Monthly Archive
May 2011Social Media, Foundations, and Grantees: What Works, What Doesn’t?
May 27th, 2011
This piece was originally posted on Beth’s Blog on May 12: This week I attended Center for Effective Philanthropy’s conference “Better Philanthropy: From Data to Impact” where I participated on a panel about social media, foundations, and grantees. Vincent Stehle moderated, and other panelists included Paula Goldman, Omidyar Network, Jacob Harold, Program Officer, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Travis Manzione, Director of Assessment Tools for CEP. ...
Understanding the Foundations Outcomes Paradox
May 24th, 2011
For the past four years I have been responsible for producing The Irvine Foundation’s Annual Performance Report, our foundation-wide assessment of program impact and operational performance. Through my work on that report I have come to understand that focusing on outcomes in many foundations is encumbered by the core business activity of making grants. ...
Connecting the Dots with Data
May 20th, 2011
This piece was originally posted on The Communications Network blog on May 17: At last week’s Center for Effective Philanthropy Conference (CEP), it was refreshing to see the role of communications keep popping up during discussions that explored the links between data and foundation impact. That’s not surprising, either, and for at least for two reasons. ...
New Analysis Shows Foundations’ Grantee Perception Report Results Improving
May 18th, 2011
CEP is pleased to be releasing a new research report today. The press release is below: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Cambridge, MA—The Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) released a new report today demonstrating that foundations that use the organization’s Grantee Perception Report (GPR) more than once are making changes that are benefiting the organizations they fund. ...
The Art of Harnessing Collective Wisdom
May 17th, 2011
“However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.” – Winston Churchill This quote came to mind during the first session of the 2011 Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) conference as CEP Vice President Ellie Buteau presented the results of a recent CEO survey on foundation assessment. ...
Three Attributes That Are Vital for Effective Philanthropy
May 12th, 2011
As I leave a conference marking the 10th anniversary of the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP), I find myself reflecting on our progress as a field in understanding what exactly constitutes “effective philanthropy.” At the heart of CEP’s approach has been collecting data to learn more about the practices that may contribute to effectiveness. ...
Is Our Emphasis on Measurement Leading Us to Lose Other Important Guideposts?
May 11th, 2011
I was en route to the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s (CEP) bi-annual conference in Boston when an in-flight magazine article prompted some thinking about issues of measurement in our sector. The article references a 15-year old essay by Paul Krugman and compares research trends in development economics to the evolution of the mapping of Africa. ...
Does Transparency Make Foundations More Effective?
May 11th, 2011
The subject of foundation transparency – especially to whom and for what purpose – can sometimes be murky. While there’s no doubt that foundations should be transparent – and I can’t imagine anyone disagreeing with that – to me it’s not simply a question of whether transparency is a good thing. ...
assessing performance
beneficiary feedback
beneficiary perceptions
communications
community foundations
comparative data
conferences
developing strategy
Donor Perception Report
economy
effective philanthropy
Essentials of Foundation Strategy
foundation effectiveness
foundation governance
foundation performance
foundation staff/program officers
foundation strategy
foundation transparency
Funder/Grantee Relationships
funder/grantee relationships
funder effectiveness
giving strategy
goals
Grantee Perception Report
grantee perspectives
Grantee Voice
indicators
leadership
nonprofit sector
overall foundation performance assessment
performance assessment
performance measurement
philanthropy
role of philanthropy
social media
Staff Perception Report
stakeholder engagement
strategy implementation
youth
YouthTruth
Lessons from a Risk Taken
I really appreciate your willingness to share this and your assessment of what didn't work out as planned or anticipated. Thanks.
I really appreciate your willingness to share this and your assessment of what didn't work out as planned or anticipated. Thanks.
Lessons from a Risk Taken
Jon, thanks for the comment. If there’s one thing we learned, it’s that the cost in time and effort and dollars were all higher than...
Jon, thanks for the comment. If there’s one thing we learned, it’s that the cost in time and effort and dollars were all higher than...
Lessons from a Risk Taken
Thanks for sharing the lessons learned, and what I sense are second thoughts about the cost/benefit of the whole enterprise. I appreciate the thirst for...
Thanks for sharing the lessons learned, and what I sense are second thoughts about the cost/benefit of the whole enterprise. I appreciate the thirst for...
Foundations and Impact Investing: What Is Really Going On?
Great insight. Sometimes it's great to invest in multiple countries as security as the economy in one country might decrease and increase in another.
Great insight. Sometimes it's great to invest in multiple countries as security as the economy in one country might decrease and increase in another.
Foundations and Impact Investing: What Is Really Going On?
Great questions. It is likely still too early to get a handle on whether the (potential) results reflect the hype meaningfully. However, I will be...
Great questions. It is likely still too early to get a handle on whether the (potential) results reflect the hype meaningfully. However, I will be...
