Wisdom of WOC: Fundraising and Philanthropic Advice from Pradnya Haldipur
The Wisdom of WOC is a weekly advice column where the WOC Community can submit its questions about fundraising and philanthropy, and have them answered by our founder, Yolanda F. Johnson, and special guest editors from the WOC community.
From Our Mailbag
Q: You’ve raised more than $300 million across many different causes. What’s the common thread in your approach that makes fundraising successful?
—Anonymous
A: To say that I’ve raised that sum is imprecise (although I do like the sound of it). My role has varied over the years from “front-line” donor engagement to managing the team. Fundraising is very much a team sport. Any gift secured, of any size, results from collaboration among context experts who speak to the work with clarity and passion, writers who engage the reader through a proposal or report, prospect researchers who inform the strategy, technologists who ensure access to the data and to clear reporting, and organizational leadership who earn the donor’s trust and ensure alignment with strategic priorities.
Yes, I’ve had the good fortune of working in some extraordinary organizations with missions ranging from pediatric health to climate resilience to humanitarian aid. Any success I’ve had in fundraising (whether from high-net-worth individuals, corporations, foundations, or government sources) in these contexts comes from asking the following questions:
What is the critical problem that the donor is looking to solve, and can we make a credible case that my organization is in a strong position to offer a solution?
How do we shape a strategy that both excites the donor’s imagination and leads to intellectual engagement, so that they make decisions based on the premise of mutual benefit, rather than emotion?
Is the funding opportunity truly audacious? Will the gift/grant help the organization or project evolve and lead to greater impact?
These concepts are fundamental in today’s environment: while U.S. charitable giving reached $592.5 billion in 2024 (up 6.3%), the number of donors continues to shrink, and retention rates remain below 45%. Strong relationships and collaboration across teams are what transform gifts into sustained commitments.
Ultimately, the common thread is a clear understanding of the possibilities and the limitations of what philanthropy and donor allyship can do for an organization. Funding is not a panacea. Being transparent with the donor is what builds trust and leads to long-term and large-scale commitment.
Q: Your consultancy, Strategy.Creativity.Mentorship has such a unique name. How do you bring creativity into fundraising, which can sometimes feel all about numbers?
Strategy, creativity, and mentorship are not mere buzzwords. And as the name of a consultancy, perhaps a little clunky. But I chose these words to reflect the core of my professional values. I firmly believe that very little is left unsolved with some combination of these.
But how does creativity come into fundraising? Through one’s willingness to think in multiple directions at once. To understand that while fundraising is a science (moves management, yes! strategy briefs, yes! stewardship reports, yes!), there might be moments that require unscripted thinking, opportunities to seize a moment, insights into a donor’s mindset that require a pivot.
One example of this was the time that a shutter-bug donor made a seven-figure commitment to fund the work of three physician-scientists. I asked these docs to each take a selfie hearing the news of the commitment. The donor was delighted to have the moment documented; minor effort and zero cost donor stewardship. My best advice is to trust your instincts and do the thing that feels authentic because the donors will feel that too.
Q: You’ve worked everywhere from global non-profits to tech organizations. What's the biggest lesson you’ve learned about adapting to different settings?
Honestly, the biggest lesson I’ve learned from working in many different settings is how similar they are, especially regarding attitudes toward fundraising and revenue achievement. Many have relied on a single, primary source of support: galas, corporations, government funding, or one large foundation. The science of fundraising is often misunderstood or overlooked as a legitimate field, despite the urgently expressed need for diversification of revenue.
Unrealistic expectations persist as to the timeline for money to come in the door. And the very department that is meant to be the revenue engine is categorized as the dreaded “overhead,” leading to a reluctance to resource this part of the organization effectively. The scarcity mindset is real and ever-present. A 2023 national survey found that 72% of non-profits cited salary competition as their top workforce challenge, with smaller organizations disproportionately struggling. Organizations that address this and move away from the “overhead myth” will position themselves for stronger fundraising outcomes.
But I remain optimistic. More and more, organizations are understanding that to be healthy and stable, in service to mission, change needs to happen. That attracting skilled talent requires market-rate compensation, and that a strong and equitable internal infrastructure in which employees feel supported and given the tools they need leads to tremendous return on investment in terms of retention, energetic thinking, and increased revenue. These are the organizations that will lead the way among their peers in every mission area.
A: Year-end is such a big moment for fundraising. What’s one thing organizations can do to really stand out and inspire donors?
The most important thing any organization can do to ensure a successful year-end is to start analysis and planning on January 1 (or, more realistically, January 10?).
A donor’s decision to give at year’s end is the result of both habit (or my financial advisor told me that’s the best time) and a conscious decision as to where to invest. Will they give because they gave before? Maybe. If they’ve taken a journey with you throughout the year. Will they give more? Possibly. Did you make a clear ask with a number at the end of the sentence? Will prospects self-select to become new donors? Well, it depends. Have you innovated ways to highlight your message within the prospect's orbit?
One-third of annual giving happens in December, and 12% of all giving occurs in the last three days of the year. Organizations that plan year-round and maintain steady engagement reduce their risk of being caught in a December “donor traffic jam.”
The organization that examines its data from the previous year and builds a comprehensive, strategic, and yes, creative strategy for year-long donor engagement is the most likely to encourage earlier giving, repeat giving, and increased giving.
