Fundraising Operations for Nonprofits
Your fundraising
sous chef.
Your team got into this work to make the world a little better, not to clean up duplicate records or spend hours pulling board reports. Good Soup handles the behind-the-scenes systems work so your fundraisers can do what they do best.
Meet Dena
I've been in your shoes.
I spent years as a fundraiser, working my way from development associate to director. I've been the person staring at a CRM that doesn't make sense, manually pulling revenue data from multiple places, and building workarounds because nobody had time to fix the real problem.
Fundraising is about human relationships. The right systems make sure every one of those relationships gets the attention it deserves.
Along the way, I started building solutions for my team. I got deep into systems design, built out reporting, connected platforms that weren't talking to each other, and learned how to turn messy data into something a fundraising team could actually use.
That's what Good Soup is. I believe the best fundraising happens when mission-driven teams have the infrastructure to focus on what actually moves the work forward: real conversations, real relationships, real follow-through. I build the systems that make that possible. Whether you're on Salesforce, Bloomerang, Raiser's Edge, Little Green Light, or something else entirely, I'll meet you where you are.
Where are you right now?
Every organization is in a different place. Start with what sounds most like you.
"We've got a system, but I couldn't tell you what's working and what's quietly costing us time."
An honest read on your CRM and a clear, prioritized plan for what to tackle first.
The Pantry Audit A CRM audit and action plan"We don't really have a system yet. Everything lives in spreadsheets and people's heads."
The whole foundation, built from scratch around the way your team actually raises money.
The Mise en Place A new CRM, built from scratch"We have a CRM. It's just not doing what we need it to do."
A defined project to make it work the way your team fundraises. Scoped, priced, done.
The Recipe A fixed-scope CRM project"The behind-the-scenes work keeps landing on people who shouldn't have to own it."
A standing operations partner, so your fundraisers can get back to fundraising.
The Sous Chef An ongoing operations partner"Everyone knows how to do the work. Almost none of it is written down."
Your processes captured clearly, so knowledge stays put and onboarding takes days, not weeks.
The Cookbook Your processes, documentedNot ready for a whole project?
Sometimes you just need 45 minutes
Counter Service is a single, focused call. Bring one knotty question about your CRM, reporting, data, or a vendor decision, and leave with a clear direction.
She brought clarity and structure to our fundraising operations, training our staff and improving our workflow to build stronger systems that will serve us well beyond a single campaign.
Self-assessment
Wondering if your fundraising operations are actually keeping up?
This quick assessment walks through how your team tracks relationships, manages your pipeline, and handles reporting. You'll see where things are solid and where the gaps are costing you time.
Working Together
What it's actually like
I've been a frontline fundraiser and I know the technical side. That means I understand what your team needs and how to build it so it actually gets used. Here's what working together looks like.
Built by someone who's done the work
I know what your team actually needs from the system because I've sat in their seat. That means I'm not building in a vacuum or asking your fundraisers to explain their jobs to me before I can help.
You'll hear from me every week
A short async update covers what I worked on, what's in progress, and anything I need from you.
Direct communication access
Whether it's Slack, Google Chat, or whatever your team uses. Quick questions get quick answers. You're not waiting for a meeting to get unstuck.
Everything is documented
Every workflow, every change gets captured in recorded walkthroughs and a knowledge base.
Your data stays yours
I take admin access seriously. Your donor data, financial information, and internal strategy are treated as confidential. I don't share, repurpose, or retain anything beyond what's needed to deliver the work.
I leave you better than I found you
If we ever part ways, you get a full transition guide, updated docs, and clean systems.
What this looks like in practice
The same patterns show up in almost every engagement. Here's what before and after actually looks like.
for every relationship
in minutes
| Area | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Contact records | Scattered across spreadsheets with no consistent format. Hard to find, easy to lose. | Set up so the team can find anyone in a few clicks, with relationship context, history, and next steps in one place. |
| Tracking gifts and prospects | Who'd been asked, what was likely to close. All in someone's head or an informal spreadsheet. | A shared system with clear stages and next steps. The whole team can see where things stand without asking around. |
| Grant deadlines | Tracked manually across inboxes and sticky notes. Easy to miss when things get busy. | Deadlines visible in one place, with funder history attached. Much less likely to fall through the cracks. |
| Building from scratch | No system at all. Relationships live in people's heads, and bringing someone new up to speed takes weeks. | A configured system built around how your team actually fundraises, with documentation so knowledge doesn't walk out the door. |
| Board reporting | Someone spent hours pulling numbers before every meeting. Still felt incomplete. | Reports and dashboards that can be run without manual data pulls, so meetings start from the same picture. |
Every engagement is scoped to your specific situation. What changes, and how much, depends on where you're starting from.
Kind Words
What people say about working with Dena
"Dena has an exceptional ability to quickly pick up information about our organization. She brought clarity and structure to our fundraising operations, training our staff and improving our workflow to build stronger systems that will serve us well beyond a single campaign."
"Before working with Dena, I was intimidated by complex CRM systems. She made Salesforce easy to navigate, teaching me how to pull reports, streamline donor touchpoints, and manage grants effectively. Thanks to her guidance, I now feel empowered and more confident as a data-driven fundraiser."
"Her curiosity and interest in learning how to improve our organization were invaluable. She instituted new procedures, software, and standards, guiding the organization toward respecting the importance of information: its gathering, its safety, its timeliness, its organization."
Is Good Soup Right for You?
You might be a good fit if...
- You're a nonprofit with a CRM that's underperforming, or no CRM at all
- Your team has found ways to get by, but the system isn't really helping them
- You don't have a dedicated operations person keeping things running behind the scenes
- You have internal expertise and want a collaborative partner or a second set of eyes
- You want someone who shows up consistently and makes your infrastructure work for your team
What I don't do
I'm the behind-the-scenes operations person for your fundraising team. I make sure your systems, data, and processes run smoothly so the people doing the frontline work can do it well. That means there are a few things that fall outside my scope:
- Write appeals or donor communications
- Run events or campaigns
- Write or report on grants
- General IT, custom coding, or graphic design
- Vendor contract negotiations
Questions I hear a lot
Let's Connect
Find me in the wild
Work with me
Ready to get yoursystems working?
Fill out a short form and I'll take a look. I read every submission personally and get back to you within 48 hours, whether that's to set up a call, ask a question, or let you know honestly if it's not quite the right fit.
If we're not a fit, I'll be straight with you.
Just exploring for now?
That's completely fine. Here are a few ways to stay connected until the timing is right.