This session will demonstrate how organizations can use internal and peer benchmarks to make more confident, strategic fundraising decisions—regardless of program size or maturity.

Attendees will learn how benchmarking can move beyond static comparison to become a practical planning tool that helps teams identify opportunities, prioritize effort, and track progress over time. The session will focus on actionable approaches for getting started with benchmarking and translating insights into decisions that strengthen individual giving programs.

The annual giving team from The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center will share how they use benchmarking insights to inform strategy and guide program adjustments across their fundraising operation. Specifically:

• Mid‑level giving efforts were refined using peer benchmarks and internal year‑over‑year comparisons
• To support this strategy, the team built internal dashboards aligned to peer benchmark metrics, enabling ongoing performance monitoring and course correction.
   

The session will also include guidance from Blackbaud experts on benchmarking best practices and common pitfalls to avoid.

While centered on OSU Wexner Medical Center’s experience, the session will also reference how organizations interested in benchmarking can utilize donorCentrics™ Collaborative Benchmarking and upcoming benchmarking functionality within Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge NXT®.