Philanthropy Front and Center-San Francisco

Back By Popular Demand: Webinars to Help Your Nonprofit Survive & Emerge Stronger

Now that we've lived through over a year of the economic downturn, you may be seeing the light at the end of tunnel in your nonprofit -- or maybe that light hasn't reached you yet and you're still in crisis mode. Regardless of your current position, you'll benefit from our new webinar training series, Turning Economic Crisis into Opportunity: How Nonprofits Can Survive and Emerge Stronger.

If this series sounds familiar, that's because we debuted it in October to a very positive response, so we've decided to repeat it. In the four sessions, you will learn to evaluate how well your organization uses resources to achieve its mission; apply the most effective short-term and medium-range strategies to ensure its survival; determine which revenue option is best; and implement the five essential characteristics of effective, sustainable nonprofits.

By understanding and strengthening your current financial health, you'll be prepared to make the most of economic recovery and secure your long-term sustainability. In addition, you'll develop skills that help you adapt to any economic climate.

Registration fee: $45 for each session.
Special offer: Register by November 30 for the complete four-part series for only $135...
YOU SAVE $45! Get four webinars for the price of three!

Click any title to get details and register.

• Special Offer: Complete Four-Part Series for $135
• Assessing Your Nonprofit's Financial Health, Tuesday, December 1
• Survival Strategies for Your Nonprofit, Thursday, December 3
• Strengthening Your Nonprofit's Income Portfolio, Tuesday, December 8
• Beyond the Recession: Building Sustainability, Thursday, December 10

SOCAP Recap

If you have been navigating the Social Capital Markets (SOCAP09) waters, then you know social impact assessment and developing metrics has been at the heart of many discussions at this year's conference. Everyone has an interest in this topic: social entrepreneurs, foundations, nonprofit organizations, policymakers, researchers, investors, financial strategists, media--everyone. And for many reasons, social impact assessment is difficult.

There are 2 impact measurement resources the Foundation Center and McKinsey & Company have been exhibiting at the SOCAP conference, respectively:

• Philanthropy IN/Sight: an interactive mapping that enables users to visualize data in ways that reveal patterns and relationships. Essentially it's a mash-up of our Grantmaker data, our Grants data, and Google Maps, which allows users to assess impact, funding needs, and effectiveness with layered demographic and other thematic data.
• Learning for Social Impact: a to-be-launched-later-this-fall web portal is part of McKinsey & Company's Social Sector's Office approach and commitment to sharing insights and innovations that can help advance social change. One of the deliverables included in the Learning for Social Impact portal will be a repository of 150+ social impact assessment tools available to the public for free. To find out when this database, white paper and e-learning handbook will be available, sign up here.

If you want to learn more about how to prove your organizational impact and increase your understanding of outcome thinking and management, then register for our upcoming class,Friday, September 25th.

 

From The Answer Desk: What Information are Foundations Typically Looking for in Program Evaluations?

A: When accepting foundation grant dollars for your organization's programs and services, it is expected, and, in many cases, required, that you report to your foundation donors at the end of the grant period exactly what was accomplished, including a financial reporting of how the dollars were spent. Foundations are interested in receiving reported feedback about how your organization met the goals and objectives outlined in your proposal. Funding reports typically contain information about the overall success of the program along with detailed information about the activities offered to clients, your organization's methods (what did you do? what worked? what surprised you?), and progress made toward reaching the targeted outcome(s) or impact of the funded program.

What follows are a few online resources that provide more insight into program evaluation:

Aimed at the grantmaking community, the Evaluation Techniques Series at GrantCraft, a project of the Ford Foundation, includes information about several common evaluation techniques: participatory action research, collaborative inquiry, outcomes and evaluation, theory of change, collaborative inquiry, and ethnographic approaches to evaluation. Free registration is required to view the full-text documents.

To equip grantees with program evaluation skills for ensuring that their programs achieve their desired outcomes, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation makes available an Evaluation Toolkit, Evaluation Handbook, and additional resources.

The United Way's Outcome Measurement Resource Network offers information, documents, and resources for "identifying and measuring program- and community-level outcomes."

The Urban Institute and Center for What Works publication, Building a Common Outcome Framework to Measure Nonprofit Performance [PDF], suggests core indicators for 14 categories of nonprofit organizations and then expands the notion of common core indicators to a much wider variety of programs by suggesting a common framework of outcome indicators for all nonprofit programs. 

To locate additional resources, search our Catalog of Nonprofit Literature on the subject "Program evaluations."

To learn how to measure the impact of your organization's programs, register for our seminar, Outcome Thinking and Management: Shifting Focus From Activities to Results.

