Mission, Vision, and Values

CEP’s Mission

The Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) is a nonprofit organization focused on the development of data and insight to enable higher-performing funders. CEP’s mission is to provide data and create insight so philanthropic funders can better define, assess, and improve their effectiveness – and, as a result, their intended impact.

We believe each employee has a strong sense of ownership for the work that they do, and the work of CEP as a whole. Strengths of CEP’s work culture are entrepreneurialism, accountability, teamwork, collegiality, diversity, and mutual respect.

CEP’s Vision

This mission is based on a vision of a world in which pressing social needs are more effectively addressed. It stems from a belief that improved effectiveness of philanthropic funders can have a profoundly positive impact on nonprofit organizations and the people and communities they serve.

For more on CEP’s work and mission, watch this brief video here.

CEP’s Culture

In 2016, a cross-organizational task force at CEP, with input from full staff, crafted a working document articulating CEP’s culture. This document represents what we believe to be CEP’s culture today and the culture we intend to foster going forward:

FOCUSED ON OUR MISSION

We have a passionate commitment to the missions of CEP and YouthTruth.

DIVERSITY

We are committed to a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment.

AUTHENTIC & OPEN COMMUNICATION

We thoughtfully and respectfully say what we mean and we mean what we say.

FUN!

We’re a group of friendly folks that enjoy each other’s company.

PEOPLE

Our people are our greatest asset. We are a group of high performers doing high-quality, meaningful work with a commitment to excellence.

VOICE

All of us have an important and valued voice, and we believe that great ideas come from across the entire organization.

SUPPORTIVE, CARING & COLLEGIAL ENVIRONMENT

We have a culture of genuine care, concern and mutual respect in a positive environment that builds honesty and trust; one in which we share successes and responsibilities.

BIG GOALS & CLEAR ROLES

Stemming from our passion about our mission, and our commitment to excellence and high-quality work, we set ambitious, lofty — and achievable — goals for ourselves and our teams and set ourselves up for success.

LEARNING TO IMPROVE

In our effort to be impactful and effective, we are always learning, changing, and improving. That means we take calculated risks, make mistakes along the way, and take the time to learn from them.

HARD WORK, NOT OVERWORK

We value hard work and productivity just as much as we value a flexible workplace that allows us all to have a life.

CEP’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Vision

At the center of CEP are people – the people whom we serve, the people whose voices we amplify, and the staff who are the lifeblood of our organization. We believe that a diversity of thoughts, experiences, backgrounds, personalities, and identities helps us think bigger and better, and enables us to more effectively reach our organizational goals. We are committed to a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment, where all feel welcomed to be authentic and contribute fully. We respect qualities and experiences that are different than our own. We share our approaches and their relative success publicly in order to openly exchange ideas with other organizations. We are committed to exploring the relationship between Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices and funder effectiveness, highlighting those who incorporate DEI practices into their philanthropy.

We strive to achieve the following goals:

DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION ARE INTRINSIC IN CEP’S CULTURE

CEP’s policies and practices are inclusive, and staff are aware of how diversity, equity, and inclusion relate to the goals and mission of the organization.

RECRUITMENT PROCESSES ATTAIN QUALIFIED, DIVERSE STAFF AND REFLECT OUR VALUES

The pool of candidates, both at the onset of recruiting and also in final stages are diverse (i.e. by race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, socio-economic status, and geographically). Recruitment processes guard against the effects of implicit bias, and staff are equipped to evaluate candidates equitably.

OUR ORGANIZATION ENGAGES AND RETAINS A SUCCESSFUL, DIVERSE STAFF

Everyone at the organization is given the opportunity and resources to succeed.

CEP’S WORK INCORPORATES AND HIGHLIGHTS DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION PRACTICES AS THEY RELATE TO EFFECTIVENESS

CEP contributes data to conversations about DEI and highlights best practices through its work (its research, assessment and advisory services, conference programming, and YouthTruth).

CEP CONTRIBUTES TO THE CONVERSATION ABOUT DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION PRACTICES IN PHILANTHROPY

CEP shares what we are doing to incorporate DEI values, as well as the challenges and successes we experience as a result of our approaches. Through these efforts, we continue to support and reinforce a sector where all may learn from each other and improve.