“With capable coaches at their side, nonprofit leaders can learn more about themselves, about their organizations, and about how to manage people and conflicts, how to delegate responsibility for day-to-day tasks, and more. No other intervention can teach these things better than effective coaching, and we hope that grantmakers, both individually and as a field,... Read More
The Principles of Black Equity Framework is a tool for funders, developed by the Black Equity Collective, that integrates equity as a key metric for assessing organizational effectiveness. The Black Equity Collective is a California-based organization whose mission is to join funders and communities in strengthening the long-term sustainability of Black-led and empowering organizations. Read More
Philanthropy is ever-changing. Pressing issues and seismic political, economic, and technological shifts move us to revisit how we work regularly. Urgency, passion, curiosity, and the desire to engage drive some lean funders (those with few or no staff) to center their giving around authentic relationships with grantees and community members. This type of Catalytic Leadership... Read More
After time off and retirement plans, health insurance is one of the most common benefits small-staffed foundations offer staff. Consider, in the 2023 Foundation Operations and Management Report, 78% of foundations offered health insurance for full-time staff. One of the most frequent topics on our Member Discussion Community is how to best go about securing... Read More
When lean funders combine their grantmaking, influence, and passion, they have more impact than either could individually. The Leighty Foundation (Juneau, AK) and the Lodestar Foundation (Phoenix, AZ) both believe that strategic volunteer engagement can advance the missions of funders and their grant partners. Volunteers are often the first to respond to pressing community needs.... Read More
As foundations strive to make meaningful change in support of their missions, understanding what leads to philanthropic impact is crucial. In the 2023 Foundation Operations and Management Report, foundations named insufficient grantmaking impact as one of their top challenges. In this blog, I’ll discuss a few factors that drive impact, as well as strategies for... Read More