AFP Southwest Florida Chapter

Strategic Plan 2006-2009

Executive Summary:
Highlights & Accomplishments

February 2007

Following a retreat and a series of working sessions, the chapter’s Board of Directors adopted a comprehensive strategic plan in August 2006.  The plan outlines goals for the next three years in the areas of vision & values, education, membership, image & partnerships and governance.  Today, the board is focused on carrying out strategies and action steps targeted for 2007.  Most activities will require member involvement to be successful. 

I encourage every member to take a look at the Executive Summary below, then volunteer to help in an area that interests you.  Just contact me, any member of the board or any committee chair and sign up today!

Lisa C. Intagliata, CFRE

President

1.      Provide relevant educational opportunities to all segments of our membership

2.      Provide educational programs of interest and value to senior professionals

3.      Reach out to all counties in our service area and to non-member fundraisers with basic educational programs

4.      Reach out to a broad constituency to educate them about philanthropy and AFP

5.      Establish a database for continuing education and provide a copy of the AFP curriculum guide to each member.

Education Highlights & Accomplishments

§         Program Chair Susan Olson and her team polled members about their interests late in 2006 to shape programs in 2007 and beyond.

§         Planning is well underway for a Chuck Loring/BoardSource Workshop (May 2007) and the Fifth Annual Fundraiser’s Forum (July 2007).  Both are collaborations with the Nonprofit Resource Center and will attract attendees from a broad range of agencies and locales.

§         Fundraising School is back!  Alternating years with the biennial, Florida-based Planet Philanthropy, our chapter will bring top faculty in from The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University for a full-day, multi-track conference in October 2007.  Co-chairs are Bill Lloyd and Melissa Lane.

§         For the first time, AFP Audioconferences featuring nationally renowned speakers were offered at two new sites in 2006, at Manatee Glens and United Way of Charlotte County, in addition to the Senior Friendship Centers site in downtown Sarasota.  Twelve audioconferences are booked for 2007, most of them booked for simultaneous live broadcast at all three locations in Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte.

§         Ongoing educational initiatives include the popular CFRE Study Group, coordinated by Lisa Intagliata.  Held January through September at Selby Library, these informal gatherings prepare members who have five years or more in the field to sit for the CFRE exam.

§         The Principles of Development Course is once again on offer for members and non-members alike, at a very affordable cost to participants.  Fourteen sessions are scheduled for 2007, from February through August.  Each 90-minute class covers a basic fundraising subject, presented by a senior development leader with expertise in that area.  The course is designed for those who are fairly new to the profession, with five years or less experience.  Facilitators are Aida Matic and Jody Huebert-Hamm.

§         Carol Butera-Dutton leads the chapter’s successful Mentoring Program again in 2007, matching newcomers with seasoned professionals for monthly gatherings through November.

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AFP International’s Mike Winn joined us for our January 2007 member luncheon, when he showcased the online Career Planner and other benefits available to AFP members.  New member Beth Ellen Holimon will continue promoting the Career Planner as a professional development tool, providing outreach and training activities for the chapter through 2008.

Looking ahead …

§         The chapter is exploring opportunities to work with other partners and underwriters to conduct a first-time study on the “State of Fundraising” in our community.  

§         And it’s official…for the first time ever, the 2008 Statewide Planet Philanthropy Conference will be co-hosted by our Southwest Florida Chapter along with the Tampa/St. Petersburg Suncoast Chapter.  The local chapters will coordinate with dedicated volunteers from across the state, bringing in speakers, faculty and vendors from around Florida and the nation.

1.      Increase membership from 122 to 130

2.      Increase retention of members from 72.2% to 73.5%

3.      Develop a more engaged membership

Membership Highlights & Accomplishments

§         Total membership reached 125 by February 2007, and membership renewals rose to 80.5%.

§         Successful strategies adopted by Julie Wills and the membership committee in 2006 included

-         Extending the greeters program at monthly meetings to welcome members and guests

-         Holding a drawing for guests to enjoy a “free lunch” at next month’s meeting

-         holding a Membership Mingle social event at the Ringling School of Art & Design gallery for current members to bring prospective members

-         Promoting AFP membership at programs and events, including the Fundraisers Forum, Audioconferences and other educational offerings in Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte

-         Introducing new members at meetings

-         Using “high touch” techniques, person-to-person, to connect with members who miss meetings or let their memberships lapse, or to personally invite new members to join committees and get active.

