Advancement professionals know that every dollar entrusted to their organizations carries both promise and responsibility. In line with the ADRP mission to empower members with practical, forward-thinking strategies, the webinar on “Use It or Lose It” positioned fund management as an operational necessity and a strategic advantage for deepening donor trust and driving sustainable impact.

By rightfully treating donor relations as more than a compliance or communications checkbox, this approach reinforces ADRP’s vision of a future where members don’t just raise funds but honor donor intent through transparency, accountability, and measurable results. Whether your office supports scholarships, research, or special initiatives, the guiding principle is the same: every gift deserves evidence of impact.

Attendees left the session equipped with three transformative insights:

“Closing the loop” with your donors ignites flywheel fundraising: Integrating gift acceptance, acknowledgment, fund deployment, and impact reporting into a continuous cycle that reignites donor engagement at each turn gives advancement teams a head start on the next gift.

Administrative challenges and information silos impede our work: Advancement teams often manage thousands of funds, and information tends to be scattered across various systems. Breakdowns happen, and they have real consequences. Implementing controls and automating processes can help reduce errors, save valuable time, and equip campus-wide stakeholders with valuable information.

Create Your “Fund Management Playbook”: When scaling a fund management program from the ground up, consider leveraging a task force or working group and start by creating your “playbook.” Outline everything. Establish fund management standards, monitor fund utilization, keep an annual work plan, schedule regular field and fund audits, and train everyone.

This framework was delivered and brought to life through two expert voices:

Chelsea Lamego spearheaded the development and growth of the fund management program at UTEP, before moving to co-found FundMiner, where she now serves as CEO. Chelsea brings her wealth of experience in building a fund management program centered on technology and innovation.

Hillary Dudley has been part of the UTEP team implementing and leveraging FundMiner. She has continued to build on the fund management successes at UTEP, now widely considered one of the best Fund Management programs in the country.

The audience Q & A at the end of the session was highly engaging as participants explored how to apply learnings from the session to their organization, develop their own protocols, and leverage technology such as FundMiner to support their work. Participants were granted access to several downloadable resources and templates.

The feedback from the webinar demonstrated how the topic of fund management is growing in importance at fundraising organizations. As a relatively underdeveloped area of philanthropy, there is a hunger for resources, tools, technologies, best practices, and communities where discussions can be had. The ADRP community can play a critical role in elevating this important conversation by continuing to share ideas and best practices among peers.