It Takes a Village: Internal Partners in Major Gifts

A gift once took eleven months to close. Not because the donor said no.

Because one person was carrying five jobs.

On this week's episode of The Intentional Fundraiser, I tell the story of a major gift that stalled for nearly a year, and what finally unstuck it. Spoiler: it wasn't a better pitch. It was the right people in the room.

We talk about:

Why cross-functional collaboration is non-negotiable in 2026Who belongs at your major gifts tableHow to run a focused 30-minute coalition meeting that gets real results

Who on your team, outside of development, deserves more credit for your last big gift?

Listen to this episode and send it to a colleague who's ready to stop carrying major gifts alone.

More from Tammy Zonker

Author of Calling All Heroes

Founder of Fundraising Transformed

President of Modern Institute for Charitable Giving

Learn more about the Excellence in Major Gift Fundraising Seminar