Client Innovator Spotlight: Sok Tng, Pomona College

For Sok Tng, prospect research is both a discipline and a craft—one rooted in precision, curiosity, and a commitment to understanding donors in full context. In her role at Pomona College, Sok leads the prospect research and portfolio management function (in partnership with her manager), while a colleague focuses on analytics. Together, this work informs fundraising strategy, portfolio development, major gift planning, and supports both major and principal gift officers.

With more than a decade of hands-on experience using iWave, Sok brings a seasoned, practitioner-led perspective on how fundraising intelligence platforms drive real value inside advancement offices. As an early adopter, she recognized early on that strong research isn’t about chasing more data—it’s about having the right data, structured in a way that enables confident decision-making.

Why iWave is foundational to prospect research at Pomona College

When asked which tool has had the greatest impact on her work, Sok is unequivocal.

At Pomona College, iWave serves as the primary entry point for prospect discovery and capacity assessment. Sok relies on the platform to aggregate and synthesize critical data sources—including real estate holdings, external charitable giving, business affiliations, and contact information—into a single, trusted view. She also uses iWave to locate a foundation’s external charitable giving.

Rather than toggling between disconnected tools, iWave allows Sok to evaluate prospects efficiently while maintaining depth and rigor. She also uses ZoomInfo as a stepping stone to help locate individuals within companies, board memberships, and related affiliations. “Prospect researchers do not leave any stones unturned,” she says.

Driving efficiency, accuracy, and depth in Fundraising Intelligence

iWave plays a central role in how Sok supports frontline fundraisers and advancement leadership. The platform enables her to:

• Assess donor capacity using real estate, giving, and business indicators
  
• Identify external philanthropic activity to inform solicitation strategy
  
• Surface employment and affiliation data that strengthens engagement planning
  
• Validate assumptions with multiple corroborating data points
  

Sok continues to uncover new ways to query and analyze data within iWave—an indicator of both the platform’s flexibility and her own commitment to continuous learning. “Even after years of using iWave, I’m still discovering new ways to search for information that isn’t always obvious,” she states. That ability to move beyond surface-level insights is essential in major and principal gift research, where accuracy, context, and confidence directly influence outcomes.

An early adopter’s mindset: Technology as a strategic advantage

While Pomona College leverages multiple tools across its advancement technology stack, iWave remains Sok’s “jumping-off point”—the system she trusts to frame the research process before deeper analysis begins.

That trust is built on consistency, data coverage, and iWave’s ongoing evolution alongside the advancement sector. Sok views fundraising technology not as a static utility, but as a strategic asset—one that must grow with institutional needs, fundraising strategies, and donor expectations.

Kindness, collaboration, and community

Beyond technology, Sok places deep value on the collaborative nature of the advancement profession. “Kindness encompasses treating each other well, being polite, sincere, and compassionate. The advancement sector is incredibly collaborative.”

For Sok, kindness shows up in the willingness of peers to share ideas, workflows, and lessons learned. That openness accelerates collective progress and reinforces best practices in prospect research and fundraising intelligence—areas where iWave often serves as a shared foundation across institutions.

One innovator, many ripples of impact

Sok Tng exemplifies what it means to be a Client Innovator: an early adopter who understands technology’s potential, a practitioner who applies it with rigor, and a community-minded leader who believes collaboration and kindness strengthen the entire sector.

Her work at Pomona College continues to demonstrate how thoughtful use of fundraising intelligence can turn data into insight—and insight into meaningful advancement outcomes.

Elizabeth Gross Kitrosser

As a brand strategist, marketer, and entrepreneur, Elizabeth works shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the world’s most ambitious founders, business architects, scientists, artists, and engineers — bringing together distinct teams and ideas to tell compelling stories.