Over the last 15 years, I’ve consulted with a few clients who, in the midst of our strategic planning sessions or evaluation efforts, must deal with the added stress of handling conflict within their boards. At best, these conflicts are time- and energy-consuming hassles. At worst, they can derail an entire planning or implementation process or bring a foundation’s momentum to a screeching halt.
I’m happy to report that extreme conflict is the exception rather than the rule. Most board members are rational, committed professionals. However, even among the most collegial boards there’s always the possibility of conflict, and savvy foundation leaders I know have used the following approaches to diffuse disagreement smoothly and quickly.
Working with a board is an ongoing adventure that can lead to great things. But when the path gets rocky, the tips above can help you smooth the way and get back to doing the work you all believe in.
©2016 Kris Putnam-Walkerly, Putnam Consulting Group, putnam-consulting.com
About a year ago, I wrote a newsletter article about grantmaking with an abundance mentality rather than a poverty mentality. That sparked a good bit of interest, some speaking requests, and an article in the December 2015 edition of GMNsight (a publication of the Grants Managers Network) about how an abundance mentality can help foundations streamline almost every process to boost efficiency, productivity and morale.
In the GMNsight article (also available for download on my website), there are several examples of what a poverty mentality looks like and how it hinders effectiveness:
In most cases, foundations that succumb to a poverty mentality truly believe they are doing it for the right reasons – a perception that may be driven by what they see in practice around them or by what they interpret as thrift. But in all cases, adopting a poverty mentality prevents foundations from doing their best work and becoming more effective.
Foundations that see beyond the poverty mentality and recognize the value of their own abundance allow themselves to do things that significantly increase their effectiveness, such as:
Few organizations are as well suited to invest in their own effectiveness as foundations. Unlike other fields, we have very minimal obligations to justify the actions we take or how we choose to invest. I understand that in the face of all this freedom, a reserved stance may feel prudent in an effort to uphold an obligation of stewardship and avoid criticism. But many foundations are too reserved. I’m not talking about creating cushy offices or pampering staff, but thinking of our people as assets that will provide exponential return on investment if we invest in the technology, processes, knowledge building, support – and yes, other people - who will allow our effectiveness to flourish.
Much of the shift from a poverty mentality to an abundance mentality is a shift in mindset. As funders, we feel guilty for “spending money on ourselves.” But on the other hand, if we aren’t willing to invest in our own vision, our own capacity and our own effectiveness, we are undercutting all of the other investments we make in the communities we serve. We should spend wisely on the investments that we know will deliver the best outcomes, both externally and internally.
When an abundance mentality is present, great things can happen. In the GMNsight article, there are several stories of foundations that invested from the perspective of abundance to do things like convene a large and diverse group of stakeholders, examine and streamline all internal processes, respond successfully to the largest single RFP response in foundation history, and investing in sharing their knowledge with others to avoid repeating mistakes down the road.
I firmly believe that adopting an abundance mentality is imperative for philanthropy. Why? Because our world is changing with increasing speed and complexity, and that demands a faster, more efficient pace from all of us. The scale of change is growing from organizations and small communities to policies and systems. The Depression-era notions of stewardship that many of us still hold dear will render philanthropy as ineffective as as prohibition for addressing social challenges. We owe it to our work, our missions, and our communities to up our game.
©2016 Kris Putnam-Walkerly, Putnam Consulting Group, putnam-consulting.com
As the new year gets off to a rousing start, I know many of us are thinking that there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done. I know that’s true for me, as I wonder how on earth it is already February! But at the same time, I’ve also begun looking at the ways in which I sometimes allow things to take longer than they should.
As philanthropists, we have the luxury of time. We rarely have make-or-break deadlines (although we give them to grant seekers), and even at our busiest, we’re still moving at a leisurely pace compared to many of the people we fund. Too often we also allow our efforts to fill the time allotted. Last week, my client mentioned that regardless of whether her foundation needed to make 10, 20 or 45 grants, it seemed to take her staff the same amount of time.
What if we could move things along dramatically more quickly? What might we do with the time we save?
One of my Putnam team members recently facilitated a board retreat that was slated to last a full day. Bad weather was eminent, and many on the board were anxious about travel conditions. Rather than sticking to the program, my colleague used that sense of urgency to condense the board retreat discussions with laser-like focus. Instead of lasting a full day, the session concluded just after lunch, and everyone participating felt as though they’d accomplished everything they’d set out to do.
Maintaining a laser focus is a great way to expedite our work (especially when weather-driven urgency is present). How else might we incorporate that approach into our work? Perhaps we might consider:
As for the time you might save with your new, laser-focused approach, think of the ways in which you could use that time more productively. You might catch up on some necessary reading, or meet with an important networking contact. Or you might use the time for personal renewal, like going for a walk or spending time actually thinking about something important. Or you could just catch your breath.
