GOBEL - Comprehensive Analysis Report

Summary

GOBEL stands as the world's leading consulting and technology firm exclusively dedicated to healthcare philanthropy. Founded in 2011 by Chad Gobel, the company's core mission revolves around enhancing philanthropic support for hospitals, hospices, and academic medical centers globally. GOBEL operates on the principle that gratitude drives the decision to give, influencing the magnitude of donations, and views philanthropy as a transformational experience interconnected with compassionate patient care. The firm aims to strengthen healthcare organizations and their communities by helping them recognize and cultivate this gratitude, ultimately increasing philanthropic revenue. With a specialization in leveraging data, analytics, and proprietary AI technology like Gratitude to Give™ (G2G), GOBEL significantly impacts healthcare philanthropy by identifying and engaging potential donors more effectively than traditional methods. Having served over 1,000 healthcare organizations, GOBEL is a key player in ensuring the sustainability and growth of healthcare institutions through strategic fundraising.

1. Strategic Focus & Objectives

Core Objectives

GOBEL's main business objectives are centered on elevating healthcare philanthropy to new heights. These include advising clients on establishing and enhancing grateful patient programs, providing advanced major gifts training, fostering clinician engagement in fundraising efforts, developing robust fundraising strategies, and offering comprehensive campaign planning and management services. The firm also aims to provide deep primary and secondary research, including peer analysis and benchmarking, to inform and optimize client philanthropic initiatives. A significant objective is to educate and train physicians, nurses, administrators, and C-suite executives to cultivate a pervasive "culture of gratitude" within healthcare institutions, directly linking patient care outcomes to philanthropic support.

Specialization Areas

GOBEL specializes in providing comprehensive consulting and data services tailored specifically for healthcare philanthropy. Its unique value proposition lies in its exclusive focus on the healthcare sector and its pioneering integration of advanced data science and artificial intelligence into fundraising. Key areas of expertise include:

Grateful Patient Program Development: Design and implementation of programs that effectively convert patient gratitude into philanthropic support.

Major Gifts Optimization: Strategies and training to identify, cultivate, and solicit substantial donations.

Clinician Engagement: Programs to involve medical professionals in the philanthropic process, leveraging their unique relationships with grateful patients.

Proprietary Predictive Analytics: Utilization of the Gratitude to Give™ (G2G) technology to identify high-potential donors based on predictive gratitude scores.

Customized Training and Education: Specialized training for healthcare staff to embrace and facilitate philanthropy.

Target Markets

GOBEL primarily targets healthcare organizations globally, including:

Hospitals

Hospices

Academic Medical Centers

The company positions itself as an essential partner for these institutions, offering a specialized approach to philanthropy that acknowledges the unique dynamics of the healthcare sector, distinct from other non-profit fundraising.

2. Financial Overview

Funding History

GOBEL has historically raised $150,000 in funding through an equity investment round. The company has reported an annual revenue of $4.6 million, demonstrating its financial growth and stability in the healthcare philanthropy market. These funds have been utilized to support the development of its proprietary technology, expand its consulting services, and grow its team of experts, contributing to its leadership position in the industry.

3. Product Pipeline

Key Products/Services

1. Gratitude to Give™ (G2G) Predictive Modeling Technology

Product Description: G2G is an AI and machine learning-driven platform designed to identify potential donors by analyzing both affinity and experiential data, generating "gratitude scores." This technology goes beyond traditional wealth screening, focusing on the patient's likelihood to give based on their experience.

Development Stage: Fully developed and continually updated with real-time data. GOBEL holds multiple U.S. patents related to its G2G technology, covering the generation of gratitude scores and the use of machine learning models to identify gratitude.

Target Market/Condition: Healthcare organizations seeking to optimize donor identification and engagement, particularly for grateful patients.

Expected Timeline: Currently operational and continuously refined to integrate new data and improve predictive accuracy.

Key Features and Benefits:

Identifies prospects four to five times more accurately than traditional wealth screening.

Predicts and segments patient populations for various gift types (annual, planned, major).

Optimizes return on investment for fundraising efforts.

Leverages customized G2G predictive models tailored to client data.

2. Comprehensive Consulting Services

Product Description: A suite of high-touch consulting services covering all aspects of healthcare philanthropy, including strategic planning, grateful patient program development, major gifts training, campaign management, clinician engagement, and board development.

Development Stage: Ongoing service delivery with continuous refinement of methodologies and best practices.

