Home - Lucy Njue, CFRE — Fundraising & Sustainability Strategist

Lucy Njue, CFRE · lucynjue.com

Helping nonprofits move from donor dependency to sustainable funding.

I’m Lucy Njue — Fundraising and Sustainability Strategist. I help organisations, and the funders who support them, build the systems, strategies, and capacity that make sustainable funding possible.

Founder & Executive Director, Realtime Insights

USD 100M+

Raised

18 Years

Experience

1,000+

Trained

CFRE

Certified

Fundraising Strategy The Fundraising Shift Systems Strengthening Institutional Grants CFRE Certified Capacity Building Realtime Insights Author & Speaker Fundraising Strategy The Fundraising Shift Systems Strengthening Institutional Grants CFRE Certified Capacity Building Realtime Insights Author & Speaker

About Lucy & Realtime Insights

A strategist you hire.
A firm that delivers

I’m Lucy Njue — Fundraising and Sustainability Strategist with 18+ years inside the African nonprofit sector. Through Realtime Insights, I help organisations strengthen capacity, position themselves for funding, and build the foundations for long-term sustainability and impact.

When you engage Realtime Insights, you get me — supported by a senior network of associate consultants. Every engagement is senior-led. Nothing is handed off to people you never met.

Sustainability over dependency

Equity & local leadership

Systems-first thinking

Practical, lasting results

what i do

Three ways to work
with me.

Whether you want to hire me directly, commission a programme for your grantees, or
build your own skills; there is a clear path for you.

Strategic Advisory

Hire me for fundraising strategy, grant acquisition, sustainability planning, or a long-term advisory retainer for your organisation.

The Fundraising Shift

My flagship methodology — commissioned by funders for their grantees. Five stages, twelve assets, one system that lasts.

Capacity Building

Join a cohort, a workshop, the Online Fundraising School, or the Consultants Launchpad — built for practitioners and teams.

Featured Resource · My Books

The Basics of
Fundraising

A guide for start-up non-profits. Ten simple steps to kick-start your fundraising journey; written for organisations at the very beginning, who need a clear, practical place to start.

I wrote it because too many start-up nonprofits believe all they need is funding. Fundraising is not just grant writing. It is strategy, positioning, and systems; and this book lays the foundation

What Clients Say

Proof from the
people I've worked with.

“

Lucy helped us see that our problem was never the proposals. It was the absence of a system behind them. Within a year our funding base looked completely different.

Joan Mwangi

Executive Director, Rafikistry TLC

“

Many fundraising trainings inspire participants. This one equipped them. Our grantees walked away with practical resources, clearer fundraising priorities, and actionable next steps they could implement immediately within their organisations.

Programme Officer

OCEAN Grants Programme

“

I came into the workshop thinking I needed help writing proposals. I left understanding that I needed to rethink how my whole organisation approached funding. That shift was everything.

Nancy Wagacha

Executive Director, Wells of Hope

Experience Across the Funding Ecosystem

Three pillars of engagement.
One clear commitment.

INSTITUTIONAL DONOR EXPERIENCE

ECHO SIDA BMZ USAID UNHCR UNICEF World Bank Global Fund

MULTI COUNTRY & CONSORTIUM EXPERIENCE

Kenya Uganda Tanzania Ethiopia Somalia South Sudan Zambia Haiti

ORGANISATIONS SUPPORTED

Grassroots Organisations National NGOs International NGOs Foundations Universities Membership Organisations Private Sector

WHO I WORK WITH

Find your starting point.

Funders & Foundation

Strengthen your grantees' fundraising

Commission The Fundraising Shift for your grantee cohort. Build lasting sustainability, not continued dependency.

INGOs & NGOs

Build the system behind your funding.

Hire me as a senior strategic partner; from proposal development to full fundraising strategy.

Practitioners & Consultants

Build your skills or your practice.

Join a workshop, the Online Fundraising School, or the Consultants Launchpad for development professionals.

TRUSTED BY

LETS BEGIN

Funding that lasts
starts here.

Whether you want to hire me, commission The Fundraising
Shift, or join a programme; the conversation starts with one
message.

USD 100M+

Raised

18 Years

Experience

1,000+

Trained

CFRE

Certified

A strategist you hire.
A firm that delivers

Three ways to work
with me.

Strategic Advisory

The Fundraising Shift

Capacity Building

The Basics of
Fundraising

Proof from the
people I've worked with.

Three pillars of engagement.
One clear commitment.

Find your starting point.

Strengthen your grantees' fundraising

Build the system behind your funding.

Build your skills or your practice.

Funding that lasts
starts here.

Work With Me

Resources

Connect

USD 100M+

Raised

18 Years

Experience

1,000+

Trained

CFRE

Certified

A strategist you hire. A firm that delivers

Three ways to work with me.

Strategic Advisory

The Fundraising Shift

Capacity Building

The Basics of Fundraising

Proof from the people I've worked with.

Three pillars of engagement. One clear commitment.

Find your starting point.

Strengthen your grantees' fundraising

Build the system behind your funding.

Build your skills or your practice.

Funding that lastsstarts here.

Work With Me

Resources

Connect

A strategist you hire.
A firm that delivers

Three ways to work
with me.

The Basics of
Fundraising

Proof from the
people I've worked with.

Three pillars of engagement.
One clear commitment.

Funding that lasts
starts here.