Do you have a question? Ask Us.

(This post is from Katie Artzner, the Foundation Center's online librarian.)

Fall 2009 Seminars at the Foundation Center-San Francisco, Apply for a Scholarship

This fall we are offering nine essential courses to help you get through today's tough fundraising environment. 

In addition, we are now accepting scholarship applications for our full-day training seminars. If you represent a California nonprofit organization with a budget under $1,000,000, you are eligible. Learn more and apply»

September:

Foundation Fundraising: An Introductory Course: September 15, 9 am - 4 pm.
Gain a thorough introduction to the world of foundations and instruction in identifying prospective funders.

Proposal Budgeting Workshop: September 24, 9 am - 4 pm. 
Learn to compose and present budgets for your organization and its programs.

Outcome Thinking & Management: September 25, 9 am - 4 pm.
Shift your organization's focus from project activities to outcomes and results. 

October:

Foundation Funding Research: Strategies for Finding & Evaluating Prospects: October 15 - 16, 1 - 4 pm, Day One, and 9 am - 4pm, Day Two.
Learn to chart your organization's needs and find funders using Foundation Directory Online Professional,the Foundation Center's top-tier online database of grantmakers.

Developing a Fundraising Plan: October 20, 9 am - 4 pm. 
Learn to plan and implement a critical-asset based approach to secure a diverse mix of funding.  

November:

Foundation Fundraising: An Introductory Course: November 5, 9 am - 4 pm.
Gain a thorough introduction to the world of foundations and instruction in identifying prospective funders.

Cultivating Grantmaker Relationships: November 10, 9 am - 4 pm.
Strengthen the partnership between your organization and its funders.

Grantseeker Training Institute: November 16 - 20, 9 am - 4 pm daily.
Update your grantseeking strategy to meet current economic challenges in a single week.

December:

Proposal Writing Seminar: December 3, 9 am - 4 pm.
Gain proposal writing experience needed to secure grants from foundations and corporate sources.

Foundation Funding Research: Strategies for Finding & Evaluating Prospects: December 7 - 8, 1 - 4 pm, Day One, and 9 am - 4pm, Day Two.
Learn to chart your organization's needs and find funders using Foundation Directory Online Professional,the Foundation Center's top-tier online database of grantmakers.

Securing Corporate Partnerships: December 10, 9 am - 4 pm.
Learn the unique characteristics of corporate funders and where to make inroads to gain their support.

Philanthropy at Its Best

In March 2009, National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) released a report called Criteria for Philanthropy at Its Best: Benchmarks to Assess and Enhance Grantmaker Impact. This report has sparked a national debate and tugs at the root of some deep philosophical chasms in our sector. According to NCRP, "[t]he Criteria is the first ever set of measurable guidelines that will help foundations and other institutional grantmakers operate ethically and maximize the impact of their dollars. It attempts to answer the questions: What differentiates an exemplary foundation from the rest of its peers? What can foundations do to improve its relevance to nonprofits, the economically and socially underserved Americans and society as a whole?”

The report was written using Foundation Center data and can be read in its entirety on the NCRP web site http://www.ncrp.org/paib. Have a look and let us know where you fall on this debate.

(This post was written by C. Davis Fischer, training coordinator, Foundation Center--San Francisco.)

What's Our Value?

In late April, we had the great fortune of welcoming Steven LaFrance to the Center to present: "What's Our Value?: Using Evaluation to Make the Case for Health and Human Services in Tight Times." His presentation was quite engaging so we asked him to blog about a common misconception in evaluation.

From Steven: The Theory of Change and Logic Model: Two Different Terms for the Same Thing? No! The fact that these terms are often used interchangeably, even though they refer to different concepts, is a reflection of the confusion in the social sector about what they are and how they can be valuable to nonprofits and foundations. The Theory of Change (ToC) is a framework that helps to show, in an easy-to-understand format, how your organization's programs and strategies align with its intended outcomes and, ultimately, the mission. Thus, the ToC framework is generally more useful for an organization as a whole or collection of programs/strategies in an initiative, rather than a single program. Also, unlike a logic model, the ToC often includes components to describe the internal context (e.g., values, guiding principles, operating assumptions) as well as the external context (e.g., sociopolitical and economic factors in the environment, community needs and assets) in which the organization is doing its work. The Logic model, on the other hand, drills down into more specific details about a program's resources, activities, outputs, and outcomes. The outcomes on a logic model are almost always broken out by progressive timeframes (immediate or short term, intermediate term, and long term), showing the small steps that are needed to advance towards an ultimate impact. There is one way in which they are similar in my book: their form should follow function. The most appropriate components of and format for a ToC or logic model are those that are most relevant for your organization.

