“Roll for a Cause. Strike for Change.”
Team 4 | MGT 598 — Project Management
KGSB | DePaul University | Spring 2026
1. Brief Description of the Project
We had organized a charity fundraising bowling event called “Roll for a Cause. Strike for Change.” as part of our project management course at DePaul University. The event was held on Monday, June 1, 2026, at Kings Dining & Entertainment, 1500 N Clybourn Avenue, Chicago, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM.
The event was meant to raise funds and awareness for Misericordia Heart of Mercy, a Chicago-based nonprofit that helps individuals born with any kind of disabilities by birth, they provide care homes and food.All Attendees paid a $20 entry fee for students and professionals other than DePaul and 12$ for groups and DePaul students, that covered bowling and shoe rental. There were multiple ways to generate revenue streams to minimize risk, it was generated through ticket sales, raffle ticket sales ($5 per entry, open to non-attendees as well) and online donations directly to the Misericordia Foundation.
Our team had 5 members with divided and different responsibilities including Hamza Mudassar as the project manager, Nohail Tariq handling finance, Harsh Maniar dealing operations, Siraj Saifi working in communications, and Faris in marketing under the supervision of Professor Lori Cook. Each member was assigned roles according to their strengths and each member was trained to replace each other in case needed. Project start date was April 14, 2026 and was completed on June 11, 2026.
2. Brief Description of the Charity
Misericordia Heart of Mercy is a 501(c)(3) is a Chicago based nonprofit organization founded in 1921. Address: 6300 N. Ridge Avenue, Chicago, IL 60660. Their objectives and mission is to provide residential care, housing, educational programs and community support for individuals born with any kind of disabilities.
Misericordia serves more than 600 individuals through a different range of programs, from independent apartments to anytime skilled nursing care. This organization is well-recognized in the Chicago nonprofit community and has constantly maintained strong performance on Charity Navigator. During the time of this project, Misericordia had a long waiting list (up to 10 years) for its programs, which was a key point for the team’s fundraising effort.
Contact : donors@misericordia.com | (773) 273-4160 | www.misericordia.com
3. Factual Analysis of Success in Terms of Project Objectives
The project established four calculated success metrics at the outcomes. The table below compares the planned targets estimation against actual outcomes achieved on June 1, 2026.
| Success Metric |
Worst Case |
Most Likely |
Best Case |
Actual Result |
| Net Funds Raised for Misericordia |
$300 |
$600 |
$900+ |
$420+ (confirmed) |
| Physical Attendees at Event |
30 people |
40 people |
50+ people |
~17 attendees |
| Social Media Reach (views/impressions) |
500 |
1,000 |
2,500+ |
12,000+ views |
| On-Time Delivery within Budget |
Minor overrun <$25 |
On time, within $450 |
Under budget |
On time, $0 expenses |
Analysis
Funds Raised: We are able to raise $270 directly from bowling and raffle ticket sales on the event, which was transferred directly to Misericordia. Additionally, more than $150 in direct online donations were made to Misericordia directly through the QR code from our advertising and awareness campaign. Several online donations were not been able to be tracked because Misericordia receives hundreds of donations on a daily basis. While the trackable donations did not achieve our best case scenario of $600, we are hopeful that the online donations were more than this. The online donors that we could confirm includes Professor Lori Cook who donated $50 along with several classmates and friends who contributed through the online QR code directly to the charity.
Attendance: Approximately 17 participants attended in person, which was less than the 30-person worst-case target. The lower-than-expected turnout was primarily driven by the event being held during a finals week-end-of-term period and the time on marketing with a student team.
Social Media Reach: This was the project’s most unique success. The combined social media promotion across LinkedIn, Snapchat, and Instagram reached over 12,000 views which was well exceeding the 2,500+ best-case target by nearly five times. This level of awareness for Misericordia and its mission was a significant achievement.
Budget Performance: The venue was provided at no cost by Kings Dining & Entertainment following the discount negotiated with Rob Mastro. DePaul University provided poster printing at no cost. Raffle prizes were collected through in-kind donations (an Echo Dot Alexa speaker sponsored by DePaul University). As a result, the team’s actual cash expenses were $0.00, meaning the entire $450 budget estimate was effective.
4. Lessons Learned About Managing Projects
Lesson 1: Flexibility in Venue and Vendor Negotiations is Critical
The team’s initial venue selection was Lucky Strike bowling in downtown Chicago, which was ultimately not that flexible and the gave the pricing structure of $20–$50 per person, which would have left no funding for charitable funds. The decision to not go with lucky strike bowling and pursue Kings Dining & Entertainment proved a great impact. Rob Mastro at Kings was willing to host the event at no charge, which completely transformed the financial objectives of the event.
The key takeaway is that vendor negotiations should never be treated as binary (accept or reject). The team’s counter-proposal strategy of offering lane-based pricing, emphasizing the charitable nature of the event, mentioning the sales tax exemption, and proposing flexible dates created room for a deal that benefited all parties. Future project teams should develop a clear negotiation strategy for vendors early and always have at least one backup option in play simultaneously.
Lesson 2: Marketing Effort Does Not Automatically Convert to Attendance
Our team achieved a great response from social media reach (12,000+ views) but relatively differerent in-person attendance (17 people). This break highlighted an important project management principle: outputs and outcomes doesn’t have the same results. High promotions on social media are an output; ticket conversions are the outcome that matters for an event’s financial objectives.
Looking back team would have benefited from a more targeted strategy — such as direct personal invitation or a verbal communication, a limited-time early registration discount, or a ‘bring a friend’ idea tied to the raffle. The communication plan was structured in a way, but the ideas for converting awareness into attendance needed more indepth strategy and ideas.
Lesson 3: Scope and Timeline Realism Matters More Than Ambition
The original fundraising targets ($500–$900 net) were set as a best case scenario of revenue generating for a student team with a six-week time and no fixed marketing budget. While the team performed above expectations in several areas including the awareness campaign where it was required (zero budget, 12,000+ reach), the attendance and revenue targets required recall once the event was underway. Setting objectives that account for the constraints of a student team, limited time, no paid advertising, would have helped to produce targets that were more achievable and less chances to miss.
5. Advice for Future Teams Doing Similar Projects
- Start the venue negotiations at least six weeks prior the event. Venue negotiations take multiple rounds and require time managementif your first plan doesn’t work out.
- Personally invite people via verbal communication — don’t rely only on social media posts. A direct text or WhatsApp message to 20 friends will help you to convert at a far higher rate than a post seen by 1,000 strangers.
- Secure your charity partner’s written approval like communication via emails or in person meeting before any public promotion. The team was careful about this, and it avoided legal and reputational risk. Don’t skip this step under time pressure because you need to have this talk before any kind of promotion.
- Negotiate in prior forin-kind venue and prize support from day one. The single biggest factor and important one in this project’s financial success was the free venue from Kings.
- Use the method where ‘Can’t attend? Still enter the raffle for $5’from the very beginning of your marketing campaign and promotion. This was decided late in this project but proved to be one of the most effective way to generate more revenue.
- Build a post-event communication plan. Thank-you messages to Kings, Misericordia, attendees, and donors should be drafted in advance and sent within the dates of the event held. Relationships built during a project are assets for future perspective.
- Make sure you have an eye on online donation tracking to set up so you can confirm contributions. A unique method ofcampaign code or dedicated donation link would solve this.
6. Photos Related to the Project
