Ayesha Haider Marra is a Senior Consultant for TippingSprung Cause based in New York City. Ayesha brings 10 years of consulting experience with both Fortune 500 companies and nonprofits. She has traveled around the world in her work, including assignments in Asia and Africa on behalf of The World Bank and The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Ayesha has particular skills in applying business and marketing methodologies to advance campaigns. She has worked on an array of $5 to $115 million fundraising campaigns for clients who include The Chapin School, The American Civil Liberties Union, Hunter College, The National Partnership for Women & Families and, most recently, Amnesty International. Ayesha is a graduate of Cornell University. She completed her master’s degree at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, where she specialized in public/private partnerships. Ayesha is a contributing author of a World Bank publication, Race to the Top: Attracting and Enabling Global Sustainable Business. Since 2005, she has also been a member of the Carnegie Young Leaders Program at the Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs.
I started my career in for-profit management consulting at Accenture. Raising the bottom lines of corporations was rewarding, but insufficient. This led me to a career where I could apply my business skills to raising the bottom line for nonprofits.
My favorite causes focus on international economic development, microfinance, and women. Two charities I admire most are Women for Women International and UNICEF.
I worked on a capital campaign for a new performing-arts center that had already been completed, and fundraising started largely after the building had been erected. This resulted in some challenges in communicating the need for funds to the public. Appeals for retroactive debt financing rarely generate the same level of excitement as campaigns that involve donors in the planning phases!
First, when a donor is not properly stewarded after a gift, and second, when someone conducts a solicitation without a specific ask amount.
When my toddler is not chasing me, I love exploring the international flavor of NYC—checking out new restaurants, movies, and roaming neighborhoods. I love the outdoors, and especially enjoy road biking, roller-blading, and hiking. When stuck indoors, I am happiest reading international news and catching up on the classics in literature.