EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation)
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ALDE EPOC:
Thoughts on Vocation
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 Attention senior level (10-plus years of experience) ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Thursday, May 9, 2013, at 11 a.m. Central Time.
Let's take a detour from our skills-oriented EPOC calls and try something different. On May 9 we'll explore our calling in conversation with Kurt Senske. Kurt, CEO of Lutheran Social Services of the South and an author and speaker who has given this subject much prayerful consideration, will offer perspective and engage us in our own discernment. Just as he eloquently brought vocation to the forefront in his ALDE Outstanding Executive Award acceptance speech at February's International Educational Conference, he will move us toward reconsideration of the stewardship of our vocations.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 11 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at
phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation. The calls are intended for those with 10 or more years of experience but all are welcome.
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 Kurt M. Senske is Chief Executive Officer of Lutheran Social Services of the South (LSS), a multi-service nonprofit social service agency in Texas and Louisiana with an annual budget of more than $100 million. During his tenure as CEO, Kurt has been responsible for more than tripling the size of the 131 year old agency. He led the growth of the agency to its current status as the largest provider of children's services in Texas, broadened and diversified the senior services portfolio and guided the successful conclusion of thousands of claims made by Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Ike victims while strengthening fiscal agency health and improving the quality of LSS programs. Kurt never loses focus on helping the clients of LSS: children and individuals in need. He works tirelessly to improve children's services, remaining focused on what's best for the children.
Kurt is Chair of the Board of Directors of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and also serves on the Board of Directors of Lutheran Services in America and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. He previously served as Chair of the LCMS Board for Human Care/World Relief. He is a member of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Austin.
Kurt holds a B.S. in business administration from Valparaiso University, a law degree from the University Of Illinois College Of Law, a master's degree in international relations from Schiller International University in Paris, France, and a Ph.D. in government from the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of The Calling: Live a Life of Significance, Executive Values: A Christian Approach to Organizational Leadership and Personal Values: God's Game Plan For Life.
Before joining LSS in 1994, Kurt served as Assistant to the President of Concordia University Texas and also practiced law in Chicago.
Kurt, his wife, Laurie, and their daughter, Sydney, live in Austin, Texas.
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Previous EPOC Sessions
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ALDE EPOC:
Working With Consultants
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Attention senior level (10-plus years of experience) ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Thursday, March 7, 2013, at 11 a.m. Central Time.
Have you ever used a consultant and found the relationship hard to manage, or simply wanted to get more out of the work you asked the consultant to perform for your organization? Why not find out from consultants themselves how to best work with consultants, and how to help them help you.
ALDE has secured two experienced consultants, who come from different backgrounds, to enlighten us: Shannon Alexander of the Alexander Ross Group in Evanston, Ill., and Bob Evans, Founder and Managing Director of The EHL Consulting Group, Philadelphia, Pa. Jon Dize of the Senior Level Task Force; President, North Street Development Advisors and Advancement Coordinator at The Lutheran Schools Partnership, Fort Wayne, Ind., will serve as moderator.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 11 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at
phyllisw@alde.org
, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation. The calls are intended for those with 10 or more years of experience but all are welcome, especially if you/your organization is working with and thinking about working with a consultant.
If you're planning to attend, please text questions to (260) 312-3289 or email to jond@tlspartnership.org. Begin texts with "ALDE EPOC," or use "ALDE EPOC" in the subject line of emails.
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 With 19 years of professional fundraising experience, Shannon Lohr Alexander, CFRE, recently launched the fundraising consulting firm Alexander Ross Group. The firm guides nonprofit organizations to strengthen their ability to fulfill their missions by increasing capacity to attract and retain philanthropic dollars. The Alexander Ross Group offers sage strategic counsel in resource development and nonprofit management, including annual and major giving, development assessments, feasibility studies, campaign counsel, donor communications, executive searches, board development and training and strategic planning. Shannon is also a guest lecturer at Kellogg's Center for Nonprofit Management on the topic of engaging Board members in fundraising. Before launching the Alexander Ross Group, Shannon served as Vice President, External Affairs for the Museum of Science and Industry (MSI).
 Robert I. Evans is Founder and Managing Director of The EHL Consulting Group of suburban Philadelphia, which he established in 1991 after 20 years of experience conducting fundraising campaigns in major metropolitan areas nationwide. Having previously served as both Campaign Director for the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, as well as National Campaign Director for State of Israel Bonds, Bob developed an extensive and valued network of relationships among corporate leaders and philanthropic individuals across the country. Regarded as an authority on campaign and institutional strategy, Bob is known for inventive campaign plans that have enabled clients to reach development and leadership goals in even the most challenging of circumstances.
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ALDE EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation):
All in the Family!
