MACT Logo. Upper portion is comedy/drama masks with comedy mask in yellow and drama mask in blue. Lower portion has the acronym "MACT" and below it the description MN Association of Community Theatres.MACT

MACT

Minnesota Association of Community Theatres

Home of Minnesota’s Theatre Community

Give or Get

This article was written by Andy Burns of civicopilot and is reprinted with permission. MACT is starting to use CiviCRM for our mailing list and membership management. civicopilot is one of the firms we are considering to help us implement this new system. Thank you, Andy, for allowing us to reprint this article.

If you’ve been involved in nonprofit board leadership, you’ve likely heard the phrase “Give or Get.” Like it or not, at its core, it’s about one thing: commitment.

And while on Giving Tuesday, it’s common to think up how others could benefit your organization, take a moment to reflect inward as well.

What Exactly Is a Give or Get Program

In the simplest terms, it’s a fundraising policy for board members. Each member is expected to contribute a set amount to the organization each year. But here’s the twist—they don’t necessarily have to pull out their wallet. The policy gives them two options:

  • Give: Donate the specified amount yourself.
  • Get: Raise the amount by soliciting donations or hosting fundraisers.

You might be thinking, “Isn’t a board supposed to govern, not fundraise?”

Yes, that’s true. But here’s the thing: governing well and ensuring financial stability go hand in hand.

A Give or Get program sets standards on expectations and ensures that your board members aren’t just sitting in meetings, or worse missing them—they’re fully invested in your nonprofit’s success, both philosophically and financially.

You essentially put up a reasonable bar. Turns out, organizations with some standards have higher board participation rates too.

  • It creates a culture of giving at the highest level of the organization.
  • It builds trust and confidence among external donors—when they see the board contributing, they feel reassured about their own gifts.
  • You can report 100 percent board member support to potential foundation and grant funders that ask that question.

Here’s the deal:

Your most committed people are running your organization, right? If not, dig deeper into how you recruit for your board. Donor giving is all about trust and confidence.

By having your board leading by example, they’re showing, with their time and money, that you should care about the cause too. And for smaller nonprofits, this kind of program can help get you off the ground.

It’s about sending a clear message to your community and getting results: We’re all in this together.

Best regards,

Andy

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