For Immediate Release

NEW CENTER FOR EFFECTIVE PHILANTHROPY ISSUE PAPER IDENTIFIES BEST PRACTICES OF FOUNDATION COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE GRANTEE PERSPECTIVE

The Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) calls for a holistic approach to foundations' communications with grantees in a new issue paper.

Foundation Communications: The Grantee Perspective draws on analyses of thousands of grantee responses to surveys and highlights best practices of foundations that have received high ratings in the clarity of communications of their goals and strategy. It also explores the relative value grantees place on different types of foundation communications – from individual interactions with program officers to funding guidelines to annual reports.

“Through our analyses, we discovered that foundations of varying sizes and types can communicate effectively with grantees if they focus on a few key dimensions,” said Judy Huang, author of the report and Associate Director of CEP.

The three keys to effective communication of foundation goals and strategy are:

• Consistency of foundation communication resources


• Interactions: Responsiveness of foundation staff, approachability of staff, fairness of treatment of grantees


• Helpfulness of foundation selection and reporting/evaluation processes

“In order to effectively communicate foundation goals and strategies with grantees, foundation staff need to share responsibility,” said Huang. “Clear communications requires more than just hiring a great communications director.”

The paper expands on findings from CEP's 2004 report, Listening to Grantees: What Nonprofits Value in Their Foundation Funders, which revealed that clarity of communication of goals and strategy is one of three key dimensions that contribute to grantees' perceptions of satisfaction with foundations. Since publishing that report, CEP has expanded its data set and performed analyses on survey data compiled from thousands of foundation grantees to explore further the grantee viewpoint on effective foundation communications.

ABOUT THE CENTER FOR EFFECTIVE PHILANTHROPY

The Center for Effective Philanthropy is a nonprofit organization focused on providing management and governance tools to define, assess, and improve overall foundation performance. CEP received initial funding in 2001 and is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. For more information on CEP's work, including its research, publications, and assessment tools, see www.effectivephilanthropy.org.