Target Market/Condition: Hospitals, hospices, and academic medical centers seeking expert guidance to build, grow, or restructure their philanthropy programs.

Expected Timeline: Continuous engagement based on client needs and project scope.

Key Features and Benefits:

Access to the largest and most experienced team of healthcare philanthropy consultants.

Customized strategies and solutions based on client-specific needs and market analysis.

Training and education programs for all levels of staff, fostering a philanthropic culture.

Integration with GOBEL's data and analytics to inform strategic decisions.

4. Technology & Innovation

Technology Stack

GOBEL's technological core is built around its proprietary Gratitude to Give™ (G2G) predictive modeling technology. This platform leverages:

Core Platforms and Technologies: Advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) algorithms are central to the G2G model. The platform processes vast amounts of affinity and experiential data, rather than solely relying on traditional wealth metrics.

Proprietary Developments: The G2G methodology for generating "gratitude scores" and utilizing these scores, along with other data, to identify potential donors is a patented advancement. These patents specifically cover the unique approach to identifying gratitude and its predictive use in fundraising.

Scientific Methodologies: The system employs sophisticated statistical modeling and data analytics techniques to identify patterns and predict donor behavior based on patient experiences and demographic factors.

Technical Capabilities: The platform is capable of analyzing and segmenting large patient populations, predicting the likelihood of various gift types (annual, planned, and major gifts), and continuously updating its models with real-time data to maintain accuracy and relevance. This capability allows healthcare clients to significantly enhance their prospecting and fundraising efficiency.

5. Leadership & Management

Executive Team

Chad Gobel, CEO & Founder:

Professional Background: A 25-year veteran in institutional advancement, Chad founded GOBEL in 2011. He has prior experience working with over 100 healthcare organizations and played leading roles in billion-dollar medical center campaigns at institutions like Cleveland Clinic and University of Rochester Medical Center.

Notable Achievements: Authored "How to Become a Top Producer in Healthcare Philanthropy." Holds an MBA from Ohio State University and a BA from Towson University.

Key Contributions: Visionary leader, architect of GOBEL's specialized focus on healthcare philanthropy, and driving force behind its growth and innovative technology.

Christopher Clinton Conway, President, GOBEL International:

Professional Background: Appointed in July 2022, Christopher leads GOBEL's international expansion from Dublin, Ireland. He possesses extensive experience in international philanthropy, having held leadership roles at Philanthropic Counsel LLC, Dr. Susan Love Foundation for Breast Cancer Research, and Doheny Eye Institute.

Key Contributions: Spearheads the company's global outreach and development.

Desirae Davis, EVP & Chief Engagement Officer:

Key Contributions: Instrumental in developing and executing client engagement strategies.

Michael Morsberger, Senior Vice President and Leader for Academic Medicine practice:

Professional Background: Joined in April 2023, Michael brings over 30 years of experience in healthcare philanthropy from prominent institutions like Johns Hopkins Medicine, Duke Medicine, and University of Virginia Health.

Key Contributions: Responsible for expanding GOBEL's client base within academic medical centers.

Adrian Stover, Associate Vice President, Philanthropy Services.

Carly Thalmann, Vice President, Annual Giving & Digital Programs.

Denise Pope, CFRE, Vice President:

Professional Background: Over 20 years in C-suite healthcare philanthropy roles.

Key Contributions: Specializes in elevating annual, major, capital, and endowment building programs.

Jason Manning, Vice President.

Jocelyn Reilly, Senior Vice President, Services.

Lauren Kline, Vice President of Business Development.

Robyn Halbert, Associate Vice President.

Mandy Heath, Vice President, Philanthropy Services:

Professional Background: Previously Senior Director of Prospect Development & Data Management at FIU Foundation, Inc.

Nancy Bernstein, Vice President:

Professional Background: Over 33 years of experience as a philanthropy professional.

Glen Jack, Vice President, Programs:

Professional Background: Over 30 years of experience in nonprofit development, strategic planning, and fundraising.

Recent Leadership Changes

April 2023: Michael Morsberger joined GOBEL as Senior Vice President and Leader for its Academic Medicine practice, aimed at expanding services to academic medical centers.

July 2022: Christopher Clinton Conway was appointed President of GOBEL International from Dublin, Ireland, a strategic move to spearhead the company's global expansion initiatives.

July 2014: William C. McGinly, former president and CEO of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP), joined GOBEL as president of Gobel Education. His role focused on enhancing educational programs for clinicians, hospital employees, and board members to integrate gratitude into the philanthropic process.

