“Talk about sharing sensitive material! Wow.” This was just one of a number of similar comments the Haas, Jr. Fund received from nonprofit and foundation colleagues reacting to the level of truth-telling and candor shown in short video clips we recently posted of executive directors talking about coaching.
In these videos, successful, highly regarded nonprofit executive directors describe the issues that they are working on with their Haas Jr.-funded coach. We hear from a long-time executive director and public official pushing through fear to take on work that would be new and risky. From another about the difficulty of taking a different leadership stance when she moved from the #2 position to the #1 executive director role for the first time. From still another about how to assess whether she would continue to be the right leader for the organization’s next phase.
Hardly unique challenges for nonprofit leaders. But what seems to have struck a chord is their willingness to “tell it like it is”: to acknowledge strengths and weaknesses and to describe the value and impact of reaching out for support.
What would it take for truth telling and candor to catch on in philanthropy, so that comments like these don’t feel like such a breath of fresh air? Much has been written in recent years about the need for greater honesty, transparency and even partnership between funders and grantees.
A year ago, the Skoll Foundation introduced the notion of “radical transparency,” based on the experience of Forge, an international organization (led by executive director, Kjerstin Erickson) that used the Skoll community as a sounding board for deep organizational issues. Most folks in philanthropy understand well the steep risks of investing in start-up nonprofits. Yet the philanthropy blogosphere – and even the Wall Street Journal – was rightly abuzz when this social entrepreneur went “open kimono,” to quote the blogs, and took a candid and humble approach to reaching out for advice and financial help. And, it worked; they raised money.
We can also thank the Center for Effective Philanthropy who got the ball rolling in the direction of truth-telling when it started the anonymous Grantee Perception Report that gives foundations, often for the first time, the unvarnished truth about how helpful – or not – they are to their grantees’ efforts. And, it worked; foundations have begun to change their practices as a result.
Grantmakers for Effective Organizations has also called for funders to look at how they get in the way of their own grantees’ effectiveness. GEO’s leader, Kathleen Enright, has urged us to build the trusting grantee relationships that allow for candor, and to experiment with ways to see the world through the eyes of those we intend to serve.
At the Haas, Jr. Fund, our leadership investments have been a rich source of learning about what leaders need to be successful. With dedicated resources, our grantees are able to tap what’s tried-and-true about strategy, boards, fundraising, executive leadership, and teams; but they are also given resources to experiment with out-of-the-box ways of working and leading. We have been struck by the importance of making sure that what matters to us as funders does not crowd out dialogue about what matters most to our grantees. How can we create the conditions to simply ask, what do you need? Not your staff. Not your board. And, for the moment, not even your end beneficiaries. What do you as a leader need to do your best work?
As the anonymous foundation that stepped forward to provide funding for Forge put it, “When a funder balances power and becomes a partner, the truth comes out. When a funder expresses their support for someone’s work and the desire to fund what is needed most, the truth comes out.”
Linda Wood is Senior Director, Leadership and Grantmaking at the Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund.
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Disclaimers and Disclosures: The views expressed in the CEP blog by guest bloggers are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Center for Effective Philanthropy.
This is an important topic and we need to be talking about it more in nonprofits and philanthropy; I especially appreciate the acknowledgment at the end of the power differential between funders and their grantees. Until we are able to talk about the power differences, it will be hard to get true transparency and candor.
I’ve experienced both sides of this coin and the partnership approach with foundations is one that works. The first step in being successful in having a transparent funder-grantee partnership is relationship building which can sometimes be undervalued. Built on honesty and a solid relationship base…the partnership can yield sustainable results for the communities that we serve.
Do you ever ask the staff of the executive directors whom you coach what they feel the issues are with which their exec needs help?
I agree with Kathleen Enright to build the trusting grantee relationships that allow for candor, and to experiment with ways to see the world through the eyes of those who intend to serve.
Terri, great question. Yes, most of the executive coaches do a “360 assessment” to get the input from board members, staff members and sometimes key community members and other stakeholders on the executive director’s performance in a number of areas. EDs tell us this is incredibly valuable since they do not often get meaningful performance reviews from their boards. The process validates their strengths and points to areas for growth, which are often blind spots for leaders.
Thank you for raising the issue of “keeping it real”. There were a couple of times that I saw the honestly level in a room of funders and grantees open up after a funder took the lead, in one case saying “we have tried everything and don’t know how to solve this problem” and in another “we don’t know if the money we have invested in this problem has had any impact”. Given the power dynamics mentioned in Cynthia’s comment it is important for funders to model this behavior to help set a tone that invites honest disclosure.
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