AFP Announces ICON Keynote Sponsorship and Impact Partnership with Microsoft

DATE: January 22, 2024
FOR RELEASE: Immediate
CONTACT:  Natalie Paskoski, Manager of Content, (434) 236 – 5583, Natalie.Paskoski@afpglobal.org

(Arlington, Virginia) The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), the largest association of fundraising professionals in the world, has announced a new partnership with Microsoft. As part of this collaboration, Microsoft will be a Gold Sponsor at AFP ICON in Toronto this April, providing support for the opening keynote presentation. They will also facilitate skill development for fundraisers through valuable education sessions, both at AFP ICON and beyond.

“With Microsoft’s support, AFP is providing members with valuable information on how technology and data can be used to advance their fundraising efforts,” said Mike Geiger, MBA, CPA, president and CEO of AFP. “We’re excited to welcome Microsoft to AFP ICON in 2024 where they will be a Gold Sponsor, presenting several sessions and supporting our opening keynote, Nikole Hannah-Jones, staff writer at The New York Times Magazine and the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of The 1619 Project. We are pleased to work with Microsoft through the Impact Partners Program and look forward to the expertise and guidance they can provide to the fundraising community.”

“We work with more than 325,000 nonprofit organizations, and the one thing they all have in common is the need to raise money,” says Justin Spelhaug, VP and global head of Microsoft’s Tech for Social Impact organization. “Our work with AFP is so important, as we are helping to provide the teams that raise those funds, with the education and best practices needed to effectively target and reach their audiences of donors. We are excited to support AFP’s work in the fundraising space and assist nonprofits in their crucial work.”

The AFP Partners Program provides participating organizations with year-round opportunities to engage the fundraising community and pursue corporate social responsibility through tangential support of the causes for which they work. Through thought leadership, marketing, content, and professional development channels, AFP Partners position themselves as industry leaders committed to advancing philanthropy and ethical fundraising worldwide. Their financial and programmatic support also enables AFP to develop highly competent fundraisers and educate the public on the industry’s ability to fuel societal change in critical arenas like education, healthcare, community development, equity and inclusion, and countless other missions.

For more information about the AFP Partners Program, contact Chris Amos, senior director, business development, at Chris.Amos@afpglobal.org.

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Since 1960, the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) has been the standard-bearer for professionalism in fundraising. The association works to advance effective and ethical philanthropy by providing advocacy, research, education, mentoring, collaboration and technology opportunities for the world’s largest network of professional fundraisers. AFP’s more than 26,000 members in over 180 professional chapters raise over $100 billion annually for a wide variety of charitable organizations and causes across the globe. For more information, go to afpglobal.org.  

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