The Donor Pyramid Scheme: Time to Retire Our Most Revered Fundraising Relic?
Edward Romain
Development Director MCIOF | Major Gifts & Strategic Partnerships | Available for Senior Roles
For decades, fundraisers have dutifully presented the donor pyramid in boardrooms across the sector, a PowerPoint slide as inevitable as tepid coffee and optimistic timelines. We've collectively nodded at its triangular wisdom, rather like acknowledging an aged relative's advice about 'how things were done' - polite, but increasingly irrelevant.
Modern philanthropists, much like savvy investors, tend to side-step our carefully cultivated climbing frames. They arrive at our organisations' doorsteps with fully-formed strategic visions, presumably having missed the memo about starting with a ￡5 direct debit.
The New Architecture of Giving
The reality is that high-net-worth individuals approach philanthropy with an investor's mindset, rendering our traditional models rather quaint. They're looking for strategic partnerships, not a spot on our pyramid scheme. While we've been carefully crafting donor journeys, they've been crafting impact portfolios.
From Hierarchy to Ecosystem
Modern philanthropic relationships mirror sophisticated investment partnerships:
Breaking Down the Walls
The most effective major donor strategies now cross traditional sector boundaries with the ease of a diplomat at a drinks reception. We're seeing:
Looking Forward
The future of major donor fundraising lies not in perfecting our pyramids but in building new structures entirely. Perhaps it's time to acknowledge that our beloved pyramid, like many architectural relics, belongs in a museum - admired for its historical significance but no longer fit for modern purpose.
As we bid farewell to this faithful framework, we might raise a slightly warm glass of boardroom coffee in its honour. It served us well, but its retirement is overdue.