Masters Degrees (Business Management)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (Business Management) by browse.metadata.advisor "Du Plessis, P. G."

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    Fundraising for Christian non-profit organizations
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1999-12) Weideman, Eleanor; Du Plessis, P. G.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Dept. of Business Management.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Before starting out on how fundraising should be done, it is important to understand the history of Christian fundraising. In the field there are two opposite poles of thought: Those who say organizations should never request donations and those who say that organizations should. Christian organizations in South Africa are often viewed by outsiders (as well as those working within these organizations), as unprofessional in their fundraising efforts. Proper planning for the organization as a whole and in particular for its fundraising efforts is not done. If this is the case and an organization is not effective in its fundraising, the organization is doomed to failure because funds will not be forthcoming to do the work. In preparing for fundraising the most important aspect is effective planning. Experience have shown that, although most Christian organizations do day-to-day planning (and plan how the donations received will be spent on the work being done), very little time is devoted to future plans. The organization also needs to embark on an encompassing strategic planning exercise, which differs from planning in scope, importance, resource commitment, time frame and purpose. After preparing for fund raising the fund raiser must determine the sources of revenue. It is a misconception that the buildings, personnel and programmes of an organization constitute an organization. Those whom the organization" 'serves are the heart of the organization and it exists only because of them. From a Christian organization point of view, it is logical to assume that if a Christian organization's primary goal is evangelism and missionwork, its constituency is already narrowed down to mostly Christians. Only after the constituency has been identified can the organization identify sources of revenue within their constituency. For most organizations there are three sources of revenue: Individuals, corporations and trusts, of which individuals are by far the largest source of revenue for Christian organizations. If the fund raiser does not know how to cultivate those sources the organization will keep on struggling or even worse, it will not succeed. This is where many Christian organizations fail. They do not believe that methods used in business can also apply to Christian organizations. In fact many of them go so far as to say that these methods of fundraising are wrong and un-biblical. Methods that can be used successfully within Christian organizations to solicit funds from individuals are relationship fundraising and personal support raising. On the other hand, the other method is applicable to obtaining revenue from a variety of sources: Special events, where many different sources are utilized to make the event a success. These -three methods are probably the methods most used in Christian organizations. It is imperative that the organization realizes that the diversity of funding is the secret of financial stability. To be successful the organization needs broad-based, diversified fundraising, in other words, it needs to utilize all possible methods available - keeping in mind its Christian roots. Other methods discussed, to solicit funds from corporations and trusts and how to do capital fund raising, are technical and the organization may need professional help to make a success of it. Corporate and trust fund raising are methods that are source-specific, and which can be used only for a specific source while a capital campaign solicits funds from a variety of sources. In all these methods the strategic plan and in particular the case statement of the organization is very important. Without those tools these methods cannot be used with success. To be successful in these methods creative writing is a seminal aspect of fundraising, as it is needed in nearly every aspect. Without creative writing skills the organization is unable to communicate effectively and this has an inevitable impact on success rations. For Christian organizations doing fundraising in an environment where many secular organizations use every means at their disposal to raise funds, no matter what the cost, it is sometimes difficult to make the right choices. Ethical decision-making goes much further that just what is legal. It goes beyond the enforceable. It is a moral and religious issue that needs to be addressed. Finally, it is important to mention that the organization that is serious about fundraising, has to create an environment that is both professional and positive. The empirical analysis aims to highlight implications of the findings of the study done on Christian organizations and the fundraising done within their organizations. If problem areas are highlighted these organizations can deal with it and improve their professionalism - and thereby their successes.