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| Relationship Building | Philanthropic Leadership | Foundation Management | Financial Stewardship | Connecting Generations |
Sunday, October 15
1:30–4:30 pm
A Multidimensional Approach to Your Giving
Today’s philanthropist often gives in multiple ways: through foundation grantmaking, personal check writing, giving circles, donor advised funds, or DAFs, impact investing, and even corporate giving. These strategies, however, may not “talk” enough to each other to maximize overall philanthropic impact. Learn how to develop a more purposeful, integrated approach to your philanthropy and choose the vehicle—or combination of vehicles—that fits your goals, timing, and giving style.
- Glean lessons from philanthropists who have adopted a cohesive strategy for getting value from multiple giving vehicles.
- Audit your own giving practices to identify opportunities for integration.
This session is generously supported by Fidelity Charitable®
Risky Behavior: It Could Be a Good Thing
Since September 2008, foundation boards have been learning that the “old” rules of portfolio management have changed. It’s been hard to earn 8%–9% per year on the foundation portfolio to maintain spending levels over time. Although boards have embraced alternative strategies as a way to add more balance the portfolio and increase potential for return, not all of them are comfortable with the risk such strategies introduce. Learn to examine both the alternative strategies and the financial behavior of boards in relationship to investment risks.
- Recognize the key asset classes under the umbrella of alternatives and the pros and cons of each type in the portfolio, plus how they work to balance the portfolio.
- Analyze sample board behavior through the lens of behavioral finance assumptions and compare with your own board’s behavior.
Find Your Guiding Purpose in Philanthropy
This workshop invites you to think deeply about what you wish to accomplish in philanthropy. Consider your guiding purpose in life and how to align it with your work, giving, volunteering, and activism. Designed for donors and foundation trustees, staff, and family who want to influence their foundation’s vision, this workshop helps you discover your inner philanthropist.
- Develop a coherent sense of how your personal development has laid the groundwork for your guiding purpose in life.
- Consider how that purpose has or has not been fulfilled in your life and work.
- Map out steps to better align your guiding purpose with your personal philanthropic vision and with your work in philanthropy.
Legal Intensive
Get the inside scoop on what attorneys know about the essential legal requirements of private foundations. Learn about board responsibilities, private foundation rules, and how to stay legal in grantmaking.
- Recognize potential legal risks and know when to contact an attorney.
- Understand the differences between Internal Revenue Service categories for grantors and grantees.
- Describe the scope and details of state fiduciary duties and the federal private foundation rules, including self-dealing.
Gen Xers and Millennials Shape the Next Gen Legacy
Younger participants (roughly 50 or under) learn about and question the available research on Generations X and Y (the Millennials). Work in generational cohorts and then together to articulate your individual vision and collective visions for the future of philanthropy in preparation for the “CONNECTing Across Generations” session.
- Become more familiar with generational research in the social sector.
- Learn about models of Next Gen leadership in philanthropy and nonprofit settings.
- Begin developing a personal mission statement and practice articulating your vision to more senior philanthropists you work with—whether family members or employers.
Monday, October 16
9:30–11:45 am
Let’s Make an Impact Investing Deal
What does impact investing look like in practice? How do you take your desire to put investment dollars to work toward mission into action? Leanly staffed foundations and individuals source impact investing deals in multiple ways. Deals then move to implementation and then measurement. Follow sample deals from sourcing to financial and mission impact, and learn strategies to continue on your own path to impact investing.
- Understand the role of investment consultants and foundation trustees and/or investment committee members in sourcing deals.
- Apply common approaches philanthropists currently use to source and implement deals.
- Construct a plan for your next step in making your next—or first—deal, either below-market or at market rate.
This session is generously supported by Bernstein Private Wealth Management.
Out of Your Bubble and Into Your Community
As funders, our greatest insights, ideas, and inspiration often come when we take time to get away from the comfort of our offices, engage people in our community, listen, and learn. Find out how to acquire and engage deep knowledge so you can pinpoint where your dollars, connections, and influence can make catalytic impact.
- Discover how developing knowledge and insight into your community or chosen field is essential to figuring out how to use your resources in the most powerful ways.
- Learn practical techniques to scan the landscape and develop insight into priority needs and leverage points for change.
- Find out how to overcome barriers to scanning, including lack of time and fear of being more public as a funder.
Get the Real Story From Nonprofit Financials
Financials are just one piece of the story when considering making a grant. Coupled with open conversation, they can provide insights into a nonprofit’s financial situation, sustainability, and overall organizational capacity. Learn how to look at nonprofit financials beyond the numbers and with an eye toward trends in the field.
- Recognize signs of a financially healthy nonprofit with a focus on an organization’s unique circumstances.
- Discuss how to engage nonprofits in conversations about their financial situation and true needs.
- Identify financial red flags that warrant further conversation and understand how to formulate appropriate questions based on those red flags.
The Succession Opportunity: Looking Forward, Acting Now
This session is for founders and first-gen participants (roughly 50+). Hear about succession success stories, work with colleagues to identify specific and actionable challenges you are facing, and leave with commitments and proposals to address your particular needs in preparation for the “CONNECTing Across Generations session.”
