Values-based Assess and Act System
System Step 1: Guided Assessment
Like a fundraising audit but with less misery and terror for everyone involved.
Okay, it's confession time...
Even as long-time fundraisers, a fundraising audit was a sure-fire way to get us to worry about whether our jobs were safe (ahem, perfectionism) and if we've been doing enough (ahem, more-is-better). We're guessing that no matter how hard you work, how careful with your planning, how supportive your leadership, it might make you a little uneasy, too. Understandable!
The truth is that it does not feel good to have a fundraising consultant come in and put us under the microscope, no matter how kind and helpful the consultant is. Yet we believed then, and still believe now, that reflection and generative self-critique is a crucial step toward more money and more equity in fundraising. So, when we started SVA, we set out to see if a fundraising audit could be remade into a useful tool for teams looking to become more effective and bring their practices in line with their values.
What we created is Step 1 of our Values-based Assess and Act System: the Guided Assessment.
This powerful tool holds space for imperfection and accepts that quality matters over quantity. It positions you to raise more money, build your team’s capacity, and actually improve fundraiser morale.
How? Good question.
We engage your full team. Not just single fundraisers, leaders, or managers. No one can do this alone, not even with the help of really good consultants. :)
You get to define your team. It's those you think of who care most about moving money to your mission. Your team is in tune with your organizational values (whether they’ve talked about or not). They know your context, your capacity, your potential. And by engaging them in your fundraising assessment, you will be contributing to creating a culture of fundraising at your organization.
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With a our Guided Assessment, you’ll have the benefit of:
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Many minds and all the lived and learned experience they hold.
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Team buy-in. People will feel heard.
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Learning: Everyone on the team will gain insights, learn about fundraising, and add assessment tools and facilitation techniques to their toolbox.
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Accountability: Team members and others in your community will feel greater ownership for successes and for solving problems.
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With your team in place, we deliver on a three-step process that moves YOU into the drivers' seat of the assessment:
1. First, we listen. Via series of key questions and facilitation techniques designed to get everyone contributing, we uncover fundraising feelings, actions, sticky spots, needs and dreams. The good, the bad and the ugly comes out here, all together, and not behind closed doors.
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2. Next, we analyze. We'll focus our 50+ years of experience on your team to reflect what you shared back as a structured set of opportunities and recommended steps. We'll celebrate where you've come from on your journey toward raising more money and creating more equitable practices.
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3. Finally, we reflect. It can be easy to skip the reflection and move on to action. But without reflection, it's hard to lock in what we've learned and act from a place of ease and joy. We'll guide your team as you sort through your feelings about the opportunities in front of you and illuminate the places where you all have energy, saving you time and effort down the road.
You'll get:
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4 hours of facilitated assessment conversations and exercises
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A written summary of your strengths, challenges, and opportunities with
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One 60-minute Q&A with your team
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One 30-minute meaning-making meeting with leadership
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Recommended reading and learning lists based on your personalized plan
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Access to SVA's resources, templates, and tools when you need them
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A trusted advisor you can call, text or email when something comes up
Cost: $20,000 or three monthly payments of $6,700.
BIPOC-led organization* cost: $12,000 or three monthly payments of $4,000.
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*We discount our fees by 40 percent for organizations that are led by and in service to Black, Indigenous, and/or other people of color in recognition of the fact that these organizations have long been and continue to be underfunded relative to white-dominant-cultured organizations.
To qualify for this discount, your organization must:
o Have an Executive Director and/or CEO who is Black, Indigenous, or person of color and
o Have a board and/or staff that are at least 51% Black, Indigenous, or people of color and
o Serve primarily Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color.
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Gifts that Nourish:
Listening Questions for Assessing Your Fundraising
System Step 2: Values-based Strategy and Practice Screen
Like a strategic plan but it fits on one page and actually gets used before it’s out of date.
Ever felt like fundraising strategies are a vast ocean and you’re just trying not to drown?
We get it.
Navigating through the waves of options, trying to figure out what truly resonates with your mission, can be overwhelming. And when that next shiny new opportunity surfaces? The decision fatigue is real.
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Let’s simplify things.
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Introducing our Values-Based Strategy and Practice Screen. Think of it as your organization's personal compass. A tool designed to guide you through the ebb and flow of fundraising choices, ensuring you’re always steering in a direction that feels right.
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This compass is anchored in some clear touchpoints:
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True to our values: Because what's fundraising if it doesn't mirror who we are at our core?
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Synchronized with our programs: Your fundraising should be like a close friend to your initiatives, not a distant cousin.
