10 advancement pros rocking it on linkedin

10 Advancement Pros Rocking It On LinkedIn

And What You Can Learn From Their Profiles

LinkedIn, with 300 million users worldwide, is a buzzing professional space for networking and

building relationships.

The business world has already embraced

LinkedIn, with 9 out of 10 business execs

using the network “often” or “very often.”

Statistic via BusinessNewsDaily

By Uberof202 ff via Flickr Creative Commons

So why aren’t leaders in university advancement doing the same?

We analyzed the LinkedIn profiles of Chief Advancement Officers at Forbes’ top 30 colleges.*

Key finding: The average number of connections of a CAO is just 256.

*At three of the colleges, there was a vacancy or no identifiable CAO.

82% of corporate employees say they are

“more likely” or “much more likely” to trust a company whose CEO and top execs

use social media.

Statistic via BRANDfog

It’s likely that your constituents feel the same way.

Calling all development leaders!

Calling all development leaders!

It’s time to get connected on LinkedIn.

An advancement leader’s strong LinkedIn presence can contribute significantly to the goals of an advancement office by:

• Showing the personality behind the institution’s brand

• Demonstrating the professional accomplishments of its leaders

• Connecting prospects and other constituents more strongly with the institution through engagement

….and much more!

Let’s take a look at 10 advancement leaders with exemplary LinkedIn profiles.*

*Advancement leaders are alphabetized and selected from the top 30 schools in Forbes’ “2014 America’s Top Colleges” and US News & World Report’s “2014 Best Colleges”

Thomas Bonner VP for External Relations at Carleton College

Impressive Profile Features

•  Succinct yet illustrative Summary that highlights his specialties

•  Detailed section on volunteer experience and the causes he cares about

•  Relevant skills and endorsements (Top endorsed skill: “Annual Giving”)

•  Recommendations given to his colleagues

Thomas Bonner

“I primarily use LinkedIn to have my profile available for individuals I will be meeting with for the first time to be able to research a bit about me if they are so inclined. I’ve had a number of individuals comment on something in my profile.”

–Thomas Bonner

Jim Husson Senior VP for University Advancement at Boston College


•  Short Summary that connects his experience with his goals •  Relevant skills and endorsements (Top endorsed skill: “Alumni

Relations”)

•  Recommendation received from a colleague •  Member of 9 professional groups

Jim Husson

“LinkedIn allows me to follow professional careers in real time and often gives me insight into issues that are front of mind among leaders in our community. My sense is that it is important that advancement professionals have a solid LinkedIn profile, if only because it is increasingly our default calling card among constituents who want to learn something about us.”

–Jim Husson

Steve Kean Chief Advancement Officer at Boston University


•  Detailed work experience that includes descriptions of current and past positions

•  Relevant skills and endorsements (Top endorsed skill: “Stewardship”)

•  Recommendation both given to and received from a colleague

Steve Kean

Shaun Keister Vice Chancellor for Development and Alumni Relations at UC Davis


•  Work experience demonstrates proven success

•  Relevant skills and endorsements (Top endorsed skill: “Fundraising”)


Shaun Keister

“I use LinkedIn to promote and post stories about UC Davis, philanthropy news at Davis, and job opportunities in development and alumni relations. We have had good success with identifying prospective employees via LinkedIn interactions.”

–Shaun Keister

Matthew Lambert VP for University Advancement at College of William & Mary


•  Comprehensive Summary that speaks to experience, specialties, accomplishments, and research interests



Matthew Lambert

Gregory Leet Vice Chancellor of University Advancement at UC Irvine


•  The descriptions under Experience link out to the websites of his organizations

•  Board member experience included under Volunteer Experience and Causes

•  Relevant skills and endorsements (Top endorsed skill: “Fundraising”) •  Recommendations given to and received from his colleagues •  Member of over 10 professional groups

Gregory Leet

Jerry May VP for Development at Michigan


•  Detailed Summary that calls out his career accomplishments, specific campaign successes, speaking experience, and education


Jerry May

Patricia Jackson Chief of Staff for the Advancement Division at Dartmouth College


•  Brief descriptions for each position listed under Experience


•  Recommendations received from colleagues

Patricia Jackson

“First, I use LinkedIn as a recruitment tool for staff both in terms of tracking people I may not know, but more importantly, watching those rising stars with whom I would love to work at some point. Secondly, I use it as a way to reach out directly to potential supporters by asking them to connect, and then taking the relationship further from there. Like any social media tool, I find it useful to know what people say about themselves. This gives the opportunity to mirror such back to them in appropriate ways. I see LinkedIn as one more arrow in my quiver to leverage connections—not as a silver bullet in and of itself.”

–Trish Jackson

Bob Sweeney Senior VP for University Advancement at UVA


•  Thorough Summary that highlights his experience, accomplishments, interests, and specialties

•  Short description of responsibilities for every position held •  Detailed section on volunteer interests and other organizations he’s involved

with •  Relevant skills and endorsements (Top endorsed skill: “Fundraising”) •  Honors and awards listed to establish credibility •  Member of 15 professional groups

Bob Sweeney

Darrow Zeidenstein VP for Development and Alumni Relations at Rice University


•  Section on board membership highlights other organizations he’s involved with

•  Honors and awards listed to establish credibility •  CASE book he co-authored included under Publications

•  Recommendation given to a colleague

Darrow Zeidenstein

The 6 Profile ‘Must-Haves’

1.  Profile Photo

2.  Summary

3.  Work Experience

4.  Skills & Endorsements

5.  Contact Information

6.  Connections

LinkedIn for Stewardship & Donor Engagement

• Use Advanced Search to focus your prospect research efforts

•  Identify potential volunteers and board members

• Discover prospects’ interests so you can respond to them on a more personal level

Ready to optimize your LinkedIn profile like these pros?

We can help.

Download our free eBook for tips: LinkedIn Checklist for Advancement 2014

About EverTrue

EverTrue is the world’s leading social donor management platform. Since 2010, EverTrue has been on a mission to build relationships in pursuit of a better world. Today, more than 250 nonprofit institutions use EverTrue’s software, services, and support to develop better data, deeper relationships, and richer insights on their donors. EverTrue’s social donor management software – the first of its kind – includes middle-of-the-pyramid donor identification, prospect prioritization based on capacity and propensity, industry and affinity insights through social media integration, and powerful reporting and analytics all in one platform. EverTrue is headquartered in Boston, MA and is a Bain Capital-backed company.

10 advancement pros rocking it on linkedin

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