Comments for New Voices of Philanthropy

Comment on Foundation Leadership: Who Decides? by Adaobi

Adaobi — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 23:35:56 +0000

A small, but bold move for the grantees at the Hewlett Foundation.

I got entangled in an interesting conversation on Pollen’s Linkedin group. In that, a known retiring Foundation CEO talked about his 2012 predictions for the sector. He noted that because there will be a scarcity of experienced nonprofit executives there’ll be a premium for getting folks in those seats, and suggested that nonprofits sway/tap retiring baby boomers. That just blew my mind on all type of levels.

Instead of passing the baton to some of these bright, forward-thinking young professionals, one rather get on their knees and beg some retired CEO to come out of retirement? Really? I just worry that this massive leadership transition happening in the philanthropic sector is doing nothing but bringing in more of the same.

Comment on What Does a Program Officer Do? by erin

erin — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:43:42 +0000

Trista, Great post! Thanks for this insight. As someone who may aspire to become a program officer or as someone who works along site an officer, your post offers a thorough account which can help anyone understand the “full body” of work. And as Carolynn points out, the many hats s/he adorns every day!

I’m curious if you have (or anyone you have come across in your travels has) taken the phases of work you described and overlayed web 2.0 philosophies to connect a few dots. To demonstrate how technology has evolved these roles in the past five to 10 years.

Thanks again for sharing this post.

Comment on 2012 Predictions for the Social Sector by Generation Y Makes for Great Nonprofit Leaders | Cool People Care

Generation Y Makes for Great Nonprofit Leaders | Cool People Care — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 09:03:18 +0000

[...] generations (Silent, Baby Boomers, X). And this is why it will be a dream to see. Much like Trista Harris envisions, I see Generation’s Y leadership style as an asset to the nonprofit world. Here’s [...]

Comment on What Does a Program Officer Do? by Carolynn L. Sween

Carolynn L. Sween — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:34:07 +0000

I love your categorization of the Program Officer’s job, Trista. Another note about how those roles play out, which might be assumed, but still bears mentioning I think: in my role as Program Director at a communitiy foundation, I could find myself filling all three roles in a single day. I manage 20-25 grant programs, many of which are running simultaneously, so in the morning I might attend a community planning meeting and share input about the Foundation’s priorities, over lunch I might do a site visit, in the afternoon I might process a couple of stacks of applications and follow-up reports, and at the end of the day, we may have a Board meeting where I present our current slate of recommended grantees. So in my world, the roles overlap more often than not. It’s a constant shuffle of the “hats”. Community foundations are different from private foundations in that their focus is much broader, and, except for the really large CF’s, usually mostly reactive.

The role I love most is Eyes & Ears. One of our few proactive grantmaking initiatives a Neighborhood Capacity Building program. It’s really gratifying for me to meet with neighborhood associations and community members to help explain our goals and find ways that we can help them meet their own.

Not surprisingly, the most tedious part of a program officer’s job (in my opinion) is the mountain of paperwork…but it’s of our own making! We’re transitioning to an all-online system this year, which will undoubtedly reduce the paperwork, and it is also forcing us to examine all of our requirements (i.e. we no longer need to ask applicants to supply their IRS Determination Letter because Guidestar verifies their status for us automatically), which is a very good thing. No more paper!

Finally- I’d like to comment on the idea of a program officer’s role in terms of helping grantees… I believe there is a very fine line between offering support & insight and being inappropriately overbearing. Program officers and other foundation staff must remember the realities of the power dynamic in every grantee relationship, and be conscious of their influence. They should acknowledge their privilege, and make sure they don’t take advantage of the willingness of the grantee to do whatever they suggest. In my experience, one of a program officer’s most important attributes is humility.

Keep up the great work, Trista!

Comment on New Year, New Philanthropy Job? by New Voices of Philanthropy » Blog Archive » What Does a Program Officer Do?

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:31:41 +0000

[...] New Year, New Philanthropy Job? [...]

Comment on 2012 Predictions for the Social Sector by Sam Davidson

Sam Davidson — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:33:19 +0000

I love these predictions and would love to see many of them come true, especially the processing piece and the common app. Thanks for being forward-thinking for the sector, Trista.

Comment on You can have it all, you just need help by Nicole Notario-Risk

Nicole Notario-Risk — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 22:49:56 +0000

Beautiful post, Trista!

Comment on Hiring a Wife by New Voices of Philanthropy » Blog Archive » You can have it all, you just need help

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 17:38:50 +0000

[...] to do it all was holding me back professionally and personally. I started writing about how to hire a wife and the myth of work/life balance. The surprising way that I got through that rut and finally had the [...]

Comment on Why mentors aren’t enough to get you “big dog” status by New Voices of Philanthropy » Blog Archive » Sponsors are the new mentor

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 17:05:47 +0000

[...] been preaching for a long time that having a mentor isn’t enough to get you big dog status. The Washington Post has a great article that drives that point home. From the Washington [...]

Comment on Hiring a Wife by Don’t Underestimate the Little Things (or, Why I Unfollowed Everyone on Twitter and Hired an Assistant) | Rosetta Thurman

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 19:23:41 +0000

[...] Ah, but it is now that I’m reminded by my brilliant co-author in crime, Trista Harris, of the benefits of hiring a wife. Busy people with families and businesses and hobbies are successful in part because they know how [...]