What does it look like when core purpose and mission permeate a station culture, and when development practitioners articulate donor-centered communications via all platforms based on core values?
2. First hand knowledge
“There’s nothing like experience to screw up
perspective.” Don Derheim
“There’s nothing like experience to create
perspective.” Don Derheim
3. When I resigned my position at
KQED I gave a long speech.
Here’s what I said about the Chief
Development Officer Traci Eckels.
“Traci and I did something rare in public
media. We modeled something that I think
has helped make KQED more successful
than just about everybody else. Basically,
we got along. We trusted. That's been
awesome.”
5. There was a prestigious station
that couldn’t pay its bills
The Board hired a new CEO
Restarted the major gifts programs
Invested in Gift Planning (then called
planned giving)
Doubled the size of its Foundation and
Grants team from one person to two
Invested in Membership research
Corporate Support sought training
6. There was a prestigious station
that couldn’t pay its bills
The CEO didn’t have a magic wand
Donations from people of means could
“double” without creating much impact
Gift planning takes time to mature
Foundation revenue is nuanced and
hardly known for speed.
Member research confirmed the obvious.
Corporate Support was better trained
7. There was a prestigious station
that couldn’t pay its bills
The CEO laid off staff. Good people
needed new jobs.
The staff that remained started exiting.
Several went on to prestigious careers
throughout public media.
The infighting was headed for legend.
The E5: “doubt intent, bet against, blame,
kicked when down, circled back for
more.”
8. There was a prestigious station
that couldn’t pay its bills
So they did something radical for its day,
And sold a plan to the Board that would
add a million, or maybe two million dollars
of support to the bottom line.
They would seek 30-second long
“enhanced underwriting credits.”
9. How’d it go? Parades?
Accolades? Awards?
PAGE ONE, above the fold, San Francisco
Chronicle-- KQED in Financial Peril
The end of civilization! San Francisco
Examiner
When Libs Watch Haute TV -- Who Pays?
San Francisco Chronicle
10. There was a prestigious station
that couldn’t pay its bills
The station didn’t move to interrupt
programming
It didn’t blare commercial
announcements
Eventually, the new revenue made a
difference to the public and to the…
11. The Staff
Fundamentally all parts of the organization came
together with more empathy, a bias for trust and an
appreciation – of each other -- for the number of
moving parts it takes to lift a culture off the floor.
12. CHANGE TABLE
Need Changes Behavior
Behavior Changes Culture
Culture Changes Values
And good values should not
change
13. Reminder of the Reason:
Telling the Story
What does it look like when core purpose
and mission permeate a station culture,
and when development practitioners
articulate donor-centered
communications via all platforms based
on core values?
14. The successes
Major Donor have valuable air time
Corp. Underwriters attend prestigious
events – no philosophy of separation
Station wide participation in pledge –
donors at every level of contribution may
create challenge grants.
Realistic “upgrade” economy between
donor groups and categories
15. The successes
The station and the contributors
participate in problem solving
The Pledge Free Stream at KQED has
become the darling of major donor
benefits for certain contributors
16. What does it look like when
core purpose and mission
permeate a station culture?
1. A bias for trust regardless of level or function
2. Premise that you’ll work it out – and you don’t
always get what you want
3. Discuss, decide, and move on. Sometimes
written in the latin as “MTFO”
4. Mission values are Station values AND those
values trump all others values.
5. The magic is in Leadership - at every level.