- Compare and contrast succession case studies.
- Identify concrete roadblocks to successful philanthropy in your setting.
- Develop a proposal for making changes to address roadblocks that you can share with younger members in your philanthropic setting.
Great Funder–Nonprofit Relationships Start With You
What does honest, open, two-way communication look like in a funder–grantee relationship? How can this communication lead to greater success for both parties? Hear from a funder–grantee pair about the arc of their relationship as they share practices that strengthen their work together and separately. Audit your own practices to determine where to implement practical tips so you can improve your relationships and, ultimately, your impact.
- Understand and describe key factors of open, productive funder–grantee relationships.
- Identify at least one or two practical strategies to enhance your relationships with your grantees.
Monday, October 16
1:30–4:30 pm
The Flexible, Creative Donor Advised Fund
Many philanthropists think of donor advised funds, or DAFs, as straightforward charitable bank accounts through which you can donate money. DAFs, though, can help you accomplish much more than that. Learn about the range of creative uses of DAF accounts, from funding organizations outside the United States to generating funds for impact investing.
- Understand more advanced uses of DAF accounts.
- Determine which options fit your personal or organizational philanthropic goals.
This session is generously supported by Fidelity Charitable®
Find Your Voice in the Policy Arena
As a philanthropist, your voice carries tremendous weight in the policy arena. Learn practical ways to influence the policy landscape of an issue to get at the root of problems and catalyze wide-scale change. This session is designed for those who intend—or have already begun—to fund advocacy or get involved in policy.
- Learn five powerful components of effective, nonpartisan policy engagement by small-staffed foundations and donors. Explore how you can get involved in one or two components, or all five.
- Consider two effective engagement models: catalyzing an effort on your own and joining an advocacy collaborative.
- Be inspired by case examples of successful policy engagement by small funders in multiple states.
Work Smarter, Not Harder: Exploring Foundation Technology
Many time-saving technology tools on the market can help small-staffed foundations streamline operations, maintain an online presence, and communicate effectively with their boards. Join this fast-paced, interactive session that fosters ideas for technological platforms and strategies that can increase your foundation’s capacity.
- Define questions you must ask to identify your needs and to pick the most suitable technology platforms for your foundation.
- Determine three or four tools that could increase your foundation’s efficiency and identify steps for implementation.
The Art of Funder Collaborations
Smaller foundations and individual donors can derive a lot of value and gain leverage out of partnering with other funders. Hear from members of collaboratives who are at various stages of the experience and work together to develop strategies for joining or starting collaboratives.
Assess the costs and benefits of participating in collaboratives.- Begin to develop plans and proposals for joining or starting a collaborative.
Bring Community Voices to Your Table
We often say that community engagement is about “getting out of the office.” But can you bring your community into the office? In this session, we’ll rethink assumptions and explore new ways of doing business that bring new, diverse voices to your foundation’s decision-making.
- Gain a deeper understanding of your foundation’s opportunities to engage in learning and impact
- Be inspired by bold new ideas – from genuine transparency through advisory committees to participatory grantmaking
- Develop specific next steps to improve your foundation’s ability to incorporate community voices
Tuesday, October 17
8:45–11:00 am
Connecting Across Generations
This intergenerational dialogue experience gives voice to ideas generated in the preceding “CONNECTING Generations” track sessions. It provides a new understanding of each generation’s hopes and a commitment to building and strengthening bridges between younger and more senior philanthropists.
- Model productive, frank, and supportive intergenerational dialogue.
- Create proposals for new approaches to succession and leadership development to take home to your philanthropic organization.
Salon: Summon the Courage To Be Daring
Are you considering convening, engaging in advocacy, or being more public in your philanthropy? Many leaders need support to take these bold steps. With your peers, explore in this small, intimate setting the challenges of taking on leadership roles and ways to overcome them—especially the personal and emotional barriers holding you back.
- Consider examples of leadership by small-staffed funders, the doubts and fears these individuals may have had, and how they have prepared for action.
- Discuss with your peers both the challenges you feel or are facing in taking on leadership roles and ways you can overcome them.
Measuring Long-Term Impact
Evaluating your work allows you to know you’re making a difference—not just hoping you are. Learn practices for going beyond short-term outcomes and measuring how your community or funding area has changed as a result of your work, and how to gauge if you are maximizing your impact.
- Identify and apply powerful indicators in your definitions and assessment of impact.
- Expand your understanding of different ways to measure the progress and results of your work.
Listening Skills Workshop
Impact and leadership in philanthropy begins with the humblest act: listening deeply. Deep listening enables you to build strong relationships, gain clarity on complex issues, empower others, and move towards action. In this skills-based workshop, learn how to truly tune in to your conversations and begin putting what you learn into practice with peers.
- •Define the levels of listening and practice listening at each of the different levels
- Recognize how deep listening can help increase effectiveness.
- Identify ways to integrate deep listening into conversations with board members, staff, and nonprofits.