Looking ahead …

Co-chairs Carol Armacost Carter and Karen Eber Davis will revive the Ambassadors program, connecting established members to newcomers with informal mentorships.  Planning is also underway for a 2^nd Annual Membership Mingle in the summer of 2007.  New acquisition and retention strategies will focus on attracting members from under-represented organizations and coordinating with the scholarship committee, led by Julie Wills, to make access to AFP and other quality programs more affordable.

Image Goals

1.      Establish AFP as the premier “go to” organization for philanthropy in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and DeSoto Counties

2.      Increase awareness of AFP, its members and its benefits

3.      Promote the profession of fundraising executives

4.      Market AFP and its activities and resources

Partnership Goals

1.      Donors: educate them about giving

2.      Local foundations: collaborate through strength in areas of common interest

3.      Professional associations: establish and strengthen relationships with affiliated groups such as FPRA (Florida Public Relations Association) and SWFPGC (Southwest Florida Planned Giving Council)

4.      Media: establish year-round series of stories and consistent AFP spokesperson

5.      Sponsors: develop year-round sponsorship opportunities and plan to secure sponsorship support for AFP activities

Image/Partnerships Highlights & Accomplishments

§         21^st Anniversary National Philanthropy Day celebrations, held on November 15, 2006, brought a record crowd of over 300 together to honor philanthropists and volunteers.  Event chair Mary Lee Richey and the NPD committee secured $28,000 in underwriting, with Ketchum renewing as lead sponsor, Community Foundation of Sarasota County, Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice, Herald-Tribune and Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation on board as Titanium Sponsors.  Pre- and post-event publicity included a full-page ad in the Herald-Tribune.

§         Releases and feature stories have included news about the chapter’s donation of the Pierpont-Welde Library Collection to the Selby Public Library.  The collection, valued at $2,000, consists of 36 fundamental fundraising and philanthropy resources.  Our donation honors long-time SW Florida Chapter member Robert Pierpont, CFRE, and his wife Marion, who were the first donors to give a planned gift to the AFP Foundation.  Public dedication ceremonies are scheduled for March 2007.  The Pierponts will be on hand for festivities, along with Debra Jacobs of the William G. Selby and Marie Selby Foundation (underwriter for the Foundation Center collection at the library); Sarabeth Kalajian and Andrea Grimsky representing Sarasota County Libraries and Linda Greaves, past AFP Board Member and Sarasota County’s Manager for Community Involvement.

§         The Communications Committee, chaired by John Elbare, CFP, launched the chapter’s bi-monthly electronic newsletter with news and announcements, fresh links to the web site, early Job Bank postings and other articles to keep members up-to-date.

§         In 2006, the chapter extended its capacity for accepting credit cards for payments to an online service for accepting registrations for events and programs – one more way to simplify and promote participation by members and non-members alike. 

§         The chapter applied for and received its nonprofit mailing permit, at long last, and will realize substantial savings on postage in the months and years to come.

Looking ahead …

§         We’re delighted to sustain our long-time partnership with Teri Hansen and her team at the Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice, who are offering full scholarships for eligible grantees to attend our chapter’s Fundraising School in October 2007.

§         We’re partnering with the Stanford Financial Group to co-produce the March 9^th preview of “The Ultimate Gift,” the feature film premiering at Hollywood 20, downtown Sarasota.

§         Board members Faith Pridmore and Susan Olson are spearheading a brand-new chapter initiative on Women in Philanthropy, kicking off in April 2007.

§         New member Suzanne Seiter recruited her firm, Schultz & Williams, to take on exclusive sponsorship for the Chuck Loring/BoardSource Workshop being presented by AFP and the Nonprofit Resource Center in May 2007.

1.      Perform board assessment of strengths and expectations

2.      Establish continuously active year-long nominating/governance committee

3.      Establish better relationships and involvement with various geographic representatives, especially in Manatee, south Sarasota County and Charlotte.

Governance Highlights & Accomplishments

§         An ad hoc governance task force led by Lisa Intagliata and Susan Terry completed a number of assignments before the end of 2006:

-         Created a Board Matrix and assessment instrument to plan for future candidate selection;

-         Created detailed board job descriptions; and

-         Organized a successful orientation program for all five new board members

Looking ahead …

§         Next steps – and most vital – will be to work with a year-round committee on by-laws review, succession planning, diversifying the board, engaging members more deeply and broadly in chapter activities and identifying future leaders.  Mary Beth Bos will chair the governance committee.

§         A Long Range Planning task force led by Zoltan Karpathy is completing in-depth research to make recommendations for the future direction of the chapter, including the roles we play in advancing the fundraising profession and philanthropy in our community.