Prospect Management & the CRM Advantage

Nancy Benavente, Vice President, Development Services , Oregon Health and Sciences University Foundation

Wayne Combs, Director, Advancement Services and Information Management , Occidental College

PM with CRM – Why?

Prospect Management encompasses the processes and procedures that determine the “life cycle” of prospects within a fundraiser’s portfolio.

Constituent Relationship Management“CRM is the set of processes and supporting technologies used to acquire, retain, and enhance customer relationships.” – Forrester Research

“CRM is both a business strategy and a set of discrete software tools and technologies , with the goal of reducing costs, increasing revenue, identifying new opportunities and channels for expansion, and improving customer value satisfaction, profitability, and retention.” – Gary B. Grant and Greg Anderson

How does CRM Support PM?

1. Comprehensive view of constituents2. Customizable view for diverse needs3. Data mining and segmentation4. Targeted stewardship and donor recognition5. Consistent and cohesive messaging6. Ability to push services out to constituents7. Automated resolution and follow-up8. User independence in accessing their data9. Enhanced internal controls, quality assurance

10. Business analytics, executive dashboard

Where should they intersect?

Technology – Compatibility and integration with relevant campus systems.Operations - Alignment of business rules with other contributing campus units.Process - Quality control and standardized data input, dissemination, and reporting.

Building PM with CRM in Mind

1. Origination in Strategic Plan

2. Leadership Advocacy

3. Institutional Commitment

4. Information Management

5. Continuous Process Improvement

Strategic Plan: Simple Snapshot Occidental College

Advancement Services Strategic InitiativesFY08/09

Institutional Advancement“Build an information-centric and service oriented culture”

1. Self-Service Access – present enhanced and quick access to constituent information and prospect data management.2. Desktop Reporting – allow all users access to data for daily reporting and build a suite of campaign reports.3. Document Imaging – initiate process for records retention and file management of all current and historical information.4. Data Enhancement – implement comprehensive strategy for data migration, coding, and standardization into Banner.5. Knowledge Sharing – train users and document policy and procedures with new business rules of operation.

Major Gifts Corporate & Foundation Alumni Relations Annual Giving Stewardship

“Establish prospect management to support collaborative fundraising”

1. Projects / Proposals2. Contact Report

entry3. Performance metrics4. Planned Gift data

“Support a comprehensive integrated knowledgebase for strategic cultivation”

1. Data migration and standardization

2. Fellowship / Grantmanagement reporting

“Create social networking for enhanced alumni engagement”

1. Event registration /targeted emailing

2. Alumni Directory3. Web data

exchange

“Increase donor participation through segmentation”

1. Donor loyaltyreporting suite

2. Data mining and segmentation

“Build donor relations model through targeted messaging”

1. Integrated personalmessaging

2. Fund management /endowment spendingAdvancement Services & Information Management

“Serve as the single source of record for institution’s advancement information”1. Data Analysis – steward data in support of advancement areas through analysis, standardization, data maintenance and reporting.2. Reporting / Data Integration – manage data migration, develop information tools, and design enhanced reporting suites.3. Training / Documentation – deliver training and documentation while integrating new procedures and business rules.4. Gift Policy Administration – communicate requirements for fundraising solicitations, gift acceptance, and donor receipting.

Leadership AdvocacyPM is best supported when all participate in the collection and maintenance of data. This a fundamental change from the centralized Advancement Services model.

This change in “owning” the data is only sustainable when driven from the top and supported at every level of an organization. Leadership actions must embody the new business rules, processes, and accountability to support this change.

Institutional Commitment

Resource Alignment - central IT is crucial in providing maintenance & support, systems transformation, and data integration.

Stakeholder Alignment – commitment from all participants is essential in contributing to a complete and standardized set of data.

Information Management

Develop policy and procedures that validate coding structure, standardize data, and formalize data entry.

Implement internal controls that will ensure accurate, consistent, and comprehensive data.

Establish business rules that will support fundraising, including assignments, moves management, contact reporting, and performance metrics.

Continuous Process Improvement Testing & Feedback – users must provide feedback for systems enhancements, new policy, and efficient procedures.Commitment – users must ensure data is entered accurately and completely into system in accordance with established business rules.

Data Use – users must take every opportunity to apply data for validation and updates from current sources, which will lead to better benchmarking, internal controls, and data usability.

Evaluation – users must understand that long term benefits will be determined by a process of continually evaluating the effectiveness of business rules, value of data derived from the system, and success in supporting fundraising and engagement efforts.

How to Prepare for CRM

1. Audit current state of data in relation to input and output.

1. Assess people’s needs and desires to know more.

1. Align business rules with the scalability of operations.

1. Identify support and build incentives for collaboration.

1. Establish strategy for data enhancement and standardized data dictionary.

1. Accept innovation as desired and build on informed stakeholders for continuous process improvement.

Who are Your Constituents?

All constituents represent potential and/or existing prospects that should be cultivated.Collecting information on their relationship with the institution establishes method of engagement.Information to be considered:- Interests- Event attendance- Alumni status- Student activities, academic focus- Parent, family legacies- Giving designations, history- Prospect research- Volunteer involvement

Build Constituent RelationshipsInvolve prospects in your organization based on their needs and interests.

Build upon past interactions to cultivate partnerships and increased affinity.

Test and survey the experience of your constituents as potential/existing prospects.

Ensure you are meeting expectations and providing the full benefit of each interaction.

Include all institutional stakeholders in the conversation of building relationships.

CRM: Drive interaction based on Knowledge

Involvement Escalation:Consider online and offline opportunities for

involvement

CRM’s Impact

Considerations1. Talent Retention2. Consistent and “real-time” data access3. Data integration, synchronization4. Single normalized data repository5. Expectation for a commercial online

experience6. Increased reporting and auditing

requirements7. Alumni, donors move with economy8. Student recruitment9. Increase donations

Potential1. Increase employee efficiency, offer

competitive compensation through costs savings

2. Costs savings, enhanced fundraising, greater ROI

3. Segmentation and targeted messaging4. Comprehensive reporting and business

analytics5. Personalized, builds greater affinity6. Transparency of integrated data and

completeness7. Accurate and expedient connectivity to

relevant data8. Create comprehensive, evolving, and

relevant vision of institution9. Personal, timely, and customizable

interactions

Thoughts?

Bibliography

“Creating the Relationship-Centric Organization: Nonprofit CRM”,“In Search of CRM Part 1: Understanding Constituents and Processes”, In Search of CRM Part 2: Searching for Software”, by Paul Hagen , www.idealware.org.“CRM is Always Right”, by Craig Sanford , www.campustechnology.com.“Chapter 3, Customer Relationship Management: A Vision for Higher Education”, by Gary B. Grant and Greg Anderson , “Web Portals and Higher Education: Technologies to Make IT Personal”, Richard N. Katz and Associates