“Building Relationships with Corporate Sponsors” - Panel Discussion Recap

Apr 2

What does it mean to build a new, meaningful relationship with corporate partners?

How does one go from zero communication to winning major grants from businesses in your nonprofit’s community?

And what are proven strategies that nonprofit fundraisers can use to get in front of corporations that are aligned with your organization’s mission?

These are the topics we covered during last week’s panel discussion: “Building Relationships with Corporate Sponsors”. We had a star-studded panel including:

Hosted by Zach Hynek, co-founder and Chief Storyteller at Cadenza, the session featured industry heavyweights: Dean Ronzoni from Leave No Trace, Jen Wasem from Jenerous Living Philanthropy, and Milan Ball from Giving Compass. These pros brought their A-game, revealing that building partnerships with corporate sponsors lies in authentic, long-term partnerships rather than chasing after quick, transactional sponsorships.

Our panelists offered incredibly thoughtful advice on aligning with corporate partners' social impact goals and communicating in ways that resonate on a human level. They highlighted the art of patience, noting that cultivating these partnerships takes time- sometimes months or even years. By tapping into board members' networks, showing gratitude, and staying true to your mission, nonprofits can craft relationships that stand the test of time. Plus, they reminded us that celebrating small victories, avoiding burnout, and viewing fundraising as an invitation to engage in meaningful work can transform your approach. Dive in to glean actionable tips and insights from the masters themselves!

TOP 10 TAKEAWAYS

1. Long-Term Relationships Over Quick Wins

Successful corporate sponsorships usually come from long-term relationship building rather than one-off requests. Expect nine to eighteen months (or more) before seeing major results.

2. Listen Before Pitching

Resist the urge to go in with a generic pitch deck. Let the potential partner talk about their needs, interests, and strategic pillars first; then tailor your proposal specifically to them.

3. Leverage Your Network

Board members, colleagues, and even an admin assistant can offer powerful introductions. Do not try to build new relationships alone—ask for help from those who already have connections.

4. Be Clear and Specific

State upfront that you are seeking a cash contribution (if that is truly what you need). Know what you are and are not willing to accept, and have a gift acceptance policy in place to avoid “mission drift.”

5. Show Impact and Gratitude

Corporations want to see a tangible result of their contribution. Invite them to experience your mission firsthand (e.g., seeing the truck they helped fund). Stand out by sending genuine thank-you notes and updates.

6. Manage Internal Expectations

Fundraisers need to communicate timelines and challenges to board members and executive directors. Ask them to help—invite them to “walk alongside” you in the process, rather than expecting you to do it alone.

7. Stay Mission-Focused

Chasing money at all costs can lead to mission drift. Clearly articulate how each sponsorship opportunity aligns with your mission so that you can effectively report on real impact.

8. Use Technology Wisely

Tools like AI can automate administrative tasks and help with writer’s block, but nothing replaces genuine human connection. Focus on the personal, relational aspect of fundraising.

9. Celebrate the Small Wins

Corporate partnership cultivation can be emotionally demanding. Keep a “win board” or take a “wellness hour” to remind yourself of the successes—both large and small.

10. Invite, Don’t Beg

Fundraising is best reframed as inviting a company to join your impactful work. This perspective sets a collaborative tone and fosters authentic, lasting partnerships.

Condensed Transcript:

(This transcript was generated using AI. There may include some mistakes, abbreviations or transcription errors. Certain responses have been prompted to only include the most essential sections of the quote, a full transcript is included below!)

INTRODUCTION

Zach (Moderator) Opening Statement:

“And there it kicks off. So welcome, everyone. We have people still trickling in. I see a lot of people joining us slowly but surely. Attendees joining us today—we’re really excited for today’s panel, which is all about focusing on building corporate partnerships for nonprofits, specifically how fundraisers can establish relationships, how they can build meaningful relationships and partnerships with corporations across the US.

Joining us today on our panel, I’m really excited because we focus—especially at Cadenza—on having real, live practitioners as our guests. So we have a star-studded cast of experts who have specialized in building partnerships not just with corporations but also with foundations and even federal agencies. We’re excited to be able to talk about a very pertinent topic, because we know, as there have been shifts and changes—and we’re not going to beat around the elephant in the room—there’s a lot happening on the federal level. Board members, executive directors, and fundraisers are being asked, ‘How are we going to diversify our fundraising sources? How are we going to build new relationships and strategic partnerships? And how do we make that not just ideas and words, but really tactical and tangible advice?’ That’s what we’re focused on today.

So joining us today, we have Milan Ball from the Giving Compass. We have Jen Wasem from Jenerous Living, specifically her new consulting firm. And Dean from Leave No Trace. I’m excited to kick it off. We’re going to go through some quick, brief introductions. If you all could just give us a 30-second introduction on your names, your titles, where you’re based out of, and a little bit of background on your organization and your experience in both development as well as the corporate giving space. Dean, I’ll kick it off with you, if you don’t mind starting us off. Then we’ll go from Jen to Milan.”

PANELIST INTRODUCTIONS

Dean (Leave No Trace) Introduction:

“Great, thanks for having us, Zach. So my name is Dean Ronzoni. I’m the Director of Corporate Development at Leave No Trace. Leave No Trace is a nonprofit organization. We’re 31 years old this year, and we teach people about how to connect with the outdoors and also how to protect the outdoors. So our product is education, and I’ve been at Leave No Trace—I actually started as an intern, and I’ve done some membership work through Leave No Trace. My current role is corporate partnerships. So that’s really where I’ve spent my 15 years at Leave No Trace—not only bringing in corporate dollars, but also managing our corporate accounts, keeping them happy with the work that we’re doing, and connected to the work we’re doing, and then also finally having them as a voice for our organization as well.”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Introduction:

“Great. My name is Jen Wasem. I’m the founder and CEO of Jenerous Living Philanthropy. I have been in nonprofit for almost two decades. I have led corporate account teams throughout the nation for national organizations. I’m passionate about relationship, relationship, relationship. I had a focus on the Fortune 50 accounts, as well as CPG accounts for Walmart. So I’m very excited to be here and looking forward to learning from everyone.”

Milan (Giving Compass) Introduction:

“All right. Hi, everyone. My name is Milan Ball. I’m excited to be a part of today’s discussion. I’m currently serving as the Director of Development and Philanthropic Partnerships at Giving Compass. Giving Compass— we believe that education is the foundation for meaningful generosity, because the data shows that donors who know more do more. And so we exist to provide donor education on the issues that people care about most and bring visibility to nonprofits that are making impact. We do this through sector collaboration, leveraging AI, data, behavioral science, and ethics to level the playing field for what future technology promises.

Prior to Giving Compass, I was working for an organization called Be Nimble Foundation, based in Indianapolis, and that’s where I still am. And I completed a Master of Philanthropic Studies at the Lilly School of Philanthropy, which I always have to plug any time I’m speaking. With that, I will kick it back to you, Zach.”

QUESTION 1: What are the greatest myths when it comes to building relationships with new funders?

Zach (Moderator):

“Awesome. Thank you so much. And thank you, everyone, for joining us today. I want this to be a fun and engaging conversation. We don’t want any fluff. We want real, candid advice. I think we always hear advice like, ‘We want to diversify funding. We want to build more corporate sponsorships.’ Jen, I’ll start with you. If organizations and fundraisers are getting this advice, where do you think is the best place for them to start? And where do you feel are some of the myths, if you will, about what it means to really build those relationships with your partners?”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Response:

“Yeah. So I think the biggest myth that I encounter on a daily basis is that these are very quick relationships, right? Like it’s gonna happen overnight. So just because the organization has decided that this is our new direction—well, it’s just gonna happen, right? Well, that’s not the case. And we’re not the only one approaching these corporate partners, right? They are inundated with, now, a lot of new nonprofits coming to them and saying, ‘Hey, now we want to partner, right? We need to diversify, right?’ So remember that great relationships take a great amount of time, and that if you’re just starting—like, if this is go time, right—then add about nine to eighteen months to your actual time that you think you’re gonna see the money come in. But I think often there’s just these really unrealistic expectations around the turnaround.”

Zach (Moderator):

“I think that’s so true. And I think one thing that we often hear is these myths within the sector, as you mentioned, about timeline. But Dean, as you mentioned, you’ve seen the evolution of going from intern to now having known this for over a decade. What maybe were some of the biggest misconceptions internally at Leave No Trace—and how you’ve grown throughout the years—that surprised you about developing these relationships?”

