Effective Matters: Volume 5, Issue 4

 

A STRATEGIC PLAN IS NOT ENOUGH FOR FOUNDATIONS

CEP’s latest research finds that more strategic foundation leaders don’t have just a strategic plan, they also have thought through the logic of how specific resource and programmatic decisions will ultimately lead to impact.

Essentials of Foundation Strategy reveals the two defining elements and four key characteristics of those foundation leaders who act strategically.

“While most foundation leaders embrace the idea that strategy is important for achieving impact, many do not have concrete hypotheses that connect their everyday decisions to the accomplishment of their stated goals,” says Ellie Buteau, PhD, CEP’s vice-president — research. “When thinking about strategy, they tend to overvalue having a strategic plan and undervalue the logical connections necessary for foundation strategy.”

This new research report, co-authored by Buteau, CEP President Phil Buchanan, and Senior Research Analyst Andrea Brock, demonstrates that foundation leaders who are more strategic are externally oriented and articulate the logical connections between resource use and goal achievement. They also share other key characteristics. They have strategic plans that they regularly reference, they publicly communicate their strategies, are proactive in their grantmaking, and have measures by which they assess.  

Strategic foundation leaders seek feedback from external sources to a greater extent than those who are not strategic. “Contrary to the perception that to be strategic in foundation work is to be inflexible, unresponsive, or top down, we found that the more strategic CEOs and program staff were, in fact, more likely to look outside their foundations’ walls and seek input from stakeholders,” says Buchanan.

The study also finds that assessment of results against strategies remains a significant challenge for foundations: Staff struggle to determine the right data to collect and how to collect it, and many look for more help from their boards in these efforts.  

“Yet this information is vital when implementing a strategy,” says Buchanan. “Without solid data, on what basis can foundation leaders learn about what is working and what is not so they can decide whether to continue with a strategy or change course?”

The report’s findings are illustrated by examples from the Flinn Foundation, The Duke Endowment, and The Gill Foundation and by interviews with the leaders of The Wilburforce Foundation and The Colorado Health Foundation.

Essentials of Foundation Strategy is available for free download.

How Strategic Are You?

In addition to the new research, CEP is offering a hands-on assessment for those who want a better understanding of their own approach to strategy. An online self-assessment poses a series of questions and gives users an automated profile that compares their results on key dimensions with those of foundation leaders who participated in this research.

Foundation staff can then better understand their results by referring to the accompanying discussion guide, which poses questions that help shape conversations about strategy.

“You can’t become more strategic if you don’t know where you are to begin with,” says Buteau. “We hope the self-assessment and the discussion guide, which are rooted in rigorous research, will help foundation staff find ways to approach their work more strategically.”

Both the research and the development of the self-assessment have been supported by CEP’s general operating support funders, led by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

STUART FOUNDATION EXEMPLIFIES A STRATEGIC APPROACH TO CHANGE

CEP’s latest case study focuses on the Stuart Foundation’s Child Welfare Program’s approach to achieving its goal to improve life outcomes for foster youth. The Program’s work provides a compelling example of what can be accomplished when a foundation has clear goals, coherent, well-implemented strategies, and relevant performance indicators.

Striving for Transformative Change at the Stuart Foundation details the Program’s efforts to create permanent lifelong connections and educational opportunities for foster youth who are aging out of the child welfare system. “The Foundation’s Child Welfare Program aims to help every child in foster care make a lifelong connection with a caring, committed adult,” says Stuart President Christy Pichel. “And because the Foundation also recognizes that educational opportunities are critical if foster youth are to successfully transition to adulthood, it supports programs that give these youth the assistance that most young people need to graduate college.”

These strategies are shaped by the Foundation staff's belief in the logic that permanency and education will help former foster youth avoid outcomes that often plague this population such as homelessness, unemployment, lack of medical care, and time in jail.  The case study, researched and written by CEP Senior Research Writer Judith Ross, documents the Foundation’s strategic approach.

Stuart bases its strategies on preliminary research, data, and input from experts, grantees, and beneficiaries. In developing the initiatives highlighted in the case study, Stuart’s Child Welfare program launched small pilot programs that were expanded once they achieved success; worked to make systemwide changes; invested in data to inform the field and policymakers; and regularly assessed progress along the way, making strategic adjustments when needed.  The Foundation has sought input from those on the ground — including grantees and foster youth — throughout the process of developing and refining its strategy.

This approach has led to measurable results. “We’ve seen in our Child Welfare Program that having a really clear strategy, using clear data that allows us to adjust our strategy as we go along, and staying focused on that strategy, has helped us be successful,” says Pichel.

Striving for Transformative Change at the Stuart Foundation is available for free download.

CEP LAUNCHES A NEW WEB SITE AND BLOG

CEP has redesigned its Web site. More interactive than the previous site, it features videos, highlights CEP’s research in new ways, and shares practical examples of CEP’s assessment tools in action. 

The Web site also invites users to submit questions and comments through the new CEP blog,  which provides data-based insights to debates and discussions about foundation performance. The blog will also include periodic guest posts from experts weighing in on issues of concern to philanthropists everywhere. In his debut post, CEP President Phil Buchanan introduces this new feature of CEP’s Web site.

“We hope the new Web site and blog will make our information easier to access, foster lively conversations, and help build a community of funders striving for increased effectiveness,” says Alyse d’Amico, CEP’s vice president of programming, communication, and development. “We also welcome feedback about the new site.”

Visit the new Web site and CEP blog at http://www.effectivephilanthropy.org/.

CEP’S KEVIN BOLDUC CHOSEN AS AN AMERCAN EXPRESS NGen FELLOW

CEP Vice President Kevin Bolduc was one of 12 leaders selected by Independent Sector for its first class of American Express NGen Fellows. Recognizing that the leaders of tomorrow are already making important contributions today, Independent Sector (IS) launched the Program this year to honor under-40 leaders at IS member organizations. The selective fellowship program is designed to help build the next generation of nonprofit and philanthropic pacesetters.

As vice president of assessment tools, Bolduc leads the delivery of CEP’s performance assessment tools to funders and oversees the design of new tools and the refinement of CEP’s suite of assessment offerings. Bolduc helped design CEP’s groundbreaking Grantee and Staff Perception Reports. He also led the first phase of CEP’s study of foundation strategy, and co-authored its 2007 report, Beyond the Rhetoric: Foundation Strategy. He has presented CEP’s data to boards, management, and staff of dozens of funders, and frequently gives national presentations about CEP’s work. 

“CEP is very proud of what Kevin has achieved. He has shaped practice and driven improvement at foundations big and small. CEP would not be nearly as successful if it were not for Kevin’s expertise and hard work,” says CEP President Phil Buchanan. “Kevin is trusted, respected, and admired by his CEP colleagues and at foundations around the world. It’s a privilege to work with him, and it is wonderful to see him get this richly deserved recognition.”

The program includes opportunities for Fellows to collaborate with other talented emerging leaders, interact with seasoned leaders, and contribute to addressing the critical challenges facing the nonprofit and philanthropic community.

To learn more, visit http://www.independentsector.org/about/NGenFellows/selected09.html