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One Size Does Not Always Fit All —
The Non-Traditional Hire
One of the greatest joys we as development
officers get from our work is the interaction we
have with our donors and the relationships we are
able to build with them. Just as fulfilling, however,
are the internal relationships we are able to share
with our fellow co-workers. Our successes and
failures as a development team are weighed
heavily by the hiring process and who we decide
to bring in to further the mission of our
department. We rely on individuals to build
relationships with our donors and raise awareness
and support for our annual scholarship fund.
This is not to say that hiring directly from development is not
something we endorse or haven’t done before. To the contrary, half of
our full-time staff has come to us from the world of athletics
fundraising before their arrival in San Marcos. In all cases, however,
our employees have shared common traits as well as a passion for
college athletics, the ability to build lasting relationships with our
donors and a belief in our mission.
Travis
Comer
That puts a lot of pressure on the hiring process
and an administrator’s ability to select the best and brightest
individuals for his or her department.
Increasingly, we’ve found that non-traditional hires (those with a
varied professional background not limited to strictly development)
have grown into some of our top performers. I began in ticket
operations, before transitioning to multimedia rights, followed by
marketing and ticket sales, corporate sponsorships and licensing. It
wasn’t until nine years into my career that I was lucky enough to
find fundraising.
By all accounts, I was a non-traditional hire for Texas State Athletics
Director Dr. Larry Teis. At a time when our department had just
launched “The Drive” — a five-year public relations and fundraising
campaign for our move toward becoming a member of the Football
Bowl Subdivision — my hiring could certainly be described as a risk.
With a fairly limited amount of development experience, he must
have seen something in me that could aid the department in its
mission. I now try to have that same approach when screening our
potential staff members.
True as it may be that experience in development would have
certainly helped my learning curve, I don’t regret the career path I’ve
taken and actually think it has aided in my ability to solve problems,
work across departmental lines and relate well to my fellow athletic
administrations. Now, looking back, I often ask myself, “What would
my career in development look like had I not had those experiences?”
With the ever-present need to increase philanthropic giving in college
athletics, we are all looking for individuals who will be able to
effectively raise awareness and support for our programs. I believe
this is more important today than ever before in our business. We
need fundraisers who are able to exceed expectations, manage a
heavy workload, communicate effectively and problem solve
creatively. Sound familiar? These same traits are also needed across
the different departments within athletics. We have found that some
of our best hires have come from these other areas.
Throughout the past six years at Texas State, we have made several
hires directly from the development world, but we’ve also made
several non-traditional hires including individuals with backgrounds
in ticketing, marketing, student support services, sports information
and, believe it or not, engineering. Each brought their own unique
collection of experiences which has richly influenced our
department’s decisions and our approach to everything from
solicitation plans to our donor events. This is exactly why we’ve put
our trust in individuals with varied professional backgrounds.
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Here, in my opinion, are some of the additional core traits and values
that transcend any bullet points on a resume:
Grit
As I’m sure most would agree, this is a rewarding career where our
work is truly transformational in the lives of our student-athletes.
However, raising support is not always easy. We need employees who
don’t cower when they hear the word “no” and who can exercise
patience and empathy when our donors are dissatisfied.
Non-traditional equivalent: Former outbound ticket sellers and
corporate sponsorship account executives have the determination and
perseverance to reach out to new donors and the personality to build
relationships once those donors are part of our membership base.
Attention to Detail
Attention to detail is huge in our profession. From letters void of
grammatical and spelling errors to the correct-sized linens on the
tables of one of our pre-game receptions, it’s the little things that make
an impression on our donors and give them the faith that we are
being good stewards of their money. Everything we produce should
convey to our donors that we are a first-class operation, whether
that’s the look and feel of our collateral pieces or the personal touch
of a handwritten thank you note.
Non-traditional equivalent: Former sports information and
marketing professionals provide us with employees who have
concise communication skills, a creative approach to our branding
and an eye for the details.
Analytical Approach
As much of our career is built around relationships, a large part of
what we do is still a numbers game. While some of our staff members
act as the “face of the organization,” equally important are our “back
of the house” employees who can drill down to find prospect
information, run reports to let us know where we’ve been, where we
are and how we compare to where we want to be. As I mentioned
earlier, we hired a development officer that had been an engineer for
nine years. Albeit a very unique case, it serves the point that in an
industry that is often associated with ethereal words like impact,
legacy, vision, story, etc., it’s good to have employees that bring your
department’s plan back down to the numbers and are able to
effectively analyze those numbers.
Non-traditional equivalent: Former business office employees and
ticket operations that know at the end of the day, the bottom line
dictates the success of your organization.
Ultimately, we’ve found that one size does not always fit all, and our
staff’s variety of experiences has made for a rich working
environment and successful operation.
All the best in your next search to find the next great fundraiser!
Travis Comer is the assistant AD for major gifts at Texas State.
ATHleTiCS ADmiNiSTrATiON