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FY 2019 ANNUAL FUND & PRODUCT COUNCIL COMPETITIONS FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is the fiscal year for the ULI Annual Fund?
Starting in 2017 The Annual Fund began operating on a fiscal year from July 1st, 2017 to June 30th, 2018. The Council Competitions operate on the same fiscal year. The FY 2018 competitions will be completed on June 30th, 2018. The new FY 2019 Annual Fund Product Council Competitions will begin on July 1st, 2018 and conclude on June 30th, 2019.
Where do I receive my recognition for being a donor to the Annual Fund at the 2018 Fall meeting?
The registration department will have your donor recognition as well as any recognition regarding 100% or Top Tier participation. If you are a Key Leader, the Key Leader check-in will also have all your donor recognition.
How Many Product Councils have achieved 100% participation or Top Ten status in FY 2018?
The FY 2018 Product Council Competitions closed with 26 Product Councils having reached 100% participation. 4 Product Councils reached Top Ten status in the FY 2018 competition.
If a member has a question regarding his or her recent donation to the ULI Annual Fund, who do I direct them to?
Thomas Mitchell, Director of the Annual Fund would be the contact to reach out to. Thomas will be onsite at the Fall meeting from Tuesday, October 9th to Thursday, October 11th and will be available in the member engagement area. After the Fall meeting, he can be reached at 860-219-9904 for any follow-up questions you may have.
How do we introduce new members to the product council competitions?
When drafting a member, who has not yet served on a ULI Product Council, we encourage you to include language about supporting ULI’s mission by contributing to the Annual Fund in any new member welcome materials. Councils achieving 100% participation for 5+ years have historically focused on participation vs amount, emphasizing that the expectation is for every member to contribute to the Annual Fund during each year of their term.
We have several ULI Trustees and Foundation Governors on our Council, do their ULI Foundation commitments or “active pledges” count toward our participation totals for the Council Competition?
Yes. ULI Trustees and Foundation Governors with commitments/active pledges receive participation credit for the Council Competition during the term in which they serve as Trustees and/or are making scheduled annual payments on a Governor’s pledge.
The note “included in participation total” will be added to your Council’s giving roster to reflect the member’s commitment or active pledge. When a Foundation Governor has fulfilled their pledge (in most cases five years) or a Trustee term ends (in most cases four years) s/he will need to contribute to the Annual Fund to receive participation credit for the Council Competition.
Who selects the Council Ambassador and what will the member be responsible for in this role?
The Council Ambassador is appointed/selected by the Council Chair. The Council Ambassador is responsible for leading the effort to achieve Council participation goals for the Annual Fund Campaign. The Ambassador’s responsibilities include:
- Providing updates to current and prospective Annual Fund donors on the impact of their
- Share the case for Annual Fund support, make the ask, distribute Donor Forms/online giving link on or before
Council Day
- Provide 3‐4 email updates to fellow Council members throughout the Annual Fund Campaign (July – June) with the latest participation and giving to
We have a handful of members on our Council who have not responded to repeated requests from Council Leadership, may I send in a gift on their behalf to ensure my Council reaches 100% participation?
No. To reach 100% Council participation each member of your Council must personally contribute to the Annual Fund. Please remember there is no minimum contribution to be recognized as a donor, any contribution received from an active member on or before June 30th in the fiscal year will be counted towards your Council’s participation totals.
Ambassador Selection ‐ Ideas, Best Practices
Many Council Chairs have achieved their participation goal by appointing a current, prospective or former Council Leadership Team member to serve as Ambassador. This strategy helps to reinforce that supporting the Annual Fund is a part of your Council’s culture and a priority for all members of the leadership team.
Alternatively, Council Chairs select a member of their Council who also serves as a member of the ULI Foundation Board, is a Foundation Governor, leadership Annual Fund donor and/or actively involved in a ULI program supported by contributions to the Annual Fund (ex ‐ UrbanPlan, Advisory Services Panels). This strategy can help to personalize the case for support as well as an inside baseball perspective on the impact of contributions to the Foundation.
While both strategies have proven effective, it is the Chair’s decision to determine which strategy will be most effective for their Council. To ensure each Council Chair has the flexibility to determine who could best lead the effort as Ambassador each year ‐ term length is set by and left to the discretion of the current Council Chair.
Should you have any questions about the Council Ambassador Position or the FY 2018 Annual Fund Campaign ‐ please contact Thomas Mitchell. Also, please feel free to reach out to Thomas for Council Giving Updates, 3 Year Council Participation and Giving history as well as samples appeals for support.