Planning Considerations Before Launching a Capital Campaign or Building a New Endowment Fund [SUBSCRIBERS-ONLY]

Having a vision for the future with aspirations for growth and new major efforts is exciting and can spark energy and enhance a culture of vitality for your organization. Capital campaigns and building an endowment fund can be game-changing tactics, but they come with a whole new set of challenges and risks. It is easy to get excited about these types of funding but hard to have success, especially for nonprofits who have no experience raising these kinds of funds and managing their use.

Exploring and understanding the key “why” drivers is a good starting point. The purpose, planning and goals for these funds comes way before the “how much can we raise” question. I wish I had a nickel for every time a Board member has suggested starting a capital campaign or building an endowment. Intentions are usually focused on the big dollars that could be raised without considering the many consequences of going after these funds.

For the “why” drivers, focus your attention on the programs, infrastructure, or other game-changers you want to add in the future. For capital campaigns, the “why” drivers are often based on infrastructure and capacity, such as acquiring a building, renovating or expanding your current building, seed funding to launch a new regional or international expansion, or some other similar large one-time effort. For building an endowment the “why” drivers are usually based on expectations that donors will be attracted to naming opportunities to permanently fund a scholarship, fellowship, award program, research support, or other similar efforts.