TOPICS:

• Building Out a Traditional Program with New Features late COVID
• Challenging Habits with Tradition: How Anniversaries Can Inspire Alumni Giving
• From the Inside Out: Internal Communications Impact on Brand and Reputation
• Holistically Cultivating DEI+ Spaces Throughout Advancement & Alumni Relations
• How to Build an Internship Program for Your Advancement Office
• Infuse Your Content with Audience Voices
• Research & Prospect Management Team Optimization for Mid-to-Large Orgs
• Save the Date: How Aligning Giving Challenges w/ Events Boosts Engagement & Giving
• The Impact of Development and Endowment Funds and Financial Sustainability
• The Trials and Tribulations of Volunteer Engagement
• Cultivating Transformational Gifts Through Innovative Partnerships

CASE Competencies: Global and Cultural Competence; Integrity and Professionalism; Business and Financial Acumen; Relationship Building; Emotional Intelligence; Industry or Sector Expertise; Strategic Thinking; Leadership

Strategic plans can set the course for an institution and its fundraising priorities. However, who are these plans ultimately for, and what does it mean to be “strategic”? These are among the questions addressed in a yearlong study of 108 active strategic plans. The analysis of strategic plans through a constituent-centric lens was revealing, and this session will address the various pitfalls of strategic planning. The session will also apply research insights to the experiences of Butler University, whose advancement leadership will describe how and why strategic planning has been a unifying experience for the institution and its constituents.

CASE Competencies: Integrity and Professionalism; Relationship Building; Strategic Thinking; Leadership

TikTok and Instagram Reels can be used to promote, maintain, and elevate campus culture and the image of the university through social media campaigns, campus partnerships, and collaborations with current students and alumni. Using these platforms requires communication across campus, as well as staying on top of current trends that relate to and influence your campus demographic. By doing so, these tools can be used to help with campus recruitment, admissions, alumni engagement, and promoting student life. Therefore, TikTok and Reels have the power to increase both online and on-campus engagement.

CASE Competencies: Global and Cultural Competence; Integrity and Professionalism; Relationship Building; Emotional Intelligence; Industry or Sector Expertise

Exceptional fundraisers pride themselves on the ability to make connections with individuals and build trust which leads to philanthropic investment for our organizations.  But are we leaving money on the table by who we are not talking too…or in how we are approaching donors?  This session will challenge fundraisers to examine what implicit biases (attitudes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner) may be impacting their work and how they can modify their habits to bring positive change to the fundraising field.  Topics discussed will include: ethnicity, gender, age, sexuality, social norms, religion, etc.

CASE Competencies: Business and Financial Acumen; Relationship Building; Strategic Thinking

CASE - Copy And Share Everything, right? CASE Conferences provide many good ideas, but it can be hard to bring a big idea from a 'big' institution back home - smaller budgets, fewer resources, geographically spread-out alumni base, a campus not easy to get to. The Miami University Alumni Association faced all of those obstacles but managed to take a big idea and made it not only work for our smaller institution but also turned it into a CASE Circle of Excellence winning program. We will share the tips and tactics we used to implement a successful new program.

CASE Competencies: Global and Cultural Competence; Integrity and Professionalism; Relationship Building; Emotional Intelligence; Strategic Thinking; Leadership

During times of societal and campus crises, advancement operations are often on the front lines as alumni and donors will reach out to share their discontent. However, the most successful organizations will lean into addressing such matters, turning these cases into opportunities to build a more just community. Even in such difficult times, stakeholders can find common ground to further the mission of the institution. This session will define social and reparative justice, and introduce cases where advancement organizations addressed the needs of the institution while connecting with a broader alumni and donor audience, and learn strategies to implement a social justice initiative.