Welcome to the Fall Edition of The Scoop!
Update on Strategic Plan 2019-2021
Now that we're coming to the end of our chapter's current Strategic Plan, a group of Apra Canada members have volunteered to develop a new one for 2019-2021. Over the summer, the Strategic Plan Task Force put a lot of thought and effort into this project. They produced a comprehensive draft and highlights were shared with delegates at the Apra Canada conference in October.
This Strategic Plan will be finalized in the new year. Members will then have the chance to approve the plan at our Annual General Meeting in April.
If you weren't at the conference or would like to have an in-depth look at the draft plan, click here. You'll see that there are many ambitious strategies and your input will be essential in growing and strengthening our chapter! In the coming months, you'll be hearing about opportunities to participate in surveys or volunteer for committee work.
Feel free to send me your thoughts, comments and questions!
Submitted by Selene Hur, President
Apra Canada Conference 2018
The Apra Canada Conference was held in Toronto October 17-19, 2018. Prospect researchers from across the country met for three days of networking and learning. This year’s conference featured a wide range of topics from solo shop research, to analytics, to relationship-building with fundraisers. It also boasted inspiring keynote speakers from the world of research (Jen Filla), higher-education fundraising (Joanne Shoveller) and broadcasting (Nora Young.) The conference also welcomed back long-time sponsors as well as new partners who took part in panel discussions and countless conversations with the delegates. Even with a diversity of voices and topics discussed throughout these three days, one obvious theme repeated throughout the event was that of technology. Participants had the opportunity to look at the many ways that significant technological change is impacting philanthropy and research. This is an exciting time to be in this field. Researchers clearly have a unique and valuable set of skills and perspectives to help support and lead their organizations through any change.
On Presenting at the Apra Canada Conference
Once again this year, I was inspired and impressed by the presenters at the Apra Canada Conference. The sessions featured a group of presenters from a range of background and professional specialties, some of whom were presenting for their first time and others who were reliable and highly-experienced speakers. Regardless of the number of times someone has presented or their level of expertise in the material, presenting requires a certain level of bravery and risk-taking. Presenters have little control over technical issues, audience reaction, or other variables that can impact their session, yet they carry on and enrich our profession by sharing their knowledge. So, presenters, you deserve our thanks and appreciation for taking the time, making the leap, and participating in our professional development.
Thank you!
On a Final Note
If you, dear reader, have ever thought about a topic that you would like to see covered at a conference, please submit a proposal. The conference committee welcomes new ideas, new topics and new speakers. If you do not want to be a solo presenter, you can invite a professional colleague to take the stage with you, or convene a panel. In between conference years there are opportunities to present in other settings such as webinars or roundtables. Our organization and profession isare enhanced when you share your insights and inspire new ideas. I look forward to hearing yours.
Submitted by Katherine Scott, Director, External Relations and Conference Co-Chair
Membership Update
Our Apra Canada membership remains strong and continues to grow both in number of members and in levels of active participation. As of November 2018, Apra Canada has 225 members. This is the second highest count since 2008 when our membership count was 255. The table below shows the distribution of our members across Canada.
Interested in Becoming a Member?
Your active membership and involvement in the Apra Canada community advances our profession and makes our Association stronger. As the only professional organization for fundraising research and development professionals, I invite you to promote Apra Canada within your organization and among non-member peers who would benefit by becoming a member. I also encourage you to access our online membership directory to connect with your peers. The directory is now searchable by last and first name, organization, city and province. To ensure you continue to receive email notifications of upcoming events and Apra Canada news, please update your contact information after logging in. Please reach out to me if I can assist in any way with your membership.
Submitted by Corinne Hynes, Director of Membership
Canada Delegates’ Dinner
On Thursday, August 9, 2018, a Canada delegates’ dinner occurred during the 2018 APRA International Conference in Pittsburgh. Held at The Roost, the dinner was attended by 17 guests from organizations such as the Canadian Red Cross, Tracey Church & Associates, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Sunnybrook Foundation, Covenant House, University of Calgary, University of Saskatchewan, McGill University, Western University, GG+A, Ryerson University, QEII Foundation, and iWave. (Representatives from iWave graciously paid for the group’s liquor tab!)