Regardless of your organization’s size, consider a systematic, multi-channel strategy that is tailored to your capabilities/budget. The goal is to stay front of mind throughout the year. Work with Communications to ensure messaging alignment and burnishing of your brand.
And yes, even with the advent of AI, digital marketing, and webinars, the human factor matters a great deal. Staying in communication with your top donors will take the suspense out of their intention to give. How many of you are feeling the inevitable Q3 boulder on your shoulders right now? How many of us love watching the clock run down on December 31 (or June 30), wondering if the goal was met?
Personal experience tells me that it is possible to get donors to commit earlier in the year. After all, they are looking to help, not add unnecessary stress to an organization they want to see succeed. To achieve this, the message needs to be timely, clear, and compelling.
A: Mentorship seems central to your work. What’s the advice you find yourself giving to newer fundraisers most often?
From “when I was small,” I’ve been blessed with the care and concern of incredible teachers and mentors. They overlooked the fact that I didn’t know what I didn’t know. They actively sought opportunities for me to grow. And having lost my mother to breast cancer at an early age (I was 20), these mentors were even more critical in helping me find my way, especially when I didn't know enough to ask for help. Looking back, many of these mentors were younger than I am now. Incredible!
So now I am the crusty, slightly sardonic middle-aged “auntie” who tries to pay it forward every chance I get. I welcome peer mentoring as much as I love supporting the next generation because every conversation is a two-way learning opportunity. Guess who laughed at me a little and still taught me about ChatGPT?
What do I tell newer fundraisers? The same thing I tell seasoned fundraisers, and that I remind myself. Listening is more valuable than talking in a donor meeting. Our job is not to know everything about everything their organization is doing, because the content experts are readily available. I urge them to maintain a sense of humor because representing the mission can be hard, emotional work, and can easily upset mental balance.
If I am speaking with someone very early in their career, I reassure them that what they are doing today won’t necessarily be the thing they do forever. In fact, it likely won't be. So, they owe it to themselves to take this time to learn as much as possible and discern what they enjoy doing and what makes them stumble. These reflections will guide them to the next steps in their career path. I point out that they are entering a high-demand field. Fundraising and development remain among the most challenging roles to fill in the non-profit sector nationwide. There is tremendous opportunity ahead if they stay adaptable and committed to stretching themselves. I also tell these younger folks never to bring me coffee unless they are getting some for themselves, but these days hardly anyone gets the reference.
A: Looking ahead, what do you think will shape the future of fundraising in the next 5-10 years?
These are strange times. Wealth continues to consolidate among fewer and fewer people while huge sums are transferred to the next generations within families. Political concerns are impacting corporate and foundation giving priorities more than ever. But at the same time, giving through donor-advised funds continues to grow at every level. The numbers: Donor-advised fund assets reached $175 billion in 2023, and grants to non-profits grew 83% from 2019 to 2023. Add to this the ongoing $84 trillion wealth transfer expected by 2045. The organizations that can marry data with creativity and trust-building will be the ones best positioned to thrive.
To me, this is a positive sign. Individuals across the giving spectrum are making philanthropy a priority by dedicating their resources.
Meanwhile, as in every sector, data and technology are increasingly important within non-profits. I am not speaking of the latest, greatest CRM, or “hot” temptations like agentic AI. In my opinion, the organizations that will be most successful in fundraising are those that truly understand their data. All of it. From myriad, seemingly disparate sources.
The organizations I describe will have a 360-degree view of their donors’ and prospects’ histories and behaviors. They will be able to align this information with timely information flows of metrics and learnings from their program teams. All of this is a pathway to strategic decision-making by leadership and transparency with donors at all levels. Am I describing a fundraising utopia? No. The tools exist. The teams are eager (if not tired). The leadership is aware. The vision is possible. What is required is the willingness to prioritize and invest time and resources. We have a tremendous opportunity in what feels like a cataclysm to plan and build for the future we want for the non-profit sector.
This Week’s Expert
Pradnya Haldipur
Founder
Strategy.Creativity.Mentorship
Pradnya Haldipur (she/her) has over 25 years of development and management experience in myriad U.S. and international settings. Throughout her career, she has focused on uniting philanthropists, corporations, and foundations with strategic projects and priorities. She is an experienced and creative development professional who excels at building big ideas and strong relationships.
Pradnya is the founder of Strategy.Creativity.Mentorship, a fundraising consultancy that reflects her professional philosophy and commitment to advancing the philanthropic sector. Through this practice, she partners with nonprofits, institutions of higher education, and healthcare organizations to assess readiness, design sustainable strategies, and secure transformational support. Her expertise is demonstrated in the more than $300 million she has raised to advance research, capital projects, endowments, operations, and programmatic initiatives.
Her career journey also includes leadership roles at Médecins Sans Frontières USA (Doctors Without Borders, the Institute for Sustainable Communities, and Code.org, as well as renowned academic medical institutions such as Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC, the Mount Sinai Health System in New York City, and Boston Children’s Hospital. She has also contributed to think tanks, global development organizations, and the arts.
Pradnya was born in Mumbai, India, but grew up in New Jersey. She resides in Silver Spring, MD, with her husband Joe, their children Mirza Cate (age 12) and Xavier Anant (age 10), and canines Hawkeye and Bucky Barnes.
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