YNPN of Detroit did an amazing summary of the session that I led at the Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy conference. Check out their blog for other great posts. From YNPN Detroit:

I had the chance to hear Trista Harris (co-author of How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar) discuss how to build your multi-generational network at the National Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP) Conference. This serves as a nice complement to the session by Rosetta Thurman at the YNPN National Conference that we blogged a couple of weeks ago.  Here’s what Trista had to say…

In approaching networking, Trista referred to a saying from a fortune cookie: “You are the average of your 5 closest friends.” This means that it is very important that you think about how you keep close to you, and how they relate to who you want to be.  Also, Trista noted, it is important to not limit yourself to people like you. She suggested that some cross-generational insight will make the guidance you receive much stronger. In order to achieve that, however, you must grow your network.

Growing your network

Trista suggested that you start with the network you already have. Make sure you let people know when you’re going through a transition.  Also, don’t rebuild your network with every new job. Take that contact information with you – those are relationships that you have built, so don’t leave them behind.

Of course, if you do this a couple of time your list of contacts can become pretty large!  To make this manageable, create lists as you build your network.  Then, when you run across information you think will be helpful to a certain segment of your network, you can quickly shoot it off without too much effort. This also creates much more robust relationships – it demonstrates that you are putting thought into who that person is and not just spamming them periodically. You become someone who adds value to your network, as opposed to someone who is always just looking for help.

The Power of Your Network

It’s great that you have folks willing to serve as references when you apply for a new job. However, managers are much more impressed by those people who offer their positive opinions of you unsolicited.  The best way to have these people in your corner is to build a strong network.  By having a number of folks who can speak on your behalf as a nonprofit professional, you create more opportunities for these unsolicited endorsements.

Also, Trista noted that people with strong networks are less likely to get laid off by their organization. When you have a strong network and you get laid off, people ask about you and want to know what happened.  This can get pretty uncomfortable for managers.

What about when you’re at a conference?  Introduce Yourself!

Trista asked us all to participate in a practice exercise: Person 1: Introduce yourself with a 1-2 sentence bio. Person 2:  Listen. What questions do you have for the person? What excited you about what s/he had to say?

After having the opportunity to practice this and share, the group learned the following:  Bios get exciting when people feel as though they have a personal connection to what has been said. (This might be where you are from, or the work you’re involved in – whatever strikes a chord with them.)  What this means is that with a really short introduction, you can create an avenue for a much more robust conversation.  Within just a sentence or two, you are creating an opportunity to folks to “hook in” to your passion and interests and share their own.

Read the rest here.

This morning, during the final plenary of the Council on Foundations conference, I had the opportunity to hear from former diplomat and ex-COF president James A. Joseph. “You got to hear the Ambassador!” friends and colleagues told me (Joseph earned that title as the U.S. ambassador to South Africa during the 1990s). They were right.

Joseph’s speech was called “Philanthropy and Pluralism: Diversity That Does Not Divide.” Although he took a sober look at the current state of things—we are “a badly divided nation is a badly divided world”—he offered up wisdom about how intentional diversity practices can start drawing us all together. Foundations, he reminded the audience, have much more than conventional capital to offer, listing those additional assets of social, intellectual, moral, and what he called “reputational” capital (using social capital as collateral to “vouch” for organizations).

During these past three days, I heard a good deal of dollars and cents talk, so it was great to receive that exhortation to do that spiritual work of digging deeper for the sake of building more inclusive communities.

Brian Baughan is Director of Communications at Frontline Solutions (helpingchangehappen.com), a social change organization that invests in the pipeline of social change leaders; provides consulting services to institutions in the nonprofit, government, and philanthropic sectors; and engages in field-building in three areas of expertise: Education, Social Innovation, and Males of Color.

I can count on my hands the number of friends of mine who serve on a board of a nonprofit or foundation. As a 33-year-old, I don’t think that this fact is all that unusual, nor does it reveal that my friends are apathetic. It’s just there aren’t that many people from my age group doing much in that particular world–not yet.

Today I went to a Council of Foundations session that promoted a new wave of philanthropists. Called “Challenging the Status Quo: Next Gen Civic Engagement Through Philanthropy,” and moderated by my friend and colleague Marcus Littles, the session featured three panelists: Daniel Kaufman of the One Percent Foundation, Elizabeth Snowdon of the Hill-Snowdon Foundation, and Derrick Johnson, who talked primarily about his roles as board member of the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation and state president of the Mississippi NAACP. All three individuals made the case for engaging the next generation, with compelling personal examples of how to recruit, train, and inspire young leaders.

