Turnover in the Advancement Profession

Abstract

Recruitment and retention is an area with which most organizations are concerned. Excessive turnover has exorbitant costs and wastes valuable time. Institutions of higher education are no exception. One of the most vital operations in nonprofit colleges and universities is its Office of Institutional Advancement. More and more, an institution of higher education's ability to achieve its vision and goals is dependent on the state of its endowment, yearly grants (research or otherwise), annual fund donations, and other development income. These development initiatives require a dedicated staff, willing to spend months, even years cultivating donors of all levels. There is an epidemic of turnover in the advancement profession. It is a problem to which higher education professionals need to pay attention. With consistent and constant turnover of advancement professionals, colleges and universities are losing precious resources, not only in costs associated with personnel turnover, but also the loss of valuable donor-professional relationships and ultimately, in the loss of gifts. This article analyzes this turnover problem at the national and local levels. A description and documentation of the problem will be outlined, followed by careful analysis. The description and documentation of the problem will highlight its severity. The study is grounded locally in data from a small New England college. Lastly, a series of policy recommendations will be presented.International Journal of Educational Advancement (2006) 6, 141–169. doi:10.1057/palgrave.ijea.2150013 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]