Dean (Leave No Trace) Response:

“Yeah, I’d say one of the hardest things that I hear from a lot of other NGOs is that it’s hard to raise money. It’s hard to ask for money. And I personally don’t think it’s hard to ask for the money, because that money fuels all of our work, right? And we need to fund the organizations that we all work for. So yes, it can be scary; it can be sometimes challenging because, for me, my asks are always unique—they’re always different. So it’s about finding the fit with the organization, not necessarily saying, ‘I need $20,000 to do this. Can you help?’

I feel like experience and practice really makes perfect in that field and creates a comfort level. And I’ve seen it even with our internal employees. People say, ‘Wow, I don’t know how you do this job. It seems so challenging.’ And I say the same thing to them: ‘I have no idea how you keep organized and do your job.’ So it’s kind of that misconception. So that’s one of the myths that I hear over and over when I’m doing a presentation at a trade show or whatnot. It’s, ‘How do you do that?’ Hopefully, we can answer some of those questions today. But that’s my quick answer.”

Zach (Moderator):

“I love that. Milan, we’re talking mindset here. That zero-sum or non-zero-sum mindset: we’re really adding to the pot, we’re really doing good work, getting our awareness and message in front of more people. Milan, what are your thoughts right now, from your perspective in the fundraising and development sector, about these myths and how to approach them?”

Milan (Giving Compass) Response:

“Yeah, I could not agree more with Jen and Dean. In Jen’s case on timeline, that’s absolutely one of the biggest myths or misconceptions. You absolutely need to add about twelve to eighteen months on what your expectations are. And I say that having been in the seat of being the first development hire for two organizations. When you’re building the infrastructure for fundraising, you have two scenarios where you’re either inheriting a lot of relationships from other people on your staff or your board, or you’re developing relationships essentially from scratch. Those are two totally different landscapes, and it might be a mixture of the two.

You might have very high expectations from your team or your board to create those new relationships while you’re managing the ones you’ve already inherited. I think spending some time with those realities is really important. And then, to Dean’s point, I love what you said about comfort, because I actually—and we’ve talked about this, Zach—that I like to think of fundraising as more of an invitation than an ask. And when you’re inviting someone to be a part of something, you have a certain level of comfort and familiarity with that person. I think the same is true in all types of fundraising. Some of the best and strongest relationships are built with time, which goes back to Jen’s point.”

QUESTION 2: What to do when your board asks for quick wins with corporate sponsors - a role playing scenario.

Zach (Moderator):

“Well, I want to keep this a little spicy for us right now, because we know fundraisers are getting asked this question: ‘What are we going to do this year to bring fundraising in this year?’ Right? March is already wrapping up, and we know the timeline can be long, but sometimes leadership wants quick results. So let’s do a quick role-play. Jen, Milan, Dean—if I’m a president of the board, and I come to you, the development director, saying, ‘What are we going to do this year to build some new corporate strategic partnerships?’ how do you set those expectations and keep us grounded in reality?”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Response:

“So my response would be, ‘Who on the board is going to walk alongside me and do that?’ Because I think it’s very easy in a leadership position or board position to say, ‘You need to do this,’ without understanding how hard it really is. What I find is that being able to bring in some champions from the board evens the playing field. It makes conversations a lot easier between leadership and development. It also educates the board on the timeline, on difficulty, on what’s realistic, and what’s not, and it supports the development staff.”

Milan (Giving Compass) Response:

“Jen took the words out of my mouth, as far as the board participation, and that is also not completely easy. I think it’s easier said than done for some organizations that might not have that culture yet. Resources like BoardSource can help you with principles for governance—how to work with your board and develop that culture where they can really provide support.

I would also say that going into those conversations with your board members with very clear expectations is important. For example, you might use gift range charts to understand exactly how many gifts you need at certain levels to hit your goal. That helps with the prospecting. If you set a goal of, say, five introductions from each board member, that’s low-hanging fruit to start exercising that skill of inviting them to participate in the process. If you do that, your board has a better grasp on just how many prospects you might need or how many introductions you might need. And that sets realistic expectations of the mix of resources you need to accomplish the goal.”

Dean (Leave No Trace) Response:

“Well, how am I going to come up with a different answer? Because I definitely want to echo them, but I’ll go a little different. I totally agree with both of you. I think support not even just from the board but from the executive director and any of your bosses or senior leadership is crucial. It shouldn’t all fall on you. Yes, you’re probably the one that’s going to report on it and work really hard, but how can we do this together?

For instance, we receive some federal funding—grants that have been ongoing—but we don’t know if they’re going to come in. We don’t know what the government is going to allow our partners, like the Forest Service or National Park Service, to do, so we need to pivot and raise additional money. Luckily, we have a supportive board and staff. We’re talking to our individual membership team, our grants team—everyone is in the fold so it’s not just me.

As Jen said, it’s challenging to create a new relationship quickly, sometimes years, so how are we going to do it by midsummer? A way to speed that process is to work with board members, or even family connections, so you can skip some of the steps. It’s like speed dating. You start talking to them, get to know them. But you have that introduction, and you can skip some of the smaller steps.”

QUESTION 3: How do you make your corporate partnerships feel personalized to each organization that you work with?

Zach (Moderator):

“Love it. Dean, I know Leave No Trace does a phenomenal job with corporate sponsorships and has a high percentage of funding from corporate sponsorships. One thing you do really well is how customized each of your packages is for each partner. What do some of those initial outreaches look like, and how do you go from that initial point of engagement to crafting something that feels very personal to the corporation you’re building that partnership with?”

Dean (Leave No Trace) Response:

“Yeah, it does take time. But like I said, pairing off my last answer, if you have that introduction—it could be from anybody; let’s say a board member—I work with our board heavily on who they know, introducing case studies in board meetings. They start to get how I operate. I want them to help me, not me operate how they want.

Typically, when I start talking to a company, I want to hear them speak. I want to hear what their initiatives are. We work with a lot of marketing directors, founders of companies—people who have passion. I let them talk about their priorities. It’s about understanding what they need and what they want. I don’t have any benefits written down. I have an engagement guide that shows examples of things we’ve done in the past, just to spark ideas. Then I create a package exclusively for that partner, every single one—because they need that custom approach.

I work with several down-jacket manufacturers. Every one of them has a different partnership, because I don’t feel good making the same partnership for all of them, and neither would they. They all want something different, which makes it fun. That’s why I’ve been here for 15 years—because we’re able to keep doing something unique and exciting, rather than stale, boilerplate. That’s how we keep them coming back and how we create longevity. Companies might just want one project, but that’s usually not great for awareness of what they actually care about. So I always recommend we avoid one-and-done projects when possible.”

Zach (Moderator):

“Jen, I want to give you the chance to hop in there as well—on building custom partnerships and avoiding the generic approach.”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Response:

“Yeah. I love what you said, Dean. I think the worst thing a nonprofit can do is go in with a pitch deck saying, ‘You can be platinum, silver, or gold. You get your logo on our website and three shout-outs a year on social media…’ That’s just not the way to go. Don’t even take a pitch deck in there. You don’t have anything to pitch yet, because you don’t even know their strategy.

Go in, ask open-ended questions, and learn. That’s your job in building these relationships—especially in the beginning. The less you talk, the better. Find out what’s important to them. What do their associates need? What’s their strategy? What are they missing? They’ll tell you. Then you can position yourself as that winning team to support them. The most important thing is to ditch the pitch deck, because you need to listen to them first.”

QUESTION 4: How do you balance educating your audience while also listening to them to build trust?

Zach (Moderator):

“Milan, you also talked about that invitation mindset. How do you balance listening to corporate priorities while using education and awareness to build trust?”

Milan (Giving Compass) Response:

“I again could not agree more with Jen and Dean. Sometimes large corporations want a more holistic experience for their employees—maybe more interest in volunteer opportunities than in direct grant-making. In that case, you need to be aware if your organization is set up for that.

If you’re in a local community—for instance, I’m in Indianapolis—there’s a different dynamic than going after national corporations. At a local level, employee resource groups might be the key. They could have their own budget and be looking to support local causes that resonate with their employees. That might be more fruitful than going straight to the top.

From a research perspective, definitely see if your organization is discoverable on platforms like Benevity Causes, so that employees can easily find you for employer matching or giving. You might also consider AI tools, but nothing replaces a real conversation. As for rejections—sometimes you don’t know if you’re truly aligned until you try. If it’s a ‘no,’ don’t take it personally. They may already support a similar nonprofit. They might still come back to you in the future.”

