252 | Did the pandemic teach fundraisers how to create perceived proximity?

Imagine being brand new on a job just days before the pandemic put nearly the entire world on lock down. What would that experience be like? That’s the question I started with today in my conversation with Gail Carter who has managed to successfully navigate her first year as the Vice President of the University Development at the College of Charleston. I was most intrigued to learn that the lock down didn’t necessarily impede Gail’s acclimating to the new role, and it seems she is well prepared for the road ahead. I appreciated hearing how Gail and her team have successfully adapted to the uncertainty that the pandemic has thrown at us and taken it in stride. I suspect that what we will hear from many fundraisers in the months to come is that the pandemic provided us all an opportunity to rely on tools that we have long had at our disposal but had perhaps not fully embraced. And perhaps we have discovered that, despite geographical limitations, we can create what researchers refer to as perceived proximity.As always, we are grateful to our friends at CueBack for sponsoring The Fundraising Talent Podcast. And, if your organization is interested in being a host location for the Responsive Fundraising Roadshow this fall please reach out to talk. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit fundraisingtalent.substack.com