I’ve been wanting to do this for a while, and the time has finally come. One of my longest-standing allies in the sector, Grant Monck, sat down with me to talk about his incredibly diverse and successful career in the nonprofit world.
Thank you, Grant, for participating in 7 Questions for a Changemaker.
Who are you, and what do you actually do?
I have been a fundraiser, lawyer, and leadership volunteer for over thirty years! Where has the time gone? I established my own consulting firm in 2015 and have been working with charities from Hong Kong to Halifax for eleven years. I am also Senior Counsel with PGgrowth. My main work involves assisting staff and volunteers with strategies to raise more revenue through major and planned gifts. I also help review programs and build plans to move an organization’s mission forward. Working with staff and volunteer teams has been the key to my success with charities.
What pulled you into the nonprofit world?
My parents and grandparents were lifelong volunteers. I have been on volunteer boards since I was 13. I wanted to find a way to use my legal and volunteer skills to assist not-for-profit organizations after working as a lawyer in Toronto and Vancouver. In the mid-1990s, planned giving was an emerging field in Canada, and I had the opportunity to develop a planned giving program for a national organization based in Vancouver. My career grew from there.
Tell me about a moment that made you think, “Yes. This is why I do this.”
I worked for an international school on Vancouver Island for eight years. The spouse of one donor couple asked if I would assist in spreading his partner’s ashes on a small island where they had supported student-based marine programs. We undertook a respectful ceremony with the eco-guardian for the area in a small boat on a beautiful sunny day. Lots of laughs and tears. I still think about that couple, our time together, and their support for the school on a regular basis.
What’s something about working in nonprofits most people don’t understand?
I am struck by the number of business leaders who, after volunteering with a charity, comment on how efficient the charity is and how they accomplish incredible things with such scarce human and financial resources. This is a fact that the sector needs to communicate more often and more effectively to business, government, and the media in Canada.
What’s one thing you wish more fundraisers or hiring managers knew?
A key focus of every organization needs to be building long-term donor relationships. If you see donors as investors in your organization, everything else should follow to financially support your mission over time. You also need to recruit a team of individuals who understand and support the culture of each organization and who have the skills to meet short-term goals as well as build long-term relationships and secure future investments to propel an organization’s mission forward.
What’s a small, underrated habit that’s helped your career?
I try to adhere to my Irish grandmother’s observation that we are born with two ears and one mouth for a reason. Listening more and pitching less is a key ingredient to successful donor relationships and fundraising.
Finish this sentence: “The future of fundraising is…” people who give to people who are passionate about what they do for a charitable organization. This applies to both staff and volunteers.