Strategic Plan

The IU Foundation presents a new strategic plan to continue the fulfillment of our mission to maximize private support for Indiana University. To build this plan, we incorporated best practices, new frameworks, and extensive input from IU stakeholders to produce a set of objectives for fiscal years 2021-24. These objectives ensure that the IUF will remain a leader in higher education philanthropy while also marshalling resources that allow the university to achieve its goal of providing a world-class education to students.

OBJECTIVE 1: Improve donor insight, service, and satisfaction.

Priorities:

1. (Merged with 1.3) Enhance the donor experience across all giving levels by developing a comprehensive engagement and stewardship strategy at Indiana University, whereby outreach, communications, and gift impact are tailored through donor insights.
2. Lead a team composed largely of our IU fundraising partners to craft a clear action plan for more coordinated, donor-centric communications. 

4. Lead a team composed of “student-facing” partners from across IU to develop and execute a strategy for increasing student lifetime engagement.
5. Create a cross-functional digital experience team charged with improving and coordinating all aspects of our digital interface with donors.
6. Leveraging assets and expertise across Indiana University, develop an action plan for investing in emerging technologies that will help personalize and enhance the donor experience.

OBJECTIVE 2: Prepare IU fundraising partners for our third century.

Priorities:

1. Work with our IU partners to create fundraising improvement solutions tailored to each unit’s needs.
2. Create methods and build capacity to help our IU partners (e.g., campus leaders, deans, faculty, fundraisers, and donors) develop and successfully pursue transformational giving opportunities.
3. Increase the number of shared-cost, full-time major gift officers.
4. Explore new career paths to grow future fundraising talent and expand the university’s productive personal relationships with constituents.
5. Run a three-year trial of locating major gift officers in geographic centers of highest concentrations of major gift prospects.
6. Lead a review of “lessons learned” from the For All campaign and create a series of forums for sharing and applying best practices.
7. Lead a team charged with crafting options for improving the linkage between “responsibility for fundraising outcomes” and “management of resources” to achieve outcomes.

OBJECTIVE 3: Advance diversity, equity, and inclusion related to staffing and relationship development across our diverse constituencies.

Priorities:

1. Increase the diversity of IUF and IU Advancement staff by improving programs and processes that ensure sustainability of future and existing talent in all areas of our organization.
2. Create engagement programs that deepen professional development, connectedness and collaboration amongst IUF and IU Advancement staff.
3. Develop educational programs and curricula that deepen individual and organizational competency on topics of diversity, equity, and inclusion to foster a culture of belonging amongst staff, donors, volunteers, and students.
4. Continue intentional practices to diversify IUF Board and volunteers to be more representative of our evolving alumni, students, and Affinity Giving population.
5. Develop strategies to maximize the impact of our diversity giving circles while honoring the unique and multi-faceted identities of those we serve.