University Business - July 2008 - (Page 51)

Graduates of William Jewell College (Mo.) can expect targeted messages from their alma mater, thanks to CRM technology. Advancement Goes Digital Development oﬃces are using constituent relationship management technology to advance their fundraising goals. By Ann McClure EOPLE WITHOUT ANY CONNECTION TO A higher education institution don’t generally hand over large amounts of money unprompted. Even people who are proud of their alma mater often need to be wooed before they open their checkbook. “In the fundraising world they have always understood that no one is going to give money if you don’t beat the bush,” says Jim McGlothlin, vice president of higher education at Oracle. The difference is, now the bushes are housed in an electronic database rather than a Rolodex. “If you don’t have something to help you keep your information straight you’ll just pull your hair out these days,” says Marlene Shaver, chief financial officer of the UC San Diego Foundation. “There is a never-ending need for data, information, and data mining.” As the primary fundraising arm of the University of California, San Diego, the foundation wrapped up a $1 billion campaign in June 2007. In order to keep all their donor information—ranging from giving histories and funds supported to donors’ relationships to UCSD—straight during the campaign, development officers used a homegrown system dubbed FundraisER. A homegrown system was deemed better than something off the shelf because of budget concerns and the desire to avoid a data migration at the start of the campaign. Originally built five years ago to support donor universitybusiness.com P stewardship, the system provides a customer relationship interface and reporting capabilities, as well as stewardship capabilities. It also allows gift officers to review funds, something not possible with the old system, which required special authorization. “It’s a huge improvement over the donor database, which was nothing,” Shaver says of their previous system. “You could just put data in.” Although constituent relationship management (CRM) technology is being embraced by the admissions office—where adoption is being driven by the need to track and communicate with thousands of prospective students—development office administrators and staff can be reluctant to abandon traditional methods. In the transition from index cards to digital storage, some staff members are still hesitant to put their contact list into a central database, says McGlothlin. The face-to-face meetings with major donors, however, will never go away. As more data is gathered, development officers are realizing the importance of tracking donor information holistically, says Karli Grant, product manager of institutional advancement solutions at Datatel. “There is a need to constantly improve how we are tracking and communicating with donors,” she says. A good CRM system will enhance a development office’s ability to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward a donor. July 2008 | 51 http://universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - July 2008

University Business - July 2008
Contents
College Index
Company Index
Advisory Board
Editor's Note
Behind the News
Viewpoint
Money Matters
Financial Aid
Human Resources
Students in Need, Schools at the Ready
Security Officers Speak Out
Advancement Goes Digital
A New Day for NASFAA
Sustainable Admissions
What's New
End Note

University Business - July 2008