Kickoff: Preparing for the AFP ICON Conference
Marcia Beckner: Welcome to nonprofit CEO spark the podcast for bold leaders ready to navigate growth and change with energy and confidence.
I’m Marcia Beckner, nonprofit founder, former executive director and culture strategist, with nearly 20 years in the social impact world.
Each week, I help nonprofit leaders stop spinning out set boundaries and design inclusive cultures where all staff can thrive.
If you’re ready to reignite your leadership without sacrificing your well being, hit subscribe, and let’s spark your next chapter together.
Welcome back to the nonprofit CEO podcast. I’m your host, Marcia Beckner, and today’s conversation is a very special one and a timely one.
What we’re talking about connects directly to decisions many of you are making right now about how you strengthen your fundraising strategy and leadership.
I will be at the AFP icon conference in San Diego coming up very shortly. If you’re listening to this, it’s April 2026 right now.
The conference is like next week, April 26 through 28th. I’ll be there with a press pass, which means I’ll be there not just attending, but listening closely.
I’ll be asking questions and pulling out the real takeaways that matter for you as a CEO or Executive Director.
The AFP icon conference is in San Diego. I went to college there. It is the most beautiful place, so I want you to consider going.
As you’re listening to this conversation today, think: how can I get myself there? If this is remotely on your radar, listen with that lens.
This insight can help you decide whether being in the room is worth it for you and your team. If it is, don’t wait long to register.
We’ve included the link in the show notes. A mentor told me years ago: it’s not what happens at the event, it’s what happens after it.
It’s how you take what you learn and who you meet to strengthen your leadership, your team, and your revenue.
If you’re going to be in San Diego, I’d love to meet you. Send me an email at Marsha at culture cares.com for a listener meetup invite.
To help us think about this at a higher level, I’m excited to be joined by someone who helps shape these conversations across the sector.
Art Taylor is the president and CEO of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. He has a front row seat to what’s working across 1000s of organizations.
He sees what’s evolving and where nonprofit leaders have a real opportunity to grow stronger and more sustainable. Art, welcome to the show.
Art Taylor: Thank you, and it is just a pleasure to be here, especially as we head into icon.
Marcia Beckner: Yes. The Association for Fundraising Professionals is hosting the icon conference in San Diego next week, like we mentioned.
First, I want to learn about you. You’ve been in your role at AFP for about a year. Happy anniversary.
Give us context about why you decided to dedicate this next phase of your career to helping Fundraising Professionals succeed.
The Generosity Crisis and the Shift in Fundraising
Art Taylor: A lot of people have asked me that. It’s really pretty linear. I was working alongside the generosity commission looking into the state of giving.
Statistics showed we went from 66% of families giving around year 2000 down to about 49 and a half percent in 2017.
More recently, the numbers have declined to about 41%. As someone who’s worked most of my career in nonprofits, I felt that’s a crisis.
I co-chaired the government relations task force to see if we could change that trajectory. It was fascinating work and we learned a lot.
It occurred to me that some of the changes needed had to do with the state of fundraising. Shortly after, I got a call from a recruiter.
I started thinking about whether I might be right for this given my interest in getting everyday people back in the habit of giving.
There’s something going on in our culture. You could see the shift more than a decade ago of fundraisers going after larger gifts.
You see more major gift offices focusing heavily on major donors. You can’t blame them; one donation covering a whole budget seems efficient.
But I don’t know if it helps the organization in the long run to be so dependent. I also don’t know what that means for civic participation.
When people give, they also vote and volunteer. This was a big signal that we were moving in a direction that might not be recognizable later.
I reached back out to the recruiter and said, I’m interested. One thing led to another, and I got the job.
From the first interview, I felt I was the right person for this job, and the people interviewing me felt the same.
Marcia Beckner: That’s incredible. I love how you’re connecting donors and democracy. When you give, you’re voting that you trust that organization to make an impact.
It’s big picture but relatable. Listeners can think about major gifts versus individual donations and keeping that grassroots donation train healthy.
Defining High-Performing Fundraising and Relationships
Art Taylor: If you’re a CEO, you have a lot of pressure around fundraising. It’s natural to ask if you can really invest in small, everyday gifts.
We have to find ways to do this efficiently while getting money in the door. Getting money in the door is about relationships.
Many boards think: “we hired a fundraiser, we don’t have to do anything more.” It just doesn’t work like that.
The definition of good fundraising is building relationships with potential and existing donors and stewarding them for a stable base of support.
When fundraisers are high performing, it’s because they’ve been with the organization a while and know how to connect with people.
Marcia Beckner: Can you say that definition one more time? I think it’s good to get people on the same page.
Art Taylor: I’m not just talking about the association, but my view. Fundraising is building relationships and stewarding donors for predictable, long-term funding.
I’m hoping boards will support that because we’re seeing lots of burnout. People are leaving because organizations are pushing them to do things they shouldn’t.
