Stephen Alexander

More Ways to Create Space for Your Next Generation

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

Last year, for organizations positioned to engage young leaders and for young leaders themselves, a colleague and I shared ways to create a welcoming space for the next generation to learn and build confidence. See Are You Creating Space for Young Leaders to Lead? >>

Because the challenge of engaging the next generation—and getting engaged as a young leader—persists for many Exponent Philanthropy members, I offer here three additional ways to create space at the table for your next generation.

Cultivate an open and supportive culture

Culture matters, a lot. Take the article It’s Not Foundation Money but Culture and Talent That Can Change the World, referencing research by Community Wealth Partners, work by Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, and a study by the Center for Effective Philanthropy—all suggesting that culture is key inside and outside philanthropic organizations.

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3 Indicators of More Effective Foundation Management

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

Evidence indicates many Exponent Philanthropy members have become increasingly adept foundation managers over the past decade. We pulled three indicators from our 2016 Foundation Operations and Management Report, of which you’ll find many more in the full report.

Purchase your copy of the report, with 60+ pages of current data and trends on boards, grantmaking, investments, compensation, and more >> (complimentary to Exponent Philanthropy members in PDF)

Here is just some of what we see:

1. Member foundations are adopting more written policies and other mission-related documents.

Over the past decade, members have increasingly formalized foundation operations, management, and governance by putting their practices into writing.

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5 Things to Know About Coaching in Philanthropy + New Program for Funders

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Coaching for Effective PhilanthropyThis September through December, Exponent Philanthropy will offer a new Coaching for Effective Philanthropy program to equip funders with coaching skills, enabling them to help trustees, staff, and grantees gain awareness, discover new ways of thinking, and focus their energy on solutions. Our Stephen Alexander recently talked with Jen Lachman, executive coach and faculty for the program, to learn more about coaching in the context of philanthropy. 

For those who aren’t familiar with coaching, what’s the most important thing to know? Whether you have a formal coaching relationship or are bringing a coaching mindset to other relationships (think fellow board members, colleagues, grantees, partners, or your spouse), coaching will transform how you’re in relationships with others. You’ll be able to support people in a new and powerful way by helping them reach their own insights and more deeply fulfill their own potential. 

What’s one value you see in coaching for funders? It’s not surprising that funders working with few or no staff can feel isolated at times; whether a board member, staff, or donor, it can easily feel as though you’re going at it alone. Coaching relationships help funders find partners in their work, someone who believes in them 100% and can both support and challenge them to be their best. Feeling deeply supported by another person can make a huge difference to how fulfilled and effective you are in your role.

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Strategies for Educating and Developing Your Board

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

Educating and developing board members can be a challenge for even the most well-intentioned foundations. Board members’ time and energy can be limited. Longstanding board members can grow increasingly comfortable in their roles and with their colleagues. Grantmaking decisions and general business can easily fill agendas.

And yet, we know from our foundation members that ongoing learning is powerful and critical—not only to stay abreast of trends or benchmark foundation practices, but to fuel the engagement and passion that drive foundations toward impact.

As reported in our 2016 Foundation Operations and Management Report, member foundations use many strategies for learning, including site visits, collaborations with other funders, attending conferences, inviting speakers, and more.

Here are additional ways to help your board access ongoing information and inspiration.

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What We Know About Millennial Grantmakers

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

Much is being reported about the Millennial generation, in philanthropy and beyond, and data on Millennials from our recently released 2016 Foundation Operations and Management Report add some interesting points to the discussion.

When asked about the most important issues facing their foundations, Millennial survey respondents were:

  • Twice as likely as the overall survey pool to prioritize field of interest/funding area needs.

As reported by The Millennial Impact Project, “Millennials engage with causes to help other people, not institutions.” They’ve also come of age in an era when social and environmental issues around the globe are more visible than ever before. Could this be part of why our Millennial members emphasize field of interest/funding area needs? Do they feel that there’s more work to be done to address the causes the foundation funds?

  • One-third (34%) more likely to identify a need for greater focus or impact in grantmaking.        