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Attention senior level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Thursday, May 3, 2012, at 10 a.m. Central Time. We will have a discussion on raising support from our team of employees. Hence the title, "It's All in the Family." We will look at the successful employee campaigns conducted by Mosaic across the country, presented by Brenda Solomon, and Lutheran Hour Ministries in Saint Louis, presented by Lori Parker. Harold Melser, chair of the ALDE Senior Level Task Force will be the facilitator for the phone conference. The focus of the call will be the keys to encouraging gifts from employees to their organization.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
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ALDE EPOC:
The Sky ISN'T Falling - Lutheran Demographics in the 21st Century
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Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Thursday, March 1, 2012, at 10 a.m. Central Time. The topic is: "The Sky ISN'T Falling - Lutheran Demographics in the 21st Century."
 Mark Twain is often quoted as saying that "the reports of my death are greatly exaggerated ... " Contrary to some similar and oddly popular "sky is falling" rhetoric, all things Lutheran will not disappear any time soon. Nonetheless, many, if not all, things Lutheran will be changing and anyone hoping to succeed in the Lutheran universe needs to stay ahead of demographic, fundraising, engagement and theological shifts. Lisa Bonds, Senior Director of Donor Services, Lutheran Community Foundation, will gladly leave shifts in theology to the theologians but will offer commentary and initiate discussion based on her eight years of work at Lutheran World Relief; her current job at the Lutheran Community Foundation; audience and demographic research done by LWR, the LCF and Thrivent and countless hours spent in meetings regarding "church body relationships." Laurie Wilkinson from Thrivent will also join the conversation, as we hope all of you will.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
Save the date for our next EPOC call, on Employee Giving to Annual and Capital Campaigns, scheduled for Thursday, May 3. |
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Campaign Building in a Rebuilding Economy
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 Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on October 27, 2011. The facilitated discussion will be on, "Campaign Building in a Rebuilding Economy." The talk will begin with a look at a recent campaign that saw success because it was well built. We will then move to more general talk of campaign building and give you the chance to discuss your own successes and trials; how you feel the current climate is affecting campaigns and what you're doing to make things work.
The facilitators for this call will be two experienced professionals who have constructed success in campaign planning - Bob Shafis, Director of Major Gift Planning at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and Harold Melser, Director, Ministry Advancement & President, LHM Foundation with Lutheran Hour Ministries in St. Louis.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
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ALDE EPOC:
Best Practices of Benchmarking
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Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on April 13, 2010. It will be on, "Development Best Practices: An Introduction to Benchmarking." The talk will begin with an overview of just what benchmarking is, and what it means in a development context. Then we will focus on statistical benchmarking, which relies on measuring performance using objective data. Examples of statistical benchmarking will be considered and advice will be offered. After that, the processes used in benchmarking will be covered - that is, the question, "How do I benchmark?," will be answered. Finally, the talk will move to how benchmarking can actually be used to make decisions, as well as how benchmarking may move an organization toward following best practices.
The facilitators for this call will be Mark Hofman, VP for Philanthropic Support at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, and Michelle Janssen, Executive Director of Development, Office of Institutional Advancement at Valparaiso University.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10:30 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
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ALDE EPOC:
Learn Best Practices from the Best
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Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Tuesday, January 12, 2010. This call will be on Best Practices. Jennifer Grandberry and Alan Zacharias will help initiate the discussion, and then will ask the other participants to share what works for them. So, please bring one (or more!) of your best practices - or great ideas you've seen from other organizations - to the discussion and you'll walk away with at least 10-12 additional practices. All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10:30 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information.
Jennifer Grandberry has a varied background that includes television news, retail sales, consulting and fundraising. In her current role as Director for Marketing, ELCA Foundation and Development Services, she brings 13 years of fundraising experience from annual to major gifts and individuals to corporations. Jennifer is always up for the challenge of strategy development and execution on the best plan possible to help the donor (hopefully) have an enjoyable and motivating experience.
Alan Zacharias serves as Consultant with Gonser Gerber Tinker Stuhr LLP, a national institutional advancement consulting firm based in Naperville, Illinois. In that capacity, Alan works with a variety of education and other nonprofit organizations in board development, strategic planning, campaign readiness, campaign planning and major and planned gift fundraising. Prior to joining GGTS, Alan served as Vice President for University Advancement and Executive Director of the Foundation at Southeast Missouri State University; Senior Vice President at Concordia University Chicago; Vice President for University Advancement at Concordia University at Irvine and Stewardship Project Coordinator for the LCMS Foundation.
