Bio – Chad Barger, ACFRE, ACNP

Chad Barger [BAR-jur] helps nonprofit professionals fundraise more efficiently and effectively.  He is a top-rated speaker, master trainer and coach.  Chad owns the firm Productive Fundraising which specializes in teaching the latest research-based fundraising tactics and making them approachable for small to mid-sized nonprofit organizations.

Chad earned his ACFRE (Advanced Certified Fund Raising Executive) credential in 2024 and is proud to be only the 117th person in the world to hold that (VERY) hard to achieve credential.  He earned his Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) credential in 2007.  Chad is also an Advanced Certified Nonprofit Professional (ACNP), and therefore also a CNP (Certified Nonprofit Professional).

To many nonprofit professionals he is better as “fundraiserchad,” social media personality and host of the popular Productive Fundraising free monthly webinar series.  On his website, productivefundraising.com, Chad curates top notch fundraising templates and samples designed to fast track the implementation of fundraising best practices.  He’s also a bit of a personal productivity nerd and loves to share tips to help busy professionals work more efficiently and effectively.

Chad has spent his entire career as a fundraiser. He has worked in large shops and small in a variety of sectors (including higher education, social services and the arts). The campaigns that he has worked on have raised in excess of $155 million dollars for the charities that he’s had the honor of serving.

Chad serves as an Adjunct Instructor at both Messiah University and Temple University, where he teaches the 10 Week Online Fundraising Certificate Program. As a Master Trainer for the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), he is a frequent keynote and workshop presenter at nonprofit conferences across the US and Canada. Chad is an active member of AFP, currently serving as chair of its Editorial Advisory Committee at the international level, and he is a past president of the Central Pennsylvania Chapter.

Chad is a regular columnist for Advancing Philanthropy and has also been interviewed for articles in the Chronicle of Philanthropy. In addition to his contributions to these two leading publications in the field, he was the 2018 recipient of the Nonprofit Leadership Excellence Award granted by Central Penn Business Journal.

Chad is a graduate of Slippery Rock University (SRU) where he got his fundraising start as a student phone-a-thon caller.  At SRU, Chad served as an AmeriCorps member leading fellow students on community service trips across the country, which shifted his career focus to the nonprofit sector.  He currently serves on SRU’s Philanthropy and Nonprofit Program Advisory Council.

When he’s not on the road for speaking gigs, Chad keeps all of these balls in the air from his home just outside of Hershey, Pennsylvania (where they make your chocolate bars).  He and the lovely Mrs. Barger are busy raising two teen boys. Chad is a practicing office nomad known to work from the forest, local parks, libraries and coffee shops just as much as his home office.  He’s an adventurous eater, avid hiker, trail maintainer, scout leader, travel buff and arts lover.  And he’ll do just about anything for you in return for a jumbo sized bag of jalapeno kettle cooked potato chips (which aren’t allowed in the Barger house for the sake of his waistline)!

But in the end, he’s just a productivity nerd that wants to help you raise more funding for the cause that you passionately serve!


Short Bio

Chad Barger helps nonprofit professionals fundraise more efficiently and effectively.  He is the chief strategist and owner of the firm Productive Fundraising, which focuses on bringing actionable, research-based fundraising tactics to small and mid-sized non-profits. He is a top-rated conference speaker and webinar presenter as well as a master trainer of nonprofit boards that “don’t want to fundraise.” He teaches fundraising at both Temple University and Messiah University and is one of only 117 fundraisers in the world to achieve the Advanced Certified Fund Raising Executive (ACFRE) credential. Chad is also a strategic advisor and coach to many non-profit fundraisers, executive directors and board members.