JEN’S STORY ON GRATITUDE AND ‘NO’ RESPONSES

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Additional Note:

“Sometimes you leave an appointment realizing there’s no alignment. The last thing you want is to go back to your team and say, ‘We’re a health org and they support international aid. I don’t know what to tell you.’ But I’ve had three instances where I left knowing there was zero alignment, and I sent all three a handwritten thank-you note for their transparency. And you know what? Two of those three actually cut us a check anyway, because they said, ‘Thank you. That’s good business.’ Another org said, ‘We already support another breast cancer group; we can’t support you.’ I sent them a thank-you note anyway, and they eventually came on as a sponsor…

So, nonprofits, don’t take a ‘no’ as, ‘I need to push harder.’ Just be gracious; you never know how things might change later on.”

QUESTION 5: What do you do with writing ‘thank you’ notes in a remote-first world?

Dean (Leave No Trace):

“Jen, can I ask you a question here? We’re in a remote environment now, so how do you get these notes physically to them if they’re not in the office?”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Response:

“Sometimes at the end of a meeting, I’ll ask if it’s okay to provide them updates on what we’re doing. Usually they say yes, and that’s how I confirm how best to contact them. Also, if you can find out who the admin is, sometimes that admin can help you. They’ve been there longer in some cases and can ensure your communication eventually reaches the right person.”

DEAN’S REMINDER TO KNOW YOUR ‘ASK’

Dean (Leave No Trace) Additional Note:

“And I wanted to add something else: always know exactly what you want. A lot of times they might say, ‘We don’t have cash, but we’ll send you product.’ Product can be great, but if you truly need cash to keep the lights on, you have to clarify that. We can waste time making a big deck or a proposal and then have them come back with an offer of, say, $10,000 of product instead of a check. Sometimes you can turn products into a cash opportunity, but not always. So be crystal clear about needing sponsorship dollars to keep your organization funded.”

MILAN’S SUGGESTION ON GIFT ACCEPTANCE POLICY

Milan (Giving Compass):

“That’s where your gift acceptance policy really comes in handy—so you know what you will and won’t accept. Also, to address remote thank-yous, we’re a remote-first organization. One way we keep that personal connection is by using little asynchronous video messages (e.g., Loom). People can watch them on their own time, and they see a face—it’s a more human touch than just an email.”

JEN’S STORY ON PERSONALIZING THANKS

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Additional Note:

“There’s another story: a local organization helped us buy a truck for food distribution. After it was all wrapped with their logo, I called them and said, ‘I’d love for you to come out and look at the truck.’ The woman just stood there staring at it. I asked if something was wrong—was the logo off? She said, ‘You’re the only person who’s ever shown me, after the gift, what we did.’

So keep that in mind: nonprofits, if a company is thinking, ‘We want to do something in the community,’ you want them to think of you. And in order for them to remember you, you have to stay top of mind. Show them the impact.”

MILAN’S STORY ON REJECTIONS TURNING INTO OPPORTUNITIES

Milan (Giving Compass) Additional Note:

“I had a somewhat similar story: we got a rejection for a grant proposal my team was excited about. A few months later, I met the program officer at a happy hour. He had no idea about our proposal. We struck up a conversation, formed a relationship, and several months after that, we got invited to apply for another cycle. Being in the right spaces, physically or virtually, is powerful—because you never know what relationships can form after an initial rejection.”

ZACH’S QUESTION ON TOOLS AND AI

Zach (Moderator):

“Well, you’ve mentioned technology. Let’s talk about AI. Cadenza as a platform uses AI. There’s so much hype. Where do you see it helping with corporate partnership development, and where should we remain cautious to maintain that human element?”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Response:

“You know, I think it’s always tempting to chase what’s new and shiny. But I’m an advocate of focusing on your mission, sharing your story, and bringing people along. That’s very human-centered. And I don’t believe AI will ever replace the human aspect of what we do in nonprofits.”

Dean (Leave No Trace) Response:

“I totally agree. Zach, we talked offline. I’d love to replace some of my mundane tasks, like building certain decks or doing basic note-taking. We’ve used AI a little in newsletters to see if it can help with open rates, but we’re trying to not overspam partners. I don’t think AI will ever replace the human interaction—that’s my favorite part of the job: checking in, conceptualizing ideas. I use it sometimes for writer’s block, but I bring it back to my own words because that personal connection is what people remember.”

FINAL QUESTION: BIG TAKEAWAYS FOR CORPORATE GIVING

Zach (Moderator):

“Awesome. We have about ten minutes left. Let’s get some practical advice. If you could each give one big final takeaway for someone trying to expand their corporate giving strategy—maybe they’re facing pressure right now—what would it be? Milan, let’s start with you, then Dean, then Jen.”

Milan (Giving Compass) Final Takeaway:

“Thanks, Zach. And thank you for this session; it’s been fantastic learning from Jen and Dean. I’d tie back to what I mentioned before about reframing fundraising as an invitation. That sets a more comfortable, collaborative tone. Also, be creative about making connections. I use LinkedIn to keep track of prospective funders and supporters and to form a genuine connection outside of email blasts. Remember, the small check-ins—when there’s no money on the table—can be very powerful. It shows you see them as people, not just a funding source. So that’s my biggest recommendation.”

Dean (Leave No Trace) Final Takeaway:

“I echo all of that. Being on this call with Jen and Milan, you both are clearly experts. You’ve reinforced a lot of what I do. I’m self-taught, so it’s nice to see the validation. My advice for newcomers is: it’s okay to fail sometimes. You learn by doing.

I always celebrate each step of success—even the small milestones. For me, it might be ‘We got a call with that company!’ or ‘I sent them a deck and they’re excited!’ I share that joy with my boss and my team. Yes, it might get stuck there, but keep celebrating those breadcrumbs along the way. It keeps you connected to the work. Also, develop a comfort level in asking for cash—otherwise, you’ll end up with pallets of paper towels. That’s my biggest advice. This has been great.”

Jen (Jenerous Living Philanthropy) Final Takeaway:

“Thank you. This has been so invigorating. I agree with everything you said. One practical tip: I have a ‘win board,’ a corkboard where I write down every single win—big or small—because development can be a hard job. Everyone wants something from you, and it can feel lonely. Sometimes if I’m down, I just stare at the win board. It reminds me of those successes. Also, I schedule a wellness hour for myself daily, just to step away from my desk, get a walk, be in the sun. We know there’s a high turnover in development roles, so self-care is crucial. Those are a few things I do to keep myself going.”

ZACH’S CLOSING

Zach (Moderator):

“Well, again, I cannot tell you how much I appreciate everyone on today’s panel for offering their insights. It really does take a village. One of the greatest superpowers or pieces of advice I’d leave folks with is just the ability to ask for help—be clear with your ask, reach out to your networks, and remember that you’re providing a tremendous amount of value to corporations who genuinely want to engage their employees and connect to their community.

Thank you all so much for joining us on today’s panel. We’ll be sharing a recording, and we’ll have clips on social media as well. If people want to learn more about any of our panelists, they can connect with you on LinkedIn. I’ll have information available. Jen has an amazing consulting firm, and Dean and Milan are each doing incredible work at Leave No Trace and Giving Compass respectively. I’ll stop my tangent there. Thank you all so much, and I look forward to staying in touch. Bye, everyone.”

FULL TRANSCRIPT:

Zach Hynek: And there it kicks off so welcome everyone we have people still trickling in. I see a lot of people joining us slowly but surely attendees joining us today really excited for today's panel, which is all about focused on building corporate partnerships and for nonprofits, specifically fundraisers how they can establish relationships, how they can build meaningful relationships and partnerships with corporations across the Us. So joining us today on our panel, I'm really excited because we focus, especially at cadenza, having really live practitioners who are our guests. So we have a star-studded cast of really experts who their background has not only been in development, but they've specialized in building partnerships with foundations, with corporations, with even Federal partnerships as well. So we're excited to be able to talk about a very pertinent topic, because we know, as there have been shifts and changes, we're not going to beat around the elephant in the room of. There's a lot happening on the Federal level, and we know board members and executive directors are being asked: how are we going to diversify our fundraising sources? How are we going to build new relationships and strategic partnerships? And how do we make that? Not just ideas and words, but really tactable and tangible advice? And that's what we're focused on today. So joining us today, we have Milan ball from the giving compass we have Jen Wasam for generous living. Specifically, her new consulting Firm Andi from leave no trace, so I'm excited to kick it off. We're going to go through some quick, brief introductions. If you guys could just give us a 30 second introduction on your names, your titles where you're based out of, and a little bit of background on, your organization and your experience in the both development as well as corporate giving space. So, Dean, I'll kick it off with you if you don't mind kicking us off here, and then we'll go from Jenna, Milan.

