Farr Associates Consulting, LLC believes that even the most sophisticated organizations and experienced staff can benefit from an objective Organizational and/ or Development Audit that measures reality against best practices and procedures.
An Audit advances an organization's programs, services and long-term aspirations by strengthening leadership and management processes and its fund raising capabilities. The primary benefit of the Audit is to assure that fund raising potential is maximized by implementing changes in fund raising programs. However, these services provide some additional benefits:
We assist organizations to make changes to their management and leadership structure to maximize their opportunities for success.
Through a careful analysis of the resource development function, we identify ways to improve efforts to secure annual operating support.
Our recommendations help development departments be positioned for future capital campaigns by recommending the appropriate resources needed for a successful major, capital, and endowment fund drive.
We assist organizations to concentrate fund raising activities on those most likely to increase contributed income.
Our Audits involve focus group research and individual interviews as well as an in-depth analysis of the organization's fundraising operations and strategies. Included are review of:
Donor records, budget, and fund raising plans;
Staffing resources;
Systems and procedures;
Long and short-range plans;
The case for support;
Other methods of communication;
Volunteer fund raising structures; and
Internal and external messaging and interfaces.
An Audit typically includes ten (10) to twelve (12) interviews among Board and other community leaders over 2 days, either individually or in a group setting. We also interview senior staff and development department personnel, either individually or in a group setting.
We use a combination of empirical data, our observations and information from the interviews and focus groups as background to produce an outline of a written fund raising plan designed to strengthen the resource development program. Strategies included may include personal major gift solicitations, direct mail, special events, planned giving, and grantsmanship. They are included in the final Audit report.