The high-impact nonprofit and foundation of the 21st century has a Theory of Change for the organization overall, and logic models that link to and drill down on the outcomes in the ToC for each of its program strategy areas. For nonprofits that are often in the position of contorting themselves to fit funders' paradigms, developing an organizational ToC and program logic models enables a deeper, more empowered conversation with funders. Take a step towards becoming the dog that wags it own tail by developing an organizational Theory of Change with linked logic models!

(This post is from C. Davis Fischer, the Foundation Center-San Francisco's training coordinator.)

 

Will Foundations Change Their Ways?

Be sure to check out the new controversial publication from the Washington, DC-based National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP), Criteria for Philanthropy at Its Best: Benchmarks to Assess and Enhance Grantmaker Impact. The report “provides grantmakers with the tools to ask themselves some long-overdue, perhaps difficult questions.”

NCRP proposes three criteria - Values, Effectiveness and Ethics - along with relevant strategies for foundations who aspire to practice philanthropy at its best. Some of the strategies are not surprising - for example, maintaining policies and practices that support ethical behavior. Others are more controversial, such as the recommendation that foundations provide at least 50% of their grant dollars as multi-year grants.

These criteria have been endorsed by a number of philanthropic leaders and scholars including Paul Light, Pablo Eisenberg, Bob Edgar and Kim Klein. Foundations such as The Atlantic Philanthropies and the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation have also joined the effort. The NCRP recommendations have the support of Representative Xavier Becerra (D-CA), senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee, who has described nonprofits as being "more nimble and creative" than the government. Rep. Becerra has also noted the need for accountability, transparency, and fiscal responsibility in the nonprofit sector and acknowledged the oversight role of Congress.

The report will be widely circulated and is sure to spark lively discussions at conferences and online. It has already been critiqued by The Chronicle of Philanthropy (3/3/09) and The Wall Street Journal (3/3/09). It is also noted on Philanthropy News Digest (3/4/09)

Take a look at the report and tell us what you think. Will foundations sign on?

Drowning in Paperwork? Project Streamline to the rescue!

Whether you are a tireless development professional who regularly must satisfy grantmaker application and reporting requirements, or a grantmaker who must somehow find the time to wade through the paper coming at you, you will find a new report, Drowning in Paperwork, Distracted from Purpose to be a document well worth your precious time.  This is a report from Project Streamline, an initiative of the Grants Managers Network. 

Facing an "effectiveness paradox," foundations have begun to recognize that some of the measures they've adopted to ensure strategic and accountable grantmaking are backfiring, resulting in a system that drains both foundations and nonprofits of time and energy. 

The report found ten ways in which the current system of grant application and reporting creates more burdens than it relieves. Noting that nonprofits don't receive grants as much as "net grants" — the total amount of funding minus the true cost of obtaining and managing a grant — the report found that in many cases grants aren't worth the time and labor spent on applications and reporting. The report also described a phenomenon it called "outsourcing the burden," in which "grantseekers are required to do what is essentially the grantmaker's work without compensation."

The study found that grantmakers generally limit their use of grant reports to checking compliance, and that only 27 percent of grantmakers said they share information about challenges and lessons learned from grant reports with others in their field. Some grantees interviewed for the report said they perceived this lack of data sharing as a sign that grantmakers distrust them.  One nonprofit executive is memorably quoted as stating "We assume that they feed everything to a giant fiery furnace."

To spur an open dialogue about the grant application and reporting system, the report offers recommendations that grantmakers can adopt to relieve the burden on nonprofits, including assessing what information grantmakers really need to make decisions and minimizing the amount of time, effort, and money that grantees spend getting and administering grants. The report noted that a growing number of funders are already taking action in this regard, with eight out of the ten grantmakers surveyed indicating they had taken steps to streamline their application and reporting practices.

"Almost every funder has a unique application and reporting process, and they're adopted for sensible and responsible reasons," said Richard Toth, Project Streamline chair and director of the office of proposal management at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "But the problem our research underscores is the cumulative effect of these measures. Imagine each set of requirements multiplied by thousands of grantmakers and you get a sense of the gauntlet nonprofits face. We've created Project Streamline to do something about it."

Are you drowning in paperwork?  How long is the average foundation grant application taking you to complete?  And are you finding new online applications a more streamlined way of doing things, or are they taking you more time to complete?  And if you are a grantmaker, have you recently streamlined your application process?

Project Streamline is funded by the David and Lucile Packard, Ford, Frey, Harold K.L. Castle, Kansas Health, Kresge, McKnight, Robert Wood Johnson, and Saint Luke's foundations.