bcorp Buzzword 9 - B Corporation B Corporations are more than a buzzword - they may be a game changer. New organizational structures, new corporate code, and new ways to organize social good - B corporations are the real deal. This is one buzzword that is more than just buzz. Not only will this idea stick
buzzword Not enough buzz for a buzzword We're getting down to the wire on the top ten philanthropic buzzwords of 2007. Here's one that won't make the list - charitable gift cards. You can read about them here. Why don't they qualify? Partly because there is no buzz to
Embedded giving and the law The New York Times reported an increased interest on behalf of lawmakers regarding embedded giving - the story is here.
buzzword Buzzwords everywhere - and here is Buzzword # 8 Endorsement Philanthropy Embedded Giving is Philanthropy buzzword # 6 for the year 2007. Here is this week's Marketplace story on embedded giving Here is today's New York Times story on the topic And today I'm pleased to announce Buzzword #8 - endorsement philanthropy, which gets a big
media Where does the money go? Today's Wall Street Journal asks this question, in this article by Sally Beatty (subscription required). I sit on the advisory board of the Nonprofit Reporter, one of the organizations interviewed and mentioned in the story. Today Marketplace, NPR's daily business program, begins a week long series
blogs Stay tuned, there is more to come in 2007 My previous post was so badly written as to confuse many of you. It was not my last blog post for 2007, just my last post to SSIR for the year. Still to come between now and December 31, 2007.... * Buzzwords number 8, 9, and, (drumroll, please) of course, 10
2008 What matters and some bold predictions (This is cross-posted from SSIR.) This is my last SSIR post of 2007 - so it is time to ask some big questions – two of them, actually (though each has many subsections). First, what really matters for philanthropy? I’ll list six big issues for the sector – opportunities, trends, and
charrette Solving complex problems (Photo: www.mit.edu. Design by Suzana Lisanti) Solving complex problems is what some foundations claim to be doing. Many more wish they had the guts to stake this claim, but are perhaps more realistic about what they can do. I've written a lot about crowd sourcing as
advertising Philanthropy advertising I took a quick look around to see what I could see in terms of developments in end-of-year philanthropy advertising. "The quotes/italics are my interpretations of the ads" [The brackets indicate where I saw the ad] "But wait, I wanted a toaster...." * Wells Fargo'
Bad day for charities Just heard this on the radio - Mark Everson, formerly of the IRS, has been ousted as CEO of the Red Cross after just six months - after having a "relationship with a subordinate." That makes five leaders in six years at The Red Cross - time enough
buzzword "Making a list, checking it twice..." Yes, its that time of year - list making time. * I'm working on my top ten philanthropy buzzwords of 2007. * I'm also getting ready to check back in on my 2006 list of "PhilanthropyHype" to see what stuck, what mattered and what was, after
buzzword Buzzword 7 - Social stock exchanges Some of this year's buzzwords are pure blather. (Here are links to the previous buzzwords for 2007) Others describe ideas that I think are at the leading edge of change in philanthropy. This one - Number Seven - Social Stock Exchanges - is just such a buzzword. For
nonprofitratings A sector-wide logic lapse (collapse?) Have you ever really thought about how anomalous is our obsession with nonprofit overhead ratios? Think about it this way - in what other area of your life do you deliberately seek out the product, service, location, or experience that is being made available in the cheapest possible fashion? We
giving Giving in Q4 - fact or fiction? (www.cartoonstock.com) Go ahead, ask anyone who gets snail mail. Or anyone in fundraising. Or anyone in estate planning, wealth management, or tax advising. They'll tell you, "The fourth quarter is the busiest time for charitable giving." Geez, if you'd asked me I
Mutual Funds for the progressive philanthropist New Progressive Coalition will open its mutual funds to the public tomorrow. These are the exemplary product demonstrating several of the key themes of this blog: * Donors lead with their values, and they want their financial portfolio (investments, charitable giving, and political contributions) to reflect those values; * The philanthropic industry
globalgiving GlobalGiving Guaranteed What if you are a donor adviser, and one of your clients follows your advice, make a gift, and is then unsatisfied with the outcomes? If you are GlobalGiving, you give that donor his/her money back. Its called GlobalGiving Guaranteed. I love this idea. Its simple. It requires quality,
Really, its for a good cause. Sucker! Free Rice purports to be a vocabulary test masking as a fundraiser for the UN. Sad thing is, its actually a vocabulary test masking as an ad server, while the rice you donate does seem to go to the UN World Food Program. The real money is in the ad
Embedded Giving - actually, we have NO idea about numbers My sincere thanks to Lindsey Siegel of CECP who corrected my inaccurate assumptions about how and where embedded giving gets aggregated and counted. Turns out corporations are not factoring it in to their contributions - at least not those who participate in the CECP surveys. Thanks Lindsey. The money is
You know you've become an issue geek when... ...you regret not being able to attend a law school conference on "Taxing Philanthropy." Conference was held at Columbia U on Nov 9 and included the following key topics: * Subsidizing Charitable Contributions: Incentives, Information and the Private Pursuit of Public Goals, * Is Income Tax Exemption for Charities Special?
Devolution to nonprofits and the markets Photo Credit: Center For Environmental Health Photo, via Washingtonpost.com Devolution - the shifting of responsibilities once met by the federal government to state or municipalities - is nothing new. Nor is devolution to nonprofits anything really new. Devolution to market entities also isn't new, its just called
Designing new foundations Quick, name an organizational type that has barely changed since 1913? Publishing companies? Wrong. Hospitals? Wrong. Museums? Wrong. Internet search companies? Huh? The correct answer is philanthropic foundations. The organizational chart for the original Rockefeller Foundation is remarkably similar to the org charts of most (not all) staffed foundations today.
corporategiving More on embedded giving I just came back from running errands. At almost every store I was "offered" the opportunity to "give a little extra" for charity - this is what I call embedded giving. Charitable gift cards - which I predict will be a big hit this coming giving
buzzword Buzzword #6 - Embedded Giving "What if every major event or financial transaction had philanthropy built-in?" That question was raised back in June by Matt over on xigi.net. It gave rise to the creation of our sixth buzzword of 2007 - embedded giving. Embedded giving is the (apparently) increasingly common practice of
Donors Choose Bloggers Challenge The DonorsChoose Bloggers Challenge will end in a few hours. With the help of my seven year old, I calculate the running totals so far as: * >$365,000 raised * From more than 3000 donors * Benefiting more than 71,000 school kids Average gift per donor: $100+ I'm
giving Goblins and giving This is cross-posted from The Huffington Post What's the link between Halloween and philanthropy? Well, there is the obvious fact that unlike any other day of the year tonight is the one night that you can knock on your neighbor's door, ask for something for nothing,
