Van Andel Institute

[The Van Andel Institute enjoys a strong reputation for research excellence and dedicated donor support. At the time work with Heurista began, the donor relations strategy for the organization was heavily weighted toward events and largely driven by a complex system of overlapping recognition societies. With the growth in the fundraising effort and a commitment to growing and diversifying the organization’s endowment, Heurista was asked to develop a three-year strategic plan that would balance the donor relations program and prepare the advancement team to manage stewardship of a larger and more diverse community of donors.

Outcomes

  • A three-year rolling strategic plan for donor relations improvements was requested by the client. Following an indepth period of discovery and discussion, Heurista suggested a model based around ten engagement or giving types, which required negotiating consolidation of some of the existing recognition structure. The final report reflects the suggested format for each engagement audience and specific actions to be taken in each of three years. The plan includes metrics for comparing current state in year one to progress made in years two and three.

  • Program restructure as indicated by the strategic plan called for a thorough review of existing gift acceptance, recognition, naming and reporting policies and procedures. The move toward endowment fundraising led to collaborative work to draft and implement endowment management and spending policies.