NCFP Blog

While change is inevitable in most pursuits, managing it well in the practice of family philanthropy can be particularly complicated as so much of philanthropy is deeply personal. National Forum speakers Rebecca Cisek, Tina Kimbrough, Sylia Obagi, and Kyle Peterson shared their tips for managing a wide-variety of change. Here, Cara Binder-Kopchick synthesizes their recommendations, offering ways that philanthropic staff… Read More

As a second-generation family member, Liz Norton outlines the process she and her siblings undertook to honor the work of their parents, forge their own philanthropic path, and embrace transparency in the next era of the foundation’s work.  “I think I will just take the big green glass vase.” My dad smiled at me when I said this. That vase… Read More

Intermediary funds are appealing choices for donors who want to enter a new funding space, respond to urgent needs, or lack the time to commit to an issue they care about, among other reasons. Here, Chloe Cockburn of Just Impact Advisors outlines what intermediaries are, when donors should use them, and how to select a fund. Donors interested in funding… Read More

Chicago Beyond dramatically shifted its grantmaking and, today, all of its multi-year grants are in support of BIPOC-led organizations with direct experience in the social issues they are working on. Here, Liz Dozier shares more about how the organization went about making this change and introduces Chicago Beyond’s Mirror Tool, which other funders can use to identify and reduce bias… Read More

The Grunin Foundation embarked on a strategic planning process to ensure its funding strategies were aligned with its capacity building work and equity framework. While they always funded in a relationships-focused way, they were surprised to find that putting more—though still minimal—processes in place helped strengthen their relationships with grantees and nonprofits in the community. Grunin Foundation Director of Communications… Read More