Foundation Center Sessions at the Grants Managers Network Conference Mon-Wed

Stop by our booth or one of our sessions, including one directly from GrantCraft!

Let’s Be Clear: The Importance of Transparency

Monday, March 17th, 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm

Calls for greater transparency and accountability in the philanthropic sector are nothing new, but as people today access more information online, public expectation about what information is made available is increasing at a rapid pace. Are funders truly harnessing the promise that today’s digital media, open data, and networked mindset hold for philanthropy? Attend this session to learn how some organizations are embracing the power of online transparency to improve relationships with grantees, facilitate greater collaboration, reduce duplication of effort, and cultivate a community of shared learning. In this session you will:

• Increase awareness and understanding of the need for transparency in philanthropy.
• Increase awareness and understanding of the Glasspockets initiative and key lessons from the new GrantCraft how-to guide on foundation transparency.

Speakers

Janet Camarena, Director, San Francisco Office, Foundation Center Belen Vargas, Vice President - Programs, Weingart Foundation Heath Wickline, Communications Officer, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation   

Score Your Dream Role Without Changing Jobs

Tuesday, March 18th, 10:15 am - 11:45 am

Developing a personal work strategy is critical to achieving further success in your job. Learn how to re-craft your job into roles promoting leadership and confidence. Reflect on what you do on a day-to-day basis, both on and off paper, and how it translates into the roles you enjoy playing in the non-work hours of the day. We’ll explore how to apply your personal assets to the roles you have and the roles you want. Finally, you’ll strategize around how to perform your roles to the fullest in the face of organizational context and challenges. In this session you will:

• Become inspired and empowered to play a more powerful role in your organization regardless of your job title.
• Learn the importance of developing a personal strategy for stepping into roles that promote leadership and develop confidence.

Speakers

Jen Bokoff, Director of GrantCraft, Foundation Center Paula Lentoni, Grants Administrator, Mott Philanthropic Gretchen Schackel, Grants Manager, James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation  

Mapping Data to Improve Grant Outcomes and Decisions

Monday, March 17th, 10:45 am - 12:15 pm

Mapping data can deliver unexpected knowledge about grantmaking trends and practices that otherwise might be overlooked. Presenters from The Reinvestment Fund's PolicyMap, Fractured Atlas, and Foundation Center will share new tools that can help grants managers and other staff chart trends, analyze data, and map proposal and grant information. In this session you will:

• Understand how data and mapping can impact work and assist with decision-making.
• Understand how grantmakers are currently using these tools.
• Learn how data and mapping can fit into a larger strategy to evaluate trends, budget, and strategic

Speakers

Jake Garcia, Director of Data Application Development Foundation Center Ian David Moss, Research Director Fractured Atlas Elizabeth Nash, Director of Data and Product Development PolicyMap.  

Big Data's Big Benefits

Wednesday, March 19th, 9:00 am - 10:30 am

Big Data, small data, open data, data standards, data mining, data science, APIs, interoperability - what does this all mean for the work of grants managers? This session will feature an interactive discussion on the transformative possibilities of new technologies that allow almost everything to be treated as data. What should we be excited about, skeptical about, curious about?  In this session you will:

• Learn what data can do for philanthropy.
• Find out what the work of grants managers might look like in five years.
• Understand what you can do with data that is already available in most grants management software packages.

Speakers

Larry McGill , Vice President of Research Foundation Center 2014 Conference Closing Plenary

Managing Data for a Field of Good: How Grants Data Can Make It Great

Over the past decade, philanthropy has come a long way in recognizing the complexity of the work it is trying to do. With this change comes a new level of responsibility for grants managers who are increasingly tasked with generating and sharing the data used to improve decision-making. This panel will look at why good data matters in solving the problems we care about and the importance of adopting communication strategies that allow us to build upon each other's knowledge and scale what works. Questions that will be explored:

• What does this new frontier in grants management look like inside the foundation?
• What data is important to collect and share for maximum impact and learning?
• How can foundations leverage grants data to communicate more effectively about their work?

Speakers:

Moderator:  Bradford K. Smith, President, Foundation Center Marc Moorghen, Senior Communications Manager, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation Suki O’Kane, Director of Administration, Walter & Elise Haas Fund Robert K. Ross, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, The California Endowment