Articles
Putnam Consulting Group is pleased to share its knowledge with the field
Browse topics below to find articles to inspire and guide your work.
Leadership and Governance
- 6 Mistakes Philanthropists Make During a Crisis (And What They Can Do Instead)
- Delusional Altruism: Avoiding Self-Deception and Disrespect
- Eight Questions to Improve Your Philanthropic Giving This Year
- Are You a New Philanthropy CEO? Don’t Make These Five Mistakes
- Scarcity or Abundance? – Which Mindset Guides Your Organization?
- Using an Abundance Mentality to Streamline Foundation Processes
- Don’t Do This – 10 Mistakes New Foundation Boards Make, and How to Avoid Them
- Similar and Different – Five Key Shifts from Hospital Foundation Board to Private Foundation Board
- 10 Essential Roles of Foundation Board Members
- 10 Essential Roles of Good Foundation Boards
- Telling the Truth – 3 Myths of Foundation Work
- Successful Leadership Recognition Programs – Turning “Thank You” into Ongoing Growth and Development
- Creating a Culture of Respect in Philanthropy
Strategy
- 8 Things Every Philanthropist Can Do to Change the World (Even When the World Keeps Changing)
- Increasing Speed in Philanthropy
- Fostering Innovation in Philanthropy
- The Role of Philanthropy in Systems Change
- Responsive vs. Strategic Grantmaking: Exploring the Options
- Special Ops – 5 Situations for Deploying a Red Team
- Boost Your Impact: 3 Techniques to Pack a Punch
- Supercharge Your Grantmaking Strategy – 7 Ways to Get the Biggest Bang for Your Bucks
- How to (Not) Strike Fear in Grantees – Developing and Bringing Your New Strategic Plan Online Without Alienating Your Community
Grantmaking
- Get Out of Your Bubble and Into Your Community
- 5 Best Practices of Extraordinary Grantmakers
- From Essential to Savvy: Key Practices for Effective Grantmaking
- Asking “What If?” Using Research and Development as a Strategy to Achieve Dramatic Impact
- Successful RFP Management for Foundations – 10 Tips to Select the Best Grantees
- Do Your Homework to Increase Grantmaking Success
- Prepare for the Expected: 5 Grantmaking Challenges You Will Experience, and How to Avoid Them
- From Ingenuity to Implementation – 10 Ways to Shape Your Foundation’s Newest Grantmaking Initiative
- The Secret of Success – One Question Guaranteed to Save Funders Time, Save Money, and Achieve Results
- Sharpen Your Focus – 5 Questions That Will Improve Your Grantmaking
- Who Is Your Customer? Improve Your Grantmaking by Improving Your Focus
- Fail vs Flourish – 3 Reasons Your New Funding Initiative Will Falter
- 9 Smart Practices of Savvy Grantmakers
- 11 Essential Practices for Effective Grantmaking
Communication Tools
- The Power of a Communications Plan – Why You Need One Now – and How to Get It Rolling
- Engage Key Stakeholders with a Successful Communications Plan – The 4 Dimensions of Successful Communication
- The Strategy Behind the Story – Putting the Pieces in Place for an Effective Communications Plan
- Eight Ways to Share Lessons Learning
Special Topics
- The Road to Achieving Equity: Findings and Lessons from a Field Scan of Foundations That Are Embracing Equity (full article)
- The Road to Achieving Equity: 12 Findings from a Field Scan of Foundations That Are Embracing Equity (2-page summary)
- After Disaster Strikes: 8 Strategies for Supporting Disaster Recovery Efforts for the Long Term
Working with Consultants
- How to Effectively Hire a Consultant – 5 Tips for a Win-Win Relationship
- Why RFPs Waste Time – Choose a Better Approach to Finding a Great Consultant
- Don’t Need a Consultant? 5 Good Reasons You Might Be Wrong
- 20 Ways a Consultant Can Make Your Life Easier – A Little Outside Help Goes a Long Way
- Don’t Do It – 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Hiring Philanthropy Consultants
- What To Do When You’ve Inherited a Consultant