We're switching things up for August! Our next "PD Pride" feature is not just one person, but a team! The Phoenix Children's Foundation, based in Phoenix, Arizona, agreed to answer a few of our questions (and a few additional ones!) about their work in prospect development. The team members who contributed their thoughts are listed below. Enjoy!
Marcelle Friendt, Director of Prospect Research and Development
Allie Brown, Sr. Specialist of Prospect Management Strategy
Chris Slauter, St. Specialist of Corporate Prospect Research
Makayla Purdy, Research Coordinator
Melissa Brade, Specialist Program Manager
About the Team:
1. Can you introduce your team—how many people are on it, and what are your primary focus areas in prospect development?
Our five-member Prospect Development team includes a director and four researchers & portfolio managers. We support 31 frontline fundraisers providing research and portfolio management across individual and corporate giving, grant philanthropy, direct response and special events. In addition to pipeline development and new business opportunities, we deliver strategic research to guide cultivation and solicitation for Mid-Level, Major, Principal and Planned Giving programs. As part of the Decision Support team, we collaborate with colleagues in Stewardship, Donor Relations, Project Management, Data Governance, Technology, Marketing, Communications and Analytics to align research with broader campaign strategy. Our collaborative, data-driven approach ensures we adapt to meet evolving fundraising priorities.
2. Where does your team sit within the broader advancement structure at your healthcare institution?
Our team is part of the Foundation’s Operations division, one of four core business units within the foundation, which includes nearly 100 staff members. Within our division, each researcher is strategically aligned with one or more fundraising teams, serving as both a liaison and team lead. One of our closest partnerships is with the Analytics and Reporting team. Together, we collaborate to refine data and bridge the gap between the "science and art" of philanthropy—ensuring our insights are both data-driven and strategically aligned. This structure allows us to work closely with fundraisers and leadership to deliver actionable intelligence that supports fundraising strategy and advances the organization’s broader mission.
Strategic Focus:
3. What are your current priorities when it comes to major gift and grateful patient pipeline development?
A few of our top priorities focus on creating more meaningful donor experiences—through tailored moves management, aligning donor passions with organizational needs, and reinforcing both revenue growth and relationship-building. We’re also expanding our approach to corporate prospecting by identifying UHNW executives who have personal or professional connections to our health system. Innovation is core to our foundation’s culture. This year, we've been exploring AI-driven resources and strategies to spark new activity and insights. At the heart of our strategy is a commitment to meeting donors where they are—connecting their passions with our purpose to inspire meaningful and lasting giving.
4. How do you balance proactive prospecting with reactive research requests from frontline fundraisers?
Proactive pipeline building and new business development are central to our research efforts, especially in support of corporate and grant philanthropy. Our daily workflow focuses on forward-looking research, including portfolio maintenance, due diligence, timely alerts and program development support. In addition, we regularly share project timelines with frontline fundraisers to help prioritize efforts. While we remain responsive to evolving fundraiser needs and reactive requests, we’ve found that proactive efforts often reduce the volume of ad hoc inquiries. This balanced approach enables us to deliver timely insights while strengthening the pipeline for future opportunities.
Collaboration & Culture:
5. How do you partner with gift officers and other teams (like stewardship, analytics, or IT) to enhance fundraising outcomes?
We operate within an integrated team model that strengthens cross-department collaboration and drives fundraising success. As part of one of the Foundation’s four business units, we prioritize shared projects and often serve as “air traffic control” to help inform efforts across teams. Our team acts as a bridge between gift officers and departments like Stewardship, Marketing, Analytics, IT, Project Management and Data Governance – ensuring ideas, insights and best practices flow freely. Ultimately, our goal is to create scalable solutions and collaborate as true partners to empower fundraising teams.
6. What’s one team ritual or habit that keeps you connected and motivated, especially in a hybrid or remote work environment?
Staying connected to our mission is a priority for our team. Our Foundation office is not located on one of our hospital campuses, therefore we try to spend time on campus by sharing meals in the cafeteria, getting to know patient families through mission immersion experiences, connecting with clinical staff at organized staff meetings, and volunteering at Foundation and Hospital events. These shared moments keep our work grounded in purpose and strengthen our connection as a team. Each team member works remotely one day a week on a rotating schedule, so we rely on open communication – regularly checking in and supporting one another in reprioritizing as needed.
Innovation & Tools:
7. Have you introduced any new tools, reports, or workflows that have significantly improved your efficiency or insight this year?
This year, we implemented Xapien to enhance due diligence research, enabling faster and more comprehensive background reviews. We also hold regular strategy sessions with customer success teams to maximize our tools’ potential. Beyond research, we prioritize building systems that drive operational efficiency and support scalable growth, relying heavily on Smartsheet for ticketing and project management. As active members of our internal Decision Support team, we helped develop an in-depth suite of Power BI reports and dashboards that provide critical insights guiding organizational strategy. We’re encouraged by leadership to continually explore innovative concepts – especially technology solutions like AI tools – that build efficiencies into our practice. In terms of process innovation, we introduced a new Moves Management Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to bring greater clarity and consistency to portfolio activity, and we are updating our research playbook to reflect evolving best practices. One of our most impactful shifts has been intentionally pausing to evaluate and optimize existing tools rather than defaulting to current processes. This approach has significantly improved outcomes without increasing our budget. Finally, a shout-out to our research peers for generously sharing best practices that help us continually improve operations.
8. Are there any metrics or dashboards that have been especially helpful in demonstrating the value of prospect research?
In terms of ROI, we focus on post-research outcomes such as meetings secured by gift officers, gifts received and a new metric that highlights high-value research strengthening cultivation and solicitation plans. We are developing a dashboard with our reporting team to track these outcomes by measuring research actions year-over-year, assignments completed by each researcher and proposals added by fundraisers following research. These insights clearly demonstrate how research directly supports pipeline development and fundraising success.
Learning & Growth:
9. How does your team invest in professional development or stay current with industry trends?
Our team actively participates in the APRA community at both the local (SWARO Chapter) and international levels. We engage in benchmarking, peer collaboration and knowledge-sharing with prospect development professionals nationwide. Participating in conferences, online courses and professional forums, helps us stay up to date on the latest trends.
10. What’s one lesson you've learned in healthcare philanthropy that you think translates well to other sectors?
One key lesson we’ve learned in healthcare philanthropy is that success isn’t one-size-fits-all – there’s no perfect formula. Every donor and corporation have a connection, whether personal or emotional, to the cause. Our role is to help uncover or create that connection. This emphasis on empathy and personalized engagement translates well across sectors, as building genuine relationships based on shared values is essential no matter the mission.
Just for Fun:
11. If your team had a mascot or team theme song, what would it be?
Our Foundation nicknamed us the Stealth Operators – our work shows up in nearly every project, yet no one quite knows how we manage to get it all done. If we had a mascot, it would be an owl: observant, wise and quietly effective.
12. What’s the most surprising or unusual prospect you’ve researched (within ethical boundaries, of course!)?
One of the most unusual prospects we researched was a royal family with oil-based wealth from a country we had never previously researched. It required a steep learning curve – including extensive use of Google Translate – to understand cultural nuances, philanthropic traditions and even unique naming conventions. We built a detailed family tree and carefully navigated unknown biases to create an objective, research-based profile. The experience broadened our global perspective and strengthened our approach to culturally sensitive research.
