Note: This guest post is from Christine Zachai of Forward Philanthropy. Thanks, Christine! 

Remember when everything was going really well with your favorite major donor?

You had a lunch date every year, you knew the names of the children and grandchildren, and you were strategizing together about your next request.

Then everything went horribly, horribly wrong (cue the ominous soundtrack) … because your major donor brought in a philanthropic advisor. Argh!

Enter the interloper

Suddenly, you’re instructed to communicate with this total stranger instead of your donor. Did they forward your birthday wishes? How about your annual report highlighting all your victories?

Instead of making an ask over lunch, you have to write a proposal. A proposal? Really?

What the heck is a philanthropic advisor, anyway?

A new job title emerges

The term “philanthropic advisor” is relatively new and encompasses a broad array of roles. Generally, philanthropic advisors help their clients develop and implement their philanthropic goals. This can mean:

• Helping a family foundation incorporate new generations of board members
• Researching new issue areas to add to their philanthropic portfolio
• Building collaborations
• Developing and improving systems for giving

Many advisors have specialties in certain areas, such as research, planning, or group facilitation. Some have long-term relationships with donors; others are brought in for short-term projects.

You’ll find philanthropic advisors working in myriad environments: independently, as part of a private firm or “family office,” or within larger organizations such as donor-advised funds, community foundations, or financial institutions.

How to work with philanthropic advisors 

Are you a nonprofit fundraiser learning to work with philanthropic advisors? Consider the following suggestions, drawn from real-world experience.

1. Your donor engaged a philanthropic advisor for a reason. Maybe it was to help develop priorities. It could be that their informal giving is growing and they’re becoming a more formal foundation or donor-advised fund.

Perhaps the goal is to engage the next generation of far-flung family members by expanding into new geographic areas. Regardless, your donor hired an advisor to improve their giving and increase their impact. Embrace that.

2. Philanthropic advisors are people, too. Advisors are charged with representing their clients’ interests. However, chances are good that advisors also authentically care about your mission. They have hearts, brains, perspectives, and lived experience.

3. The best advisors act as facilitators, not barriers. Treat them as allies and partners. Their job is to help you build a relationship with their client/your donor in a way that works for everyone.

Don’t be a stranger

4. When in doubt, ask. Is it still OK to send that birthday card? Ask. Ideally, an advisor will happily engage in forthright conversations about how you can continue to strengthen your relationship with your donor.

5. Communicate, communicate, and communicate some more. Philanthropic advisors are being paid to have a relationship with your organization. Take advantage of that! Just as you would with any major donor, share your organization’s good news, ask to include them on your newsletter list, and invite them to events.

6. A philanthropic advisor might introduce you to other donors. While some advisors only work with one donor or one family, many work with multiple clients. It’s completely reasonable to ask whether that advisor might make introductions to other prospective donors.

7. Education is a two-way street. Philanthropic advisors have an obligation to not only support clients in developing and implementing their philanthropic goals, but to also offer education and build awareness.

For instance, I hope that advisors are helping their clients understand the deep racial inequities in the United States, as well as offering steps to overcome the historic racial bias in philanthropy. As an expert in your nonprofit’s field – health care, housing, conservation, education, whatever – you have an opportunity to educate philanthropic advisors more broadly on the issues your organization addresses.

Your new ally

Yes, dealing with gatekeepers (or perceived gatekeepers) can feel frustrating.

However, if you view philanthropic advisors as potential allies – linking you to donors, opening new doors, helping you strategize about fundraising and messaging – you’ll start to see these people as helpers rather than barriers.

And who doesn’t need more helpers?