Dean Ronzoni: Great thanks for having us, Zach. So my name is Dean Ronzoni. I'm the director of corporate development at leave. No trace, leave no trace is a nonprofit organization. We're 31 years old this year, and we teach people about how to connect with the outdoors and also how to protect the outdoors. So our product is education, and I've been at leave no trace. I actually started as an intern, and I've done some membership work through leave no trace. My current role is corporate partnerships. So that's really where I've spent my 15 years at leave. No trace. Not only bringing in corporate dollars, but also managing our corporate accounts, keeping them happy with the work that we're doing connected to the work we're doing, and then also, finally having them as a voice for our organization, as well

Jen Wasem: Great. My name is Jen Watson. I'm the founder and CEO of generous living philanthropy. I have been in nonprofit for almost 2 decades. I have led corporate account teams throughout the nation for national organizations. I'm passionate about relationship relationship relationship. And I had a focus on the fortune 50 accounts as well as Cpg. Accounts for Walmart. So I'm very excited to be here and looking forward to learning from everyone.

Milan Ball: All right. Hi, everyone. My name is Milan Ball. I'm excited to be a part of today's discussion. I'm currently serving as the Director of development and philanthropic partnerships at giving compass, giving compass. We believe that education is the foundation for meaningful generosity, because the data shows that donors who know more do more. And so we exist to provide donor education on the issues that people care about most and bring visibility to nonprofits that are making it. We do this through sector collaboration, leveraging AI data, behavioral science and ethics to level the playing field for what future technology promises prior to giving compass. I was working for an organization called Be Nimble Foundation, based in Indianapolis, and that's where I still am. And I completed masters of philanthropic studies at the Lilly school of philanthropy which I always have to plug anytime. I'm speaking so with that I will kick it back to you, Zach.

Zach Hynek: Awesome. Thank you so much. And thank you, everyone of our panelists for joining us today. I want this to be a fun and engaging conversation. We don't want any Fluff. We want real candid advice, and I think we always please start off when you hear advice like that, Jen. I'll start with you of. We want to diversify funding. We want to build more corporate sponsorships. How do you think when organizations and fundraisers are getting this advice? Where do you think is the best place for them to start? And where do you feel like? Are just some of the the myths, if you will, what it means to really build those relationships with your partners?

Jen Wasem: Yeah. So I I think the biggest myth that I encounter and on a daily basis is that these are very quick relationships, right? Like, it's gonna happen overnight. So just because the organization has decided that this is our new direction. Well, it's just gonna happen right? Well, that's that's not the case, and we're not the only one approaching these corporate partners. Right? They are inundated with now a lot of new nonprofits coming to them and saying, hey? Now, we want to partner right? We we need to diversify right? So to remember that great relationships take a great amount of time and that if you're just starting like, if this is, go time right? Then add about 9 to 18 months to your actual time that you think you know you're gonna see the money come in. But I think often there's just this really unrealistic expectations around the turnaround

Zach Hynek: I think that's so true. And I think one thing that we often hear when it comes to just the myths within the sector is. You mentioned the timeline there, but when it comes to the timeline, I know, Dean, as you had just mentioned, of someone who's seen the evolution of you know, going from intern to now, have knowing this for over a decade, what maybe were some of the biggest, maybe misconceptions that you've had internally kind of as you've grown at. Leave no trace throughout the years, but kind of staying on this myth, busting theme that you've been surprised by when it comes to just developing these relationships

Dean Ronzoni: Yeah, I'd say. One of the hardest things that I hear from a lot of other Ngos is that it's hard to raise money. It's hard to ask for money, and I think I, personally don't think it's hard to ask for the money because that money fuels all of our work right? And we need. we need to fund the organizations that we all work for. So yes, it it can be scary. It can be sometimes challenging, because for me, my asks are always unique, they're always different. So it's to find the fit with the organization. Not necessarily saying I need $20,000 to do this, can you help? And so I feel like they're experience and practice. Really makes perfect in that field. And it creates a comfort level. And I've I've seen it even with our internal employees. People say, Wow, I I don't know how you do this job. This is seems so so challenging, and I say the same thing to them. I have no idea how you keep organized and do your job. And so it's kind of that. That misconception. So that's 1 of the myths that I I hear over and over when I'm doing a presentation at a trade show or whatnot is how to do that? And hopefully, we can answer some of those questions today. But that's that's my quick answer.

Zach Hynek: I love that. Well, I'm gonna toss back to you, Milan, too, because we're talking mindset here. And those things definitely something I picked up on right away of having that, you know 0 sum, or I should say, non 0 sum mindset where we're really adding to the pot. We're really doing good work and getting our awareness and message in front of more people. Milan, what are your thoughts? I guess right now of kind of your experience

Milan Ball: Yeah, I could not agree more with Jen and Dean in Jen's case on timeline. That is, absolutely, I think, one of the biggest myths or misconceptions. I mean absolutely. You need to add about 8, you know, 1212 to 18 months on what your expectations are, and I say that, having been in the seat of being the 1st development hire for 2 organizations. And so when you're building the infrastructure for fundraising, and you have

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Milan Ball: 2 scenarios where either you're inheriting a lot of relationships on other people, on your staff or your board in that case. But then, in another case, you know, developing relationships essentially from scratch. And those are 2 totally different landscapes that I think depending on which camp you're sitting in, and it might be a mixture of the 2. You might have very high expectations from

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Milan Ball: your team or your board to create those new relationships while you're managing the ones that you've already inherited. I think spending.

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Milan Ball: spending some time with those realities is really important. And then, in Dean's case, I like to. I love what you said about comfort, because I actually. And we've talked about this Zach, that I like to think of fundraising. It's more of an invitation than it really is an ask.

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Milan Ball: And when you're inviting someone to be a part of something. You have a certain level of comfort and familiarity with that person. And so I think the same is true in all types of fundraising that you're doing which I, you know

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Milan Ball: that some of the best and strongest relationships are built with time, which goes back to Jen's point

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Zach Hynek: Yeah, well, I love that. I want to keep this a little spicy for us right now, too, because we know fundraisers are getting asked this question of

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Zach Hynek: Hey, in the next 3, 6, what are we going to do next quarter? Right like, how are we going to bring fundraising in this year, and guess what March is already getting wrapped up and knowing that that timeline is, I'm gonna give a quick, rapid fire. We're gonna go, Jen Milan, Dean, if we will.

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Zach Hynek: What do you say when you get this? Ask like, how do you set those expectations and keep us grounded in reality? So I think sometimes it is like the internal politics as well. It's not even just the effort of fundraising. It is managing your internal expectations as a fundraiser, but communicating those expectations across the board. So

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Zach Hynek: a little quick role play sash of. I'm a president of the Board, and I come to you as the development director in a meeting and say, what are we gonna do this year to build some new corporate strategic partnerships

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Jen Wasem: So my response would be, who on the board is? Gonna walk alongside me and do that?

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Jen Wasem: Because I think it's very easy when you're in a leadership position and a board position. To say you need to do this and not having an understanding of actually how hard it is right. And so what I find is that being able to bring in some champions from the board.

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Jen Wasem: and it makes the Development Director feel not so alone right, but it also educates the board on. This is not as easy as you just think it is. I'm just not going to fire off an email to Walmart and get $25,000 next week. Right? And so part of that is educating our leadership as well on the expectations, on timeline, on difficulty on what's realistic, what's not?

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Jen Wasem: And then what that does is it? It gives support to the development staff.

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Jen Wasem: but it also kind of evens the playing field and and makes conversations a lot easier between leadership and development.

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Zach Hynek: Hmm!

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Zach Hynek: Love it, do you know? Pass it to you now or no? Milan, who was next Milan Dean

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Milan Ball: I'll I'll

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Dean Ronzoni: Over Milan.

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Milan Ball: Yeah. I

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Milan Ball: Jen, took the words out of my mouth as far as the board participation, and that is also not completely easy. I think it's easier said than done for some organizations that might not have that culture quite yet. I think resources like board source that you can go to, for you know best principles for governance, and how to work with your board and and develop that culture where they can really provide support. I would also say that

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Milan Ball: going into those conversations with your board members? With just very clear

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Milan Ball: expectations, and also, similarly, that invitational piece of it is some of the work that you also have to do internally. So one of the things that that I've done in, you know, across roles is you know, we have worked with. If I don't know if your organizations, those in the audience and work with like get gift strategies like, who do you know who's in your network that like, if I, your goal of 5 5 folks that you can introduce us to is just a basic

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Milan Ball: you know, stepping stone that's low hanging fruit to just, you know, start to exercise that skill of inviting them to participate in the process.

