In this episode of What the Fundraising Podcast,
Alumni relationships are shifting from tradition-bound loyalty to something more dynamic, personal, and value-driven.
In this conversation, the focus turns toward what institutions are getting wrong and how listening more carefully could reshape the future of fundraising and engagement.
Howard Heevner brings deep experience from a 30-year career in higher education fundraising, beginning at the University of Iowa and later serving as executive director of annual programs at UC Berkeley. He is also a co-founder of the National Alumni Survey. This large-scale initiative has grown significantly over time, expanding from tens of thousands of responses across dozens of institutions to well over 150,000 surveys. His work centers on understanding donor behavior patterns and challenging long-held assumptions about alumni generosity and awareness.
The discussion highlights key shifts: declining donor participation, the emergence of distinct giving cultures across age groups, and the misconception that non-donors are simply uninformed. Instead, many already give elsewhere, signaling a need for institutions to move from assumed loyalty to earned trust. The conversation also emphasizes personalization, better use of technology for listening rather than broadcasting, and the importance of making alumni feel seen, relevant, and considered. Ultimately, it calls for a more responsive, value-aligned approach to engagement and fundraising systems.
In this episode, you will be able to:
- Understand shifting trends in alumni engagement and fundraising behavior.
- Recognize the importance of moving from assumed trust to earned trust.
- Identify how alumni giving patterns vary across age and value systems.
- Learn why personalization improves relevance and alumni connection.
- Understand the need to make alumni feel seen and considered.
- Identify gaps between investment in student vs alumni experiences.
Get all the resources from today’s episode here.
Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels.
Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team.
Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone.
Connect with me:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/
Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast
Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652
If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link.
If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.