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Engaging the right folks: Whether they’re clients, residents, or that enthusiastic intern - everyone’s on this journey.
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Cherishing all contributions: Big or small, every gift is a testament to belief in your mission.
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The process isn't a solitary expedition. Just as in Step 1, we emphasize the collective journey. Engaging your full team, we ensure that everyone from the leader to the newest member is involved. By integrating everyone’s insights and perspectives, we move closer to establishing a robust culture of fundraising within your organization. Everyone has a role, a stake, and a voice. Together, we ensure the fundraising strategy isn’t an isolated blueprint but a shared vision echoing through every corridor of your organization.
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With SVA as your guide, we’re setting sail together. Our expertise? We've sailed these seas before. Your mission? Our shared horizon.
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You'll get:
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Deep Dive Discussions: 5 hours of rich, interactive sessions that feel more like enlightening conversations than tedious meetings.
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Your Personal Compass: Get your hands on a tailored Fundraising Strategy and Practice Screen, calibrated just for your organization.
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Charted Path Ahead: Drawing from SVA’s deep well of experience, receive recommendations that aren’t generic, but just for you.
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Constant Lifeline: For 2 months, think of us as your on-call support. Whether it’s a text, call, or email, we’re right there with the support you need.
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Fundraising can feel daunting. But with the right compass, crew, and collective involvement, SVA will guide you to better results and a process that feels more exhilarating than overwhelming. Let's chart this course together.
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Cost: $20,000 or three monthly payments of $6,700.
BIPOC-led organization* cost: $12,000 or three monthly payments of $4,000.
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*We discount our fees by 40 percent for organizations that are led by and in service to Black, Indigenous, and/or other people of color in recognition of the fact that these organizations have long been and continue to be underfunded relative to white-dominant-cultured organizations.
To qualify for this discount, your organization must:
o Have an Executive Director and/or CEO who is Black, Indigenous, or person of color and
o Have a board and/or staff that are at least 51% Black, Indigenous, or people of color and
o Serve primarily Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color.
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System Step 3 : Values-based Fundraising Action Plan
Like a work plan but failing is a good thing and you get to say what you’re NOT doing every quarter.
Putting It All Together:
The Complete Values-Based Assess and Act System
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This system represents big change- no doubt.
It's you and your team looking hard at what's not working, what is working and making a commitment together to shift. You're shifting toward more money for your mission and a more equitable practice of fundraising.
And we're with you for the whole journey. With the full Assess and Act System, you get our full three-fold approach to up-leveling your fundraising. We'll cater is step so that it's built on how you grew and what you learned in the previous step.
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Values-based Guided Assessment: Where we dive deep, embracing imperfections and recognizing strengths.
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Values-based Strategy and Practice Screen: Crafting the compass, setting the direction for your fundraising journey.
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Values-Based Fundraising Action Plan: Where your vision meets implementation, translating strategies into tangible outcomes.
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Imagine the power of harnessing these three steps in unison! We'd love to work with you to figure out a timeline that works for you. We can move quickly if you want to go deep or we can spread this out over a few months if you're limited on time. You set the pace for success.
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Assess and Act System Special Offer: Experience the synergy of the Guided Assessment, Strategy and Practice Screen, and Fundraising Action Plan together. Opt for the holistic Assess and Act System and enjoy not just deeper results but also big savings.
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Cost: $50,000 for all three steps-- $10,000 in savings for committing to the full process. BIPOC-led orgs pay $30,000*. We offer this package deal this simply because we know that if you choose to jump into all three steps, you're all in.
So we'll go all in with you.
We're betting on your success.
Also, if you commit to tuning into your values to asses and act with our whole system, we'll give you an additional 90-minutes per month of office hours time for free. We want you to feel like you have a true partner-- a guide who really sees your strengths and knows how to bring them forward.
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By choosing the complete Assess and Act System, you're not just making a purchase. You're committing to a holistic approach to fundraising where introspection, strategy, and action intertwine seamlessly, each step deeply rooted in your values.
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We can't wait to talk to you! Click the button to send us a note to get started.
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*We discount our fees by 40 percent for organizations that are led by and in service to Black, Indigenous, and/or other people of color in recognition of the fact that these organizations have long been and continue to be underfunded relative to white-dominant-cultured organizations.
To qualify for this discount, your organization must:
o Have an Executive Director and/or CEO who is Black, Indigenous, or person of color and
o Have a board and/or staff that are at least 51% Black, Indigenous, or people of color and
o Serve primarily Black, Indigenous, and/or people of color.
