Guy Hart
Managing Partner

As Founder and Managing Partner of Plus Delta Partners Guy Hart leverages his expertise in organizational performance, business strategy, and fundraising execution to assist client organizations to achieve at a higher level.

Prior to founding Plus Delta Partners in 2004 Guy spent 13 years in business development and management consulting with Fortune 500 companies. Serving in a variety of roles he managed teams of professionals delivering complex solutions and service engagements for $1 billion-plus clients in industries including aerospace, manufacturing and hi-tech.

As part of a fundamental shift in priorities toward making a difference in the non-profit sector, in 2005 Guy began working with major gift officers in higher education to generate sustainable improvements in fundraising yields. Through the combined application of donor insight and a structured fundraising process, Plus Delta Partners has successfully delivered multi-million dollar returns on investment for Development clients in higher education.

Recognizing a local need in 2007, Guy and his wife established The Hart Foundation which is currently supporting free after-school tutoring programs for K-5 students in underserved communities in San Diego County.

Guy has an MBA and an MIM from the Thunderbird School of Global Management, and a BA in Political Science and Spanish from James Madison University. He enjoys volunteering his time to charitable causes, competing in triathlons and scuba diving. Guy, his wife and son and their black Labrador retriever live in Carlsbad, California.

Beth A. Nelson
Senior Consultant

As a Senior Consultant, Beth brings a practitioner’s perspective to the Plus Delta Partners team. She has worked in higher education fundraising and administration for over 15 years serving in a variety of capacities at both private and public institutions.

Leveraging her blended experience in fundraising, management, and sales, Beth effectively guides gift officers and teams to higher yields and greater self-sufficiency.

Prior to joining Plus Delta, Beth served as the Associate Vice President of Development and Alumni Affairs at Lafayette College. In this role she leveraged the Plus Delta PAD methodology to lead Lafayette’s external fundraising teams in successful annual and campaign fundraising. Under her leadership of the major gifts and planned giving teams, Lafayette
exceeded its incremental silent phase goal of $100 million, setting the College up for success with its anticipated $300 million comprehensive campaign. As Lafayette approached 40 years of coeducation, Beth led an institutional alumnae engagement planning process to ensure women’s long-term philanthropic involvement with the College. She consequently closed Lafayette’s first two $1 million-plus gifts from alumnae.

Beth’s professional career started in student affairs at The Ohio State University where, among other things, she facilitated staff and leadership training workshops, guided behavioral change for students and staff, and worked collaboratively with faculty, deans, and housing staff in the creation and funding of various living-learning programs. Although still in the non-profit sector, Beth honed her sales skills as a Managing Director with the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES). In London, she created and ran an international student residential accommodation that required annual sales of over $3 million to cover operating costs.

Beth has an MA in Higher Education and Student Affairs from Ohio State University and a BA in Math and Psychology from Lafayette College.

Brent Keltner
Of Counsel

In his “Of Counsel” role with Plus Delta Partners, Brent engages in both an advisory and delivery capacity on strategic client projects, adding value based on his specialized expertise in higher education gift officer productivity.

Brent brings more than 15 years of experience working in both the non-profit and for-profit education sectors on accelerating the performance of gift officers, sales teams, and sales and marketing organizations. Brent was Senior Vice President at Eduventures, Inc through 2008, where he led the launch of the company’s higher education division. He lead the growth of the company’s Development Learning Collaborative program to just under 100 members and oversaw the development of research on Gift Officer Productivity and Performance.

In addition to his role at Eduventures, Brent served as a Vice President for marketing and development in the higher education division of Kaplan, Inc. and more recently as the CEO of CollegeiateLink, prior to its acquisition by StudentVoice LLC. Brent began his career as a Researcher at the RAND Corporation and an Assistant Professor at the RAND Graduate School. As both a business executive and analyst, Brent’s career has focused on the development and implementation of tools and processes that accelerate the performance of front-line gift officers and sales executives.

Brent has served on the boards of advisory of the School of Management and Labor Relations at Rutgers University, the Cambridge Montessori School, Chorus North Shore, and the Acord Food Pantry. He earned a Ph.D. in political science from Stanford University and a B.A., magna cum laude, from Pomona College. Brent lives just outside of Boston, MA with his wife Ann-Marie, son John Henry, and daughter Anna.