204. Strategic Planning 101 + How to Help Your Board Become Better Fundraisers - Sabrina Walker Hernandez
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Overview
Meet Sabrina. You asked for a stategic planning conversation, and oh wow, did this incredible expert deliver! She's answering how to keep your strategic plan alive and why we should constantly review, activate and refine it. If you're wondering what to do with your strategic plan now that the world is entirely different, then is your episode. Icing on the cake? We're talking engaging and activating your board + goal setting using your strategic plan as a roadmap too.
Today’s Guest
Sabrina Walker Hernandez, President and CEO, Supporting World Hope
“I think sometimes people go into strategic planning, and they don’t take the time to prep for it, they bring their own viewpoint without actually getting the input of the people around them and the stakeholders around them.”
Episode Transcript
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Episode highlights
Sabrina’s story and journey to where she is today (2:47)
Mini strategic planning session (5:00)
Diving into deep conversation that will lead to meaningful change (9:00)
How to handle strategic plans that were disrupted by the pandemic (12:00)
RASI - Roles, Accountability, Support, and the Influence (18:00)
Mobilizing board members to become fundraising powerhouses (20:00)
Goal setting (27:00)
A powerful moment of philanthropy in Sabrina’s life (31:00)
Sabrina’s One Good Thing: Hang in there. (33:00)
Powerful quotes
“I like to start with a survey of all your stakeholders, whether they are and I really like your board, your staff, your vendors, your clients, I like to get all of that input, and get that information and really digest it and provide a report to people so they'll know exactly where they're standing.” -Sabrina
“I think sometimes people go into strategic planning, and they don't take the time to prep for it, they bring their own viewpoint without actually getting the input of the people around them and the stakeholders around them.” -Sabrina
“Sometimes I think the core value conversation is like, when they came up with those core values, it was kind of like a brainstorming session, and nobody really put any thought into it, actually.” -Sabrina
“It's having those hard conversations and using some of those facilitation skills.” -Sabrina
“You have to finish the strategic planning process.” -Sabrina
“I encourage nonprofits to build their board agenda around the strategic plan. Smart. So that way, you're constantly talking about it.” -Sabrina
“It is so easy to get sidetracked, it is so easy to put that document on the shelf and not think about it again.” -Sabrina
“Fundraising is not about asking for money.” -Sabrina
“When you break down the fundraising process, only 5% of the fundraising process is about asking for money. I like to focus on all the other big pieces of the pie. So I like to focus on the 10%. That's identifying donors 10% of qualifying donors, I love personally the 60% of cultivation and building relationships, then you get the 5% that is asking. And then it's 15% thanking, right.” -Sabrina
“If you do that 60%, right, building relationships, a lot of times you don't even have to ask people understand what you're doing. They value what you're doing. They see you as success, and people want to invest in success, and they will invest in that without you even asking.” -Sabrina
“As a nonprofit, you should always have a financial goal.” -Sabrina
“It's really mapping that out and seeing that that vision or that future, and then aligning those goals around where you want to be, is how I say to get started on it.” -Sabrina
“You as the CEO, but at some point, you have to bring in those around you, your board, your staff, because it's not just you who can get those goals done. And they have to be on board with those goals.” -Sabrina
“You can do this send those emails, send those texts sent you follow the plan posts, the social media, just keep doing it. Even if this is not your year. Next year you build on it, it's called you know, it's building relationships. It's stacking it up, stacking it up, keeps stacking it up. It's gonna be my message to you get in there do it each year and to get better but just get activated.” -Sabrina
Connect with sabrina
Website / LinkedIn / Facebook Group / YouTube
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