World-class athletes do not casually approach a championship match, but rather spend years in training. Likewise, nonprofit organizations and the third-party advisors with whom they partner are now taking the same disciplined, planned approach to navigating the future—including periods of transition. Transitions can be difficult, overwhelming, and can affect everyone from staff, board, and committee... Read More
Eager to pilot our new Grantee and Applicant Perception Survey with her grantees, Meg Ramsey (The Ramsey McCluskey Family Foundation, Lincoln, MA) was especially interested to learn what her grantees were thinking about the foundation’s grant process, reporting, and site visits. Anonymity was key, so her grantees did not feel that providing constructive criticism or... Read More
Can greater cultural competency help funders better align their resources with needs? Despite notable accomplishments and donors who care a great deal about serving historically underserved populations, philanthropy continues to struggle to achieve social change for the communities and populations that need it most. Even the most thoughtful and productive philanthropists—including those who aim to... Read More
Last year, for organizations positioned to engage young leaders and for young leaders themselves, a colleague and I shared ways to create a welcoming space for the next generation to learn and build confidence. See Are You Creating Space for Young Leaders to Lead? >> Because the challenge of engaging the next generation—and getting engaged as... Read More
In the first and second blog in this 3-part series, Fran Sykes reflected on how her board’s decision to sunset spurred the foundation to stretch and expand its vision, and try to establish a legacy in its limited time. The second blog ended with these questions: What lessons have we learned? What can we pass on... Read More
You won’t find bullies on every board, but, when you do, they can be very disruptive—creating surprisingly high levels of stress for fellow board members and damaging the integrity, effectiveness, and impact of the board’s work. Be careful not to assume the other party to any difficult conversation is a bully. Some people engage in... Read More