The session helped debunk three myths about age and board service:

1. You need a lot of money to be a donor or Board member.

2. You need decades of experience to do what Board members do.

3. The older generation of Board members does not need or want younger leaders to serve.

To quote Trista Harris in an earlier post, “We are here!” Let’s spread the word so that for the first time, more 20-somethings and 30-somethings can imagine themselves as social change leaders.

Brian Baughan is Director of Communications at Frontline Solutions (helpingchangehappen.com) a social change organization that invests in the pipeline of social change leaders; provides consulting services to institutions in the nonprofit, government, and philanthropic sectors; and engages in field-building in three areas of expertise: Education, Social Innovation, and Males of Color.

Of all the powerful ideas shared by presenters during today’s sessions at the Council on Foundations, the most powerful among them was the notion that philanthropy, done right, could make itself obsolete.

Essentially, this is the platform of the Working Group on Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace, which shared developments in its plan to form the Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace Network. By funding effective social justice work, these proponents believe that collectively we can help dismantle the systems that leave too many people poor and on the margins.

The group invited discussion during two different sessions today. In the morning, over 60 people crowded into a tiny room to hear what has been brewing since 2007 and to receive a draft of a manifesto put together by the Working Group. The paper was informed by a planning meeting held in 2009 in Cairo, Egypt. (Kudos to whoever chose that meeting site.) Since then, the group has been honing in on the foundational components of the network, including its values, strategies & tactics, and community engagement models.

This is my first COF conference, and I’ve learned today that no session takes place without addressomg the issue of measuring impact. And with good reason. I’m happy to say that my organization, Frontline Solutions, is contributing to a growing body of knowledge on philanthropic support for social justice efforts. For the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP), we recently authored a report that showed the positive impact of funder-supported nonprofit advocacy and organizing in the Gulf/Mid-South region. This report is the seventh in NCRP’s Grantmaking for Community Impact series. Look for it to be published in early May.

I can’t predict what will become of the Philanthropy for Social Justice and Peace Network. But I do know that if philanthropists can work toward a vision of putting themselves out of work, I’m on board.

Brian Baughan is Director of Communications at Frontline Solutions (helpingchangehappen.com), a social change organization that invests in the pipeline of social change leaders; provides consulting services to institutions in the nonprofit, government, and philanthropic sectors; and engages in field-building in three areas of expertise: Education, Social Innovation, and Males of Color.

Last night, I had the honor and privilege to attend the James A. Joseph Lecture of the Association of Black Foundation Executives. I was exhausted after 3 days of extensive pre conference activities for EPIP and ABFE and was also cursing my choice of high heeled shoes for a conference where I am on my feet all day. All of that tiredness and sore feet disappeared as soon as I walked into the room. Seeing a room full of people that I admire and look up to filled my heart. The program started with a performance by a local youth African drumming group who completely blew the audience away with their energy.

One of my personal highlights was seeing Gary Cunningham, Vice President of Programs for the Northwest Area Foundation accept the institutional funder award for the African American Leadership Forum, which is an effort that I am so proud to be a part of in the Twin Cities. Gary’s efforts have been tireless to connect the African American community so that we can chart out a better future for our children.

I really thought the night couldn’t get any better but that is because I have never heard Ambassador James Joseph speak before. As I have heard the legend of Amb. Joseph, who founded ABFE and was the ambassador to South Africa when Nelson Mandela was president, I always wondered how an African American man in philanthropy in 1971 was able to call the question of race and leadership and insist that African American board members be elected on the Council on Foundations. He and other founding members of ABFE proposed an all Black slate at the 1971 COF meeting in Montreal. The compromises that followed at that meeting, led to COF adding black members to the board and the formation of ABFE as the first affinity group of the Council on Foundations. This is hard to do now, let alone in 1971.

Then I heard him speak and it all made sense. There is leadership and then there is Ambassador Joseph leadership. He called us to bring our best as we work for our communities and he reminded us that we sit on the shoulders of giants (with the not so subtle hint that because he and our many other ancestors have given us a much better starting point than they had, he expects much more from us). He also introduced us to the four leadership skills that he learned from Nelson Mandela that he believes are critical for today’s leaders (emotional intelligence, social intelligence, moral intelligence, and spiritual intelligence).

They are too few times where we thank those that came before us or when we congratulate our peers for making the world a better place. When we get those opportunities, make sure you show up, sore feet or not.

