In philanthropy, success is usually measured in numbers: Dollars raised. Major gifts secured. Revenue growth. Cash collections. When organizations experience transformational fundraising success, those are naturally the numbers people focus on. 

Boards celebrate them. Donors notice them. Colleagues ask what changed.

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But over the past two years, I have come to believe that some of the most important work in nonprofit leadership is the work nobody sees. It is the organizational maturity required to sustain growth long after the excitement of a major gift or breakthrough year fades.

I’m talking about systems. Staffing structures. Operational discipline. Governance work. Donor engagement infrastructure. The analytics. The accountability frameworks. 

At American Friends of Bar-Ilan University (AFBIU), we experienced extraordinary fundraising growth over the past two fiscal years. In FY2025, the organization raised approximately $38.4 million — this after historically raising approximately $9 million annually. In FY2026, fundraising goals were surpassed again within the first six months of our fiscal year. And over the past few years, AFBIU was also fortunate to secure several transformational philanthropic commitments — including some from entirely new donors — reflecting both increased fundraising momentum and growing institutional visibility.

Those outcomes matter. But they are only part of the story.

While fundraising was accelerating, AFBIU was simultaneously undergoing one of the most significant organizational transformations in its history — and I think there is a broader lesson there for the nonprofit sector.

Too often, organizations approach growth as though fundraising and institutional development happen sequentially: first you raise more money, and then later you build infrastructure. In reality, sustainable growth requires both things to happen simultaneously. That is extraordinarily difficult.

It means trying to build systems while actively fundraising. Recruiting talent while onboarding new staff and acculturating existing staff to new ways of doing things. Modernizing operations while donor expectations are increasing. Expanding engagement while implementing accountability frameworks. Managing rapid organizational growth while simultaneously trying to build culture, mission clarity and execution discipline.

In many ways, it feels like building the plane while flying it. And yet, I increasingly believe that organizations that avoid this hard institutional work eventually hit a ceiling — operationally, culturally or strategically. 

Fundraising growth alone is not organizational transformation; at AFBIU, one of our earliest realizations was that strong relationship-based fundraising alone would not be sufficient to support the level of long-term campaign capacity, organizational sophistication and sustainable institutional growth we hoped to achieve. That realization forced us to rethink nearly every aspect of the organization.

We rebuilt major gift portfolios from the ground up. Historically, portfolios had largely been organized geographically, often leaving fundraisers responsible for hundreds of donors and prospects at a time. We moved toward disciplined portfolio management built around donor history, capacity indicators, engagement data and strategic cultivation planning. We implemented key performance indicator (KPI) systems, metrics dashboards and structured reporting frameworks to create organizational visibility and accountability around pipeline movement, donor retention, solicitation activity and fundraising forecasting.

We also modernized operations across finance, HR, IT and cybersecurity by outsourcing these functions to a reputable firm, because we realized that the infrastructure suitable for a smaller organization would not support the complexity of a larger fundraising enterprise or future campaign ambitions.

And because we recognized that frontline fundraising alone could not sustain long-term growth, we expanded donor engagement infrastructure. We invested in communications, branding, webinar programming, digital engagement and donor acquisition systems. We also increased staffing across fundraising, development operations, donor engagement and communications — all while competing in one of the most difficult fundraising talent markets in recent memory.

None of this work was glamorous. Most of it was operationally exhausting, and much of it happened simultaneously; that last point is important because nonprofit organizations often underestimate the sheer management intensity required during periods of rapid organizational transformation.

There is a tendency in our sector to discuss growth primarily in terms of strategy or vision. But growth is also deeply operational. It requires enormous amounts of coordination, process-building, onboarding, decision-making and institutional discipline.

Over the past two years, our organization was simultaneously expanding fundraising activity, onboarding major new staff, modernizing operational infrastructure, restructuring teams, implementing outsourced operational partnerships, rebuilding donor engagement systems, increasing reporting sophistication, expanding governance structures, supporting extensive faculty and leadership engagement visits across the United States and advancing fundraising-readiness planning with Bar-Ilan University leadership and partners. That level of concurrent organizational activity places enormous strain on leadership teams and institutional systems. And yet, I think this is precisely the kind of work the nonprofit sector needs to talk about more honestly.

Too often, infrastructure is still discussed defensively in philanthropy — as though operational investment somehow distracts from mission. I increasingly believe the opposite is true.

Strong infrastructure protects the mission. 

Healthy operations protect the mission.

Analytics protect the mission.

Governance protects the mission.

Staff development protects the mission.

Organizational maturity protects the mission.

Without those things, fundraising growth can become fragile rather than sustainable.

One of the most important lessons from this experience has also been the importance of leadership partnership. None of what AFBIU has accomplished over the past two years would have been possible without the extraordinarily close partnership between AFBIU CEO Jessica Feldan and myself, developed over a decade of working and learning together, supported by deeply engaged AFBIU Board leadership and in constant collaboration with Bar-Ilan University leadership, faculty and staff.

Transformational organizational work requires alignment at every level: strategic, operational, managerial and cultural. Without that alignment, organizations can easily fracture under the pressure of rapid growth and institutional change.

For me personally, this work is rooted in something deeper than organizational strategy.

I believe Israel’s universities have played a uniquely important role in building the State of Israel — perhaps more than universities have in almost any other country in the world. They have driven scientific innovation, medical advancement, technological growth, security research, economic development and societal resilience. I also believe they have an equally essential role in helping to rebuild and strengthen Israel in the years ahead following the immense trauma and disruption of the current wars.

Among those institutions, Bar-Ilan University occupies a particularly important place because of its combination of academic excellence, scientific innovation, Jewish identity, Zionism and deep commitment to societal impact through its “third mission” philosophy.

Because of my love for Israel and belief in BIU’s mission, I view this work as more than simply raising as much money as possible for the university today. I view it as a responsibility to help build an organization capable of sustaining that support long-term — creating an AFBIU that is stronger, more sophisticated, more scalable and more enduring long after my own tenure ends.

That, ultimately, is what this kind of institutional work is about.

Fundraising growth alone is not transformation. Transformation occurs when organizations build the systems, discipline, culture, infrastructure and operational maturity necessary to sustain that growth responsibly over time. That work is harder to measure than campaign totals, but in the long run, it is what determines whether fundraising success becomes temporary momentum or lasting institutional advancement. 

Scott McGrath is the chief development officer of American Friends of Bar-Ilan University, where he leads fundraising, campaign strategy and organizational advancement initiatives in support of Bar-Ilan University’s long-term growth and global impact.