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Milan Ball: I would also say that so we work with gift range charts. I think that's just a general industry practice. But if your organization does not work with them to understand what exactly are the missing pieces in your fundraising efforts that you can plug in. I think that helps with the vetting process for even for prospecting opportunities. And so you know how many gifts do you need at a certain level to be able to reach the goal that you're setting for yourself?

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Milan Ball: I think when you're able to educate the board on that level of detail. It also makes it less scary with how many prospects you might need to be working for or soliciting, and then also understanding the mix of resources that you need to accomplish the goal

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Jen Wasem: I like that a lot

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Dean Ronzoni: Well, how am I gonna come up with a different answer cause I definitely wanna echo. But I'll I'll go a little different on this. I totally agree. With both of your answers, I think. Support not even just from the board, but from executive director. And any of your bosses and and above senior leadership.

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Dean Ronzoni: it shouldn't just fall onus on you. Yes, you're probably the one that's going to have to report on it and and work extra hard to bring in additional funding. We just saw it. We receive some Federal funding. We are not federally funded, but we have some grants out there that have been ongoing, and

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Dean Ronzoni: we don't know if they're going to come in. We don't know what the Government's going to allow some of our partners to do so like bar Service and National Park Service and those types of partnerships. So we have to pivot. And I'm going to be trying to raise additional money. I am trying to raise additional funding. Luckily enough, we've got a board and a staff that is supportive of

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Dean Ronzoni: my work. And it's not just here. Here's the paperwork. Here's what we need you to raise. Here's the dollar amount. It's hey! How can we do this together, and it's not even just me. We're talking on our individual membership team, our Grants team. It's bringing everyone into the fold. So you're not just taking ownership, but you can also bounce ideas off other other team members.

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Dean Ronzoni: it. It is a very tricky situation to be in but also, I think

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Dean Ronzoni: cultivating your board is definitely big time on that. It is very challenging to go in and create a new relationship, and we, Jen, said it right at the start of this. It takes months and months, even sometimes years, to establish a relationship. So how are you going to do it by midsummer, you know, and a way to speed up that process is to work with

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Dean Ronzoni: board members. Even if you have

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Dean Ronzoni: family, know someone, you can speed that process up because I think of it as like speed dating. You know. You just start working with various companies, and you start talking to them and getting to know one another, but you already have a connection. You already can skip some of that process

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Zach Hynek: I love it. I think that's so helpful in so many different ways, and I know leave no trace. Actually does a phenomenal job with their corporate sponsorships and has a high percentage of your funding comes from corporate sponsorships. I want to talk a little bit about when it comes to building those relationships. And when it comes to

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Zach Hynek: Dean, I know that something that you guys do really well is like how customized each one of your packages is with each one of your partners. So how do you almost

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Zach Hynek: like take some of the layers outside of it? One. What do some of those initial outreaches look like. And how do you go from that initial point of engagement to

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Zach Hynek: crafting something that feels very personal to the corporation that you're you're building that partnership with

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Dean Ronzoni: Yeah, it's it does take time. But like, I said, just pairing off my last answer, if you have that introduction, and it could be from anybody.

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Dean Ronzoni: you know. Let's just use a board member per se. I work with our board very heavily on who do they know? And in that, and in that like

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Dean Ronzoni: starting to get them to know about your work, too, because not all board members just walk in, especially new board members know what a development director is doing.

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Dean Ronzoni: You're you're educating them. You're teaching them. You're teaching them about some other partnerships. Case studies. I present case studies all the time at our board meetings, because then they start to get the understanding of how I operate, and I want them to help me, not me, operate directly how they want to operate. So is a little bit of coaching in that, too, because we've had success. So I'm sticking with my model until it stops working, and then we'll pivot because we always pivot every single year. And

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Dean Ronzoni: it is in the relationship building. Typically when I start talking to a company.

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Dean Ronzoni: I want to hear them speak. I want to hear what their initiatives are. We work with a lot of marketing directors, a lot of founders of companies because they have the passion they're interested. They might have reached out to us, or we reached out to them. But

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Dean Ronzoni: it's understanding what they need and what they want. I don't have any benefits. None of them are written down. I have an engagement guide that shows examples of things we've done in the past that have been successful and things that we're experts in, because I want them to see the possibilities. I want their minds turning just as much as mine. And then I create decks, and I create a package exclusively for that partner.

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Dean Ronzoni: Every single one of them is exclusive because they need that custom. I work with several different down manufacture down jacket manufacturers.

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Dean Ronzoni: Every single one of those has a different type of partnership. I don't feel good doing the same partnership with either of them. I don't think they would feel good about it either, and they all want something different which makes it unique. It makes it fun. That's why, I've been here for 15 years, because we're able to always make something fun and different and exciting. And instead of just stale. And here's the logo. And here's a boilerplate language, and we get to live on your website like

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Dean Ronzoni: cool. That's part of it. But it's not.

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Dean Ronzoni: It's not in the meat and potatoes. It's not the the what's gonna keep them coming back. What's gonna create longevity? Because I as much as I hate doing it. I don't like. I don't like one and done partnerships. I don't think they value anyone, and I

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Dean Ronzoni: I always recommend that we don't do that now. Sometimes companies want to do that, and that's the only project they want to work on. But it doesn't allow their consumers to understand what they actually care about. So that's that's kind of how I try to operate and and make the customality. There

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Zach Hynek: Hmm! So good. I well, I know you said a few think points. So, Jen, I wanna give you the chance to to hop in there as well

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Jen Wasem: Yeah. So I love what you said.

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Jen Wasem: I think the worst thing a nonprofit can do. One of the worst things a nonprofit can do with a corporate partner is go in there with a pitch deck and say, Okay, well, you know, you can be a platinum or a silver or a gold. And you know, with that, you know, you get like your logo on our website. And then you know, and 3 shout outs a year on social media. And and it's just it's just not the way to go about it like, don't even take a pitch deck in there.

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Jen Wasem: I just go in and just talk. Just get to know them, understand? What are their pillars? Right? Because a lot of organizations now thankfully, are moving in the direction of

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Jen Wasem: our 3 strategic pillars are, you know, feeding homelessness and international aid? Okay? Right? And so you know very clearly as a nonprofit, we either fit or we don't right. And if you don't go find a different partner, that's okay, because there are plenty of partners that this org can work with. But go in, ask open, ended questions and learn.

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Jen Wasem: That is your job in building these relationships, especially in the beginning. The less you talk the better. Right? Go in, find out what's important to them. What do their associates need? What's their strategy? What are they missing? They're going to tell you.

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Jen Wasem: And so you can listen for what they're telling you, and then also what they're what they're not saying. And then that's when you can come in and position yourself as that winning team to support them. But I think you know the most important thing you can do is ditch the pitch deck nobody. Don't do it.

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Jen Wasem: You don't have anything to pitch yet, because you don't even know what their their strategy is. You haven't listened to them. So I just, wanna you know double. What you said is that you know you. You need to go in, and you just need to listen

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Milan Ball: I again, I could not agree more with Jen and Dane. I think back to. There's this acronym in the Lilly school teaches Lia linkage ability or linkage, interest and ability. And if you don't have all 3 of those, it's really difficult to enter more generally fundraising conversations with a prospective Funder, I think, in the context of corporate partnerships.

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Milan Ball: I mean, you also have to understand, as far as their priorities go, a lot of organizations are also shifting in terms of. They want a more holistic experience for their employees. It might be that they're more interested in volunteer opportunities for those employees rather than grant making in the context of grant making. I think also back to just the ecosystem that you're in. So if you're the development director for an organization that's in.

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Milan Ball: you know, local community. I'll use the example of Indianapolis since I'm based here. But there's a whole different layer to what the relationship building looks like in that local context, I think, than the national corporations, that you could very well easily go for. But, for instance, one of the things that I learned in a previous role was just.

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Milan Ball: you know,

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Milan Ball: sometimes going up straight to the the top of who it is you could potentially reach out to for that grant making opportunity is not the best bet you're going to want to get as close to home as possible. And so what actually ended up being more beneficial for opportunities for

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Milan Ball: past fundraising efforts, was actually employee resource groups and creating relationships with people that were a part of these very local chapters, but did have a budget at a local level because they're trying to improve the livelihood or the experiences of their employees, and that was a very key priority for them.

