Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64C hoosing a major donor representative is one of the biggest challenges faced by most ministries. Why? • The field of people to choose from is limited. • Those who are successful in the field are usually settled in their ministry and reluctant to make a change. • After a successful term in the field they can command a high salary. • Ramp-up time in a new ministry will cost to the ministry initially without much return on investment. • Compatibility with the mission and vision of the ministry complicates selection process. These are just some of the hurdles. But all is not lost because qualified and committed servants do exist. First, let me remind you to put this need before the Lord in prayer. It is His person you are seeking. Who should you look for? • Ideally, your prospect should have had a successful career in ministry fundraising— showing a history of asking for contributions and receiving them. • The individual’s fundraising history should show an increasing response to the strategy of the ministry with an ROI of 1:1 in the first year, growing each year to a 5:1 in their fifth year. • Someone who is willing to travel a lot. Even if your donor base is local, this person will need to spend a significant amount of time on the road. • This person must have a personality that is compatible with the ministry leader as they will need to spend a lot of time working together. • The first couple of years involve a great deal of research, so the ability to work alone is vital. • An ability to make first-time phone connec- tions is also very important. The most important thing is a good knowledge of the major donor way of thinking. This comes through experience and a basic understanding of wealthy people. Their culture is different from that of most of those laboring in ministry and it needs to be considered. Be sure to ask a candidate, “How much money have you raised personally? Tell me about it!” If he has only raised money through events, on a team, or through a campaign strategy but not in one-on- one meetings, he likely is not your person. Ĩ 58 WWW.AGRM.ORG JULY/AUGUST 2016 DAY-TO-DAY FINDING FUNDS Barry Durman Who Should I Hire? Finding the right person to lead your fundraising efforts Barry serves as the senior consultant at the Westfall Group in Suwanee, Georgia. He has 35 years of development experience and served at the Atlantic City Rescue Mission for 13 years, including 10 years as president. He can be reached at barry@westfallgroup.net.