When I was your age, I had to walk uphill 20 miles to school…both ways! Said my grandpa anytime I complained. I’ve told my 9-year-old daughter, When I was your age, our phones were tethered to the wall with curly little wires. I’ve also been known to utter similar statements as an Advancement Services longtimer: When I started as a prospect researcher, I walked to the campus library and used microfilm. Ah – I loved the whirring sound just to look for the hard-to-find article or obituary.
With technology comes a change to philanthropy
When we reflect on the biggest changes in the Advancement Services field, consider the effects of the technological evolution on philanthropy. I arrived in Advancement Services in the late 1990s, right about when Google made its debut. Since then, the field of Advancement Services has expanded and transformed as a result of the tech evolution.
Tech evolution timeline
Some key moments over time.
- 1989: WWW begins at CERN
- The 1990s
- Online payments framework was established
- Amazon was founded
- Google Search was launched
- Blackbaud initiated online giving
- The 2000s
- The advent of email fundraising
- LinkedIn, Facebook & Twitter founded
- 1st iPhone and Android were released
- The average online gift amount was $145
- The 2010s
- Instagram was founded
- Crowdfunding started
- The first national day of giving was launched
- 2020+
- 21% increase to online giving in 2020, average online gift amount was $177
- 28% of online transactions were made using a mobile device, compared to 9% in 2014
Enter “the contemporary Advancement Services organization”
Since the 2000s, the impact of tech on philanthropy has been apparent. So, Advancement Services had to change the way we worked and how we worked. As a result, its structure changed too. Over time, Advancement Services embraced a technology and data mindset. Today this mindset revolves around four core philosophies:
- stable, reliable data managed by records management professionals;
- systems and technology resources to manage, report out on, and analyze the data;
- gift services professionals to record donations, and data integrity exerts to assure quality; and
- insightful business intelligence professionals to help end-users move to action with data and reports.
What it looks like
My 2020 study of Advancement Services organizations showed that the contemporary Advancement Services model not only aims to meet the core business needs of the advancement organization, but it also does this by focusing on removing silos and upgrading skills across areas. It builds cross-functional teams rather than singularly focused experts. The result is the contemporary Advancement Services organization structured like this:
- technology services, business intelligence, digital reporting
- data entry and data integrity
- prospect research and prospect management
- gift processing
- analytics
- talent management/HR, operations, finance, contracts
The continued evolution
I recently surveyed 12 institutions that indicated large-scale Advancement-wide technology projects are planned for the upcoming year. Several institutions shared that they are allowing a large percentage of their staff to remain remote. The Advancement Services organization needs to continue to work differently, consider new modes of work, and deliver at the highest standards of excellence.
Two big things are on the horizon for Advancement Services, and we’ll need investment in talent management programming along the way.
- Team structure, workflow, and project management: Efficient and effective project management and effective communication channels are crucial for complex organizations. Seamless workflow and cohesive cross-functional, strong teams are a must.
- Working remotely: What does this look like going forward for Advancement Services? Many organizations have decided to allow a large percentage of their teams to remain working remotely. Remote working must be an intentional decision, especially when success includes cross-functional teams and large-scale project implementation.
I’ve worked in Advancement Services for over 20 years, but those years would mean nothing if I didn’t change with the times. I can’t wait for what’s next.
By Maureen Procopio
Senior Director, Campaign Strategy and Institutional Benchmarking
University of Oregon Advancement
541-346-2061