I would like to thank Katherine Scott (Canadian Red Cross) and Alexandra Basen (Nature Conservancy of Canada) for helping organize the dinner. I also would like to thank Katherine, Tracey Church (Tracey Church & Associates) and Sandra Gomez (University of Calgary) for providing me with details and photos of the event.
Submitted by Steven Sorensen, Regional Representative
Interested in Becoming a Regional Representative?
Are you interested in helping to organize networking opportunities for yourself, fellow Apra Canada members and/or colleagues in your region?Apra Canada is continuously looking for individuals who may be interested in being an Apra Canada Regional Representative for their region. If you are interested in this wonderful opportunity, please feel free to check out http://www.apracanada.ca/contact/regionalvolunteers for more details.
Submitted by Steven Sorensen, Regional Representative
Professional Development - For the Love of Podcasts
As a commuter, I’m always looking for ways to use my travel time effectively. On the subway, I would read an offline copy of the newspaper before arriving at work to get a head start on my daily news review. Then I started commuting by car and that’s when I discovered podcasts. I was able to find interesting topics and useful subjects that related to my job. Now that I’m commuting by subway again, I still enjoy listening to podcasts and continue to broaden my list of topics and interests.
Below are some recommendations that you may find useful or interesting to help grow your leadership skills, general knowledge base, or get information on your prospects.
Entrepreneurs
Brought to you by Interac and Gimlet Creative, this podcast is produced by Dragon’s Den and entrepreneur Michele Romanow. Michele discusses what it takes to be an entrepreneur with Canadian business leaders. I find this podcast useful for finding prospects or companies that might be interested in my cause.
Also about Canadian entrepreneurs and hosted by a Dragon’s Den, Venturing Out is hosted by Arlene Dickinson who interviews Canadian business leaders and entrepreneurs. Similar to the one mentioned above, this podcast is good for insight on companies and business leaders and what their interests are.
Guy Raz interviews successful entrepreneurs about how they built their companies. While most of the entrepreneurs are not Canadian, they represent some of the biggest brands in the world.
Business and Strategy
Dear HBR is by Harvard Business Review. The show’s regular hosts discuss one topic related to the work environment and give listeners advice on their questions. Past episode topics include being underpaid, getting fired, family businesses and many more. This is a must for anyone seeking insight into the dynamics of the modern workplace.
Also from the Harvard Business Review, HBR Ideacast focuses more on high level strategy than office dynamics. I find it useful for thinking about planning and strategy for the department I now manage.
Fundraising and Prospect Research Specific
Apra International hosts a regular podcast series on a variety of topics relating to researchers. Recent topics include The Power of Fundraising Intelligence ethics.
Brought to you by the Helen Brown Group, The Intelligent Edge is an absolute must for all prospect researchers. I have listened to episodes and then directly applied things I heard about into my day-to-day work. The content is mostly applicable outside of the US. The last episode is about what researchers outside of the US need to know about GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation).
I found the content in this podcast to be somewhat US-centered, but the profiles on fundraisers were very interesting. What is also interesting is to hear from leaders in fundraising regardless of what country they come from. This podcast is hosted by Joan Garry who is the former Executive Director of GLAAD.
Prospect Research Chatbytes is hosted by the Prospect Research Institute. Episodes feature ideas that are useful for day to day job functions, such as optimized portfolios and profiles on prospect researchers like Apra Canada volunteer and Chapter Secretary Sarah Anderson.
The Ask takes a Canadian perspective on philanthropic leadership and touches on issues that are universal but from a Canadian vantage point.
Note this link is to iTunes but the podcast can be found on your preferred podcast player. AFP is recording their speaker series as a podcast.
