Friday Rewind

The Friday Rewind offers a snapshot of PhilanthroNews —  that means news stories, articles, events of note, or information updates — from around our network and throughout the broad world of philanthropy. Whether you take a quick skim of the material or a deep dive through each item we hope to help inform your work and inspire your thinking.

1. As much as technology can stress us out, it also opens up our options. It takes less time to return a text, for example, than to return a letter. And it might be more efficient to dash off an email than make a phone call, especially after the latter’s obligatory exchange of pleasantries. Each method of communication has its strengths and weaknesses (texting can be perceived as invasive, don’t send an email when a conversation is what’s called for, etc.), but each has its place, and we can draw our own lines based on our individual styles and personalities. In business, as in life, sometimes the little things mean the most. You may not be highly intelligent, highly talented or highly educated, but you can be highly responsive — for which you will likely receive dividends beyond what you even realize. Read more here
2. Sixty percent of endowments and foundations in a new survey cited a slowdown in global growth as the biggest threat to their investment portfolio, compared with 21% of organizations that said this a year ago. Investment consultant and private wealth advisor NEPC reported that 36% of survey participants said the economy was in a worse place, compared with 13% last year. The survey found that overall, charitable giving has stayed strong in spite of the tax reform frenzy. Twenty-eight percent of organizations in the study closed out their annual fundraising with increased levels of donations, and 55% with constant levels. View more results here:
3. A combination of curated, synthesized, and original content, this library of resources from the Mission Investors Exchange is intended to help foundations and investors at different stages of practice begin to explore the many ways they can grow and deepen their commitments to racial equity and impact investing. Organizations early in their journey can scroll to the bottom for resources on what racial equity is and how to engage in broad organizational change—necessary ingredients of lasting commitments in any individual program. Read More Here
4. This excerpt from Education, Equity, and the States explores how education reform requires government reform. It describes how understanding state governance is in fact central to making sense of the emergence, growth, and impact of charter schools as well as the success or failure of other reform efforts, particularly those aimed at addressing inequity. Read more here
5. With more than 30,000 new private foundations established in the U.S. in the past 20 years, it is vital that early-stage grantmakers learn from the wisdom of those who have gone before them so they can avoid common mistakes and position their grantmaking organizations for success. To learn more about what it takes to effectively get a grantmaking organization off the ground, CEP interviewed 35 leaders — including trustees, CEOs, program staff, and operations staff — of 14 grantmaking organizations that were established, or that experienced significant growth, in the past 20 years and that hold at least $350 million in assets. Greater Good: Lessons from Those Who Have Started Major Grantmaking Organizations distills insights gleaned from those interviews, offering guidance for a new wave of philanthropic leaders as they seek to build thriving grantmaking organizations that can best support nonprofits to achieve shared goals. While there is no single blueprint for those new to philanthropy to follow, across CEP’s interviews emerged three key elements for effectively getting grantmaking organizations up and running. Download the report here