Don’t ask for money when it’s not time or pressure people. Donors can smell desperation. We should be passionate, but ask when people are ready.
We should help them through that journey so they can see how they can be the hero in this equation along with the organization’s work.
Marcia Beckner: Your association does great work with professional development on best practices. How should leaders think about AFP membership as a revenue strategy?
Art Taylor: People who are trained to be fundraisers raise more money. They take time to steward those donors and bring them in.
There are 25,000 members of AFP, but the Department of Labor says 125,000 people call themselves fundraisers. There are 1.5 million organizations.
Hundreds of 1000s of people are raising money with little to no training. What does that do for the profession and the donor experience?
They are probably getting way smaller gifts than they could have. You’re going to raise more money if you know what you’re doing.
There are many tools you can learn. In a Chapter, you connect with people and share learnings. You may even find career opportunities.
This association helps you from A through Z because one of the most important skills for any nonprofit leader is the ability to fundraise.
Marcia Beckner: As an executive director for 10 years, I knew AFP was the premier membership. You can’t source those skills out altogether.
Even with a team, the CEO needs to be part of this for connections and networking. It is an incredible opportunity.
Navigating the Age of Chaos with “BONI” and “FORGE”
Marcia Beckner: Let’s pivot to the conference. What separates attendees who leave energized but unchanged from those who see measurable results?
Art Taylor: Small nonprofit executives are our fastest-growing segment. They are figuring out that this is where they learn to do their jobs better.
Regarding the conference, there will be 3,300 people and 200 education sessions. There are keynote addresses, receptions, and networking.
To avoid being overwhelmed, we created a tool this year to help people know which sessions to take based on their interests.
It’s a game-changer. It asks about your interests and gives you a menu of options. On the connection front, visit the vendors and tools.
If you don’t know anyone, the AFP team will be there to help you connect with others.
Marcia Beckner: I’ll be there too! If you are alone, email me at marcia@nullculturecares.com. I’ll help you network. You won’t be alone.
Can you share an example of an organization that saw a meaningful shift after attending last year?
Art Taylor: Most people share the positive energy they got from connecting and learning new things. It’s about being where others are going through the same thing.
We hear about the joy and the recharging of batteries. We’re in a tough moment with anxiety and organizations struggling.
We need to be around others who can give us a lift. That’s what a spark is—igniting your fire so you are ready for challenges ahead.
Marcia Beckner: I just got back from a conference in Minneapolis and it completely lit me up. Being together in person is so important.
We’ve almost devalued being in person because of remote work, but I can’t overestimate how important these venues are.
Art Taylor: Our opening keynote is Bob Johansen, a futurist who has been doing this for 50 years. He’s written books on how to get to the future early.
His most recent book is Navigating the Age of Chaos. He introduces the concept of BANI: Brittle, Anxious, Non-linear, and Incomprehensible.
That describes the world we live in, but he leaves us with hope called BANI Plus—a way of flipping those into positive ways of getting through.
This speech is going to be amazing. Bob changed my life 17 years ago. I learned tools to live with one foot in the present and toes in the future.
Marcia Beckner: I cannot wait! People can go to AFPicon.org to register. It’s about being together in connection and relationship.
Building a Culture of Belonging
Marcia Beckner: Let’s touch on team culture. In nonprofits, culture is often full of burnout and stress. Tell us about the FORGE framework.
Art Taylor: When I joined, the board had a plan with three pillars: member experience, education, and reach—all tied to creating belonging.
We needed to operationalize that. I learned we have to make a business case for inclusion for it to stick in institutions.
In 1980, I was the only African American accountant in a firm of 196. There was no thought of what I needed to feel included.
Today, companies can’t maximize potential unless they are inclusive. Studies show diverse firms that allow people to maximize their work are the ones that succeed.
The fastest-growing economic segments are people from diverse backgrounds, but they aren’t represented well in fundraising yet.
We have to bring new people in while keeping those already there. Everyone has to feel welcome or they will leave.
FORGE stands for: Fairness, Openness, Respect, Grace, and Empathy. There are four workgroups defining what belonging means.
We have to assess our policies and practices to see if they align with that definition. If not, we decide on changes or accommodations.
Lastly, we must learn to work across differences. Very few people know how to do that, but there are ways to come to appreciate one another.
This involves hundreds of volunteers. There’s a connection between BANI Plus, FORGE, and Spark.
It’s about creating greater belonging and flipping the negative into a positive. It all starts with uplifting each other as human beings.
Marcia Beckner: I’m so excited to experience it. Thank you, Art. The conference is April 26 through 28th, 2026 in San Diego.
Visit AFPicon.org to register. Thank you for listening to nonprofit CEO spark. Visit culturecares.com to learn how I support organizations.
If this brought you value, share it with a fellow leader. Remember, you are meant for great things and don’t have to burn out to prove it.