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. This session will uncover common pain points of system transitions and demonstrate how leveraging guiding principles, bold decision-making, and project management best practices can turn a complex conversion into a seamless transformation. Discover practical strategies to align your team, overcome obstacles, and approach your CRM journey with confidence and clarity. Let’s reimagine this challenge as a bold step forward for your institution!
12:00-12:30 p.m. Closing Session
Closing Session – Minds Met: Favorite Take-Aways, Moments of Inspiration and Predictions
Bob Burdenski and John Taylor
Auditorium Room
Before we head out for our In-N-Out double-doubles, we’ll award sponsor bingo prizes and reflect on the most important take-aways we’ve heard over the past three days at the 2025 Meeting of the Minds. Join us with your own closing thoughts and your favorite “a-ha!” moments from the conference.