Giving Compass' Take:

• In this Forbes article, consultant Kris Putnam-Walkerly gives some guidance on how to refine grantmaking practices to be more effective and efficient.

• From building better relationships to thinking big, these will form a good framework for those new to the process and veterans alike. How can we encourage more organizations to adopt them?

• Here's why it's also important to leave your office and break out of your bubble in grantmaking.


Maybe you’ve been practicing philanthropy for a while and you’ve mastered the basics — the essentials you need to create a solid grantmaking strategy and process. How do you take your work and your effectiveness to the next level?

It’s one thing to be competent; it’s another to go beyond the basics and really hone your craft. Here are four smart grantmaking practices that will help you do just that:

  1. Organize your work around your values. What sets some foundations apart is that they live and breathe the values they claim, and put systems and processes in place so that everyone is very aware of them. When that happens, values become part of how you do business.
  2. Recognize that grantmaking is about relationships. Ideally you want grantees to trust you enough to be completely honest with you about what’s working and what’s not working, so that you can help them and they can accomplish more.
  3. Adopt an abundance mentality rather than a poverty mentality. An abundance mentality doesn’t have much to do with money — but rather with outlook and attitude. If you think small, you will act small, and your results will be small.
  4. Test, learn, improve, repeat. Based on what you learn, you should make specific improvements or modifications, or even drastic changes. To be intentional, you need to make room for reflection. Create some systems, processes, plans or timelines that will allow you and your colleagues to reflect on what you are learning, discuss it, document it and make decisions.

Read more about the four practices of savvy grantmaking by Kris Putnam-Walkerly at Forbes.