About
I've sat in every seat in the room.
As a nonprofit executive, board president, fundraising chair, trustee, volunteer fundraiser, corporate leader, and consultant, I've experienced this work from nearly every perspective — leading the organization, sitting around the board table, carrying the responsibility for raising the money, and trying to figure out how all the pieces fit together.
Sally Ahlsmith Ruecking
That matters because successful nonprofits don't operate in silos. The board, mission, leadership, programs, staff, volunteers, strategy, and fundraising all have to work together. When they don't, even good organizations struggle.
My own transition from the corporate world began as a volunteer with the American Lung Association, where as an Asthma Walk team captain I raised the most donations for the first Asthma Walk Illinois. That led to a career in the sector — and eventually to building one of the most successful Asthma Walks in the country, resurrecting the Tackle the Tower stair climb, and piloting the organization's first corporate partnership role as Vice President. I later became President and CEO of Beyond OCD in Chicago, where I launched a mental health help-line and built a Scientific Advisory Board and Young Professional Board.
I believe nonprofit success is about much more than fundraising. It starts with clarity. What is your mission? Are your programs truly aligned with it? Does your board understand its role? Is your strategic plan guiding decisions, or sitting on a shelf? And most importantly: are the people who care about your organization moving in the same direction?
Today I work as a consultant and fractional nonprofit professional. I also consult with DonorPerfect and Bloomerang, helping leaders understand how strong CRM systems and data-informed storytelling strengthen relationships with donors.
The story I don't leave out
One amazing organization. A mission that mattered. Now gone.
I was the CEO. We built the Scientific Advisory Board, the help-line, the Young Professionals Board. The organization closed anyway. Afterward, the board chair told me:we should have hired you years ago.
Almost no consultant publishes a failure. I publish this one because the diagnosis — no succession plan, an aging donor base, a board that wouldn't fundraise, a founder who disengaged — is exactly what I now help organizations prevent.
New Book
The Nonprofit Reality Check
The truth about fundraising, leadership, and why good organizations fail.