The Anatomy of Transformational Gifts 

Lessons from a CASE Asia-Pacific Conference Panel on Vision, Trust, and Real Impact

Earlier this month, I had the privilege of facilitating a panel on transformational giving at the 2025 CASE Asia-Pacific Conference in Hong Kong. Together, we explored region-specific case studies, shared key characteristics of transformational gifts, and reflected on insights drawn from both local and global experiences. Our panel brought together senior advancement leaders from large programs at both Universities and Schools across the Asia Pacific, including Alex Furman,  Vice-President (Advancement), Australian National University; Allison Howell Quinton, Senior Director of Advancement, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne; Jane Narich, Executive Director of Advancement, Chinese International School; and Shirley Lo, Director (Development), The University of Hong Kong. 

Our goal was to share insights and lessons that equip and encourage colleagues to pursue transformational gifts for their own institutions. While eight- and nine-figure gifts are well tracked in the US , they remain less frequent—or at least less visible—across the Asia Pacific region. That’s beginning to change. Yet for now, only a relatively small group of practitioners has led or facilitated such gifts, which fuels a natural curiosity among peers. There’s no ‘secret sauce’ to securing transformational gifts, but we have observed consistent patterns.

Here are a few highlights from our panel discussion:

Strategic Alignment is Essential

Transformational gifts only happen when donor intent and institutional strategy fully align.

First and foremost, transformational gifts can only exist when there’s strong alignment between an institution’s strategic priorities and a donor’s intent. Timing also plays a critical role—both the donor and the institution must be ready to act and deliver on an audacious vision. Often a gift falls through not because of a lack of will, but because the timing wasn’t right for one or both parties. 

Big Vision Unlocks Big Gifts

Donors scale their support to the size of your ambition. Think bold and think beyond today.

Donors scale their support to the size of your vision. The larger that vision is, the larger the potential gift will be. Institutions who have secured transformational gifts understand this—they gear their development office around it and pursue big, bold, ‘blue skies’ visions, whenever presented the opportunity. Not every donor will have the capacity to give a principal gift, but for those who can, understanding the magnitude of impact often leads to an extra zero—or two.

Trust Is the Real Currency

Eight-figure gifts are built on relationships grounded in trust, understanding, and time.

Transformational gifts take time, but above all, they require deep trust between donors and institutional leaders. Trust needs to be earned and continually reinforced through every interaction a donor has with an institution. It can never be assumed or taken for granted. It’s important to have a deep understanding of the donors’ motivations, their background, identity, what makes them tick, and their aspirations through their philanthropic support. Demonstrating this knowledge and understanding helps to build trust, which is perhaps the most important—if not one of— the most important components to all transformational gifts.

Collaboration Can Make or Break the Gift

Cross-functional alignment is critical—especially when the stakes and sums are high.

There are many points along the journey at which conversations regarding transformational gifts can break down. Internal misalignment, as people within an institution jockey for position, bureaucracy, or turf wars can derail progress. This is particularly relevant within higher education institutions. The larger the gift, the more people get involved—making alignment, capability, and consensus even more important. As a former colleague often said, “Teamwork makes the dream work.”

Stewardship Must Go to the Next-Level

Donors at this level expect more—and rightly so. Stewardship becomes strategic.

Transformational gifts often require much higher levels of donor stewardship. Donors often stay closely involved, which requires more sophisticated stewardship, governance, and reporting. Increasingly, we are seeing educational institutions invest in additional resourcing to ensure large-scale initiatives succeed. Not only to deliver outcomes, but also to manage reputational risk.

Transformation Means Tangible Impact

A large gift alone doesn’t make it transformational. Real impact does.

Ultimately, it’s not the size of the gift that defines its transformational nature—it’s the impact. Receiving a large sum of money for a nominal project is not a transformational gift. A truly transformational gift leads to measurable outcomes for the institution and often the wider society. They pave the way for innovation and creates lasting, meaningful change for current and future generations.

Let’s Keep the Conversation Going

Please feel free to share your thoughts and ideas by reaching out to me. After all, it’s through this sharing of knowledge and ideas that we all benefit, grow, contribute, and learn.