Get ready for Nonprofit Appreciation Month in November!
Offered by Minnesota Council of Foundations
Many nonprofit leaders know they need to diversify funding, but major donor fundraising can feel out of reach, especially in small- to mid-size nonprofits without large development teams. The good news is that your next major donor is likely already connected to your organization or within your existing network. The key is knowing where to look, how to build the relationship, and how to confidently invite deeper investment in your mission.
In this 3-session virtual series, we will help you build the confidence, clarity, and practical systems needed to identify, cultivate, and engage major donors in ways that feel genuine, strategic, and aligned with your mission.
Across three live online sessions, we will reframe fundraising as relationship-building, map the people already surrounding your mission, prioritize the right donor prospects, and strengthen your ability to lead donor conversations with greater clarity and confidence. Through practical tools, guided exercises, and real-time application, this series is designed to help you move from uncertainty and overwhelm to a more focused, strategic, and repeatable approach to major donor fundraising.
You will leave with practical frameworks and tools you can use immediately to strengthen donor relationships, build a more intentional donor portfolio, and create momentum toward long-term fundraising sustainability. Past participants have shared that this course increased their confidence, strengthened their donor conversations, and gave them practical tools they could apply right away.
By the end of this 3-session series, you will be able to:
In this session, we begin by exploring the psychology of generosity and dismantling the “begging” narrative that often creates fear or hesitation around fundraising. Together, we will shift the mindset from asking for money to inviting partnership in meaningful work.
We will then map 30–50 relationship pathways within your existing network to help you identify the hidden donor potential already surrounding your mission, including supporters, connectors, and advisors.
By the end of Session 1, you will be able to:
In this session, we will help you move from a broad or cluttered database to a prioritized portfolio of qualified donor prospects. Using the Engagement Scorecard and related tools, we will evaluate prospects based on engagement, alignment, influence, readiness, and relationship strength.
You will begin building a focused Power 10 Portfolio and develop customized engagement designs that help move priority donors from contact to committed partner.
By the end of Session 2, you will be able to:
In this session, we will build the messaging and structure you need to lead donor conversations with greater clarity and confidence. Building on the work from the first two sessions, we will help you define impact, communicate need, and make the ask in a way that feels grounded, relational, and clear.
We will also strengthen your approach to stewardship so donors become more than a source of funding. They become meaningful partners in your mission.
By the end of Session 3, you will be able to:
These optional one-hour working sessions are designed to help you move from theory to execution without the overwhelm. Through peer discussion, hands-on application, and focused group coaching, we will bridge the gap between “knowing” and “doing.”
Rather than introducing new content, these sessions give you space to apply the course tools directly to your own donor portfolio, messaging, outreach strategies, and upcoming conversations. Together, we will troubleshoot challenges, refine next steps, and build momentum so you can walk into your next donor meeting with greater clarity, confidence, and a practical 90-day action plan.
By participating in the optional implementation labs, you will be able to:
These three Implementation Labs sessions are included with the “Building and Cultivating Major Donors for Small- to Mid-Size Nonprofits Series” registration.
By the end of the series, you will leave with more than notes. You will leave with a practical fundraising engine built for immediate execution and long-term sustainability, including:
This event is a series with three dates and three optional Implementation Labs. The series registration price includes all six sessions.
Series Sessions:
Optional Implementation Labs:
This virtual event will take place on the Zoom platform. Your access link will be emailed to you the day before the event after 12 p.m.
This sessions will be recorded available to registrants after the live event.
Captioning is provided automatically through Zoom. For information on requesting CART, ASL, or another accommodation, please visit our Registration Policies page.
Alliance for Nonprofit Impact members are eligible for $175 MCN member rate.
Presented by CLA
Nonprofit finance leaders are navigating an increasingly complex landscape - balancing rising demand, shrinking funding, staff burnout, and the mounting pressure to modernize outdated financial systems. It’s a heavy load, especially when the mission is what matters most.
Join Michael Blanton, Sr. Director of Industry Marketing for Nonprofit & Healthcare at Sage, along with other Sage nonprofit experts, for a proactive conversation on what distinguishes today's most effective nonprofit CFO's. This session will explore four high-performance behaviors that help finance leaders navigate uncertainty, drive change, and build flexibility for long-term resilience.
These four behaviors will:
• Automate manual tasks to reclaim time and reduce burnout
• Use data to guide confident, timely financial decisions
• Expand your influence across departments and initiatives
• Simplify compliance and build long-term stakeholder trust
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