You're facing conflicting fundraising strategies with board members. How do you choose the best approach?

When facing conflicting fundraising strategies with board members, the best approach is to start by fostering open communication. Gather input from all stakeholders, ensuring everyone's concerns and ideas are heard. Evaluate the pros and cons of each strategy based on key metrics like potential return, alignment with organizational goals, donor engagement, and long-term sustainability. Consider data-driven insights, and if needed, seek external expert advice to mediate. Ultimately, choose a solution that best serves your mission and fosters unity within the board. If you have any additional thoughts or contributions, please reply to this comment. I always appreciate and look forward to hearing more from you. Thank you!

Assessing needs helps clarify the specific goals, challenges, and opportunities your organization faces, guiding you toward the most effective fundraising strategy. By understanding your organization's financial requirements, program priorities, and donor base, you can tailor your approach to align with what is most urgent and impactful. This clarity allows you to make data-driven decisions that maximize resources and target the right audiences. It also fosters buy-in from board members by grounding discussions in concrete facts and shared objectives, helping to build consensus on a strategy that best addresses your organization’s unique needs.

Prepare the Pros and Cons sheet. Evaluation can be done through discussions with the Board. Remove conflicts through conversations on the Pros and Cons, and the evaluation done.

You always want to tap the time, talent and treasure of board members. That’s what they’re there for. So, listen to their advice on fundraising strategy closely and probe for deeper understanding. Bring together the board members with conflicting views for a private and respectful meeting. Search for common ground and opportunities for consensus. Fortunately, there is an abundance of research, data and case studies to guide us to make the best possible fundraising decisions. Day-to-day operations are strictly in the hands of management. So, after listening closely to the board members involved, and viewing the issues through the lens of best practices, it is up to management to decide what is in the best interest of the non-profit.

Not all members of the board possess a comprehensive understanding of fundraising-related issues. A majority of the members seek guidance from their peers in the formulation of their viewpoints. It is imperative to establish a connection between the implications of funding and various other departments, such as sales, production, quality assurance, among others. This ensures that each board member can comprehend and endorse the decisions.

Pre-definir los criterios de selección, antes de discutir alternativas contradictorias, es determinante de la objetividad para escogerlas. Tal pre-definición de criterios aclara profundamente el camino para decidir. De otra parte, una sesión de Junta Directiva no es victoriosa porque se imponga una posición u otra, ya sea de la Junta o de la Administración, sino porque construye opciones y adhiere a todos a una posición. Para ello, lo primero es que cada miembro se arriesgue a escuchar las opciones contradictorias, antes que defender una en particular. Y debe ser finalmente consciente de si su inclinación por una u otra opción está derivada de un sesgo personal, para que así reconsidere la contradicción afrontada.

Consensus is often easier to achieve in situations where there is little or no friction. When everyone is aligned in their goals, values, or understanding, it’s easier to reach agreements. The key is to manage friction constructively so it doesn't prevent consensus but instead enriches the decision-making process.

Begin by understanding the reasons behind the differing opinions. Speak individually with board members to gain insights into their concerns, priorities, and preferred approaches. This shows you respect their viewpoints and are open to dialogue. Focus on common goals, such as the organization’s mission, financial health, or long-term sustainability. Reframe the discussion around these shared objectives to help everyone see that they are on the same team, even if they have different ideas about how to achieve those goals. Organize a meeting to openly discuss the various strategies, ensuring each board member has the opportunity to voice their opinions. Encourage respectful debate and active listening, and try to find areas of agreement.

Choosing the best approach requires balancing different perspectives and aligning everyone toward a shared goal. Building consensus can help by fostering open communication, ensuring that all voices are heard, and leveraging the diverse expertise of board members to find common ground. This process helps identify a strategy that considers the organization's needs, donor preferences, and market trends. Consensus-building also strengthens board cohesion and commitment, creating a united front that’s more effective in driving fundraising efforts. When everyone is aligned and supportive of the chosen strategy, there is greater trust, accountability, and motivation to achieve the desired outcomes.

Ir contando a los miembros de la junta los logros en función de los KPIs por los que se ha optado es clave. Especialmente relevante contarlo a los que han cambiado de opinión con respecto a su idea inicial de estrategia. Si -por causalidad- el resultado fuera negativo, aceptar el error.

Na minha experiência com conselhos consultivos, é natural que apare?am obje??es e contradi??es, nestes casos, é importante alinhar as expectativas e os papéis de cada stakeholder. A capta??o atende uma tese de negócio, uma estratégia da empresa, ent?o é crucial afastar vieses pessoais e que todos estejam conectados no objetivo do negócio. Mas também todos precisam estar confortáveis com as informa??es e os dados que s?o apresentados para sustentar a capta??o, e a melhor abordagem neste caso será sempre trazer todos para a mesa e tratar do dilema em conjunto. Ouvir a todos, ancorar nos objetivos estratégicos e sair com uma nova decis?o que atenda os combinados e objetivos do negócio.