Your fundraising team is divided on strategy. How do you unite them towards a common goal?

Assessing the differing views within your fundraising team is critical to unifying them toward a common goal. Begin by fostering an open dialogue where each team member can share their perspective on the various strategies being considered. The focus should be on active listening—understanding the rationale, motivations, and concerns behind each preferred approach without turning the discussion into a debate. By thoroughly exploring these viewpoints, you can identify common ground or shared goals that might not have been apparent initially. This understanding will form the basis for developing a cohesive strategy that incorporates the best elements of each perspective, ultimately aligning the team and moving forward with a unified purpose.

To assess differing views, organize an in-person meeting where team members can openly air out their concerns and perspectives. It’s crucial for the leader to create an environment that fosters open and respectful dialogue. Face-to-face meetings enable direct engagement, which is far more effective than virtual communication. In my experience, virtual meetings often fall short in resolving conflicts due to the loss of nonverbal cues and the tendency for some people to withhold their thoughts. Leading fundraising teams and working with higher-ups, I’ve found reflective listening especially valuable in cases of deep division. This approach makes team members articulate each other’s viewpoints, fostering understanding, empathy, and clarity.

Think through areas of aligned thoughts in the fundraising objective and resource availability. Since strategy is based on objective and resource availability, this should help unify the team.

In aligning divergent strategies, focus on the underlying mindset driving innovation. By identifying shared aspirations, like a commitment to breakthrough thinking or a collective ambition to challenge the status quo, you can build bridges. Start with visionary goals that appeal to everyone’s belief in achieving what seems impossible. Engage in exercises that emphasize idealistic solutions, as they often lead to innovative compromises that integrate diverse perspectives while staying true to the team's long-term vision.

If we approach this from a basic 3 tier team structure (CDO->Directors->Associates) I would expect each Director to have specific strategies to accomplish their respective goal which rolls up to the overall department goal. At the CDO level, they are responsible for developing the holistic strategy of how it all works together to accomplish the overarching goals. Collaboration between them is key to ensure their efforts complement and support achieving their goals. The role of the CDO in this instance is to serve as coach and give each Director the information, tools and support needed to be successful. Reinforcing how each Director complements each other and achieving the overall goal will encourage collaboration and empowerment.