Client Highlights

Keep Doing The Work.

By moss+ross Team. moss+ross approaches each client engagement as an opportunity to ask: are we doing the work that recognizes diversity and builds inclusivity and equity? What does this look like in our day-to-day work, in our strategic visioning, and in our reflections on current events as well as history? We only get better as we work together – and keep doing the work. Our clients are doing the work, day in and day out. The moss+ross team works alongside our clients, learning from one another, guiding strategy based on our experiences, and understanding what it means to be accountable. We support our clients as they do the work, including these examples: Many nonprofits are lifting up Black History in ways that are authentic to their missions, including the Durham Sports Commission and UNC Athletics which are [...]

Leadership Lessons

By moss+ross staff. moss+ross has offered Executive Search services since 2010, and has helped Triangle nonprofits place more than 70 executive-level and development professionals since then. We asked several to share their perspective on nonprofit leadership in today’s environment. Each has led with resilience to revamp services, operate without volunteers, and respond to changing conditions in this past year. Urban Ministries of Durham offers food, shelter and a future to end homelessness and fight poverty in Durham. “You try to stay focused on the things you can control while understanding the need to stay flexible and adaptable. For example, during the pandemic, we had to shift our focus from providing food, housing and other services to keeping people healthy.  That became our first priority.” Sheldon Mitchell, Executive Director (moss+ross search placement in 2016) United Way of the [...]

Gifts That Keep On Giving

By Wes Brown, Director of m+r Faith Communities. The year 2020 winds down with some questions answered about life in the pandemic, yet much remains unknown on the far horizon. In this digital age many of us have discovered new ways to move our lives forward. Stores, classrooms, offices, gathering places, and resources have gone virtual, continuing to be accessible online—but not for everyone. The best institutions form us to be resourceful and collaborative, particularly in unusual circumstances. My vocation working to strengthen faithfulness and develop spiritual leadership has taught that unusual times offer extraordinary opportunities. Traditionally, faith communities tend to think more about the past than the future. The pandemic has pushed us into new practices such as online giving, reordering priorities about physical facilities, and innovative ways of witness and service. This summer when it became clear that [...]

2020-11-11T03:58:47-05:00November 11th, 2020|All Posts, Capital Campaigns, Client Highlights, Team Expertise|

The Room Where It Happens

By Mary Moss. If you’ve seen Hamilton, you know that the “Room Where it Happens” means more than just clever lyrics and melody. History is made by having the right people in the room, people whose actions and commitment will change everything. Alexander Hamilton was in the room, and as they say, the rest is history. Who is in your room? As staff, do you have the right people in your room? As board or committee members, do you have the right volunteers in your room? This past month has been an extraordinary one for some moss+ross clients. To name only a few:  * SECU Family House and Oak City Cares celebrated successful campaign conclusions * Healing Transitions and Durham Tech met huge milestones in their campaigns * Voices Together hired a Director of Development and Eno [...]

Client Success

Record $2M gift launches AI Program at the NC School of Science and Mathematics  "A $2 million gift to the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics from alumnus and entrepreneur Carl Ryden '89 and his wife, Ashley -- the largest private gift in the school’s history -- will launch a program putting NCSSM on the leading-edge of public schools in America for learning about artificial intelligence and its place in society, NCSSM announced Thursday." (click here for the full article) Thomas F. Looney, Chair of the NCSSM Board of Trustees; Karen LeVert, Chair of the NCSSM Foundation; Carl Ryden; wife Ashley Ryden; NCSSM Chancellor Todd Roberts; and UNC President Margaret Spellings (Photo courtesy of NCSSM)

2020-02-28T18:03:44-05:00January 14th, 2019|All Posts, Client Highlights|

Take the Bored Out of Board Meetings

By Anna White Hosea. Taylor Swift and Michael Scott were deep in conversation. Across the room, Buzz Lightyear and Frida Kahlo were having a spirited debate. Meanwhile, at the front of the room, two 90’s era game show hosts and Big Bird were watching the clock. Three... two... one... Buzzzzzz! A Halloween party? A new game show on Bravo? No - a custom designed Board retreat for moss+ross client Marbles Kids Museum. Anna White Hosea, Big Bird, Brooke Jenkins Marbles is known for emphasizing play, fun and creativity. Mirroring their culture, Partner Mary Moss, Senior Associate Brooke Jenkins and I developed a creative costume/game show themed retreat. In one game, modeled after Family Feud, Board members and Senior Leadership laughed and learned about Marbles signature programs and community impact. During the Amazing [Marbles] Race, teams bonded while [...]

2020-02-28T18:12:15-05:00January 9th, 2019|All Posts, Client Highlights, Team Expertise|

Our Role in the UNC Campaign

By Susan Ross. Our region of North Carolina is filled with top-rated colleges and universities, all of which set high bars for development excellence. Over the past eight years, moss+ross has worked on more than 20 engagements with UNC Chapel Hill and its various schools and programs.  We are particularly proud to be one of two named consulting partners for the $4.25 billion For All Kind campaign. Launched just over a year ago, the campaign has reached $2.3 billion in commitments. moss+ross clients have included some of the biggest efforts on campus: the $1 billion UNC Medicine campaign, a $500 million Rams Club campaign, $400 million for the Kenan-Flagler Business School, and a $300 million focus for UNC Global. We are also involved with schools and programs whose eight-figure goals present equally daunting challenges, such as the School of [...]

Salute to the Helpers

moss+ross is proud to work with nonprofit partners who are on the ground in Florence's wake. Our work with clients in the nonprofit sector inspires us every day, and never more so than in the past week as Hurricane Florence has affected our region. We appreciate the expertise and dedication of the agencies involved in relief efforts, and the compassion and caring of the staff and volunteers who step up in times of need.  As Mr. Rogers said, when you see scary things in the news, look for the helpers. This special post highlights a few of our current clients who serve multiple counties in Eastern NC and are on the front lines of relief and support. We know many of our clients are marshalling resources, setting up collections and planning ways to provide ongoing support to the long term [...]

2018-09-21T09:18:20-04:00September 21st, 2018|All Posts, Client Highlights|

Three Steps to Great Messaging by Jeanne Murray

Your organization communicates purpose and inspires support through your messaging. While a good starting point is crafting a great mission statement, the day-in/day-out communication of your organization’s message doesn’t end with a declaration of mission. Continual messaging conveys the impact, energy, and needs of your organization – and, importantly, supports your development efforts. How do you know good messaging from the kind that needs improvement? Good messaging communicates value, encourages consistency, and identifies clear action. Good messaging communicates value. Messaging that communicates value is less about what you do, and more about what gets done with donor support. Words and images that bring impact to life tell donors that your organization is a worthy investment of time, money, and attention. Do your communications identify a donor’s role in achieving the mission? For example, I’m on the board of a Durham [...]

Annual Planning: The Importance of Creating an Annual Development Plan by Kim Glenn

“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.” Wise words from Yogi Berra that remind us good planning is essential to success on many levels, and in the case of fundraising, can be critical to your organization’s long-term sustainability. Why? Because good development planning will not only help sustain your mission, but it's also a proven tool for growing and transforming your organization. Kim Glenn, Senior Associate Development planning starts with an understanding of where your organization wants to go and setting annual fundraising goals that will help get you there. Adding stretch goals that go above and beyond your annual funding needs is important, especially when your Executive Director or Board has plans to expand the organization’s impact. If you’ve ever heard discussion about the need to increase the number of clients served, [...]

Go to Top