In honor of our association’s 20th anniversary and the passionate leaders who have helped us grow along the way, we are pleased to launch a regular blog series dedicated to the reflections of our founders, early board members, and others with long careers in philanthropy. What has changed in the field—and in their giving—over the past decades? What... Read More
I recently joined a panel of experienced colleagues in an engaging group discussion of the role site visits play in philanthropy and how best to structure them to achieve maximum benefit. Today, Exponent Philanthropy released a related video, the final in its 9-part Philanthropy Lessons series. Philanthropy Lessons: Getting Out of the Office explores site... Read More
Mentorship is an elusive idea. Magazines are full of advice on building and maintaining most kinds of relationships (employment, marriage, parenting), but there are few road maps for finding and nurturing mentorships. This despite the fact that most, if not all, leaders will include the support they received from mentors as part of their recipes... Read More
Originally published by Idealware (March 2017) Can grants managers play a role in helping nonprofits get the technology funding they need to be successful? I led a discussion on this topic yesterday at the PEAK Grantmaking (formerly Grants Managers Network) conference in Hollywood, California. The breakout session, “How To Spot the Missing Tech in Grant Proposals,”... Read More
Forgive me for stating the obvious, but the word “no” has a negative connotation. And that’s a shame because, if used properly, “no” might actually be the ultimate philanthropic teaching and learning tool. We live in a society where so many of us are afraid to say that magic word— “no”— and so, we become... Read More
Infrastructure is sexy. It helps an organization achieve its goals. It should be easy to get access to the resources you need to perform these functions. But over half of nonprofits—the organizations charged with solving society’s greatest challenges—report that they don’t have the resources they need to meet their clients’ needs. Taproot Foundation is committed... Read More