The Why and The How: Elevating a Positive Culture of Philanthropy

The Why and The How: Elevating a Positive Culture of Philanthropy

A culture of philanthropy flourishes when all staff, volunteers, and leadership see the value and need in fundraising, know their role in this work, and eagerly engage. Putting sincere intentionality behind your "why" and "how" in deepening and maintaining this cultural shift is foundational in driving your organization's long-term success.

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Emily Gonzales

If you’ve been following Make Philanthropy Work these last few years, you know our emphasis on creating a positive culture of philanthropy across your organization and donor community. 

While this idea certainly trends in the philanthropic world, it’s important to embrace it beyond a popular phrase – a culture of philanthropy flourishes when all staff, volunteers, and leadership see the value and need in fundraising, know their role in this work, and eagerly engage. Putting sincere intentionality behind your “why” and “how” in deepening and maintaining this cultural shift is foundational in driving your organization’s long-term success.

Suppose you’re confident in your organization’s support of fundraising and your development staff. In that case, we invite you to think creatively about how you can further break down barriers in your organization with practices that inspire your culture of philanthropy to evolve alongside and in support of your mission.

The Why…

In my work across organizations of varying size and scope, I’ve found that any organization functions more smoothly (in service of their mission and goals) when silos are broken down – and promoting a positive culture of philanthropy is a fantastically effective avenue for this.

For some, this may necessitate a shift in thinking about and an emphasis on philanthropy as an avenue for donors and organizations to live their values. When everyone in your organization sees giving as beyond transactional, and even beyond reciprocal, as an opportunity for donors to do something meaningful and deepen their commitment to what is important to them, your entire team will be more motivated to foster positive donor experiences and make connections beyond what your fundraising staff can accomplish alone.

The How…

Communication & Collaboration

Your organization is likely seeing tangible benefits from a cultural shift in support of your fundraising staff and goals. The most significant recommendation we have around setting the stage for ensuring a positive culture of philanthropy remains a consistent aspiration for your organization is to incorporate this goal into your strategic plan. As your plan will be shared with your board, staff, and perhaps even key partners and investors (and even brought to the table many times over the years), this communicates far and wide that fundraising is critical to the direction and success of your work.

While your development staff are bringing your yearly fundraising goals to board, staff, and committee meetings, are they sharing what is happening in development with your organization? Sharing details of development activities, such as what relationships are blooming, what events are upcoming, and what you’re planning to fundraise for in the future, creates more transparent communication and inspires staff involvement. This also brings opportunities to celebrate staff involvement and fundraising progress, essential in the continuum of positive feedback needed to keep your staff and volunteers eagerly engaged in fundraising.

One example of collaborative success I’ve seen is a stewardship committee working closely with a membership committee in a small organization to ensure their cultivation and stewardship of donors and members (who are one and the same) are synced. Especially in organizations with diversified revenue streams, we recommend a team approach to defining donor and other individual engagement paths (and associated activities) with your organization.

Opportunities & Expectations: 

Volunteers & Staff

Creating opportunities to bring staff and volunteers into the day-to-day fundraising (and vice versa) can deepen trust and understanding of what everyone in your organization is doing and working toward. You can intentionally break down silos by ensuring that fundraising staff volunteer in programming areas, and that programming staff support or attend a fundraising event. I would recommend this to any organization looking to encourage your staff to work together, build trust beyond communication, and foster empathy.

Staff goals and annual reviews are an effective avenue to promote and assess team support for fundraising. Consider adding one fundraising aspiration to every non-fundraising staff member’s yearly goals—this could be making a connection to a prospect, joining your development team in cultivating a particular donor, or contributing an impact story for a campaign or other communications material.

Supporting non-fundraising staff and volunteers with training on big-picture fundraising goals and what to do when someone expresses an interest in giving to their organization can widen lead generation far beyond your development staff’s reach. Creating the continuous expectation and understanding that everyone is integral in identifying new donors can even bring contacts in industries and cities that your organization isn’t currently positioned to network in.

Especially for your board members (whom you likely recruited with their network connections in mind), your development staff plays a key role in encouraging them to form relationships in their communities that can result in major gifts. Within this, we recommend bringing board members into the cultivation and stewardship of these prospects and donors in an organized and meaningful way. When your board members see themselves as more than the initial connection – as a critical part of how relationships mature over time – your culture of philanthropy evolves to support deeper connections in the future from new board members, too.

