Tag Archive
indicators
Sifting Through the “Research”
March 14th, 2013
An op-ed in The New York Times on March 8 titled “Does This Ad Make Me Fat?” points out that a recent journal article in BMC Public Health that established a correlation between advertising for junk food and obesity rapidly made an unjustified causal leap. ...
Opportunity in Communities: Developing the Whole Picture
March 7th, 2013
Three years ago, Opportunity Nation brought together a coalition of over 250 nonprofits, businesses, educational institutions, faith-based groups, community organizations, and individuals with a ten-year goal of expanding economic opportunity and closing the opportunity gap in America. We kicked off our campaign with a listening tour, where we heard from hard-working young people who feared their zip code would affect their lives more than the their GPA. ...
Appreciating an Underdeveloped Source of Insight
February 21st, 2013
Amidst a flurry of recent talk about the opportunities and challenges presented by the application of “big data” in philanthropy, one aspect of the conversation that is often overlooked is beneficiary feedback. Yet, with a growing body of research that demonstrates a link between beneficiary perceptions and outcomes, there is both a moral and an effectiveness argument to be made for listening to those we seek to help. ...
A Wake-Up Call for Funders: Effectiveness Requires More Support for Grantees’ Assessment Efforts
September 18th, 2012
Room for Improvement is a wake-up call for foundations that seek to promote effectiveness in the nonprofit sector. Based on survey data reported by foundation grantees, it clearly documents what we and others have found: that most nonprofits desire to measure their performance, many are already engaged in trying to do so, and they desperately need resources to do it well. ...
How Did We Do? CEP by the Numbers
July 5th, 2012
How did CEP do in 2011? Board Chair Kathy Merchant and President Phil Buchanan reflect on the past year in the opening letter to CEP’s 2011 Annual Report – extending an open invitation to join CEP in the pursuit of more effective philanthropy. ...
The 7 Habits of Highly Ineffective Foundation Boards
March 9th, 2012
In my work with foundations over the past decade, it has become clear to me that, while there are lots of effective and well-intentioned board members out there, it’s easy for foundation boards to get lulled into complacency and slip into bad habits. Here are what I regard as the 7 Habits of Highly Ineffective Foundation Boards, drawn from CEP’s research on governance but also from my own observations – having met with dozens and dozens of foundation boards. ...
Hard Facts: Data Tells an Unexpected Story in Boston
December 12th, 2011
The city of Boston stands as a gleaming example of the renewed and widespread appreciation for urban living. Its charms, after all, are abundant, from 18th century Beacon Hill streets to dynamic and diverse SOWA, the “new” South End. ...
CEP Releases 2010 Video Annual Report
June 17th, 2011
In past years, we have spent considerable time and money on nicely designed annual reports. We have received good feedback on these pieces but aren’t convinced they’re widely read – or a good use of limited resources. ...
How Jeff Raikes Approaches the Challenges of Foundation Strategy
June 7th, 2011
Growing up on a Nebraska farm, Jeff Raikes learned something about the fun and not-so-fun aspects of work. “Every farm kid wants to drive the tractor – that’s the cool thing,” said Raikes, chief executive officer of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation at the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s (CEP) 2011 conference. ...
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. ...
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...
