From Scrambling to Scaling:

Why Every Nonprofit Needs a Strategic Roadmap

Services

From Reactive to Proactive: Planning Creates Stability

Many nonprofit leaders operate in crisis mode, focused on putting out fires rather than building long-term momentum. A Fund Development or Strategic Business Plan shifts this dynamic by helping organizations:

• Identify top-performing fundraising strategies.

• Allocate staff time and budget resources wisely.

• Forecast income and expenses with greater accuracy.

• Set realistic, mission-aligned goals.

One Central Coast youth services organization I worked with had no clear donor segmentation or annual fundraising calendar. After implementing a Fund Development Plan, they increased annual donations by 40%—without adding staff.

Data-Driven Insights Unlock Growth

You can’t improve what you don’t measure. My process begins with a deep dive into your organization’s CRM, donor giving trends, social media engagement, volunteer leadership structure, and current staffing.

This research lays the groundwork for informed decision-making. For example, one local arts nonprofit believed their major donors were aging out, but data revealed strong untapped potential in mid-level donors and peer-to-peer campaigns.

With a restructured fundraising strategy, they saw a 3:1 return on investment in under a year.

Board and Staff Alignment Fuels Execution

Even the best plan can falter if leadership isn’t aligned. Through my consulting, I help organizations engage their board and staff in the planning process—building ownership, setting expectations, and clarifying roles.

When leadership is on the same page, implementation becomes smoother. One environmental nonprofit I supported in Santa Cruz had unclear board responsibilities around fundraising.

A customized leadership structure and action plan empowered the board to take fundraising seriously, increasing board contributions by 60%.

About

Building Stronger Nonprofits, One Plan at a Time Across Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties, nonprofits are working tirelessly to feed families, educate youth, protect the environment, and build stronger communities.

Yet, many are doing so while juggling limited resources, outdated systems, and unclear fundraising strategies. The result? Burnout, inefficiency, and untapped potential. That’s where a well-crafted Fund Development or Strategic Business Plan becomes more than a luxury—it becomes a game-changer.

As the sole proprietor of Distinguished Development Consulting, I’ve worked with nonprofits throughout the region to bring clarity, structure, and sustainability to their missions. And I’ve seen firsthand the power of a plan.

Reviews

Gabriela Lopez Chavez

Kerry has been a phenomenal support to Loaves, Fishes & Computers and me! She developed a comprehensive fundraising plan with SWOT, projections, events, and sponsorship opportunities and has helped us improve our donor stewardship process. Kerry has provided our staff and board with tangible, realistic fundraising and donor development options. She’s patient, challenges us to think/act differently, and is overall supportive. Her decades of work in development and with national non-profit organizations give her a well-rounded understanding of what donors of all sizes and giving capabilities need to support an organization. Kerry is fantastic at helping organizations and the individuals who work there identify their strengths and areas for growth, which has played a major role at LFC. I have appreciated not only her knowledge-sharing but also her genuine care for the people she works with. I wholeheartedly recommend Kerry and Distinguished Development Consulting.

Stephen Lieberman

Kerry is absolutely wonderful! We hired her as a consultant, through her company Distinguished Development Consulting, to do a deep dive with our nonprofit and create a new strategic fundraising and development plan. Her work also involved doing outreach on the organization’s behalf and setting us up to hire a Director of Development. This was a major step for our organization. Kerry’s flexible approach, dedication, and depth of experience made the process a resounding success in a way that very few people could. She worked extensively with our executive director, staff, and board to objectively examine our resources, staffing procedures, program objectives, and analyze our past fundraising activities. Together, we figured out where the organization’s priorities and the community’s needs could best align to generate growth and funding opportunities at the local, state, and federal levels. She produced a performance report for us illustrating the pros and cons of our last couple years of our efforts, as well as detailed strategic and operational fundraising plans. She didn’t just tell us what to do and not do, she worked with our staff and board to show us how to do it! With Kerry’s lead, we developed organizational milestones and benchmarks for cultivating donors and pursuing sponsorships in a more systematic and strategic way. Everyone in the organization took on the development responsibilities that best harmonized with their roles and skills. We strengthened our existing fundraising processes, and established new short-term (3-6 months) and long-term strategies to support LFC’s operations and growth into strategic new program areas. In addition to her coaching and in-person work with our board and staff, Kerry also furnished comprehensive written reports about our organizational processes, the best ways for our organization to leverage new fundraising opportunities, and a donor cultivation guide with tailored methods for messaging and connecting with different kinds of individuals and businesses, all centered around LFC’s mission of using technology to promote social and economic equity! If you’re ever looking for someone to take your organization’s fundraising and development to the next level, look no further than Kerry Harvey. We are remarkably better off for having worked with her, and she made the whole process as enjoyable and engaging as it was educational. We would hire her again in a heartbeat. Thank you, Kerry! Steve Lieberman President, LFC