Our Staff

In 1999, Viken co-founded VirtualGiving.Com, the first company focused specifically on bringing planned giving to the Internet. Since then, VirtualGiving.Com has helped over 400 nonprofits get their planned giving programs on the web, published numerous white papers, and conducted various national surveys to help our industry understand itself better.

Viken is also the founder of Planned Giving.Com, a powerful online resource featuring ready-to-go, downloadable planned giving content. He also publishes the quarterly publication Planned Giving Tomorrow, which is intended to distribute practical planned giving marketing ideas for all fundraisers -- not just planned giving executives.

Viken's expertise in combining planned giving principles with marketing and technology tools to inform and inspire the lay prospect continues to make him a driving force in the gift-planning community. In the past 9 years alone, he has presented at over 220 planned giving councils, AFP and AHP chapters, foundations, and banks, including 4 presentations for the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning (formerly the National Committee on Planned Giving).

Concentrating over the past 19 years on development communications, Viken has produced over 1600 publications for capital campaigns and planned giving programs. His former marketing firm's portfolio includes numerous awards, including five from CASE.

Viken is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. He was a pre med student and almost decided to become a doctor. Both the planned giving community and society at large are very thankful that he did not.

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If Brian M. Sagrestano, JD, CFRE, wants to sing in a barbershop quartet, we say, “Let him!” Because judging by his standing as the go-to guy for industry-leading advice in donor-centered gift planning, we might all do well to give his unique hobby a try.

In addition to being President and CEO of Gift Planning Development, LLC, a full service gift planning consulting firm, Brian also shares his time with VirtualGiving.Com as a valued consultant and advisor.

He earned degrees from Cornell University (A.B. cum laude) and Notre Dame Law School (J.D. cum laude) and started his career specializing in tax and estate planning and related areas. But Brian’s donor-centered philosophy ultimately drew him into philanthropic planning full-time.

Prior to starting GPD, Brian served as Executive Director of Gift Planning for the University of Pennsylvania and Director of Gift Planning for Middlebury College in Vermont and Meridian Health Affiliated Foundations in New Jersey. The various gift planning programs under his direction raised over $400 million.

A dynamic and engaging speaker, Brian has addressed more than 150 groups over the last decade, including presentations at conferences nationwide for organizations including the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning, the Council on the Advancement and Support of Education, and the Association of Fund Raising Professionals, among others.

Brian crafted the marketing content for the Planned Giving Course and is a regular trainer for many charities in the area of gift planning. He also created Gift Planning Essentials to help small and mid-sized charities start new donor-centered gift planning programs.

Brian is a current board member of the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning (PPP) and past board member of the Gift Planning Council of New Jersey and the Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia. He is published and cited in numerous periodicals, including Planned Giving Tomorrow.

When not working, or singing in a barbershop, Brian enjoys spending time with his wife and three daughters at his home in the scenic Mohawk Valley.

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Scott possesses a unique understanding of the value of relationships and communication in the world of planned giving.

Currently Executive Director of Planned Giving at Villanova University, Scott has worked as a successful fundraiser and planned giving officer in the Social Services, Higher Education and Healthcare sectors. He is a highly effective communicator who has given presentations at the Partnership for Philanthropic Planning (formerly the National Conference on Planned Giving), and is a sought-after speaker at planned giving councils and AFP chapters.

He has been a Certified Fund Raising Executive since 1997, and earned the designation of Registered Financial Consultant in 2008. In the 1990s, his breakthrough dissertation The College President and Fundraising Effectiveness revealed the true extent of the role played by the "real chief development officer" in raising critical support for colleges and universities.

He has provided consulting and mentoring for organizations and professionals in other sectors at organizations both large and small. Dr. Janney is a co-founder and presenter of Planned Giving Boot Camp and the Planned Giving Course, and has been a driving force behind Philadelphia's Planned Giving Day for the past eight years.

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Since 2003 Joe has been Vice President of Sales for VirtualGiving.Com. As such he is responsible for direct selling and sales management for both businesses, and has developed a client base of over 200 organizations.

He is a life time member of the Sandler Selling System, works with a personal business and sales coach, and has spent over 25 years studying sales, communications, and personal development. Today, 90% of the business Joe brings in is from cold calling and referrals.

Joe graduated from Saint Joseph’s University in 1984 with a BS in Marketing, and began his sales career with large companies like Lever Brothers and Memorex. In 1987, he earned Memorex’s National Salesperson of the Year award by outperforming more than 35 company sales reps nationally. Beginning in the late 1980’s, Joe, along with his brother and father, built a printing and direct mail business to $2,000,000 in annual sales before selling it in 2003.

Joe has made philanthropy part of his personal life as well as his profession, and is on the executive board of the Planned Giving Council of Greater Philadelphia.

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Tina graduated with honors with a degree in eCommerce from the University of Phoenix. While in school, Tina acquired real-world experience as Sales Manager for a publishing firm where she managed more than 40 sales representatives. This role helped develop her understanding of the value of delivering exceptional customer service.

Tina currently puts this experience to effective use in helping professionals create customized, results-oriented planned giving marketing strategies. In the vanguard of VirtualGiving.Com's sales team, she concentrates on such areas as marketing solutions, organizational growth, and branding.

Tina's product knowledge combines with her thorough understanding of the goals of the organizations with which she works to make her a vital asset to the team.

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A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, Jim has spent more than twenty years as a communications professional. His experience ranges from journalism to technical writing, with plenty of marketing communications along the way. Jim lives with his cat, Kobayashi, in beautiful Media, PA, known as the gateway to Nether Providence.

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A creative fund-raising executive for more than 20 years, Geoff has helped non-profit organizations raise over $50 million. He has started several planned giving programs and was a satisfied VG client before joining the staff.

Geoff received his master's degree in social administration from the London School of Economics after majoring in history at the University of Pittsburgh. He studied planning giving and development at the Graduate School of Business of the University of Wisconsin.

With background in education, health care, the arts world, and recreation, Geoff has made cultivating major and planned giving donors his special focus.

Diversity of interests are his hallmark: he has been an award-winning winemaker; he manages musical artists; and he's writing a book about high school football. His hobbies include hiking, reading, music, art, wine, and international soccer. His heroes include Martin Luther King, Jr., John F. Kennedy, Mahatma Ghandi, and Groucho Marx.

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Edward A. "Ned" Harvey brings a robust combination of knowledge and experience in finance, sales, and marketing to his work with VirtualGiving.Com.

A graduate of Ithaca College with degrees in Finance and Economics, Ned first worked with Morgan Guaranty and U.S. Trust, then moved to sales and marketing for the engineering division of Xerox and the virtual advertising firm Princeton Video Image. He has since formed a consulting firm based in Lakeville, CT that caters to not-for-profit organizations.

In 1990 Ned started the Trenton, NJ chapter of Christmas in April, a nonprofit organization devoted to helping elderly, handicapped, and low-income families retain their present housing.

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