Photo: Alford Group staff at As Good as It Gives: America’s Philanthropy Today on June 17, 2016 at Mesirow Financial in Chicago.
Alford Group co-sponsored As Good as It Gives: America’s Philanthropy Today with Mesirow Financial in Chicago to share this year’s Giving USA numbers and discuss what the numbers mean for nonprofit organizations.
Here are the main takeaways:
- Giving is on the rise
Alford Group’s Executive Vice President Sharon Tiknis and Senior Consultant Diane Knoepke presented to the room and reported that 2015 was America’s most generous year ever, as donors collectively gave over $373 billion. 
Giving is on a two-year increase, as 2014 was previously charted as the most generous year of giving. Since the Great Recession ended in 2009, giving has increased by 23 percent. Individuals continue to represent the majority of giving in America at 71 percent of total giving in 2015.
- Today’s donor looks less like Ned Flanders and more like Montgomery Burns
Dr. Daniel Hungerman from the University of Notre Dame spoke to us about long term giving trends. Even though giving to religion-affiliated organizations currently makes up approximately one-third (32 percent) of all giving, the trend is that as religion declines in the U.S. so does giving to religious organizations (fewer Ned Flanders donors).
[Simpsons characters Ned Flanders (left) and Montgomery Burns (right).]
At the same time, there is a rise in the inequality of giving. Dr. Hungerman reviewed the findings in his research showing what has long been the 80/20 rule now looks more like a 90/10 rule in philanthropic giving where 90% of the funds raised come from just 10% of donors (more Montgomery Burns donors).
Disheartened by this news? Don’t be. Despite this fact, philanthropy continues to be quite democratic in the United States, according to Dr. Patrick Rooney at the Lilly School, and when you consider that there are more American donors than American voters, those small gifts add up to make a meaningful difference.
- The way forward is through mission alignment
What does this all mean for you and your organization? The most effective way forward is to think strategically about mission alignment. This means aligning your operations with the outcome-focused vision from which your organization was built.
Specifically, this means aligning your strategy and tactics with your mission to ensure you are efficient and effective. This also means aligning your impact measurement with your mission to measure the outcomes of your work versus the outputs of your work. Finally, this means aligning donor messaging with your mission so that you are appealing to the donors’ passions rather than only the organization’s needs. The key is to always have your mission and your donors in mind.
To go even deeper and tackle these topics and more, please join us for Alford Group Summer Webinar Series where we will explore bold strategies to advance philanthropy. We hope you can join us!
Giving USA: The Annual Report on Philanthropy is the seminal publication reporting on the sources and uses of charitable giving in the United States. The production and release of Giving USA is the result of the collaborative efforts of Giving USA Foundation, a public service initiative of The Giving Institute, and Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Alford Group is a founding member of the Giving Institute.