Advancement Resources and Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP) have partnered to conduct an in-depth study into the relationships between development leaders and healthcare executives that lead to success in fundraising. In conjunction with the release of the full report on February 20, 2018, we are highlighting several of the key findings from the research.
Key III: Professional Confidence with Personal Humility
You are constantly wanting to promote [the CEO’s] position…so they don’t ever feel like you know people or are doing things out in the community that they aren’t a part of.
— Chief Development Officer
In our research interviews, more than three-quarters of all participants mentioned the importance of mutual respect between the development team and hospital leadership. More than two-thirds of participants also described the importance of CDOs presenting their roles as value-added and approaching their roles with humility and willingness to work as part of the overall healthcare system.
CDOs who rated themselves as having better relationships with their CEOs have a great deal of confidence in their own ability to articulate philanthropic concepts to hospital executives, and yet, this confidence at being an expert in their field was tempered with enough humility that it facilitated an open and encouraging relationship. A fine line exists between self-assurance and ego. CDOs should seek to do things in a manner that reflects well on the CEO and, by extension, the development team.
You’ve got to be open, you’ve got to be moldable, you’ve got to be mentoring, you’ve got to be understanding. And if your ego gets in the way of that, then you’re going to butt heads with your CEO from the very beginning, and you’ll never be able to recover from it.
— Chief Development Officer
The full Healthcare Philanthropy Leadership Essentials report has a detailed section devoted to the topic of Professional Confidence with Personal Humility featuring more quotes, recommendations for best practices, and enlightening statistics that will provide you with the best possible information you need to improve your own relationships with healthcare executives. View more highlights of the Healthcare Philanthropy Leadership Essentials report: Key I: Shared Vision and Operational Knowledge and Key II: Disciplined Attention to Communications.
If you are one of the leaders who contributed your expertise and experiences to this research, thank you once again for assisting in this vital study that will benefit the entire healthcare philanthropy industry.
Download the Healthcare Philanthropy Leadership Essentials Report