The Team Structure That Scales

Issue #32
3-minute read

Running into people and system problems?

That’s not unusual.

The wrong team structure turns good people into bottlenecks.

The $15M Inflection Point

Below ~$12M, a flat structure works. You stay close to everything. Decisions move fast.

Past ~$15M, that model breaks. I hit this with five direct reports.

My calendar was filled with decision meetings. Strategic work moved to nights and weekends. The structure that got us to $14M could not get us to $20M.

What Actually Changes

It’s not headcount.

It’s adding layers.

Past $15M, you need strategic operators between you and implementers.

People who:

• Make decisions in their domain
• Solve problems without escalation
• Manage work and teams without you

The Three Tiers That Scale

Tier One: You

Vision. CEO partnership. Board relationships. Major donor strategy.

2–3 direct reports.

Tier Two: Strategic Operators

Directors who own a revenue stream or operating function.

They decide. They manage. They build teams.

Directors of Individual Giving, Institutional Giving, and Operations.

Tier Three: Specialist Implementers

They execute inside Tier Two systems.

They report to operators, not you.

Grant writers. Analysts. Coordinators. Researchers.

The Mistake Most Chief Fundraisers Make

When leaders hit $15M, they hire another gift officer.

I didn’t.

At $16M, we invested in support infrastructure.

• Donor experience
• Corporate lead generation
• Donor communications
• Project and pipeline support

Not more people asking for money. More systems so the people we had could be effective.

The result: we grew from $16M to $27M without adding a single frontline fundraiser.

The constraint wasn’t asking capacity. It was everything around it.

The Right Hiring Sequence

$10–15M

Strategic operators who can run a revenue stream or operations.

Plus traditional support roles that make everyone more effective:

Executive assistant. Database coordinator. Prospect researcher.

$16–20M

Now the system can support multiple leaders.

We added principal gifts. We separated corporate and foundation. We added lead generation to strengthen the corporate team.

We embedded a communications manager to support storytelling and brand.

$25M+

This is where we are now.

The Director of Individual Giving and I are asking the next question: Where does growth come from next? The focus will be on finding new donors and impact.

The pattern holds. Build the systems that make fundraisers effective before adding more fundraisers.

The Critical Test

Your structure is ready for $20M when:

• You can disappear for two weeks and revenue continues
• Strategic operators make decisions without permission
• Your calendar is roughly 60% external and 40% internal

If you’re still:

• In 80% internal meetings
• Approving gift officer schedules
• Editing donor emails

Your structure isn’t built for scale.

What to Try This Week

1. Draw your org chart. Count your direct reports.
2. Separate operators from doers.
3. Identify the gaps.
   • Do you need to add a Tier Two?
   • If your operators escalate everything, focus on clearer decision authority
4. Before your next hire, ask if you need more capacity or more leadership.

More capacity adds work. More leadership removes bottlenecks.

Coming Next Week

You’ve built the structure. Now you have to teach people how to decide.

Next Sunday, we’ll cover System Five: Decision Development

Your Turn

How many people report directly to you?

If it’s more than five, which function should become a strategic operator role first?

Reply and tell me. I’m curious what gaps you’re seeing.

Until next week,
​Christine​

P.S. Chief Fundraiser Weekly is written for experienced fundraisers running complex operations. If that’s you, you’re in the right place.

I’m Christine Bork, Chief Development Officer at the American Academy of Pediatrics. I write Chief Fundraiser Weekly to share what I’m learning as I lead a growing team and try to do the work in a way that’s sustainable and thoughtful.