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Milan Ball: I think, as you get to the bigger corporations. Obviously, that changes a little bit. But

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Milan Ball: yeah, again, I would just echo the focus on the ecosystem, the type of fundraising it is that you're doing. Are you more focused on? Just you know the grant or more holistic? Are there volunteer opportunities at your organization are there, you know, are there.

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Milan Ball: you know. Are you? Are you populating actually on the Internet within the right platforms, where you can actually be discovered in other more creative means of fundraising. That might just not be just your simple submitting a grant proposal. But are you in benevity causes, for instance, where your organization is discoverable in employee giving

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Milan Ball: programs like, there's so many different ways that I think you can diversify your approach when it comes to these partnerships, because then you have an advocate that's within the walls of the corporation that can speak on your behalf.

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Milan Ball: That is not

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Milan Ball: to Jen's point. Just you know, going in on your 1st conversation with a pitch deck, and so creating as many links to that company as you can before you're going in and making sure that there's an element of relevance.

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Milan Ball: So if there is a rejection, you know, that comes about because you think you're aligning with the priorities they have on their website. You don't take it personally, or you feel equipped to go back in once there is real alignment.

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Milan Ball: And then again, the interest, because you might not know interested, and then their capacity to actually give you don't know where they're at in their budget, who they've already made commitments to. Who's similar, that they're already funding, that they have those deepened connections with already that you could either follow as a model or they've already made that commitment. And that's okay. And so you move on to other organizations. I'm rambling at this point. Those are the things

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Jen Wasem: No, you're not, and you're not. And you you got me thinking, you know. Sometimes I remember, like you'll leave an appointment, and you'll realize there's no alignment right like. And the last thing you want to go back to your team is be like, well, you know, like I don't want to tell you like, you know, we're health org and they support, you know, international aid. I don't know what to tell you right, but what I've had over the years. And this has been. It's always interesting to me how this works out.

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Jen Wasem: There have been 3 instances where I left, knowing there was 0 alignment right like at that conversation. Right? Like it. Just it. Okay, right? And I

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Jen Wasem: sent them all. Thank you. Notes handwritten. Thank you. Notes. And I thank them for their transparency right? Like they're actually doing you a favor if they tell you no like, we don't have alignment. Don't take that as oh, I need to work harder. Right? No, that's not. It's it's it's no like, just take it. It's okay. But I actually followed up. And I said, Thank you for being honest. Thank you for your transparency. And you know what 2 of those 3 actually cut us a check

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Jen Wasem: because they said, Thank you, that's good business. That is exactly how you do good business. Another org. It was a Cpg company. I went in and talked to

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Jen Wasem: about supporting a breast cancer initiative. They were like, yeah, no like, that's that we already support. Like to your point, like, we support another org in this space. Okay, I can't support you. We already support them. And I was like, Okay, great. And then I followed up with a Thank you note and just thank them for their time. Their transparency being human and honest. And they called me. And they're like, Yeah, like, you send us a thank you note for like.

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Jen Wasem: And I'm like, I'm not thanking you for like denying us or anything. I'm thinking you for just being real and honest right. And they actually came on as a sponsor because of that. So I think, being able to go in and just be very

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Jen Wasem: in gratitude through the whole process, even if there is an alignment. I've seen success from that as well

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Dean Ronzoni: Okay.

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Dean Ronzoni: Can I ask Jen a question here

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Zach Hynek: Please, do.

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Dean Ronzoni: So I used to do a lot of that. I agree. It totally works where I struggle is. There's so many people working remote, and you can't just send a letter to a company anymore and expect it to actually hit someone's desk. Because I mean, in my case, my desk changes consistently, even though I'm headquartered in boulder. I'm typically there, but not always so. It might take a while for me to get back to it. So

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Dean Ronzoni: do you have any other suggestions on how you might create that person, personal experience beyond email

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Jen Wasem: Yeah, sometimes at the end of a meeting, I will ask them, I know we don't have alignment. Are you okay? If I still provide you with updates on what's going on. Right? Usually, people are, gonna say, yes.

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Jen Wasem: right? And so that gives you the opportunity to confirm what's the best way to contact you right? Because people do want it. They they want to hear your successes right? Like, I mean, they're busy. They hear stuff all day long. They want to be a part of that. And so that is usually one way that I can go ahead and and get that additional information. And I'll be honest with y'all. The other way is to know the admin.

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Jen Wasem: If you have any way to get in touch with who the admin is, they can be your biggest advocate in an organization, either for a new relationship

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Jen Wasem: or just keeping communication, going to provide value and updates for maybe somebody where there is an alignment right now. And usually to. You know, if there's turnover in in management sometimes, you know, the admin will be there for a while and they'll be able to support you in your efforts. And and that is, those are just 2 ways that I found that have been really helpful to me.

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Dean Ronzoni: Thank you. Yeah, that's great. And I also wanted to add one other thing to your previous answer.

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Dean Ronzoni: It is great to go into these calls

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Dean Ronzoni: knowing what you actually want out of this

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Dean Ronzoni: a lot of times company might say we don't have the cash, but we'll send you some products, or Hey, let's.

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Dean Ronzoni: we'll give you $10,000 a product, and

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Dean Ronzoni: as great as product is. And sometimes you can turn that into a cash. It's not cash to fund employees. Your operations keep the lights on so it's incredibly important to know what you're willing to settle for it at the low end. Just to not waste people's time, because that PE companies I've been on calls with companies. And I stopped doing this, and I started asking at the end, this is a cash thing. This is what we need, because

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Dean Ronzoni: I've written large decks and then come. They've come back with, well, we can support you with this, and I'm like, well, that's not even close to what we

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Dean Ronzoni: this deck would even require, and it wasted a lot of my time where I could have been searching for new companies, adding to my pipeline and my funnel. So I think that's a that's a big recommendation of mine to be crystal, clear upfront which you are looking for, even though maybe you're not looking for going in with a direct deck of we need you to sponsor this program. But knowing what you need for sponsorship, so you can keep the lights on, you know. Keep employees going

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Jen Wasem: Yeah, because, you know, I mean, we don't all need 10 pallets of chapstick, right? We don't all need, you know, 10 pallets of paper towels, and and where I you know, you can appreciate that if, unless there's some way to convert that or provide direct sources to the community.

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Jen Wasem: it's it's almost a a Band-aid to the corporation who didn't

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Jen Wasem: make the who didn't write the check right. And there are some instances where. Yeah, you know what I had to take the chapstick right? And that's okay. But for the most part, I mean, I 1,000 agree with you like, go in knowing and and nonprofits. It's okay to say, no.

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Jen Wasem: it's okay to say no. If there is not alignment, there's not alignment. But I think sometimes as nonprofits, we're really hesitant to do that

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Milan Ball: I would I would love to throw in there, too. That's where your gift acceptance policy can come in very handy

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Milan Ball: of what you can and cannot accept. I also want to throw out there, Dean, I resonate with just the challenges of being in a remote 1st environment, as well, you know, with fundraising. It's it's very giving compasses a remote 1st organization. And you know we have a hub in DC. And Seattle. But our partners are all over the country, and so that can definitely be a challenge.

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Milan Ball: I would say. One of the things that I found useful in my workflows to, you know, help with that personal connection, not really losing it.

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Milan Ball: and I say this, we're at somewhat of a nontraditional organization. So we have pro a product that we demo relatively often. But we use a tool called loom for video recordings. You can send, you know, updates on the organization. And there's some level of personal connection. It's still sent in an email. But it's a face, you know, they can asynchronously, a lot of partners actually appreciate it on their own time they can view and

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Milan Ball: and be up to speed. But I think you know, tech makes a lot of replacements for us that I find questionable right now, but that's 1 that I enjoy. So I would say that, and if I can, I would love to give an anecdote on just one instance from a Grant perspective. When I 1st came into this role we had received a rejection for a grant that

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Milan Ball: was, you know, Team was very excited about, and I did not get to write this proposal, but I did get to receive it and receive the feedback and fast forward. A couple months later. I'm at a happy hour, and the program officer that was responsible for that decision. I ended up meeting.

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Milan Ball: and when I had introduced myself he had no idea what proposal I was talking about, and so in that moment had the opportunity to really have a 1st connection, had no idea I was going to meet that person in that setting, and we were able to build a relationship several months after that, and have been invited to apply for a cycle outside of that original one, and so I would say

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Milan Ball: not to, for those listening, not to underestimate the power of being in the right places, and following and paying very close attention to where the organizations that you are interested, or corporations that you are interested in connecting with, where they attend, where else they support.

