Our February Instructor Spotlight is Witnie Martinez. Witnie is teaching three classes this month:
Donor Development Operations on Thursday, Feb. 1, 12 - 2 p.m. EST
Donor Stewardship on Thursday, Feb. 15, 12 - 2 p.m. EST
Donor Cultivation on Thursday, Feb. 29, 12 - 2 p.m. EST
Witnie Martinez is the Founder & CEO of Absolute Impact Consulting — a social impact advisory firm that helps nonprofits maximize their impact through expert consultation and professional development opportunities led by industry experts. Witnie thrives at the intersection of education, philanthropy and leadership.
For over a decade, her career has focused on expanding and diversifying revenue streams, increasing organizational impact, building systems and driving brand awareness for nonprofits across the country. Martinez has collectively helped organizations generate over $78M in revenue for annual budget needs and campaigns alike.
Martinez was born in Haiti and is a first-generation college graduate. She holds an Ed.S. in Educational Leadership and a M.S. in Psychology, both from Nova Southeastern University; a certificate in Nonprofit Management from Duke University; and a B.A. in Theatre and a B.S in Health Sciences, both from Florida International University. Witnie and her family live in the Charlotte metropolitan area.
We recently chatted with Witnie as part of our Instructor Spotlight Series to learn more about her upcoming classes.
Witnie, you are teaching not one but three classes with us this month: Donor Development Operations, Donor Stewardship and Donor Cultivation. Can you tell us why your focus is on donors?
WM: Revenue generation is the lifeline of any business — including nonprofits. If we can build healthy fundraising systems within our nonprofits to better operationalize our donor relations, keep our current donors (stewardship) and secure new donors (cultivation) — we will all be successful at raising more money.
Without giving away any spoilers, what is one takeaway or advice you would like to give us about working with donors?
WM: Don't underestimate the power of donor stewardship.
Tell us about yourself and Absolute Impact?
WM: I've been in the nonprofit space for over 15 years and have had the pleasure of working with organizations of all sizes, across a variety of roles — particularly development and marketing. The wonderful thing about these two areas is that they touch every facet of any nonprofit.
Absolute Impact helps nonprofit organizations maximize their impact through capacity building strategies, coaching and educational courses. We focus on six (6) different areas: Fundraising, Strategic Planning, Marketing, Operational Alignment, Board Training & Recruitment, and Equity, People, + Culture. We also work directly with funders to support strategic capacity building opportunities and coaching for their grantees.
We love hearing from our instructors what they are currently reading, listening to or watching. Any recommendations?
WM: I am a huge Gordon Ramsay fan, and a home chef, but only watch one or two hours of TV per week. I'm typically watching an episode of Hell's Kitchen or Kitchen Nightmares. Right now, I'm re-reading for the 3rd time Systemology by David Jenyns.