Practice 34 American Red Cross interview questions covering humanitarian values, crisis response, and mission-driven service.
Question 13 of 34
Why the Interviewer Asks This Question
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Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
First and foremost, the interviewer wants to know that you are an experienced fundraiser. Next, they want to see that you understand the differences between raising funds through corporate donations and foundations versus cultivating partnerships with individual donors.

Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
"During my years as a corporate fundraiser, I have raised over 100 million in partnerships with dozens of separate corporate entities. I have raised an additional 50 million in grant funding from corporate foundations. While my experience in successfully procuring large corporate gifts qualifies me for a corporate fundraising position, I also believe that my skills translate into individual fundraising. Each corporate gift I secure began by making human contact and developing relationships with the people involved on the corporate side. It requires strong interpersonal skills the same way that individual fundraising does. As such, although I consider myself a corporate fundraising professional, I am confident I could also secure large gifts from individuals."

Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
"The majority of my fundraising experience has involved researching individuals with the capacity for making large gifts, developing a relationship with those individuals, and working with them to find the best ways to disperse their generous donations to social service programs. I have been successful in that area, netting over 30 million for programs addressing public health matters. Because I worked closely with the corporate relations officer for five years, I have a strong grasp of the process for making contacts and securing funds through corporate and corporate foundational giving."

Isaiah Swanson is a volunteer recruitment professional who has interviewed, trained, and supervised thousands of volunteers supporting dozens of nonprofit programs helping families in crisis, homebound seniors, and victims of natural disasters.
Focus any discussion of your experience on the area for which you are interviewing, but also show that you understand how to fundraise in other areas. For example, if you have more corporate experience, elaborate on that experience, but also share how that knowledge informs an understanding of fundraising from individuals.

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Written by Isaiah Swanson
34 Questions & Answers • American Red Cross

By Isaiah

By Isaiah