Verbal reporting… the next step in effective philanthropy?
Posted: 16 January 2012 Filed under: evaluation, grantmaker/grantee relationship, grantmaking, NFP, philanthropic sector, Philanthropists | Tags: due diligence, evaluation, Grantmaking, Myer Family Philanthropic Services, philanthropy, reporting 9 Comments »
Louise Kuramoto is a Grant Researcher at the Myer Family Company. She works with families, foundation and corporates providing philanthropic research, administration and strategic advice with regard to their philanthropy.
Engaging effectively with grantees is something that many philanthropists and philanthrocrats alike strive to achieve but are we really getting it right? And when I talk of ‘engaging effectively’ I am not talking of post application feedback but rather the day-to-day relationships you hold with your grantees.
So, where do you sit on the spectrum? Think of a program you have funded and ask yourself three questions;
1. Do I have the direct contact details of the person managing or responsible for the program and have I had a conversation with them?
2. Can I explain the program’s three main challenges to achieving its objectives?
3. Am I aware of the program’s progression (or otherwise!) in the last six to twelve months?
For those of you who could not confidently answer ‘yes’ to each of the above questions you may want to give verbal reporting further consideration.
Otherwise known as face-to-face reporting, verbal reporting is a tool that some foundations have been using to varying degrees as a way to truly understand the organisations they fund and the complexities and challenges of the areas in which they work. Foundation staff cite that the reduction of paperwork for both the funded organisation and the philanthropic body is a bonus, but the real benefits of verbal reporting lie in the face-to-face interactions they have with their grantees. It is these face-to-face meetings they state, that have proved to facilitate a more open and honest dialogue between the two parties, consequently enabling the foundation to form a true partnership with its grantees and in turn, yield better results.
The Myer Family Company, in collaboration with The Portland House Foundation, held a forum late last year to explore this topic further, specifically focusing on The Portland House Foundation’s reporting model which encompasses:
- A high trust, low documentation process;
- The CEO or leader of the funded organisation committing to attend at least one face-to-face reporting meeting per year (this meeting would also include a number of other funded organisations who verbally report on their projects); and
- Supplementary documentation (such as financials etc.) is requested as needed.
The organisations represented at the forum also described the verbal reporting process as highly beneficial to their work because it provides a ‘safe’ environment whereby their organisational and project challenges can be offered for discussion and brainstorming with the donor and other attendees. This point is especially pertinent for us philanthropists/crats, who have a tendency to focus on financial giving and at times underestimate the value of the non-financial support we are able to offer. Whether it’s as a sounding board to discuss program design or harnessing the skills, knowledge or networks of board members, the value these links and expertise can leverage is often much more than any monetary figure the donor could provide.
So next time you seek an update on a particular project or receive an application in the mail, think about picking up the phone and organising a meeting with your grantee, it might change your outlook entirely.
You can follow Louise on Twitter @LouKuramoto or the Myer Family Company via @MF_Philanthropy
Debra Morgan
Caitriona Fay
Claire Rimmer
guestegg
Hey Louise – thanks for your post. I’d be interested in whether there was any discussion at your session about corporate memory? How do you take the ‘verbal’ and ensure the leanings are held in the longer term and not ‘lost’ when staff leave?
I’ve heard that other organisations like FRRR use telephone reporting. I like the concept, I think it’s important that there is a diversity of reporting methodologies available. I do wonder what it means for data collection (only really important if used).
Thanks for your Post Louise – this is an area that we’ve been working on here at Yarra City Council. Verbal reporting is particularly useful with grantees who are either illiterate in English, prefer to express themselves verbally, or who benefit from ‘bouncing’ around solutions as part of their reporting.
However, we find it useful for us, as Grants Officers, to then capture this discussion and provide a copy to the grantee. Much like the Minutes of a meeting, this caters for organisational memory loss (particularly necessary for community orgs with high staff turn-over), clarifies any misunderstandings, and provides a benchmark for future discussions.
Thanks for your comment Nina,
It sounds like you have a good system going especially if you are working with ESL individuals and others.
You have captured the real benefit of verbal reporting perfectly, it’s about working in partnership with your grantees in order to get the best out them and therefore the project you have funded.
Hi Catriona, a system of recording key interations in the organisation’s database would solve the memory failure issue. Interesting to see what Louise says.
There would certainly need to be some type of system in place, I wonder what MFco and Portland use. Thanks for your reply Olivia. CF
Hi Caitriona, this is a great point and a barrier for many Foundation’s when they think about implementing verbal reporting. It is important to note that verbal reporting would not always over-ride written reporting, it should be used where and when appropriate. If there has been a major change in the program design, for example, and the project scope now differs from the original intention, that would probably warrant a written report from the organisation. Most other updates etc that would form corporate memory could be captured in file notes (from phone call’s and face-to-face meetings) and of course board papers – it just means the philanthropist/crat would have to be more diligent with their note taking!
I can’t speak for Portland House or other foundations for that matter but here at MFCo we take detailed file notes of key interactions for the benefit of both the Foundations we work with and the community organisations, we will also write up any developments or updates in the respective foundation’s board papers. Given we are philanthropic advisors our clients have an expectation that this sort of record taking would occur.
Hi, from a grantee’s perspective I absolutely think verbal reporting is a great idea to hit engage on the donor/ grantee relationship and truly track a project’s process. Non-financial support may also come in the form of strategic advice to solve challenges a project might face and works the other way as I am sure donors and grantmakers would learn from these interactions with their grantees. Getting groups of grantees together for verbal reporting, as in the Portland House case, is a great way to stimulate ideas through discussion and even solve challenges. There’s so much potential there.
I think donors and grantmakers do need to be aware of assuming a monopoly on grantees’ time. Grantees would view time spent meeting with major donors and funders – ie. operational funding providers or multiple-project funders – as a better investment than one-off project funders. Although, of course when a good relationship develops and things are done well a one-off project grant can turn in to more and that is where the grantees would view a benefit in that time investment.
Thanks
I’ve worked with over 300 local organizations working with children in southern and east Africa over the past decade. Oral reporting is a great way to decrease the reporting burden on local, grassroots organizations, while enabling grantees to “paint a fuller picture” of their work, accomplishments and challenges much more vivid than the written word can often offer. I share steps on how to do this on my blog: http://www.how-matters.org/2011/09/26/oral-reporting-heres-how/