Apra-MI Spring Event: Modernizing Prospect Development

Check-in begins: 10:30 am ET
Program starts promptly at 11:00 am ET and ends at 2:00 PM ET
We will take a break at noon for a networking lunch - included in your ticket price!

Apra-MI is incredibly grateful to have Catherine Flaatten sharing her prospect development expertise with us all!

Modernizing Prospect Development: Evolving Your Program to Meet the Current Moment and Prepare for the Future

The world of philanthropy is changing quickly, and prospect development is evolving right alongside it. Fluctuating economic conditions, shifting donor behaviors, emerging technologies, and changing workplace dynamics are all affecting our industry. Preparing for the future requires more than just new tools; it requires new ways of thinking about our work and how it gets done.

In this workshop, we’ll explore several forces shaping modern prospect development and what they mean for our field. We’ll start with a look at macro-level trends influencing nonprofit development broadly, along with specific examples of how teams are responding with new techniques and becoming stronger partners in fundraising. From there, we’ll take a practical look at artificial intelligence in prospect development. AI can be a powerful accelerator, but only if we are clear about where it helps, where it doesn’t, and how to maintain quality and trust. Through discussion and shared examples, we’ll explore potential use cases, define guardrails for responsible use, and identify what should always be reviewed by a person before it reaches a stakeholder. Finally, we’ll turn to the human side of change. New tools and processes only succeed if people trust them, see their value, and understand how to integrate them into their work. Drawing on established change management frameworks, we’ll outline a pragmatic approach to anticipating resistance, supporting change adoption, and ensuring new ideas become standard practices rather than short-lived experiments.

The session will combine presentation, facilitated discussion, and peer exchange. Participants will leave with practical ideas for adapting their prospect development work for the modern environment, from leveraging new techniques and technologies to sustaining change over the long term.
Biography:
Catherine Flaatten, MPH, CFRE, is the associate vice president of prospect development at BWF, where she advises nonprofit clients on building and strengthening programs in prospect research, management, and analytics. Her consulting is grounded in past practitioner experience at The George Washington University, Share Our Strength/No Kid Hungry, the National Psoriasis Foundation, and the BrightFocus Foundation.

Catherine serves on Apra International’s Board of Directors, Education and Professional Development Committee, and Fundamentals Committee and has held numerous volunteer leadership roles with Apra International, Apra Metro DC, and aasp. She is a frequent presenter and author in the field, and her expertise has been featured in the Chronicle of Philanthropy. Her contributions aim to position prospect development as a strategic driver of fundraising success and strengthen the profession through knowledge-sharing and leadership.

She earned both her BA in International Affairs and her MPH in Maternal and Child Health from The George Washington University.

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If you have any dietary restrictions, need to purchase tickets by check, or have other questions, please email [email protected] and Apra-MI Finance Lead Jennifer Moody at [email protected].

Further details will be sent by emails to all ticket holders!

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