What Did 2026 Teach Us About Major Gifts, and How Do You Use It to Plan 2027?
The most useful 2027 major gifts plan is built from what 2026 already taught you. The simplest way to capture those lessons is a two to three hour year-end debrief that reviews the year through three lenses (results, relationships, and systems), asks what worked, what didn't, and what changed around you, and then turns the patterns into three to five concrete strategy shifts. Data and AI help you see the patterns faster, but your team decides what they mean.
This is for major gift officers, development directors, executive directors, and board members at small to mid-sized nonprofits. After reading, you'll be able to run a structured year-end review, use your CRM data and AI to surface patterns, and leave your debrief with a short list of strategy shifts, each with an owner and a first step.
When we don't stop and learn on purpose, we don't get a new year. We get the same year again, with a different number on the calendar.
That's the cost of skipping reflection. And in the middle of November, with appeals going out and leadership asking for projections, skipping it is the easiest thing in the world.
On this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser, "What 2026 Taught Us About Major Gifts," I walk through how to make reflection a real part of your year-end plan.
Why does 2026 deserve a close look?
I've seen a lot of years come and go in nearly 30 years of major gifts work. This one has been worth studying.
Funding uncertainty. Many organizations saw government grants delayed or cut, which put far more pressure on individual and major gifts.
Donor caution. Some donors held their decisions longer or gave less. Others stepped up in a big way. Knowing who did what tells you who's deeply connected to your mission.
Smaller teams. Lots of gift officers carried portfolios that were too big to serve well. That's a lesson about what's sustainable.
AI everywhere. AI tools showed up in drafting, note-taking, and reporting. Some teams loved it. Some are still figuring it out.
Think of a farmer at the end of the season. She doesn't just count the harvest and go home. She walks the fields, notices which rows grew best, and makes notes for spring. Q4 reflection is walking the fields. And it needs to happen now, while memories and stories are fresh.
What are the three reflection lenses, and what questions should you ask?
I use three lenses, and the same three questions for each one: What worked? What didn't? What changed around us?
Results. Look at the numbers with curiosity, not judgment. Which gifts came in larger than expected? Which asks stalled? Where did unplanned revenue come from? One organization I worked with learned that nearly a third of their major gift revenue came from donors who weren't in anyone's portfolio.
Relationships. Look at people. Which donors moved closer, and what moved them? Who drifted, and when did you last talk with them? In my experience, most donor drift isn't about the donor losing interest. It's about us losing touch.
Systems. Look at how the work got done. Your portfolio structure, CRM, calendar, and meeting rhythms. This is the lens most teams skip, and it often holds the biggest opportunity.
How do you turn reflection into decisions for 2027?
Reflection without decisions is just nostalgia. These tools help you close the loop.
Your data. Pull three reports from your CRM: donor movement in your top 100, appeal response from mid-level and major donors, and meeting outcomes.
AI, used wisely. Paste a de-identified report into your AI assistant and ask, "What trends do you notice?" Bring what it finds to your team as questions, not answers. Keep donor names and private details out of public tools.
The "Because of this" sentence. End each lens with, "Because of this, in 2027 we will..." It's the bridge between what you learned and what you'll do.
The short list. Narrow to three to five strategy shifts. Give each one an owner and a first step.
A development director I coached held a two-hour debrief last December. His team noticed that nearly every donor who made a stretch gift had been thanked personally within 48 hours of their previous gift. They made it a rule. This fall, their renewal rate was the highest he'd seen in his time there.
Try this in the next 30 to 60 minutes
Send the invite. Put a two to three hour "2026 Debrief" on the calendar before mid-December.
Walk one lens on your own. Spend 30 quiet minutes answering the three questions for the relationships lens.
Name the biggest change. Write down the single biggest thing that changed around your organization this year. Bring it to your debrief.
Want the full framework and the facilitation flow I use with teams? [Listen to the episode]
I'd love to hear from you
Connect with me on LinkedIn and tell me the date you put on the calendar for your debrief, and the one lesson from 2026 you most want to carry forward.
You worked hard this year. Give yourself the gift of learning from it, and let 2027 be the year it all comes together.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. Who is this approach best suited for?
This approach is designed for major gift officers, development directors, and executive directors who want to build a smarter 2027 strategy from what 2026 taught them. It works especially well if you already have a basic CRM in place and a year of donor and meeting history to review.
Q2. How much time should I expect this to take each week?
Most fundraisers can get started with about one to two hours per week between now and year-end, focused on pulling reports, gathering stories, and preparing for one two to three hour team debrief. The more important piece is consistency. Protect this time on your calendar so it doesn't get swallowed by internal noise.
Q3. What if my organization is small and I wear multiple hats?
The principles still apply, but you may need to scale the tactics. Start with a lighter version you can realistically sustain, perhaps a 90-minute debrief with your executive director, a review of your top 25 donors, and two strategy shifts instead of five. Expand as you see results.
Q4. How do I know if it's working?
Look for early signals like a debrief date on the calendar, clear owners for each strategy shift, and more intentional donor meetings in January. Over time, you should see this reflected in better donor retention, larger average gifts, and fewer repeated mistakes from year to year.
Q5. Where does AI fit into this, if at all?
AI is there to reduce friction, not replace your relationships. Use it for summarizing de-identified giving trends, pulling themes from meeting notes, and drafting a clean summary of your debrief decisions. Keep the human work of listening, discernment, and relationship-building firmly in your hands.
“Data and AI help you see the patterns faster, but your team decides what they mean.”
Tammy Zonker, Major Gift Expert, Keynote Speaker, Author
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