Other Suggestions
In addition to this list, I also listen to Freakonomics, which occasionally has relevant content as it deals with behavioural economics. I would suggest this podcast more for front line fundraising and annual giving, but there certainly are relevant episodes such as the episode on Britain’s famous nudge unit or the episode titled How to Raise Money Without Killing a Kitten: A Freakonomics Radio Rebroadcast. I personally find behavioural economics fascinating and really enjoy this podcast.
I also enjoy Hidden Brain podcasts, which gives different perspectives on the hidden forces that motivate human behaviour. Occasionally there is something relevant to work. From NPR I also recommend Planet Money and The Indicator. I have been a fan of Planet Money for many years. Again, it’s not totally relevant to work, but it does help break down complex economic situations into understandable stories.
Submitted by Alexandra Basen, Director, Professional Development
Down the Prospect Research Rabbit Hole – How to Find Your Way Out
How many of you have found yourselves reading an article completely unrelated to the original research topic in an attempt to find that one nugget of information or verify that one last fact?
In my early days as a prospect researcher this happened often! I’ve learned a lot since then. Besides prioritizing and setting time limits for myself, I’ve also allowed some time for self-care throughout my day. This isn’t always possible as meetings, deadlines, and other commitments can get in the way.
Here are a few tips or reminders that you may find helpful for those days when you’ve fallen in deep:
- Take regular breaks. Every hour if possible. Your body needs to stretch and your mind and eyes need a break. According to Psychology Today, ‘movement breaks’ are essential for your physical and emotional health and increase productivity and creativity. And looking away from your computer screen for at least 20 seconds every 20 minutes helps reduce eye strain and fatigue.
- Refocus your attention to reset. Stare out a window and take in the scenery, read something inspirational, talk with a colleague, listen to music, or practice a quick meditation. It will improve your focus when you return to your work. 5-10 minutes is all you need.
- If you’re stuck on something, take a time out and then come back. I recommend 24 hours if possible. Within this you will most likely find the answer. I personally find this highly valuable.
- Ask for help. One person can’t be everything to everyone. We are human beings not human doings. Pay it forward and be willing to give help as well. Both are courageous and rewarding.
- Focus on one task at a time. You can’t possibly give a task your complete and undivided attention if you are doing many other things at the same time. According to Stanford researchers, your brain can only focus on one thing at a time and multitasking reduces our efficiency and performance.
- Breathe and hydrate. We get so distracted and caught up in what we’re doing that we actually forget to do both! A favourite quote of mine is, “Just Breathe. No matter what happens, you can handle it, and you will be okay.” ~tinybuddha. And drink water, lots of water!
Finding your way out isn’t always easy. As prospect researchers, we can become so immersed in our research that our relentless and curious minds want to keep us there. Remember, there is always a way out. We just have to give ourselves permission.
Submitted by Shea Larin, Director, Communications
Let your research and writing skills shine!
Do you have a passion for your work in prospect research and love to write? Would you like to share your talents, tips and tricks, resources, best practices, and creative ideas in a meaningful way with a growing group of prospect research and development professionals?
Apra Canada is looking for guest articles and feature writers on a variety of topics. Please send your ideas to Shea Larin, Director, Communications, at larin.sheila@gmail.com.
2018-2019 Board of Directors
Selene Hur, President
Katherine Scott, President Elect
John Hermans, VP/Treasurer
Sarah Anderson, Secretary
Corinne Hynes, Director of Membership
Alexandra Basen, Director of Professional Development
Shea Larin, Director of Communications
Steven Sorensen, Director of Regional Representatives
Sarah Marcotte, Director of External Relations & Conference Co-Chair
Cristina Naccarato, Director of Mentorship
Melanie Fulop, Director -at-Large
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| The Scoop Fall Edition December2018.pdf (314.52 KB) | 314.52 KB |
| Apra C Strategic Plan 2019-2021 - DRAFT 3 to share.pdf (552.64 KB) | 552.64 KB |