Can You Be A Five-Tool Fundraiser?

If you are a fan of baseball, you've probably heard fans and professionals alike raving about so-called "five-tool players." These are the rare individuals who can play every aspect of the game at a high level.

Nonprofits would do anything to hire an employee -- especially a fundraiser -- who could do everything at an elite level. There are a lot of talented nonprofit professionals looking for jobs, but asking one person to do it all is asking too much.

That's why organizations are focusing more on the team concept.

During the AFP 50^th International Conference on Fundraising, Chris Looney, Jim Looney and Claudia Looney of CCS Fundraising introduced the concept of the Five Tool Fundraiser, not one person but a team that coheres to provide the tools necessary for successful fundraising.

Those tools are:

• Effective Solicitor. This person is mission driven and passionate, with strong institutional knowledge and fundraising DNA.
• Effective Manager of CEO and Executive Team. This is a teacher and mentor, a senior member of the leadership team who develops tools and resources.
• Effective Staff Manager. This person hires the best, minimizes turnover and is driven to help staff succeed.
• Effective Strategist. This individual is always looking ahead, takes the initiative, is a big-tenter and navigates around politics, keeping drama to a minimum.
• Effective Board/Volunteer Manager. This one gets the best from people who are committed to the mission.

Do you match any of these tools? Head to the NPT Jobs Career Center to start a Hall of Fame career as a fundraiser.