Family foundations and donor advised funds across Minnesota have often flown under the radar and many operate with few or no staff; however, there is a legacy of Minnesota family philanthropy being integral in bold initiatives, taking risks and finding ways to increase their responsiveness and accessibility. It’s time to pause, reflect, and connect around candid stories of lessons learned while celebrating successes. Family foundation staff and trustees – both those who are newer to the field and those with a longer tenure - are invited to gather for roundtable conversations. What learning can you share from your grantmaking approaches - including the bumps and successes you’ve witnessed in the field? What can you learn from the visionary funding and evolving approaches of other family foundations in Minnesota?
Roundtable conversations will include:
Accessible and Streamlined Grantmaking Processes, Donna Dalton, Mortenson Family Foundation
Mortenson Family Foundation has tested out changes to their grantmaking process in an attempt to streamline it and make it more accessible to nonprofits. Learn what actually helped and what made the process burdensome in a different way to their prospective and current grantees. Share tactics you’ve taken to streamline your grantmaking processes.
Opening up a Grantmaking Process, Chris Berger, GHR Foundation
In 2017, GHR Foundation – in partnership with OpenIDEO – launched its global BridgeBuilder Challenge for greater accessibility and transparency. Learn what worked well and what was challenging about this grantmaking approach and how GHR Foundation is attempting to add value beyond the grant dollar. Share how your foundation is rethinking its processes and finding ways to provide value-add in your grantee relationships.
Listening to Community in a New Way, Joel Luedtke, Jay & Rose Phillips Family Foundation of Minnesota
In 2016, the Jay & Rose Phillips Family Foundation of Minnesota embarked on a human-centered design process, listening deeply to the communities they desired to serve and ensuring this informed their strategy moving forward. Learn about the benefits and challenges of their journey and share how your foundation is engaging with and learning from the communities it serves.
9:30 am – 12:00 pm, Breakfast followed by roundtable conversations