This Breakout takes on Mark Dobosz's LinkedIn piece on donor retention, built around a number from the 2026 M+R Benchmarks: new donor retention was just 24 percent, meaning three of four first-time donors never gave again. Ryan Catherwood, Dave Hail, and Courtney Stombock discuss why that is a structural failure rather than a stewardship gap, and why organizations tend to be good at keeping the donors they already know but poor at the front door.
The conversation works through Dobosz's argument that a first gift is a question rather than a transaction, and his four-part fix for a donor's first 90 days. It also gets honest about why that fix is far harder to run in a real advancement shop than it looks on paper. The episode closes on what actually earns a second gift and gives donors a reason to stay.
Upcoming Member Events
Agora
Behind the Scenes of a Signature Alumni Event: Lessons from the Bentley Alumni Conference
A great alumni conference can do more than bring people together — it can create the conditions for relationships to grow, alumni expertise to strengthen the institution, and university priorities to become meaningful and relevant to graduates.
In this Agora, Allison Kerivan, Executive Director of Advancement Relations, will take attendees behind the scenes of the Bentley Alumni Conference, the university’s flagship professional development and networking experience, and share how it has evolved into a strategic platform for alumni engagement and donor cultivation.
Date: Thursday, September 3 from 12 - 1 pm
Faculty-in-Residence
For six weeks beginning August 17 - September 25, Speaking Engagement welcomes Mallory Erickson — executive coach, creator and host of the What the Fundraising podcast, and author of the book by the same name — as our inaugural resident. We’ll have a final live Symposium event for members on September 23.
