Nationals Philanthropies

Challenge

Nationals Philanthropies, founded in 2013, aimed to use baseball and softball as vehicles for fostering positive character development, academic achievement, and improved health among youth from underserved communities in Washington, D.C. With early support from the Washington Nationals, Major League Baseball, and the District of Columbia, Nationals Philanthropies experienced rapid growth. By 2017, the organization recognized the need to evolve beyond its start-up phase to scale its staff, programs, and impact across D.C., requiring a strategic shift to support its next phase of growth.

Solution

To support this evolution, Nationals Philanthropies partnered with Orr Group to develop and implement a long-term strategic fundraising plan. Orr Group began with a comprehensive assessment of Nationals Philanthropies’ development department by interviewing key stakeholders and major funders, analyzing the donor base, evaluating development systems and databases, and benchmarking the organization against peer institutions.

Following the assessment, Orr Group continued its collaboration by executing strategies outlined in the development road map. This included providing data collection, analysis, and systems support, managing Nationals Philanthropies’ Salesforce database, and producing dashboards to track progress toward annual goals. Orr Group also led the moves management process for the organization’s prospect pipeline, which involved cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship support for four staff portfolios.

Over the course of our partnership, Orr Group instilled a data-driven approach to moves management by creating realistic assessments of ask amounts, probabilities for closing gifts, and expected close dates. Additional support included proposal writing, solicitation, and marketing efforts. Furthermore, Orr Group helped Nationals Philanthropies launch a board development campaign by identifying and recruiting future board prospects, refining governance documents, assisting with board leadership transitions, and managing the overall recruitment process.

Impact

Orr Group’s efforts resulted in a high-level development road map, charting actionable steps toward increased and diversified philanthropic revenue. Key stakeholders aligned around Nationals Philanthropies’ core initiatives, and donor data collection and analytics were significantly transformed.

With ongoing support from Orr Group, Nationals Philanthropies developed a robust, data-driven fundraising operation, achieving greater alignment and efficiency within its development department. The organization’s moves management process became more strategic, enhancing its ability to secure major gifts. Additionally, the board development campaign strengthened the pipeline of future board leadership, positioning Nationals Philanthropies for sustained growth and long-term success.