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Milan Ball: and being a fellow supporter in those issues, because there would have been no way for us to know that encounter or participate

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Milan Ball: without just being in those rooms which may be easier said than done, and you know, depending on what sort of size budget you have. But in our case, that

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Milan Ball: you know that investment in being in the right rooms ended up as an opportunity. That was a previous rejection. And so I I would say, you know, being able to push for and ask for support from your board. In that sense and dedicating resources to getting in the right rooms. Is is very important

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Jen Wasem: Yeah, I I would. I would like, if I can jump in here really quickly. We had a on our prospect list in Louisiana.

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Jen Wasem: and this is one of my favorite stories, y'all, and they were very clear that we did. There was no alignment right? I was working with a cancer organization they were. They were not in alignment with, you know. And that's fine, right? Like, that's fine. You can't be all things to all people. And we noticed that they were actually very active in local golf tournaments. And so what we did was we put together a basket full of sunscreen

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Jen Wasem: because working with the American Cancer Society. I mean, right? We we want you to protect your skin. And so we sent over a basket filled with like little samples of sunscreen.

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Jen Wasem: You know, just some best practices around sun, some just some really inexpensive visors, right? And we we just included a note that said, you know. Hey? You know. Thank you for your support of the community. Thank you for all the great things you're doing. Please take care of your skin in the process right? I can tell you that that ended up being one of our biggest partnerships 2 years later, and it was because we cared.

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Jen Wasem: and it wasn't a sales ploy or anything like that. It was. Look we may you may. We may not be getting direct dollars from you right now, but we still care about you. And so that came back a couple of years later as one of our biggest partnerships.

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Jen Wasem: So take care of them, maybe before they? You ask them to take care of you too.

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Dean Ronzoni: Well, on the flip side of that we see a lot of companies come to us

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Dean Ronzoni: who were supporting other organizations similar to us, and said, we wrote a big check and we got a report.

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Dean Ronzoni: And so that really kind of I mean it.

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Dean Ronzoni: It enforces what you just said, Jen. But you said on the front side of things, you know, they probably came back to you because they're like they will be a partner, you know, a partner and a partner to me. And I start all of my calls like partner is not just a check. It's us collaborating. It's us doing check-ins. It's us working together, and I feel like they get that sense and they appreciate it. People connect with people.

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Dean Ronzoni: And they were connecting with your basket, you know, and you are, or your team who sent it. And you're on the radar, you know, and that's exactly how connections are made. And so we see it because other companies or other nonprofits may not be connecting in the right way, and there might not be checking in. And

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Dean Ronzoni: we see companies come to us and say, Wow, you guys are actually doing stuff with us. You're giving us what we need. And so that's you. You gave. You gave a great example of of starting a conversation that way

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Jen Wasem: Yeah, I also have a story on the flip end. A local org called said, you know, we were talking. We built the relationship. They help us buy a truck

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Jen Wasem: so we could move food around the community. And then, after it was all wrapped with their logo and everything I called them and said, Hey, I'd love for you to come out and look at the truck. I want you to see, you know. Come, have lunch. Let's like, look at the truck, and I remember she stood there, and she just stared at the truck.

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Jen Wasem: She just kept staring at it, and I finally asked her, I was like. Is there something wrong? Is there something wrong with the truck like? Is a logo wrong like, what? What are we doing here? And she's like. You know what in all the years that I've done this you're the only person who's ever come out

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Jen Wasem: after the gift, and said, I want to show you what you did. I want to show you how it's working, and that was a pivotal. That was a paradigm shift for me right there in that moment. Because I'm thinking you're a huge organization. You're supporting hundreds of orgs. And yet we're the only one who showed you the truck

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Jen Wasem: like, okay? So nonprofits. When corporations think of that thing, they want to think of you, and in order for you to be there, that so that they can think of you. You have to stay top of mind.

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Zach Hynek: Hmm.

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Zach Hynek: well, this is a master class that you see, we're going through right now, Milan, I want to toss back to you as well, because I think so much of what you already emphasize is the educational piece right? And the awareness. And where do you blend that gap as what Jen is highlighted so well, and Dean's emphasized through his process, and how they're building partnerships that leave no trace. But

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Zach Hynek: it's like that engagement between education, but also listening right? And at what point do you find that balance where it's like you want to be listening to their priorities? But you also want to be

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Zach Hynek: helping improve your awareness. So I guess, how do you start to view that specifically, not just giving compass, but throughout your experience in the fundraising and development sector to where you could help use education as a way to really build trust with your potential partners and donors

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Milan Ball: Well, I I will definitely want to start with just acknowledging Jen. I think you've done such a great job of highlighting the role of just gratitude and thoughtfulness in these, in these interactions and exchanges. I think.

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Milan Ball: We can't. There's no such thing as exhausting that. There have been plenty of times where, you know we were the only folks invited to a conference or a seminar, and we're the only ones that even thought to bring a thank you. Note before you know attending. And so and that being the only reason why that sponsor you know, reached out to us for the future. But I I would say so. Zach.

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Milan Ball: You know so much of this work, I think, is connected to who we are as people and humans. And you know, we. We remember what makes us warm and fuzzy, and we remember what doesn't or we don't remember what doesn't. And I don't think it can be overstated. We remember how people make us feel and just leaning into that in these encounters and experiences.

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Milan Ball: as far as the education piece goes.

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Milan Ball: I think it starts with internal clarity, I think, being very, very clear on not only what it is that you need

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Milan Ball: but what it is that

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Milan Ball: services the mission that you've decided to embark on

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Milan Ball: that sets you up and prepares you for the best that gives you the best landscape to go into these conversations, because I think people can also feel when things are not unclear, and that's the the signal, for when there's no alignment.

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Milan Ball: That being said, I think clarity around not only just your mission, and you know Dean has already said, alluded to this earlier, but clarity about your ask

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Milan Ball: and

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Milan Ball: sometimes I think one of the one of the challenges I've seen in different organizations is just having too many options.

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Milan Ball: Even once you've done that discovery, and you know, like what could be, and had a lack of comfort in leaning into and suggesting or recommending what it is that you know that you need, and being very clear about that, because I think also these corporations are looking to be able to speak, to impact. They want to understand, to Jen's points as well. You know, what what has this resulted in.

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Milan Ball: and a lot of times, I think if we're trying to contort ourselves and shapeshift into what it is. We think that an organization or a company wants. That's when the mission drift happens. And that's when we aren't able to report on the impact that they might be looking to do. I think, also, having clarity on those Kpis going into the conversation is, you know, not only sets you up for success. But in the post award process, you know you're not.

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Milan Ball: you know, fighting yourself, you know, to to

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Milan Ball: say what it is that you set out to do or deliver on on the the numbers that are involved in a lot of cases. As far as the research piece.

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Milan Ball: I mean, I think there are a lot of tools available. We've had great discussions about. Even with cadenza. You guys are able to to crowdsource a lot of opportunities that we're not even on our radar. And so I will give that little plug there to you all. But you know other platforms like a candidate guide, start, or you know, even going to

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Milan Ball: going to, you know, when it when it's a corporate foundation or folks are seeing what you know. 9 nineties and understanding like, where is the certain information that I need to know? Even if this is a valid prospect?

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Milan Ball: we spend a lot of time on research before executing, you know, exerting a lot of energy. Because again, we're a very, very small team.

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Milan Ball: Yeah, they're

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Milan Ball: that. Those are my thoughts. Just there I would invite Jen and Dean if there's anything I'm missing there, or or if I'm wrong.

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Zach Hynek: Well, I'll probably talk to you, because generally you guys both up for this of like one of the greatest emphasis I've heard about this, even with cadenza as an AI platform. If there's so many things that AI can't and shouldn't

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Zach Hynek: replace, and that it will never be able to place. But also it's going to create more clutter, more noise, more automated emails going out there. And you're seeing it in the b 2 b sales world where our contacts that we're reaching out to are getting overwhelmed by these messages that are are being thrown in their face. So I love the emphasis on hey? Where can we use AI to help reduce

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Zach Hynek: some more of the administrative tasks that allow us to be more human, and that allow us to really highlight the relationships that we're building there. Jen, I would just be curious what your your thoughts, and maybe warnings or distractions that you've seen of people when you know that these new tools and technologies are available

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Jen Wasem: You know, I think it's like in in any. It's

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Jen Wasem: tempting to like, you know. Chase the the shiny, you know, like that what's new and and and

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Jen Wasem: I'm just a advocate of focus on your mission.

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Jen Wasem: Share your story

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Jen Wasem: and bring people along right. And that comes from being human right that comes from having clarity to your point. And so one of my.

