Meet Jean-Sébastien Bélanger, Director of Philanthropic Development

Can you introduce yourself and tell us about your experiences in the philanthropic field?

My name is Jean-Sébastien Bélanger. I worked at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts for years, starting right out of university. I had all kinds of jobs and responsibilities there. I eventually ended up in the philanthropic development department quite by chance.

Among other things, I worked on major and annual campaigns, as well as philanthropic telemarketing. Our team built the museum’s entire membership program: the philanthropic circles, the Young Philanthropists’ Circle, the Angel Circle, and we updated the President’s Circle. I also worked on project-specific campaigns, major donations, and planned giving. I was responsible for converting visitors into subscribers and subscribers into donors, for ticketing, all sorts of things. I was with the Foundation until I left in 2021.

What’s the best approach to philanthropy?

There is no one model, there are many. I can’t answer empirically for all organizations. It varies a lot from one to another, but public-facing philanthropy is now largely digital and automated. Donors are connected to the organization and its mission, but you don’t necessarily have one person assigned to you because the pool of people is too large.

However, in any model, when you become a major donor, depending on the size of the donation, you then become part of a portfolio with someone assigned to you who looks after you. This includes one-on-one interactions, phone calls, emails. It’s a common model, I would say; it’s more relationship-based.

That said, it can vary from one institution to another. For example, I worked for an organization that didn’t raise donations from the general public. They solicited businesses, foundations, wealthy individuals. At the Old Brewery Mission, it’s a bit of a mix of both approaches. We appeal to the general public because homelessness is a cause that resonates with everyone in one way or another. It may not affect us directly, but it’s something we can’t ignore.

What do you like about your job?

I’ve always worked for nonprofits because I need to believe in the organization’s mission. I like philanthropy because you get to meet people. In other jobs, it’s harder; you don’t really meet people aside from your coworkers. I enjoy getting to know people, understanding them, learning about their interests. I’ve made a lot of friends through philanthropy. It’s a great profession; you work with very dedicated and generous people who want to make a difference. It’s a very diverse field. You also have to know everything about the nonprofit in order to represent it effectively.

What brought you to the Old Brewery Mission?

Honestly, seeing the extent of homelessness now, I felt I had to do something. I decided to change fields and go into something more community-based, something closer to my values.

I had been following James Hughes, President and CEO of the Old Brewery Mission, for a few years. I follow some people on social media and in the media whom I find visionary, who are changing things and coming forward with outside-the-box solutions. And James has those kinds of projects, positive projects that aren’t just about adding more shelter beds; his vision is much broader.

So, when I saw that the position of Director of Philanthropic Development was open here and I got a call from the headhunter, I had to go for it. I felt that James had concrete solutions to problems that are solvable. To my mind, when you walk around and see people experiencing homelessness, it’s a societal failure.