This is for major gift officers, development directors, and executive directors who want to honor generous donors without absorbing behavior that crosses a line. By the end of this episode, you'll understand the power dynamics that show up in major gift work, you'll know the red flags that a relationship has drifted out of balance, and you'll have language you can use this week to reset expectations while protecting everyone's dignity.

This article is for major gift officers, development directors, and executive directors who want a practical way to bring the right internal partners into their biggest donor relationships. After reading, you will know why this kind of collaboration matters more in 2026 than it used to, exactly who belongs at your table and why, and how to run a coalition meeting that produces real next steps instead of another calendar entry.

This is for development directors, major gift officers, executive directors, and event volunteers who want their donor events to build real relationships without draining the team. By the end of this post, you'll understand why donors increasingly value depth over spectacle, you'll have the 3P framework for designing your next gathering, and you'll know what a real follow-up system looks like once the event ends.

This is for major gift officers, development directors, executive directors, and small teams who want more hours for donor relationships without adding more hours to the week. By the end of this episode, you'll know the three categories of work that are safe to delegate to AI and automation, two workflows you can pilot this week, and the guardrails that keep any of it from feeling impersonal to a donor.

Today we're talking about inclusive major gift fundraising. Not as a campaign theme. Not as a single event with a diverse photo lineup. As a daily discipline that shapes how you build relationships with every donor, especially the donors whose culture, identity, or lived experience differs from your own.

Today's episode is called Building Predictable Major Gifts Revenue, and we're going to talk about how recurring and multi-year commitments can change the shape of your fundraising program in ways that annual campaigns simply cannot.

This is for major gift officers, development directors, and nonprofit leaders who want to grow major gift revenue without leaning harder on the same cash donors. By the end of this post, you'll know how to spot the donors most likely to give a non-cash asset, how to open the conversation warmly, and how to steward the gift so well your donor wants to do it again.

In this week's episode, “Leading from the Major Gifts Seat,” of The Intentional Fundraiser Podcast, I talk about managing up as a leadership practice, including the empathy shift that changes everything and the briefing template I use with my own clients.

On this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser podcast, "Story and Data: What Major Donors Really Need," I break down:

Why even your most analytical donor needs an emotional connection; The Story Spine: a 5-beat framework for major donor narratives; How to weave data inside the story, not bolt it on after; and Why dignity-first storytelling is the new bar in 2026.

In this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser podcast, “Designing Impact Together with Donors,” I walk through the full co-design meeting flow, the donor psychology behind why it works so well, and the simple tools and digital aids that make it feel natural. If you have ever left a donor meeting thinking "that was fine, but we did not really get anywhere," this episode is for you.

This week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser podcast is called "Peer Power: Ambassadors and Giving Circles." I share the story behind a gift that came in because of a peer, walk through the four most useful peer roles I've seen, and offer design tips for peer-led gatherings that feel like an invitation, not a pitch.

In this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser podcast, I'm sharing why the metrics most major gift programs lean on, raw visit counts, dollars to goal, dials made, often miss the actual work.

In this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser podcast, I walk through the four lenses I use to decide who stays on an active portfolio, who graduates to stewardship, and who pauses for now. I also share the language to use with leadership when you propose a leaner, sharper list.

In this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser, I walk through the anatomy of a truly transformational gift offer. The five elements that belong on one page. The multi-year and blended structures that feel doable to your donor. And the co-creation conversation that turns a good offer into a great partnership.

In this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser, I'm sharing everything I know about building deep, lasting trust with major donors, even when things don't go as planned.

Today, we're talking about your tech stack, what belongs in it, how to evaluate what you've already got, where AI actually fits in major gifts work, and how to do a ninety-day tune-up that genuinely frees your team to focus on what matters most: donors.

On this week’s Intentional Fundraiser Podcast, I’m sharing how I use AI to draft and refine messages that still sound like me, while saving precious time for deeper donor connections.

Some weeks, your calendar looks full of “important” meetings, but your top donors barely hear from you. In my experience, your calendar will tell the truth about your priorities long before your strategic plan does. The good news is, you can change that story. Here’s a new way to look at your week.

Let’s talk about how you can turn mid-level donors into your strongest pipeline for transformational support.

Let’s talk about how you can blend major gifts and corporate giving in a way that feels human, strategic, and aligned with your donors’ values.