After working with or for more than 30 nonprofits, across every size, location in the U.S., and fundraising mix you can imagine, I've thought about this topic for a long time. And I've finally landed on a firm opinion: not everyone can do frontline fundraising. Not every staff member. Not every board member. Not every executive director. The organizations that accept this, and act on it, raise more money with fewer headaches. 

This isn't a criticism of the people who aren't wired for it. Events matter. Appeals matter. Stewardship and communications and community-building all matter. There are meaningful ways for everyone to contribute to a fundraising program. But when you need someone to sit across from a donor one-on-one and make an ask, that is a specific thing. And trying to force someone who isn't built for it into that seat is a disservice to your organization and your donors. 

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What it looks like when someone has it

Great frontline fundraisers — whether staff, board members, or volunteers — share a few things in common. They genuinely enjoy talking to people. They can tell a story and cast a vision that captivates. They feel a little nervous before a big ask, but it's the excited kind of nervous, not the I-need-to-find-a-reason-to-cancel kind.

They don't resist. They lean in.

At Lotus, we use CliftonStrengths extensively when coaching executives and Directors of Development, because the research is clear: people perform best when they're operating in their natural strengths. For frontline fundraising, here are the themes that tend to show up in people who are great at it:

Woo — the ability to win others over, to light up a room, to make a stranger feel like an old friend. This is perhaps the single most telling strength for frontline fundraising.

Relator — deep, genuine interest in building real relationships. Not surface-level schmoozing, but authentic connection over time. Major gift fundraising runs on this.

Communication — the ability to tell a compelling story, to translate mission into meaning, to make someone feel the impact of their gift before they've made it.

Command — comfort with directness, with leading a conversation, with making the ask without flinching.

Activator — a bias toward action. These people don't wait for the perfect moment. They make the call.

Self-Assurance — confidence in their own instincts and judgment. They can handle a "not yet" without spiraling.

Significance — a drive to make a meaningful impact. This fuels the passion that donors can feel.

Competition — results-oriented and motivated by hitting goals. Paired with humility, this can be a powerful driver of results. 

If someone lights up when you describe what frontline fundraising actually involves — the conversations, the relationship-building, the ask — that's your signal. If they go quiet and start suggesting alternatives, that's a signal too.

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What it looks like when someone doesn't have it

You know this person. They're successful, accomplished, committed to the mission, and hardworking in every other way. But when it comes to frontline fundraising, they resist. They're always almost ready. They'll suggest sending an email instead of making a call. They will ask for five different versions of emails to send. They'll propose an event.

The event proposal is the tell. Events are comfortable because they don't require sitting across from someone and asking. They feel like fundraising. They look like fundraising. Sometimes they can drive strong fundraising results and they always have brand- and relationship-building benefits, but they come with significant cost and operational lift. For most organizations, they are not the primary driver of results — significant (four, five, six, or seven figure) major gifts and grants are. When someone consistently steers toward events and away from direct asks, they are telling you something important about where their comfort zone ends.

Don't fight it. Redirect them. There is real and important fundraising work that doesn't require making asks, and plenty of ways for committed people to contribute. Let them do those things well, and let your frontline fundraisers do what they do best.

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A special note on board members

This is where I want to be especially direct. If you have a board member who is not inclined toward frontline fundraising, do not put them in a development committee role where they are expected to drive donor cultivation and solicitation. I have seen this lead organizations on expensive wild goose chases: more events, more email campaigns, more activity that feels productive but doesn't move the needle. It can actually pull your development staff away from the work that does. Board members bring tremendous value in many ways. But when they step into fundraising territory without the instincts and experience for it, even the best intentions can create drag instead of momentum. 

The board members who belong in development leadership are the ones who are energized by the prospect of picking up the phone, sharing a story, and asking for a gift. They don't have to be perfect at it. But they have to want to do it.

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A note for boards hiring an Executive Director or CEO

If your organization expects its top leader to play a meaningful role in frontline fundraising — and for most nonprofits, you should — then you need to screen for this explicitly during the hiring process.

It's part instinct and part evidence. Watch for the person whose eyes light up when you describe donor cultivation. Who talks about relationships with energy, not obligation. Who has done it before and can point to results. CliftonStrengths can be a useful lens here, too. A candidate whose top themes include Woo, Relator, Communication, and Command is wired differently than one whose profile is dominated by Intellection, Context, and Harmony. Neither profile is better overall. But one is far more likely to thrive in a frontline fundraising role.

Ask directly. Describe what the fundraising expectations are and watch how they respond. Excitement is the right answer. Hesitation is a red flag. 

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The bottom line

Your fundraising program will only be as strong as the people carrying it. Not everyone is built for frontline fundraising — and that's fine. What isn't fine is hoping someone will grow comfortable in a role that is beyond their natural strengths. 

Know your people. Put them in the right seats. And protect your frontline fundraisers' time and energy for the work that actually moves the needle.

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Julie Cruit Angilly is the founder and principal of Lotus Revenue & Brand Consultants, a boutique fundraising consultancy serving nonprofits. Over the course of her career, she has raised $100 million and served as a VP of Development with personal responsibility for fundraising targets as high as $15 million annually. Lotus works with organizations to build stronger fundraising programs from the ground up. Learn more at grow-with-lotus.com.