Think back on how often you’ve read the words focus or impact in articles and reports, or the number of times you’ve heard these words at conferences, in meetings, or on phone calls. Millennials are entering philanthropy at a time when focus and impact are being touted as key to effective philanthropy. (Guilty as charged.) In a recent article on six family philanthropy trends to watch in 2016, the National Center for Family Philanthropy included both impact and the growing involvement of Millennials.

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Why We Invest in Nonprofit Talent—and the Grant Program We Created From the Ground Up

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

In its third year, the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network’s (YNPN) Atlanta chapter launched an Opportunity Grant program to support Atlanta’s young nonprofit professionals. YNPN Atlanta awards individual grants up to $750 to current members for professional development opportunities such as conferences, classes, or association memberships. The following is an excerpt from a conversation with Lindsey Hardegree and Kate Naylor who have run the grants program since its inception in 2014.

What motivated you to create YNPN Atlanta’s Opportunity Grants program?

There’s little funding for professional development for young professionals in Atlanta, and it’s frustrating to them. Many organizations, big and small, don’t budget for professional development, and the ones that do typically reserve funds for senior level professionals. We saw this grant program as an opportunity to provide a service that few employers are offering in Atlanta.

We believe the lack of professional development funding impedes young professionals from growing their careers. Your first job in the nonprofit world doesn’t necessarily line up with your long-term ambitions. As nonprofit organizations, we’re oftentimes so focused on operating on our shoestring budgets that we’re unable to properly prepare staff (or ourselves) for the future.

YNPN Atlanta has always strived to provide affordable and accessible professional development opportunities. When we realized we had more money for the year than we needed, we recognized an opportunity to steward our money in a creative way while addressing this obvious need. The answer was clear: give the money back to members in support of their professional development.

Describe your grant program for us.

We’re a tiny organization, and for us this program makes up a massive piece of our $25,000 budget. Our plan is to give away $7,500 over the course of a year, with a maximum of $750 to any single individual. A quarterly grant cycle seemed like a good start, because it offers us flexibility in case we receive more strong applications in any given quarter than we can fund. This last cycle was easily our most competitive!

  • Application—We see the application process itself as a professional development opportunity for members. We want them to be able to spell out why this opportunity is so critical to them, and our questions are aimed at helping applicants think through their big-picture career goals.

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Voices of Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy 

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

Join me to explore the values and visions of emerging leaders of a social-minded generation. Below is an excerpt from my recent conversation with Megan Buckley, chair of the Tracy Family Foundation‘s Next Generation Advisory Board and a 2015 Exponent Philanthropy Next Gen Fellow.

Read previous posts in the series

What are your passions?

Members of Tracy Family Foundation

Megan (L) and members of Tracy Family Foundation

I’m most passionate about carrying out the traditions and values of my grandmother and grandfather Tracy: a Catholic/Christian belief, honesty, integrity, fairness, and a strong work ethic. They passed down these values to their 12 children, and my aunts and uncles have done a great job of passing them along to the third generation. A goal of mine is to continue that tradition with the fourth generation—we already have eight!—and carry on the legacy of the Tracy Family Foundation.

How do these values play out in your life?

I’ve always been encouraged by my family to put my best foot forward—to lean in (yes, like the book). I actively pursue volunteer opportunities, education, jobs, and board roles at the organizations I’m involved in. While living in Chicago, I—along with two of my cousins—started a chapter of Dining for Women. I also joined the junior board of Girls on the Run, my first board position outside my family’s work. It was a wonderful chance to test the waters, to see how another board operates. When I moved to St. Louis, I joined the junior board of the Foster and Adoptive Care Coalition and Wings of Hope. I just joined Wings of Hope’s board executive committee, which should be a great learning experience. My family has encouraged me, and it’s led to me taking those little steps.

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Voices of Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

Join me to explore the values and visions of emerging leaders of a social-minded generation. Below is an excerpt from my recent conversation with Hannah Quimby, director at the Quimby Family Foundation and 2015 Exponent Philanthropy Next Gen Fellow. 

