Bucknell University transformed time savings into strategic partnerships and campaign preparation—the real ROI of streamlined stewardship
This is Part 3 of our series on Bucknell University's stewardship transformation. Read Part 1 to see the manual chaos they started with, and Part 2 to discover the solutions that saved 500 hours. Now see how they're using those efficiency gains strategically.
Bucknell's efficiency gains were just the beginning. With 500 hours freed up and reports delivered 2.5 months early, Jessica's team discovered something even more valuable: the ability to build strategic partnerships across campus and prepare for campaign success.
Campus partnerships extend far beyond donor relations
The efficiency gains and improved processes enabled Bucknell to strengthen relationships across their entire advancement operation and campus community.
Enhanced fundraiser collaboration
"We were able to pilot being able to share the reports with fundraisers. So that way they're looking at the reports that their own donors are receiving. They're able to walk their donors through the reports, explain anything that the donor might not understand."
The transparency helps fundraisers understand exactly what their donors receive, while analytics help them understand what resonates most. This partnership approach leads to "happier donors and the generation of more revenue."
Campus-wide content resource
The Mythos Library module created "a repository of impact" that serves multiple teams beyond donor relations. "It's truly a library of information, and it's so searchable. You can type in the fund name, you can type in a professor's name, you can type in a department and you instantly have information at your fingertips."
The marketing communications team now pulls from this database for:
- Website content updates
- Annual publications and magazines
- Institutional marketing materials
- Proposal development support
Administrative partnerships
Bucknell's administration team now uses Mythos Surveys, part of the Mythos Library module, to collect updates from endowed chairs and faculty members. "Typically that information was collected via PDF from each professor. It was kind of a long, complicated process," Jessica notes.
Now leaders can "easily collect the impact that will feed directly into the endowment report" while maintaining the information in a searchable, organized system that serves multiple purposes.
Stronger campus partner relationships
Students and campus partners better understand the stewardship process and can more efficiently respond to requests through the streamlined survey system. The transparency and ease of use improved relationships and response quality across campus.
Strategic preparation for campaign success
As Bucknell prepares for a major campaign launch, Mythos serves as essential infrastructure for scaling their stewardship and donor engagement efforts.
Recognition society enhancement
Bucknell pushed Mythos beyond traditional reporting by surveying their William Bucknell Society—donors with $1 million-plus lifetime giving.
"From that survey, we were not only able to understand better what they want as donors as far as stewardship and preferences when they arrive at an event. But also we are taking that data and turning it into a membership directory and building a really strong community."
Data-driven donor insights
The survey revealed preferences for print versus digital reports, event needs, and personal stewardship styles. Bucknell transformed these insights into a membership directory that strengthens donor community connections while updating their donor database with current preferences.
Campaign readiness through better stewardship
"Better stewarding our donors through recognition societies will build excitement about the campaign," Jessica explains. The immediate impact shows in higher donor satisfaction from quality reports, creating a foundation of engaged donors ready for campaign solicitation.
Expanded communication strategy
The time savings opens doors for strategic initiatives beyond annual reporting:
- Enhanced proposal development using the searchable content library
- Regular newsletters to increase touchpoint frequency
- Expanded stewardship impact sharing, including updates to founding donors of buildings
- More frequent communication between formal reporting cycles
"Maybe that doesn't mean just getting an annual report and hearing from us one time a year," Jessica muses. "I'm already starting to think about ways that we can use this tool in our day-to-day interactions with driving communications forward."
The complete stewardship transformation
When Jessica evaluated the Mythos platform, she saw a solution that addressed every pain point her team faced while opening new possibilities for strategic stewardship.
Comprehensive efficiency gains
"I have found this to be the full package, especially when it comes to major efficiencies. I would say the highlights are the survey functionality to collect impact narratives, the tools that make it so easy to find and manage and assign those reports throughout the entire process, and especially for a small team that's managing the entire process."
Customer service that enables success
The contrast with their previous vendor was striking. Mythos provided:
- Ample training sessions throughout onboarding
- Shared presentation slide decks from training sessions
- Web resources through their user community group
- Responsive support that exceeded expectations
- Realistic timeframes for implementation
"The Mythos team is highly responsive and transparent," Jessica notes. Most issues were resolved within the day, making it easy to bring new team members up to speed and ensuring smooth implementation.
Measurable results that matter
The transformation delivered concrete outcomes:
- 1,520 total reports delivered (1,200 digital, 320 print)
- 500 hours saved in year one
- 50+ hours of follow-up emails eliminated per cycle
- Reports completed 2.5 months ahead of schedule
- Enhanced donor satisfaction with "best reports to date"
- Stronger partnerships across advancement, communications, and campus leadership
- Streamlined onboarding for new team members
- Foundation for campaign readiness and expanded stewardship strategy
Ready to transform your advancement operation?
Jessica's experience demonstrates the evolution happening in donor stewardship—from manual coordination to intelligent automation, from isolated reporting to integrated campus partnerships, from annual communications to strategic donor engagement platforms.
The question isn't whether your team needs better stewardship tools. The question is whether you're ready to deliver reports months early while building the donor relationships that fuel successful campaigns.
Modern philanthropy requires modern approaches to donor communication. Mythos provides the platform that makes personalized, story-driven stewardship possible at scale—whether you're managing 100 reports or 5,000.
Ready to explore how Mythos can streamline your donor reporting process?
See how advancement teams at leading institutions are saving hundreds of hours while creating more engaging donor communications.
