Grantmakers Who Get It: Investing in Leadership for Philanthropic Impact In a recent blog post in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Ira Hirschfield, President of the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund presents the case that foundations need to do more to fund leadership development. In the blog “Investing in Leadership to Accelerate Philanthropic Impact,” Hirschfield points out less than 1 percent of overall foundation … Continue reading “Grantmakers Who Get It: Investing in Leadership for Philanthropic Impact” In a recent blog post in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Ira Hirschfield, President of the Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund presents the case that foundations need to do more to fund leadership development. In the blog “Investing in Leadership to Accelerate Philanthropic Impact,” Hirschfield points out less than 1 percent of overall foundation giving from 1992 through 2011 went to leadership development. Leadership Advanced Milwaukee 2014 Fellows. Leadership Advanced is a foundation-funded, cohort-based, peer-centered, professional development program for nonprofit leaders. Why Funding Talent Matters Hirschfield states, “foundations ask a great deal of the organizations we support… we hope grantees will deliver transformational results for the people and places they serve. So it’s striking how seldom we back that up with funds to help organizations develop and strengthen the ability of their leaders to meet those high expectations.” He continues “People are not born with everything it takes to manage and motivate a team, build coalitions and lead change – and are certainly not born knowing how to be good board members….” The Haas, Jr. Fund views investment in leadership as a core strategy to accelerate their foundation’s impact and a formal evaluation of their Flexible Leadership Awards found the program boosted impact. Adding protein powder to grantmakers energy shake One Flexible Leadership Awards grantee shares her experience as “It’s like adding protein powder to your other grants. If you want your other grants to be successful—if you want your grantees to do the best job in meeting their deliverables and moving the ball forward in their movements—you have to invest in leadership development.” Hirschfield explains, “This is what leadership development is about – and to the extent that foundations decide it is important and fund it, then we and our grantees will be better positioned to achieve our goals for impact.” Read more at Hirschfield’s blog and check out SSIR’s entire Talent Matters series to learn more about philanthropy’s chronic underinvestment in leadership and innovative solutions for greater impact. Call to Action for Grantmakers Does your foundation want to accelerate its impact? And what does a leadership program look like? Check out Leadership Advanced Milwaukee, a collaboration of Vista Global and Spectrum Nonprofit Services. Would the nonprofit leaders in your city or region benefit from a similar leadership development program? Contact Vista Global Coaching & Consulting to learn more about starting a cohort-based, peer-centered, professional development program in your area.
Nonprofit Leaders: Are You Prepared to Pass the Torch? Over the past 10 years, leadership development and succession planning in the nonprofit sector has been gaining increased attention. In 2006, a national research study of nonprofit executive leadership found that 75% of leaders planned to retire in 5 years. In 2011, the study was conducted again and although the pace of transition was dampened … Continue reading “Nonprofit Leaders: Are You Prepared to Pass the Torch?” Over the past 10 years, leadership development and succession planning in the nonprofit sector has been gaining increased attention. In 2006, a national research study of nonprofit executive leadership found that 75% of leaders planned to retire in 5 years. In 2011, the study was conducted again and although the pace of transition was dampened by the recession, executive turnover remains high. While the economy’s recovery is still in question, the need for more nonprofit leaders is irrefutable. The current prediction? Approximately 640,000 nonprofit leaders will be needed by 2016. What are we as a sector doing to nurture the next generation of leaders? Is your organization prepared for a turnover in leadership? Stay tuned for an upcoming informative webinar this spring! Webinar participants will explore strategies to strengthen nonprofit leadership and commit to the next generation of nonprofit sector leaders. Can’t wait for the webinar to get started on succession planning? Email me today.
Equality and Equity: Our Generation’s Legacy Growing up in Illinois, “the Land of Lincoln” I took a special interest in our sixteenth president and his efforts to create a nation where “all men are created equal” and that we are a “government of the people, by the people, for the people.” I was born a year after the Civil Rights Act … Continue reading “Equality and Equity: Our Generation’s Legacy” Growing up in Illinois, “the Land of Lincoln” I took a special interest in our sixteenth president and his efforts to create a nation where “all men are created equal” and that we are a “government of the people, by the people, for the people.” I was born a year after the Civil Rights Act was passed and two years after Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have A Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, commemorating 100 years since the Emancipation Proclamation. In a legal sense, I never experienced my country’s segregation. But as I started public elementary school, these core tenets of equality (as I understood them) didn’t seem to line up with how things were done. This experience raised my awareness of equality and equity. Equality is being treated the same. Equal opportunity, equal access to success. But when there are roadblocks to this success, equity comes into play. Equal access doesn’t mean equal outcome. For example, even though I am allowed to apply for college using the same application process as a male in the name of equal access, this doesn’t mean we arrived at that college application investing the same level of effort or will have an equitable experience let alone the same level of success. Difference can be correlated to inequality or diversity. How do we value the difference between one another? How do we value diversity? Equity is a way that we can arrive at a place where we can value that difference. “Leveling the playing field” is a term used to create equity. Example: On the track, when running 400 meters, instead of placing runners at the starting line, the runners are placed in a staggered start to create equity. Register for the Leadership and Equity webinar on January 28, 2014. These concepts of equality and equity are important because in our generation, discrimination is often unintentional or less overt when compared to the era of Martin Luther King, Jr. But just because discrimination is unintentional does not mean it won’t have a lasting negative impact. When we unintentionally surround ourselves with people just like ourselves we don’t have awareness of the roadblocks or challenges that some may face to achieve that same status. Whether we are at a board meeting or a cocktail party, if everyone is the same race, class, gender or sexual orientation, we can’t benefit from the wisdom that comes from sharing diverse perspectives. Yes I am of the post-Civil Rights Act generation that did not witness segregation. There is awareness among my peers about equality. But there is less awareness and understanding of equity and why it is critical to a fair and just society. If you have interest in exploring this topic of equality and equity, please join me and my colleague, Cheryl D. Fields on March 25, 2014 at 1pm PST/4pm EST for a webinar entitled Leadership & Equity hosted by the Leadership Learning Community. Register for the webinar today! We will continue this dialogue and what role each one of us can play to move our world closer toward the vision shared by Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr.
