In philanthropy, every gift is a story of trust and possibility. The possibility of making an impact in the world, and the trust in where you’ve chosen to make that impact. Yet, we hear time and again how fundraising teams struggle to connect dollars raised with impact delivered. According to the 2023 Report from Independent Sector found that 80% of donors say they want to see proof of impact before continuing their support, and one in four donors stops giving when they don’t have transparency on how their funds are used. Closing this loop is not just a matter of efficiency, it’s mission critical. Institutions that can connect fundraising to fund utilization and impact reporting will strengthen donor confidence, accelerate resource alignment, and secure sustainable growth.
Fundraising doesn’t end at dollars raised. It continues through the life cycle of the gift, from the allocation of dollars to the disbursement, right up to communicating the impact back to the donor. Yet, in our 2025 Global Benchmarking Survey, 40% of institutions reported being stuck at Stage 1 (“Initiated”) in their Fund Management Maturity, with ad hoc, unstructured practices that make it nearly impossible to consistently track outcomes. Without reliable systems, dollars stall, reporting lags, and donor confidence erodes.
The organizations making progress are those investing in centralization, consistent processes, and cross-department collaboration. These institutions move from seeing fund management as an administrative burden to treating it as a strategic function that enhances donor trust.
Nonprofits operate in complex environments where dollars, operations, and expectations converge. A scholarship fund is only as impactful as its ability to support students in time; a cancer research lab is only as powerful as its ability to fuel active research. Our benchmarking study shows that the average score for “Procedures & Processes” is just 1.91 out of 5, indicating most organizations still lack fully documented, organization-wide protocols.
Fund management maturity means creating processes that are not just compliant but aligned with strategic priorities and donor intent. At higher stages of maturity, organizations adopt advanced practices like continuous monitoring and benchmarking against peers. This takes data operations beyond ‘hygiene metrics’ to a direct driver of philanthropic outcomes.
Impact needs to be measurable, but demonstrable as well. Donors give to change lives, and reporting that impact strengthens their commitment. Yet, our survey revealed that the average maturity score for KPIs, Data & Analytics is only 1.71, showing a major gap between fundraising goals and measurable outcomes.
Institutions at the higher end of maturity leverage integrated data, advanced dashboards, and proactive reporting to demonstrate impact in real time. Instead of sending one-off reports, they deliver continuous insight into how generosity is being translated into mission. For donors, this transforms stewardship from a retrospective exercise into a reaffirmation of trust.
The value of philanthropy is at its highest when it closes the loop between fundraising, fund utilization, and impact reporting. Right now, fewer than 5% of organizations have reached Stage 5 (“Optimized”) maturity, but the path forward is clear. By prioritizing fund management as a strategic function, institutions can transform stewardship from a compliance task into a driver of growth, trust, and mission impact.
👉 Don’t let your hard-won dollars lose momentum. Book your strategy conversation with a Fund Management Expert and start unlocking the full potential of your funds.