6. Talent and Growth Indicators

Hiring Trends and Workforce

GOBEL has demonstrated significant growth in its workforce, expanding to over 65 employees by 2022 and surpassing 50 healthcare professionals by 2024. The firm emphasizes building a team of specialists, boasting over 750 years of collective experience specifically in healthcare philanthropy. This indicates a strategic focus on recruiting highly experienced professionals across consulting, data science, and technology roles.

Company Size and Expansion Metrics: The company's expansion is evidenced by its increasing employee count and its recognition as an Inc. 5000 honoree in 2023, ranking No. 4568 with a remarkable three-year growth rate of 61%.

Employee Sentiment and Culture Insights: GOBEL fosters a strong employee culture that empowers team members and offers flexibility, aiming to align professional development with personal goals. This approach contributes to retaining top talent in a specialized and competitive field.

7. Social Media Presence and Engagement

Digital Footprint

GOBEL maintains a robust and active digital footprint across various professional and social media platforms to engage with its audience and disseminate thought leadership.

Social Media Activity Across Platforms: Active presence on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, where they share company news, industry insights, and promote their expertise.

Brand Messaging and Positioning: Consistently positions itself as the leading expert in healthcare philanthropy, emphasizing the integration of data, technology, and specialized consulting.

Community Engagement Strategies: Utilizes social media to foster discussions around healthcare fundraising challenges and innovative solutions.

Thought Leadership Initiatives: Their YouTube channel features expert insights on topics like clinician engagement, grateful patient stories, and the pivotal role of board members in philanthropy. The company blog is another vital platform, offering articles on transformational gifts, data-driven goal setting, and emerging trends in healthcare philanthropy.

8. Recognition and Awards

Industry Recognition

Inc. 5000 Honoree (2023): GOBEL was recognized as an Inc. 5000 honoree, ranking No. 4568 with a noted 3-year growth of 61%. This accolade highlights the company's significant business expansion and impact within its sector.

Patents: The company has been awarded multiple U.S. patents related to its Gratitude to Give™ (G2G) technology, affirming its innovative contributions to predictive modeling for donor identification.

9. Competitive Analysis

Major Competitors

GOBEL operates within a dynamic and competitive landscape that includes both full-service fundraising consulting firms and specialized providers serving the healthcare sector.

PHC: A consulting firm likely offering a range of fundraising services to various non-profits, potentially including healthcare.

HealthRede: Focuses on healthcare-specific solutions, potentially in fundraising or related operational areas.

e4-services: Could be involved in healthcare IT or consulting, crossing over into fundraising technology or services.

Accordant: A firm specializing in healthcare philanthropy, likely offering consulting and strategic planning.

Marts & Lundy: A prominent, long-standing fundraising consulting firm with experience across the non-profit spectrum, including healthcare. They offer capital campaign counsel, leadership development, and strategic planning.

CCS Fundraising: A global fundraising consulting firm known for its comprehensive capital campaign management, strategic planning, and leadership giving programs. They serve a wide array of non-profits, including healthcare.

Graham-Pelton: An international fundraising and non-profit management consulting firm providing services such as campaign management, strategic planning, and leadership consulting, with a notable presence in the healthcare sector.

AmPhil: Focuses on comprehensive fundraising solutions and strategic advising for non-profits, often emphasizing donor-centric approaches.

Ruotolo Associates: Offers fundraising consulting, capital campaign counsel, and strategic planning services to various non-profit organizations, including healthcare.

Campbell & Company: A national consulting firm providing fundraising, executive search, and strategic information services to non-profits, with a significant practice in healthcare.

GOBEL differentiates itself from these competitors by its exclusive dedication to healthcare philanthropy and its market leadership in integrating advanced AI and machine learning technologies, specifically its patented Gratitude to Give™ (G2G) platform. While many competitors offer consulting, GOBEL's proprietary technology provides a distinct advantage in predictive donor identification, distinguishing its approach to traditional fundraising methodologies.

10. Market Analysis

Market Overview

The healthcare philanthropy market is experiencing sustained growth, indicating its increasing importance for healthcare organizations.

Total Addressable Market Size: The total fundraising dollars for healthcare institutions demonstrated an average increase of 2.5% in FY2021, reflecting a healthy and growing market.

Growth Potential: Major gifts are projected to continue increasing in 2024, signaling significant growth potential within the top donor segment. Philanthropy is increasingly viewed as a critical component for the sustainability and strategic growth of healthcare