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Jen Wasem: my, one of my nonprofit heroes is Robert Eager, and he started DC. Central kitchen, and he always says, You know, chase money.

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Jen Wasem: you're gonna run forever, Chase Mission.

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Jen Wasem: and the money will come to you, and I've seen it

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Jen Wasem: a thousand times. And so where

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Jen Wasem: technology can be helpful, I don't believe that in any place it will ever replace

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Jen Wasem: the the human aspect of the nonprofit work that we do, and the importance of it

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Zach Hynek: Dean Thoughts

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Dean Ronzoni: No, I I totally agree. I think, Zach, we talked offline a week ago about this.

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Dean Ronzoni: I would love to replace a couple of my mundane tasks of deck writing and note taking which I've already done. But a couple of other, you know minor things.

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Dean Ronzoni: we've been using AI a little bit more on some of our newsletters and that sort of thing.

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Dean Ronzoni: People getting inundated. We are trying not to over spam any of our partners, but we use mailing softwares and that sort of thing. And so how do we make it? So? They open it, you know, checking the open rate making it more personable because people are connecting with people. And, Jen, you just said exactly right on the head and so if I don't think it'll ever replace, and I hope it never replaces the human interaction. That's my favorite part of the job. Checking in

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Dean Ronzoni: conceptualizing ideas that sort of thing. You can use it to help expand on an idea.

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Dean Ronzoni: help shape something a little bit of format. I I do that a little bit when I'm

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Dean Ronzoni: have been sitting with something for too long. I've got maybe 3 decks right now, open on my desktop that I am stuck on because I'm getting writer's block. It's not that I don't know. I wanna what I want to put in there. I'm just not sure how I want to put it in yet, and I need to get them out, so I need to keep rolling. And so I will use AI to help me

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Dean Ronzoni: build out a concept that I've already created and been talking to a potential partner about. But then I'll bring it back into my own words, my own writing, my own human form. Because that's what they connected with. In the 1st place.

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Zach Hynek: Awesome. Well, I know we have about 10 min left here. So I wanna end with

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Zach Hynek: really just practical advice of, you know, if we had a big, final takeaway that you'd give for someone really trying to expand their corporate, giving strategy how to be able to establish new meaningful relationships with corporate partners, foundations, everyone who's going to fall within that kind of development director's purview, I guess. What would you advise to any fundraiser who's either just getting started in their career, or is kind of facing a lot of those

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Zach Hynek: asks and just feeling the pressure and stress. Right now, that comes with

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Zach Hynek: the role that we all signed up for within fundraising, but also just the time that we are in right now. And it's crazy as

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Zach Hynek: as it is. Why don't, Milan? I'll I'll start with you, and then we'll kind of go down to to Dean and Jen. You could. You could bring us home

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Milan Ball: Thanks, Zach, I and thank you for this this session. This has been fantastic love learning from Jen and Dean. I would tie back to an earlier statement just around. You know, reframing, thinking about your ask as an invitation and setting yourself up to make that invitation, I think

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Milan Ball: for emerging fundraisers being creative about how you're making those connections, I think, can set you apart.

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Milan Ball: I don't. You know. I use Linkedin, and almost every relationship I have with with prospective funders, with supporters and similar issues and cause areas. Whether or not we're going to pursue a funding relationship. I think, having a layer of connectivity is very important. And also, I think

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Milan Ball: the warmth that you can create by just a simple check in with someone when there's no transaction that's gonna be made is not something to be taken for granted. We have some partners that want to meet on a weekly basis. We have other partners that you know are on a quarterly basis, and for the ones that we don't have a relationship with yet I, or are starting one. I make sure I am managing my expectations about how often they want to hear from me. And what it is that they, you know.

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Milan Ball: and just who they are and who the person is showing up in that role. And in addition to the, you know.

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Milan Ball: the expectations that that company has for their social impact. So I'd say, That's my my holistic

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Milan Ball: plug, and take away to leave there

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Dean Ronzoni: I think you know I being on this Milan. Jen, you're I hope your partners are watching this your bosses. You're both extreme experts in what you do. I've learned a little bit today as well. You've reinforced a lot of my work which is positive. I'm self taught in this whole entire process. I love it. I I knew I'd enjoy it. I kind of created the job. I wanted my bosses. Let me they let me

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Dean Ronzoni: trial and error this whole thing. And I think a lot of people who are newer to this type of work.

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Dean Ronzoni: Try it it. You're gonna have successes, and you're gonna have failures, you know, and I believe heavily in getting outside. I work for an outdoor organization.

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Dean Ronzoni: getting outside, taking a breath of fresh air, getting some vitamin d standing in the sun for 5 min. I did it earlier this morning. It can reset you, and because not everything's a success. But when there is a success, I celebrate every aspect of it. And so that comes down to

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Dean Ronzoni: having them even getting the phone call, you know, like, Oh, my God! We've got a call with this company, and then I just sent them the deck, and they're super excited and we're gonna move forward.

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Dean Ronzoni: I spread that through my bosses as well, because I'm happy about it, and I want to hold on to those moments. You know those even breadcrumbs. We even have the check in the door. And I'm celebrating the success. And it's okay. And I'm used to it. Getting stopped right there at times, too. But then celebrating the contract signed, we've got the check now we've done the project. Every little milestone

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Dean Ronzoni: is a success for me, and I want to connect with my work even deeper. And so celebrating those however, you want to do it sometimes for me. It's just maybe leaving 30 min early and getting out on a hike. Those things are really important for me. But I think I go back to my my 1st answer. Here is

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Dean Ronzoni: you you want to make sure that you start creating comfort in making the ask for cash, or else you will end up with 2 pallets of paper towels. And so I think that's that's my biggest advice here. But this has been a great pleasure for me to be on with both of you here, or all 3 of you

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Jen Wasem: Thank you. All this has just been

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Jen Wasem: so invigorating. I don't really know that I have

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Jen Wasem: too much to add. I will like to everything that y'all said. I have a win board, and it's a cork board and every win. I don't care if it's that. You know. My my copy paper arrived on time and I needed it. Every little win goes on the board, because as development staff

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Jen Wasem: you have a hard job, you have a hard, hard job. You want to keep the mission going. Everybody's asking you to do something right. It's all revolved around money. And so, making sure that in those moments where you're just like I can't do this.

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Jen Wasem: I just stare at the wind board, and I remember all those wins because they do come, you know few and far between sometime in development. But, boy, when they do, don't forget them. Write them down, put them up on that board, and be able to go back to that moment and just channel that that's that joy, but also to take time for yourself, just like

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Jen Wasem: do it like I schedule a wellness hour for myself every single day. Does that mean I'm gonna go run? No, that means I'm gonna get away from my desk. I'm gonna go for a walk. I'm gonna stand in the sun, right

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Jen Wasem: as development staff. Knowing that turnover is like every 12 months in an organization, we have to be very intentional about taking care of ourselves. So those are just the few things that I do keep myself going

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Zach Hynek: Well again. I cannot tell you how much I appreciate everyone on today's panel for offering their insights. I think it really does take a village, and I think one of the greatest superpowers or advices that I would leave people with is just the ability to ask for help.

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Zach Hynek: The ability to be clear with your ask. The ability to reach out

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Zach Hynek: to people within your network gain those referrals is really one of the greatest superpowers that you could have, and remembering that you are providing a tremendous amount of value to these corporations who are genuinely looking for ways to engage their employee base

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Zach Hynek: to connect to their community. You have a unique offering that is special and that they want to know. So the more that you could just embody that. And I love how so much of this kind of get back to the we got back to human. You know, we kept it with our technology and AI, and how we're using some of these new tools to give us back that time in our days to just be human. So thank you all so much for joining us on today's panel discussion and for offering your feedback for so many fundraisers who are out there just

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Zach Hynek: looking for what's the next step? And what's the process or the guidelines that I should follow? So thank you again, this will be recorded and shared amongst everyone on today's panel, and we'll share it out with video clips over social media as well. So, again, can't thank you guys enough. And we're looking forward to staying in touch. If you guys are interested in learning more specifically about any of our panelists today.

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Zach Hynek: They can connect with you on Linkedin. I'll have information available for people there to either get back in touch with whether it's giving compass. Leave no chase. All the incredible work that they are doing at generous living right now. Jen is an amazing consultant as well, and I'll finish my little rant and tangent there. So

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Zach Hynek: everyone, thank you guys so much, and I look forward to to staying in touch. Bye, now

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Dean Ronzoni: Thank you.

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Zachary Hynek

“Building Relationships with Corporate Sponsors” - Panel Discussion Recap

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