Center for Effective Philanthropy’s Post

Burnout is a major concern for nonprofit leaders in 2024. In their latest article, Center for Effective Philanthropy's Christina Im and Seara Grundhoefer share key insights from the "State of Nonprofits 2024: What Funders Need to Know" report. This report revisits last year's core questions, providing a fresh perspective on nonprofit staffing, finances, and funder relationships. Im and Grundhoefer highlight the growing concern about burnout and its potential impact on nonprofits moving forward. Explore how these trends are shaping the nonprofit sector and learn what funders need to know to effectively support these vital organizations. #CEP #NonprofitTrends #TrendsInPhilanthropy #EffectiveFunding

"Nonprofit leaders know that they must balance their annual budgets. The [CEP 2024 State of Nonprofits] report’s finding that two-thirds of nonprofits expect to have a balanced budget or a surplus tracks. But let’s not mistake this as an indication that funders are doing a good job resourcing the sector appropriately." Read Jamie Allison's blog for the Center for Effective Philanthropy on why we can get a report of nonprofits on track to balanced budgets and higher-than-ever burnout.

To paraphrase my hero Benjamin Zepheniah: THIS FUNDING SYSTEM IS KICKING US TO DEATH! This article asks “Why 95% of non-profit leaders are worried about burnout when they have a balanced budget?” The answer is the non-profit starvation cycle caused by the systemic underfunding of costs by donors, and especially staffing. And the constant pressure of raising the next grant. And the burdensome compliance - this year we had to manage 8 simultaneous audits in a $3m non-profit! We need a #FairFunding #Transformation to #ShiftThePower now.

Great insights from the team at the Stanford Social Innovation Review on revenue diversification vs. concentration. "Our research on how US nonprofits get big underlines that, for the great majority of those which have grown to $50 million or more in annual revenue since 1990—and for those who aspire to grow to that scale—there is a clear roadmap. Focus on one or two revenue categories, seek funding that is a natural match for your organization’s work, and build dedicated capabilities and infrastructure to tap into the one or two revenue categories you’re focusing on." https://lnkd.in/eykHvVmp #nonprofitfundraising #philanthropy cc: Jon Crowe Meg Jamison

Center for Effective Philanthropy's report on the current state of the nonprofit sector has a lot of valuable information about #nonprofitworkers' #burnout, #racialequity, and more. I chose to focus on burnout for this Inside Philanthropy article. The thing is, burnout isn't just about money -- but it is *mostly* about money, and #foundations and other private funders hold the biggest part of the solution in their endowments and giving practices. With thanks to Elisha Smith Arrillaga, Ph.D., Christina Im, and Chloe Heskett. Rusty Stahl, IIRC you have a podcast coming up about this as well. Crappy Funding Practices, you may also want to take a look. #philanthropy #nonprofits #livingwages #PTO #nonprofithiringcrisis #funders

Unrestricted grants are more than just financial support — they reflect trust in an organization’s ability to meet the needs of the communities it aims to serve. Yet, nonprofits often face challenges in receiving the unrestricted funding necessary to build capacity and pursue impact at scale. Inside Philanthropy explores Center for Effective Philanthropy research on limited organizational resources and burnout among nonprofit leaders. https://bit.ly/4eEzgQ9

Capacity building grants & supportive funding relationships are critical to the success of a mission.

Interesting to read that 17 years after Bridgespan’s groundbreaking research, the latest findings reveal consistent trends in achieving large-scale impact. Here are key insights: 💡 1. Revenue Focus Over Diversification: 90% of these nonprofits grew by concentrating on a single revenue category. 2. Philanthropy's Rise: Significant increase in large nonprofits relying on philanthropy, highlighting the importance of strategic donor relationships. 3. Dedicated Capabilities: Build specialized infrastructure tailored to primary funding sources, like lobbying for government funds or seamless user experiences for individual donors. #NonprofitLeadership #FundingStrategy #ImpactGrowth #Philanthropy #SocialChange

Has anyone else seen a younger workforce unwilling to make the extreme sacrifices of the previous generations?   I have a sense that younger leaders come into nonprofits, see how the previous generation of EDs has sacrificed their health and families for the mission, and they opt out.    They still want to do good works in the world as their day job, perhaps even at a higher rate than the previous generations, but they have much less interest in replicating the work-life imbalance that remains the dominant model.    What have you seen?   https://lnkd.in/g2kAATfP #nonprofit

ICYMI: Our Founder & Managing Partner, Ruth L., was featured in Washington Business Journal last week! In the article, she shared her perspective on the decline of Black women leaders in the nonprofit sector. Read more about her thoughts here: https://bit.ly/3U7Eiw2 #leadership #blackwomeninnonprofitleadership #organizationaldevelopment #aridai