One of things I love most about these conversations is learning about younger funders’ passions. What are you deeply passionate about? 

Quimby2I’m really passionate about developing relationships with the nonprofits we’re working with. Here in Maine, it’s actually possible to build consistent, sustained relationships, to get to know the people doing the work, and to provide support, not just through grantmaking but in other ways as well.

I’m also passionate about outdoor education, health and wellness, and creating access to healthy, local, affordable food. I believe positive outdoor experiences will help create the next generation of people who care about the environment. It can be viewed as a public health strategy too, because being outdoors improves so many measures of health.

For the past five or six years, I’ve volunteered with Bay Area Wilderness Training, a nonprofit based in Oakland, CA, focused on getting kids outdoors. For the last year, my fiancé and I have actually been on the road serving as ambassadors for the organization (the regional model is expanding nationwide and is called The Outdoors Empowered Network). We meet with people who have met with the director or who want to learn more about the trainings and programs.

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8 (More) Organizations Developing Social-Minded Leaders

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By Stephen Alexander, Exponent Philanthropy

It’s all about the people.

At Exponent Philanthropy, we believe your people—staff and trustees—are among your philanthropy’s greatest assets. Last summer, I wrote about 8 networks and programs investing in leadership development, particularly for young, social-minded professionals and philanthropists. This summer, I’m back with eight more.

With time, I’ve come to realize the importance of investing in leaders at all levels. After all, who is the driving force behind change? The people. It’s not a surprise that several funders within the ranks of Exponent Philanthropy’s membership also believe in this notion and fund accordingly: Siragusa Foundation, The Miles Foundation, the Robertson Foundation for Government, the Eugene & Agnes E. Meyer Foundation, the Community Memorial Foundation, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation to name a few.[i]

Yet, argues Rusty Stahl of Talent Philanthropy Project, there’s an egregious deficit of investment in leaders in the social sector. And Rusty’s not alone. As NCRP reported earlier this year, from 2003–2012, just 0.8 percent of total grants and 0.9 percent of total dollars granted from the largest 1,000 foundations went to nonprofit leadership development.

What’s more, there’s a stark divide in leadership development investment between the for-profit and nonprofit sectors: “for-profit businesses routinely invest $129 per employee for leadership development every year, while the civic sector invests only $29 per employee.” Fortunately, this is something we can change with time, and many throughout the field are already hard at work highlighting the value of investing in people.

On to the list: Eight more organizations working hard to develop social sector leaders. This is not meant to be a comprehensive list; see the “Leadership” section of American Express’s 2014 grant list for even more.

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Are You Creating Space for Young Leaders to Lead?

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By Stephen Alexander and Corey Jannicelli, Exponent Philanthropy 

confidenceMany young philanthropists ask themselves early on, Am I doing this right? It is understandable that emerging leaders may feel underprepared. They often are the youngest or newest member of a board or staff, sometimes just starting their professional journeys.

But something more powerful than age or experience is also at work: Almost to a fault—and, in our experience, without exception—young leaders in philanthropy approach their new positions with such deference—with such desire to add value and carry forward a legacy—that they humbly hesitate to contribute from the start, or to contribute confidently. Complex family dynamics can add additional hurdles.

If your organization is positioned to engage young leaders—or if you are a young leader yourself, your peers offer the following pointers for creating a welcoming space with opportunities to learn and build confidence.

Make Time for Meaningful Orientation

At the Donley Foundation, Executive Director Daphne Rowe created an intensive training program to onboard the next generation. “It was a detailed training,” says Jenny Donley, now a third-generation trustee. “We had assignments every few months, presented at board meetings, sat in on calls with the other next gen’ers, and, at the end, were tasked with making a discretionary grant.”

“I’ve been going on site visits with my dad,” says Sapphira Goradia, executive director of The Goradia Foundation in Houston. “It’s been so helpful to see what questions he asks from a business perspective. I think we better understand how we complement each other in this work.” 

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