In 2015, Exponent Philanthropy and partners Mission Investors Exchange and Arabella Advisors released Essentials of Impact Investing: A Guide for Small-Staffed Foundations. This post is adapted from the complimentary and actionable guide, geared to foundations with few or no staff that want to align their investments and missions. Download Essentials of Impact Investing: A Guide... Read More
The Buhl Regional Health Foundation is a new health conversion foundation in Western Pennsylvania, situated on the Ohio state line. We convened a daylong community health forum last fall to connect community leaders and organizations, explore our evolving region, and identify opportunities to improve the region’s well-being. Over the past 30 years or more, our... Read More
The Lerner Foundation had only been making grants for five years when the winds shifted—the board of directors decided it was time for a profound change in our priorities. Our founding purpose is simple and straightforward: “to further opportunity for the people of Maine.” Manny and Polly Lerner’s broad and hopeful intention gave us the... Read More
I have always been a fan of internships. I had several internships in college and remember them fondly. They exposed me to the “real world” and had a profound impact on my professional direction. So it was no surprise that about a year ago, when my program officer, Michael, and I started thinking of ways... 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
Educating and developing board members can be a challenge for even the most well-intentioned foundations. Board members’ time and energy can be limited. Longstanding board members can grow increasingly comfortable in their roles and with their colleagues. Grantmaking decisions and general business can easily fill agendas. And yet, we know from our foundation members that... Read More