How to Retain High-Performing Fundraisers

Fundraisers tend to stay in a job less than two years, research shows, and it can take six months or longer to fill key positions. Yet 84 percent of nonprofits say they do not have a retention strategy, according to one survey. That adds up to lots of lost revenue, ongoing training expenses for new employees, and perhaps worst of all, the loss of institutional memory. How do some organizations hold on to their best fundraisers? Join the Chronicle and expert guests to get strategies for creating a work environment that engenders high morale, reduces turnover, and helps your organization thrive. You'll learn from Jeanne Jachim, president of the Virginia Mason Foundation, the fundraising arm of a medical center in Seattle that garnered $18 million in philanthropic support last year. Two of her four fundraisers have worked for the organization for more than 10 years. Jachim will share her four-pronged approach to creating a culture in which gift officers feel fulfilled and valued. She'll a