In honor of its 10th anniversary, Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy has just completed an assessment of its impact on the field of philanthropy. Kris Putnam-Walkerly, President of Putnam Community Investment Consulting completed the study and wrote a post about the results for the Philanthropy 411 blog. From Kris:

Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy (EPIP) is an affinity group of the Council on Foundations. Its mission is to develop extraordinary new leaders to enhance organized philanthropy and its impact on communities. EPIP released the findings of it’s 2011 Impact Assessment, in conjunction with its 10th anniversary and national conference held in Philadelphia.  Below we share 7 key findings about how EPIP has provided support, opportunity, and leadership development for emerging leaders in philanthropy.

1) Emerging leaders have benefited from EPIP’s efforts to connect new and experienced leaders in philanthropy.  Almost all survey respondents (92%) reported that they have personally experienced EPIP’s efforts to facilitate generational change, primarily by participating in forums and events that bring together established and emerging leaders in philanthropy.

2) EPIP members value peer learning and networks gained through EPIP. Two-thirds (64%) of members surveyed reported that as a result of relationships they developed through EPIP, they are participating in new professional development activities. Half  (50%–54%) have met people they can turn to for help in performing their jobs well and regarding being underrepresented in the field.

“I’ve gotten to know so many different people in the field through EPIP. EPIP provides an amazing platform and network to new people in the field, irrespective of age.”  — Rohit Burman, Director of the Culture and Public Broadcasting Program at the Metlife Foundation

3) EPIP supports leadership development early in careers. Many members interviewed described how EPIP provided unique venues to learn, practice, and advance their leadership early in their careers. This included opportunities to propose and lead sessions at conferences, plan events, serve on steering committees, and lead chapters. Senior philanthropy leaders also noted that EPIP provides an important “alternative route to high engagement” for emerging leaders.

“EPIP has done a lot to strengthen a pipeline of leaders into and moving up through philanthropy by giving people mentoring opportunities, confidence boosters, and the chance to develop skills like serving on boards, public speaking, or social justice thinking.”  — Caroline Altman Smith, Program Officer, The Kresge Foundation

4) Participants use the knowledge, skills, and networks developed through EPIP to improve their job performance. 70% of all survey respondents who had been involved in EPIP longer than one year said that as a result of their involvement in EPIP they had established new professional relationships that have been beneficial to their work. Half (56%) described positive changes at their jobs as a result of their involvement in EPIP, including now seeing themselves as leaders in their field (26%) and improving their job performance (22%).

“We moved to a simpler grant process after I attended an EPIP conference, and that has improved our relationship with grantseekers.  — Survey respondent

Read the rest of the findings here.

How has EPIP strengthened your philanthropic career?

There are many fabulous events to celebrate the release of the book “How to Become a Nonprofit Rockstar” at the Council on Foundation’s annual conference that starts this weekend. Stop by and say hi at these fun events:

How to Build Your Multi-Generational Network From Scratch- You can join this interactive session on building your network in person if you are attending the Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy conference or you can join us online. The session will be live-streamed and there will be many opportunities for online participation.

The session starts at 6:00 EST on April 7th and ends at 7:15.

EPIP is also kindly hosting a book release party on April 7th starting at 7:30 at super hip Lucky Strike Bowling. The event will feature bowling (duh), drinks (mmmm), and professional development tips (a ha). It is going to be a lot of fun and I will be selling the books for just $20 at the event and I’ll be there to sign copies. There will also be many of the Nonprofit Rockstars featured in the book in attendance.

The Council on Foundations is hosting a book signing at Resource Central from 11:00-12:00 on April 11th. They will also have the book for sale at the conference’s bookstore.

For every 5 copies of the book that you purchase at the EPIP Conference or at COF you will receive 30 minutes of free career counseling from me. Buy copies for your book club, as birthday gifts or to donate to your alma mater. Below is a quote from a recent coaching call participant:

Thank you Trista for an amazing, energizing conversation! I’m bursting with ideas and excitement! It was wonderful speaking to you and hearing so many useful, important suggestions. I’ll keep you posted.

I am so appreciative to the readers of this blog for all of the amazing support that you have given as we have released this book. I can’t wait to meet you in person!

The Council on Foundation’s annual conference and the Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy conference are starting on Thursday. This blog will be providing coverage of the conference events, with the assistance of special guest bloggers. You can also watch the EPIP conference from the comfort of your own computer because most of the conference will be livestreamed. Check out the details here.

Check back here often for the latest coverage. If you are not attending the conference, you can still participate by continuing the conversation in the comment section. You can also post messages to our bloggers if you have specific questions about the sessions that they have attended. If you are attending the conference feel free to email me at tristaharris (at) gmail (dot) com your own posts about the sessions that you have attended and I will post them with the rest of the conference coverage. 

 Check back soon and be a part of the robust conversation.