workplace campaigns

About Federations

The Combined Federal Campaign and numerous other workplace campaigns authorize organizations like ours – federations – to assist in administration. Each federation is itself 501(c)(3) tax exempt and governed by a volunteer board of directors. Federations review applications, provide marketing services, and distribute donated funds.

There are 36 national federations within the CFC, most of them organized around a specific theme, as we are. Applicants are not required to affiliate with a federation to enter the CFC, but most do – for three key reasons.

Admissions support. Federations assist groups in preparing their applications. The requirements for participation in workplace campaigns can often seem complicated, and federations can help groups understand what is required and advise early in the process if corrections to the application are needed. If a group does not qualify initially for a campaign, federations can suggest changes that may result in admission in later years.

Increased visibility. Thematic federations make it far easier for donors to find and support groups they are interested in. Campaign directories are often quite lengthy: In the CFC the directory of approved groups has about 100 pages. Federations are listed at the front of these directories in the table of contents, so donors interested in supporting work of a specific kind will quickly be led to a focused list of relevant organizations.

Fiscal services. Federations substantially reduce the administrative burden of processing donations. In the CFC, for instance, over 250 administrative units conduct the fall fundraising drive. In the year that follows, each unit individually reports pledges and forwards pledged money – potentially creating a mountain of correspondence and thousands of checks for each charity. For federation members, correspondence and donated funds are first sent to the federation, which tracks pledges and payments and makes regular distributions to members.