By Tamir Novotny (@tamirnovotny), Regional Coordinator, EPIP and Senior Associate for Public Sector Innovation, Living Cities ** ** ** “We were put here to be in community” – Nicole Rose Nieman This is what I want my network to look like…but maybe with more pants   Practically from the moment we leave the womb these days, we’re being told to network.  “It’s not about what you know, but who you know.”  That makes sense and all, but I think we’re missing the point. In a time increasingly characterized by economic free agency, networking has become more important than ever.  The vast majority of jobs or gigs (70 plus percent, by most estimates) come not from open postings but from personal connections.  Networks also form the basis for collaboration, which is in turn becoming the basis both for profit and for social change.  In this respect, networking could be said to be the lifeblood of a successful career. The problem with networking as it is commonly practiced, however, is that it treats people as instruments.  I have from time to time found myself not seeking to understand and enjoy the person in front of me, but rather asking myself, “What could this person do for me?” That’s too empty, especially for those of us who are committing our lives to building a more just and humane world. So, let’s stop networking and start building relationships.  Or maybe, to put it a little differently, let’s network with purpose. Next week, EPIP-NY and YNPN-NY will […] Read more

May 29, 2014 | 6-7:30 pm | Sign up now!

The U.S. philanthropic sector pays out about $47 billion per year in grants (Foundation Center Data, 2011). Most foundations are only granting 5% of their total assets. What about the remaining 95%? Foundations invest 19 times more dollars in investments than in grants. This begs the question: how are foundations investing? Do foundation investments reflect their mission and values?

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Join us for EPIP Unites at the JAG Unity Summit on Friday, June 6th from 8:30am to 5pm when we will be hosting our annual national conference in conjunction with the Summit. We’re pleased to announce the following confirmed workshop sessions for Friday, June 6th: Friday, June 6th, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm Dataviz for Philanthropists! Tips, Tools, and How-tos for Communicating Better with Charts with Johanna Morariu and Ann Emery of Innovation Network Hear how data visualization – or dataviz – can get your colleagues to pay attention to your organization’s most important data and improve your communication power with audiences you’re hoping to inform or sway. #FundSouth—Grantmakers for Southern Progress with William Cordery of the Marguerite Casey Foundation and Lavastian Glenn of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation Hear about grassroots movements taking place in the South in response to recent attacks on social justice, such as the Zimmerman verdict and the erosion of voting rights for underrepresented communities. Taking Charge of Your Professional Growth with Samantha Alarie-Leca of The West Foundation This session will discuss tangible steps for cultivating self-awareness, soliciting mentors, and intentionally becoming the driving force behind your own professional growth. Workplace ‘-isms’ and Expressing Your Authentic Self with Surabhi Pandit of Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan and Eboni Wells of The Skillman Foundation This session will discuss how to balance breaking down barriers of workplace ‘isms’ (based on race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, and other identities) while asserting our authentic selves. Friday, June 6th, 3:30 […] Read more

This post was originally published on Philanthropy411 and was authored by Kris Putnam-Walkerly.   The Foundation Review has issued a Call for Papers for an issue focused on philanthropy consulting. The March 2015 themed issue, co-edited by the National Network of Consultants to Grantmakers,  will explore quality, trends and impact in a significant component of philanthropic practice. Abstracts of up to 250 words are due by May 15, 2014. If a full paper is invited, it will be due by August 15, 2014 for consideration for publication. Papers are invited on topics including, but not limited to: Scope and scale. To what extent do grantmakers and funder networks retain consultants, and for what purposes? Role. Why do foundations hire philanthropy consultants? What are the roles of philanthropy consultants? How do roles vary by grantmaker type, size, lifecycle? Value and impact. What value have grantmakers recognized from engaging philanthropy consultants? What impact have consultants had on the work of funders and the philanthropic sector as a whole? Quality and effectiveness. What constitutes quality in philanthropy consulting? What are the characteristics of effective consultants and consulting engagements? Capacity. How does the field of philanthropy support or invest in philanthropy consulting? What efforts exist to ensure diversity within the consulting field and to support career pipelines for future consultants? Trends. What trends do we anticipate in the field of philanthropy in the U.S. and globally, and how can consultants add value?, will explore quality, trends and impact in a significant component of philanthropic practice. I am the […] Read more

In an effort to help EPIP members gain value from the experience of professionals in the field, EPIP has started a new interview series. Blog readers will be able to learn valuable lessons from leaders in the field. The third interview in this series is with Carol Larson, President and CEO of the David & Lucile Packard Foundation. 

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In an effort to help EPIP members gain value from the experience of professionals in the field, EPIP has started a new interview series. Blog readers will be able to learn valuable lessons from leaders in the field.

The second interview in this series is with Johanna Morariu. Johanna is a member of EPIP in Washington, D.C. and a Director at Innovation Network.  In her position, she works with her colleagues to help funders and nonprofits collect data about their work and improve their results. 

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This post was authored by Trish Tchume, Director of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN), and originally appeared on the YNPN Blog.

If you’re like me, you read through the 2014 Nonprofit Finance Fund State of the Sector report and breathed a sigh of relief. Not because the 2014 report paints a particularly rosy picture of where we are as a society and as a sector, mind you, but because the results of the 2009 survey are still seared into so many of our memories. 

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View our program line-up Summit Program Schedule   Register Here Click to Register   Book Your Hotel Room The JAG Unity Summit will take place at: Renaissance Washington DC Downtown Hotel 999 9th Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20001 (202) 898-9000 Please call the hotel directly at (202) 898-9000 or visit the hotel website to make your room reservation. To guarantee the special group rate of $169 per night plus applicable taxes, you must make your reservation no later than May 12, 2014. Please identify yourself as a Joint Affinity Group (JAG) Summit attendee. Read more

By: Matthew Ubrig, EPIP Chicago Chapter Co-Leader

It was not very long after I was hired at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors that I was able to experience Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy for the first time. With barely six months of philanthropy and nonprofit experience under my belt, I was encouraged by my new colleagues to attend the 2012 EPIP Annual Conference in Los Angeles, CA as a way to get acclimated to the philanthropic space and get a handle on just exactly what we were doing and what we were all about. I—being quite wet behind the ears—said “yes!” without even really knowing what I was agreeing to. Conference for emerging philanthropists? Sure, sounds good. Los Angeles? Uh, yeah no need to tell me twice! 

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April 2, 2014

EPIP/Public Allies Webinar: Social Impact Bonds 102

 

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