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As funders, our immediate response to the onset of a global pandemic early in 2020 was humanitarian: to increase our support and to provide it in more flexible ways. Now, as we see that COVID-19’s impact will be lasting and pronounced, philanthropy needs to shift to...
The crises this country has endured for nearly a year now have underscored the desperate need for donors to provide the kind of flexible funding and trust that nonprofits require to be effective. Nonprofits have been on the front lines of responding to community needs...
In 2020, Luminate, a global philanthropic organization with the goal of empowering people and institutions to work together to build just and fair societies, commissioned CEP to survey its grantee partners through the Grantee Perception Report (GPR). A version of this...
As our team at Moses Taylor Foundation began responding to the impacts of COVID-19 in Northeastern Pennsylvania, we were uncertain where we’d land. But we knew exactly where to begin: with listening. And as we continue to wrestle with so many questions...
For years, every time I’ve traveled outside of Boston, I took a picture and turned it into a postcard to send to my now 97-year-old grandmother, who lives on her own in rural Maine. She replies with a card. We write about things little and big — our shared love of...
As COVID-19’s rapid spread has wreaked havoc on our sector, more than 550 foundations (at the time of writing) have signed a pledge to support our nonprofit partners and the people and communities hardest hit by the pandemic and associated economic impacts. The pledge...
During the past 15 years, I’ve spent a lot of time (some might say an unusual amount, even) thinking about the importance of gathering and responding to feedback from the people social sector programs are designed to help. I initially got the “feedback bug” in 2008...
It’s easy to lament all that’s not what it could be in philanthropy. It’s important, even, because critique can lead to improvement. But too many of the critiques I read are generalized, sweeping, and, finally, unhelpful — offering little in the way of practical paths...
In the current sociopolitical moment, in which many with less power (or those who have been strategically disenfranchised) find themselves struggling to get those in power to listen, there’s broad agreement in philanthropy about the importance of constituent input....
Almost 20 years ago, I accepted my first job in philanthropy. Right before I started, a mentor of mine asked, “Brenda, who do you think you will be accountable to when you start your new program officer job?” “My new boss,” I said immediately. “No,” he said, “Try...
While the idea and practice of using feedback to better inform and improve performance is gaining prominence in the social sector, the earliest adopters have been almost exclusively organizations that provide direct services to clients. Providing direct services is...
This post originally appeared on the Community Wealth Partners blog. As Grant Oliphant of the Heinz Endowments kicked off the Center for Effective Philanthropy’s 2019 conference, he reminded us of the seriousness of the time we’re in — increasing income...
This past September, the Howard Gilman Foundation received its first Grantee Perception Report (GPR) results from CEP, which included a few recommendations for next steps based on grantee feedback. As a team, we found the first of the recommendations to be...
This is the final post in a six-part series on what nonprofit leaders think foundation funders could improve upon in their work. Findings are based on survey responses from 244 nonprofit leaders who have agreed to be a part of CEP’s Grantee Voice Panel — a nationally...
This is the fifth post in a six-part series on what nonprofit leaders think foundation funders could improve upon in their work. Findings are based on survey responses from 244 nonprofit leaders who have agreed to be a part of CEP’s Grantee Voice Panel — a nationally...
This is the fourth post in a six-part series on what nonprofit leaders think foundation funders could improve upon in their work. Findings are based on survey responses from 244 nonprofit leaders who have agreed to be a part of CEP’s Grantee Voice Panel — a nationally...
This is the third post in a six-part series on what nonprofit leaders think foundation funders could improve upon in their work. Findings are based on survey responses from 244 nonprofit leaders who have agreed to be a part of CEP’s Grantee Voice Panel — a nationally...
This is the second post in a six-part series on what nonprofit leaders think foundation funders could improve upon in their work. Findings are based on survey responses from 244 nonprofit leaders who have agreed to be a part of CEP’s Grantee Voice Panel — a nationally...
At CEP, we adhere to the core principle that grantees are a crucial link between funders and their ability to have impact. This shouldn’t be surprising nor controversial. After all, grantee organizations and the individuals who make them up are the ones doing the hard...
A couple of weeks ago, CEP Manager, Assessment and Advisory Services, Charlotte Brugman was joined by City Bridge Trust Funding and Social Investment Director Tim Wilson and C&A Foundation Head of Effective Philanthropy Lee Risby for an insightful webinar...