Changes in Philanthropy in The Twin Cities
For those nonprofit leaders out there I wanted to share a great experience I had today that gave some good insight to the changing landscape of philanthropy in the Twin Cities. The event was hosted by the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce and the Corporate Volunteerism Council Twin Cities.
They shared a robust panel that included the following:
Trent Blain- Greater Twin Cities United Way
Reba Dominski- U.S. Bank Foundation
Eric Jolly, Ph.D. - St. Paul and Minnesota Foundations
R.T. Rybak- Minneapolis Foundation
As a part of the discussion around the changing landscape of Philanthropy they had many guests in the room from all kinds of corporations as well as community organizations serving all different areas and sectors. One thing became very apparent. There are certainly some trends emerging on what is important to philanthropic partners as well as major employers.
One of those trends touched on was volunteerism and the importance of individuals wanting to be engaged in the mission of an organization and see the mission in action first hand. Employees and donors are truly wanting to do much more than write a check. As I say... long gone are the days of a nonprofit offering a brochure and a smile. I was pleased to hear all panel members were focused on making the community stronger and had a focus on equity and truly impacting social determinants of health.
Another trend that was called out was collective action and how important it is for community organizations to come together to meet the needs of the people in the community. Collaboration among nonprofits and community organizations is needed more than ever before. We need to work together to best serve those in need instead of having tunnel vision and trying to boil the ocean and do it all ourselves.
One last piece I was pleased to hear today was about having a strong vision and focus on the end game. I think this is often a missed step in philanthropy. One panel member alluded to the fact that a for profit company is not much different than a nonprofit and you need the same plan and vision to achieve success. Makes sense to me! My favorite quote of the day was... "The world stands aside for those that know where they are going." How's that for vision!
I was impressed with the panel discussion today and the emphasis put on philanthropy in the Twin Cities. Thank you for the opportunity Minneapolis Chamber and CVC-TC.