Intentionality around data and databases, especially in larger organizations where information is stored across multiple platforms, is critical to building pipelines and ensuring effective communication about your donors, prospects, and those who benefit from your organization’s services over time. While this may not be the most obvious method to promote a positive culture of philanthropy, a wealth of data points around those associated with your organization can deeply serve your fundraising – emphasizing how your fundraisers depend on trustworthy and accurate information can motivate other data-responsible staff. For example, corporations (especially those that offer matching gift programs) will support their employees’ organization of choice – and if your development team knows where those who are affiliated with your organization work, this will make both identifying leads and navigating conversations with your donors all the more effective.

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Meet Lauren

Lauren Sisneros

Lauren Sisneros is the founder of LS Consultants, LLC, a consulting firm that provides strategic advising and interim management support to nonprofit and education-focused organizations. A mission-driven leader with over 20 years of experience, Lauren brings a deep commitment to advancing equity across education, workforce development, and public policy.

With a keen understanding of complex systems and a results-oriented approach, Lauren partners with organizations to develop and implement strategies that are both effective and sustainable. Through LS Consultants, she delivers hands-on guidance in program management, board and stakeholder engagement, and leadership transitions, empowering mission-aligned teams to grow, adapt, and create lasting community impact.

Lauren has collaborated with a diverse portfolio of clients, including the Prosperity Denver Fund, Contractor Academy, Education Commission of the States, and Strong Start to Finish. Her work is grounded in a strong foundation of project management, nonprofit leadership, and policy analysis.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Colorado State University–Pueblo and a Master’s in Education from Colorado State University Global. Lauren is also a proud graduate of the University of Denver’s Latino Leadership Institute, a fellowship preparing Latino professionals for positions of influence across Colorado, and the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation’s Leadership Program, an 11-month civic leadership experience.

A Colorado native born and raised in the San Luis Valley, Lauren now lives in Lakewood, Colorado. She is a proud mother of two college students and a devoted grandmother who cherishes time with her family.

Throughout her career, Lauren has remained deeply dedicated to expanding access to opportunity, especially for underserved communities. Her work continues to center on shaping systems that are inclusive, community-driven, and equity-focused.

Meet

Kyle Christensen

Kyle Christensen, M.P.A., is a program leader, facilitator, and trainer with more than 25 years of experience designing and delivering transformative learning experiences that advance leadership, civic engagement, and organizational change. He specializes in designing and evaluating leadership programs, facilitating team and organizational development, and guiding strategic planning processes that align purpose with measurable impact.

As founder of The Connected Leadership Project and consultant with Arrow Performance Group, Kyle partners with organizations such as the State of Colorado, CiviCO, and the University of Denver to design experiential leadership programs that build resilience, connection, and innovation. He also serves as program director for Leadership Veteran, an 8-month leadership initiative advancing the skills of professionals serving veteran communities.

Previously, Kyle directed Colorado State University Douglas County Extension, where he launched Colorado’s first Juntos 4-H program to expand pathways to higher education for Latinx youth and families. He also led the Family Leadership Training Institute of Colorado and has worked with institutions such as Peace Corps (Moldova), NYU Steinhardt, Centrul Educatia 2000+ (Romania), and the Council for Economic Education.

Kyle’s facilitation expertise is rooted in adult learning theory and supported by credentials such as Emergenetics, Strategic Doing, and Technology of Participation. He has led statewide and national trainings, peer learning cohorts, needs assessment processes, and community-centered planning efforts across government, nonprofit, and education sectors.

He holds an M.P.A. from New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service and a graduate certificate in Learning and Development from the University of Denver’s College of Professional Studies.

Kyle believes that the workplace should focus on continuous learning and growth, inclusive engagement, and creating a sense of belonging. “Why wouldn’t we hope for work environments that align with our values and our professional and personal growth aspirations?” He brings curiosity, compassion, and clarity to every engagement, and is most inspired when people find their voice, connect with others, and lead boldly in collective service.

Meet

Jason Pemberton

Jason Pemberton is a multi-award winning facilitator, coach, independent executive board director, and strategist based in Denver, Colorado. Born in USA and raised in New Zealand, his entire career has been dedicated to Not-for-Profit and purpose-led organizations striving for high impact.

A series of catastrophic earthquakes in his home city of Christchurch, New Zealand, launched him into several years of disaster response, which, in turn, launched him into international consulting practice. He has worked in more than a dozen countries supporting companies, networks, and communities navigate through unexpected terrain for mutual benefit.

As a strategist and coach, he is pragmatic, direct, and clear, bringing his sharp mind and depth of thought to the fore whilst supporting groups to identify their own priorities and take charge of their future. His deep governance experience, coupled with professional training in positive psychology and related coaching accreditations, makes him highly effective at supporting teams of leaders and governors to find successful paths forward.

His time now is invested in supporting governance boards and senior leaders to succeed, and coaching technical experts and engineers on how to be skilled leaders of people.