Performance comparisons in fundraising – the case of fundratios

Fundraisers need to be able to compare results if they are to judge the success of their different programmes and schemes. But any such comparisons are fraught with difficulties. This paper reviews the experience of what is almost certainly the longest running scheme for comparing fundraising performance anywhere in the world. It describes the way it has developed, the challenges it has faced and the ways in which its figures are used, drawing on the views of a wide range of participants. It concludes by highlighting the prospects and possibilities now open to the scheme, and its longer-term significance for nonprofit managers. Copyright © 1999 Henry Stewart Publications