Paul Yeghiayan, CFRE
Senior Consultant
If you lead a nonprofit organization, chances are you’ve heard this question more than once. Maybe it came from a board member during a strategic planning retreat. Maybe it surfaced when a long-time donor asked how to include your organization in their estate plan, and no one was quite sure what to say. Or maybe it’s the quieter version of the question, the one that lives in the back of your mind: how do we ensure this mission endures?
You’re not alone in asking it. Most nonprofit leaders understand that endowment can be a powerful tool for long-term financial resilience. But when you’re already stretched thin running programs, managing staff, and raising annual fund dollars, figuring out how to launch or grow an endowment can feel like one more thing on an already overwhelming list.
It’s not that the will isn’t there. It’s that the path forward isn’t always clear.
A Practical Approach to Endowment Building
The Endowment Building Institute, or EBI, was developed by Benefactor Group to help nonprofit organizations find that path.
It’s a six-session program delivered either in-person or virtually over a flexible timeframe, typically six months. What makes EBI different from a conference session or a webinar series is that it’s built around doing the work, not just learning about it. Based on model practices for experiential learning, participants draft a case for endowment support, review their gift acceptance policies, learn the basics of planned giving, identify prospective donors, and develop marketing strategies. Each session builds on the last, and by the end of the program, you haven’t just gained knowledge. You’ve built the essential infrastructure to act on it.
EBI covers six essential areas:
The Fundamentals of Endowment and the Case for Support
Gift Types and the Policies Needed to Accept Them
Donor Identification, Cultivation, and Solicitation
Stewardship, Legacy Societies, and the Role of Professional Advisors
Marketing your Endowment
Measuring Success
Each session blends expert-led presentations with hands-on working time, so your team leaves with something concrete to show for it.
Who Benefits Most
EBI welcomes individual leaders and organizational teams alike. Organizations that bring a cross-functional team of three or more, including board members, often find that the shared experience turns endowment building into an organizational priority rather than one person’s side project. The program specifically addresses the board’s role in endowment strategy, which is one of the most common barriers nonprofit leaders face.
The cohort itself creates a rich learning community. Many participants tell us that the peer relationships they form during the program become a lasting professional network they continue to lean on well after the final session. Sessions are led by experienced Benefactor Group consultants with deep expertise in planned giving and endowment strategy. Cohorts may be convened by Benefactor Group or by a sponsoring partner such as a community foundation, association, hub-and-spoke model organizations, or funder collaborative, among others. Sessions are typically delivered one per month, giving participants time to reflect, complete assignments, and involve colleagues between meetings.
Decades of Expertise in Guiding Endowment Strategy and Growth
For more than 25 years, Benefactor Group has helped nonprofits build, grow, and sustain endowments with clarity and confidence. Our team has focused deeply on the strategies that turn long-term vision into lasting financial strength.
Plus, we literally wrote the book on it. Founder Laura MacDonald, CFRE has written the leading book on endowment building: The Endowment Handbook. Our perspective and counsel are grounded in years of guiding organizations through the complexities of endowment fundraising, from early planning to implementation.
The Endowment Building Institute is designed to deliver significant depth at a price point within reach for organizations of different sizes. Every participating organization receives digital tools, a comprehensive curriculum notebook, and a signed copy of The Endowment Handbook.
By the close of the sixth session, participants have a case for endowment support tailored to their mission, stronger policies, a donor engagement strategy, a marketing plan, and concrete metrics for tracking progress. More importantly, they have the confidence and alignment to move forward.
If this sounds like where your organization is right now, we’d love to talk about whether EBI is a good fit. Let’s start the conversation.