I’m certainly not advocating efficiency over effectiveness. However, I do like to end each day feeling that I’ve spent my time well – however I choose to define what “well” means.
©2016 Kris Putnam-Walkerly, Putnam Consulting Group, putnam-consulting.com
Foundations have a unique and important role to play as a convenor. They can provide neutral ground for discussion. They have the social capital to compel attendance. And if all else fails, they usually have the budget for better-than-average meeting food. But I believe that foundations also have a responsibility to use their convening power wisely, and to remember that convening is a tool and not an end in and of itself.
Many foundations make the assumption that convening grantees or stakeholders is the best way to gather information and input, or instantly show the foundation’s interest in community engagement, build consensus, or surface parties that may want to work together in new ways. But oftentimes convening isn’t the best way to achieve these goals.
For example, if you want to gather candid information or feedback, one-on-one conversations can yield more honest input than group discussions. If you want to show community engagement, sending your staff and board out into the community is often a more authentic approach than pulling the community into your office. And if you want to build consensus or forge new alliances among other organizations, you may find that individual legwork on the front end advances those efforts more effectively.
Of course, this is not to say foundations shouldn’t convene. There are great things to be accomplished by bringing people together. But before you send out those invitations, be clear about your purpose. Is a convening really the simplest way to achieve your goal – and if so, is it simplest for you or simplest for your participants? What do you want to accomplish with this convening? Who needs to be in the room? When? Where? And how should you bring them together?
Here are four examples of convening in pursuit of a clear purpose:
I’ll say it again – the question of whether or not to convene goes back to clarity about what you want to accomplish. In many cases, asking potential participants in advance whether they genuinely feel that a convening would be valuable can either save everyone a lot of time and trouble, or point the way to a more engaging and relevant experience together. If convening is not the simplest or most effective way to accomplish your goal, move it to the back burner. If it clearly offers strategic value, then set the date and let the invitations fly!
©2016 Kris Putnam-Walkerly, Putnam Consulting Group, putnam-consulting.com
Last week I stayed at the Marriott Marquis in downtown San Francisco, and I was blown away by the nonstop, excellent level of customer service I experienced. What I learned is applicable to foundations and consultants, and I want to share six lessons learned with you.
For more tips about customer service in philanthropy, read my article Who Is Your Customer? Improve Your Grantmaking By Improving Your Focus or my blog post Be Nice. Don’t Lie. 10 Ways To Improve Customer Service.
©2016 Kris Putnam-Walkerly, Putnam Consulting Group, putnam-consulting.com
Earlier this month, philanthropy expert Kris Putnam-Walkerly published a blog on 3 trends that she’s closely monitoring this upcoming year.
There are many things unfolding in our world that will have an impact on our work this year, this decade and beyond. I’m not big on making predictions, but I do like to keep my eyes and ears open and track new developments carefully. That’s why I’m watching three trends this year that I think are especially relevant for my work and for the field of philanthropy.
To read the full article, visit: http://putnam-consulting.com/philanthropy-411-blog/3-trends-im-watching-in-2016
Kris Putnam-Walkerly, MSW, is a philanthropy expert and author of the forthcoming book, Confident Giving. Learn more about her consulting and advising services for grantmakers, visit her website or read a case study.
Every year there’s a surge of charitable giving that happens post-Christmas, which is (at least in some portion) attributed to transactions needing to go through before the close of the year so that contributions are tax-deductible in the current calendar year.
According to a the 2014 Digital Giving Index produced by Network for Good, 12% of all charitable donations happened in the last 3 days of the year. So as we enter the final 2 days of the year, Moodley Foundation wanted to offer some advice to those interested in making charitable donations who could benefit from an income tax break.
The largest benefits from reducing your taxable income happen when you cross over certain “brackets” based on your filing status and exemptions. These details normally are published by the end of Q3, and you can find where you fall here: www.irs.com/articles/2015-federal-tax-rates…
If it turns out that supporting a charitable organization can also benefit you personally through financial gain, then seek out a charity that speaks to the benefit or change that you’d like to see in the world. There are many websites where you can search for charitable organizations based on the cause the serve and area of operations. These websites include: charitynavigator.org, charities.org, and crowdrise.com.
Then, verify that the organization that you want to support is eligible to have their contributions tax-deductible. You’re able to view all exempt organizations from the United States here in the IRS website: apps.irs.gov/app/eos
Finally, keep a record of your donation (the amount, the organization, and the date). Many charities will now process payments online and automatically send you a receipt. If you don’t receive anything, make sure to follow up with a call or email as soon as possible to assure the payment has gone through and that you’ll be receiving a receipt for your records.
We’d also like you to consider making charitable contributions part of your monthly routine. If you don’t expect your income levels to significantly change moving into next year, you’re able to spread out donations across each month through reoccurring contributions – an option for many exempt non-profits.