It’s the nature of philanthropy to want to help. It’s what foundations were created to do. Yet all too often, foundations, corporate grantmakers, and donors unintentionally cause problems instead of helping to solve them. Even with the best intentions, foundations take actions that are counter to the outcome they – and their grantees – hope to achieve.

Here are five common examples:

  1. Providing short-term funding for a long-term outcome. Most funders are loathe to commit to any one organization or initiative for more than a year or two. (In fact, if foundations were people, we’d call many of them commitment-phobes and recommend therapy!)
  2. Offering seed money without considering sustainability. Many philanthropists fancy themselves as venture capitalists, investing in new and interesting programs or organizations with seed funds to “get things going.” That’s very valuable work, and a role to which foundations are well-suited, given the fact that most are free to take risks that businesses or governments cannot.  But unlike venture capitalists in the business world, foundations that offer seed money often do more damage than good because they fail to think beyond the heady days of start-up excitement to the slower and more methodical – yet equally important – days of sustainability and growth.
  3. Hiding board members who could do more. I am constantly amazed at the firewalls that some foundations put up around their board members – separating them from staff, from grantees, and even from community.
  4.  Not speaking up. I have come across many grantmakers that care deeply about issues that affect their communities, but never speak up publicly to weigh in on critical issues.
  5.  Not showing up. Philanthropy isn’t all that effective from afar, yet many foundations persist in maintaining an arms-length relationship with their grantees and communities.

Read the source article about the shortcomings of foundations by Kris Putnam-Walkerly at Putnam Consulting Group.