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EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation)
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ALDE EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation):
All in the Family!
|
Attention senior level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Thursday, May 3, 2012, at 10 a.m. Central Time. We will have a discussion on raising support from our team of employees. Hence the title, "It's All in the Family." We will look at the successful employee campaigns conducted by Mosaic across the country, presented by Brenda Solomon, and Lutheran Hour Ministries in Saint Louis, presented by Lori Parker. Harold Melser, chair of the ALDE Senior Level Task Force will be the facilitator for the phone conference. The focus of the call will be the keys to encouraging gifts from employees to their organization.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
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Previous EPOC Sessions
ALDE EPOC:
The Sky ISN'T Falling - Lutheran Demographics in the 21st Century
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|
Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Thursday, March 1, 2012, at 10 a.m. Central Time. The topic is: "The Sky ISN'T Falling - Lutheran Demographics in the 21st Century."
Mark Twain is often quoted as saying that "the reports of my death are greatly exaggerated ... " Contrary to some similar and oddly popular "sky is falling" rhetoric, all things Lutheran will not disappear any time soon. Nonetheless, many, if not all, things Lutheran will be changing and anyone hoping to succeed in the Lutheran universe needs to stay ahead of demographic, fundraising, engagement and theological shifts. Lisa Bonds, Senior Director of Donor Services, Lutheran Community Foundation, will gladly leave shifts in theology to the theologians but will offer commentary and initiate discussion based on her eight years of work at Lutheran World Relief; her current job at the Lutheran Community Foundation; audience and demographic research done by LWR, the LCF and Thrivent and countless hours spent in meetings regarding "church body relationships." Laurie Wilkinson from Thrivent will also join the conversation, as we hope all of you will.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
Save the date for our next EPOC call, on Employee Giving to Annual and Capital Campaigns, scheduled for Thursday, May 3. |
|
Campaign Building in a Rebuilding Economy
|
Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on October 27, 2011. The facilitated discussion will be on, "Campaign Building in a Rebuilding Economy." The talk will begin with a look at a recent campaign that saw success because it was well built. We will then move to more general talk of campaign building and give you the chance to discuss your own successes and trials; how you feel the current climate is affecting campaigns and what you're doing to make things work.
The facilitators for this call will be two experienced professionals who have constructed success in campaign planning - Bob Shafis, Director of Major Gift Planning at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and Harold Melser, Director, Ministry Advancement & President, LHM Foundation with Lutheran Hour Ministries in St. Louis.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
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ALDE EPOC:
Best Practices of Benchmarking
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Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on April 13, 2010. It will be on, "Development Best Practices: An Introduction to Benchmarking." The talk will begin with an overview of just what benchmarking is, and what it means in a development context. Then we will focus on statistical benchmarking, which relies on measuring performance using objective data. Examples of statistical benchmarking will be considered and advice will be offered. After that, the processes used in benchmarking will be covered - that is, the question, "How do I benchmark?," will be answered. Finally, the talk will move to how benchmarking can actually be used to make decisions, as well as how benchmarking may move an organization toward following best practices.
The facilitators for this call will be Mark Hofman, VP for Philanthropic Support at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, and Michelle Janssen, Executive Director of Development, Office of Institutional Advancement at Valparaiso University.
All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10:30 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information. Join us for great ideas and great conversation.
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ALDE EPOC:
Learn Best Practices from the Best
|
Attention senior-level ALDE members: the next EPOC (Experienced Professionals Offering Conversation) conference call will take place on Tuesday, January 12, 2010. This call will be on Best Practices. Jennifer Grandberry and Alan Zacharias will help initiate the discussion, and then will ask the other participants to share what works for them. So, please bring one (or more!) of your best practices - or great ideas you've seen from other organizations - to the discussion and you'll walk away with at least 10-12 additional practices. All EPOC calls are FREE of charge, start at 10:30 a.m. CT and last 60-90 minutes. To RSVP, please contact Phyllis Castens Wiederhoeft at phyllisw@alde.org, and she will provide you with call-in information.
Jennifer Grandberry has a varied background that includes television news, retail sales, consulting and fundraising. In her current role as Director for Marketing, ELCA Foundation and Development Services, she brings 13 years of fundraising experience from annual to major gifts and individuals to corporations. Jennifer is always up for the challenge of strategy development and execution on the best plan possible to help the donor (hopefully) have an enjoyable and motivating experience.
Alan Zacharias serves as Consultant with Gonser Gerber Tinker Stuhr LLP, a national institutional advancement consulting firm based in Naperville, Illinois. In that capacity, Alan works with a variety of education and other nonprofit organizations in board development, strategic planning, campaign readiness, campaign planning and major and planned gift fundraising. Prior to joining GGTS, Alan served as Vice President for University Advancement and Executive Director of the Foundation at Southeast Missouri State University; Senior Vice President at Concordia University Chicago; Vice President for University Advancement at Concordia University at Irvine and Stewardship Project Coordinator for the LCMS Foundation.
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