Philanthropy and nonprofit leaders will continue jumping on tools and tactics, when strategy and judgment are needed. That’s the first philanthropy trend I predict for 2015, and I will share four more in the coming weeks. Let me give you a few examples of what I mean: 1 – Infographics: I’m all for finding visual […]
Philanthropy Needs Strategy and Judgment, Not Tools and Tactics Read More »
Last week I stayed at the Marriott Marquis in downtown San Francisco, and I was blown away by the nonstop, excellent level of customer service I experienced. What I learned is applicable to foundations and consultants, and I want to share six lessons learned with you. 1. Treat everyone like they are important (even when you
What I Learned About Customer Service from Marriott Read More »
This blog was originally written as a guest post for GlassPockets, a blog of the Foundation Center. When funders want to know about a particular issue or have questions about process, they often look first to peers and industry associations for answers. That makes perfect sense—the people who do the same job you do are
Increase Transparency by Broadening Your Perspective Read More »
Foundations pride themselves on the good they do for others; that’s the very nature and culture of philanthropy. However, in my 15 years of experience advising foundations, I’ve found that most foundations suffer from delusional altruism. Delusional altruism is when you are genuinely trying to help people – but paying absolutely no attention to the
Delusional Altruism Read More »
Grantmakers, and their consultants, tend to overcomplicate things. Let me give you two simple examples of how this wastes time and prevents success. First: biweekly meetings. I’ve worked for funders who wanted me to stage biweekly meetings, for groups both large and small. In all cases, the process came before the goal: Each funder decided
3 Ways to Reduce Labor Intensity Read More »
Kris discusses the importance of having open, transparent communication from all participants within a grant making program. This podcast provides examples of how to implement top-down, bottom-up, inside-out and all around communication.
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Four Strategies for Communications Planning in Grantmaking Initiatives Read More »