BETTER TOGETHER

Giving Circles that center transparency, humility, and humanity

No one feels sorry for funders, philanthropists, or foundation staff who find their job hard or lonely. And we’re not saying they should.

But all other things being equal, smart, happy, and informed givers make a difference. 

And after working with those in the giving seat for decades, ImpactFull has developed experience and practical methods to help donors “give better” and “give together.” 

Our tested Funder Collective Toolkit helps donors increase knowledge and issue-area expertise, coalesce around shared values, design nimble and transparent grant-making processes, and measure results that can satisfy the most staid institutional funder all the way down to a family writing checks at its kitchen table.

Lauded for designing a trust-based model that dismantles the hierarchy baked into our extractive model, ImpactFull has led group design of grant applications with funders and grantees in the room, curated learning sessions for curious philanthropists, and gotten donors comfortable with grant-reporting that amounts to little more than a conversation about what’s working and what’s still standing in the way of hoped for impact.

From folks who find each other via GoFundMe to employees who run their employers community-giving budget, from Fortune 500 CSR execs to community foundation program officers, from DAF managers to impact investors, folks looking to learn, lean-in, and make change together turn to ImpactFull.

“ImpactFull masterfully manages the individual concerns of each funder while keeping our focus on the people we serve. And an amazing side-benefit is how much we have learned, laughed, and leaned-in together.”

— Mariely Moronta-Sanchez, M&T Bank

Massive foundations and multi-nationals aren’t known for nimble and creative grant-making, but when they come together they get to do just that. 

After getting a grant approved for the broader mission and purpose of an ImpactFull-run Donor Collective, execs who work for some of the biggest institutions in the world get to have some maverick and magical giving moments. 

Sitting around the table with other funders, asking “stupid” questions, proposing a whole new area of exploration, diving into a resource library, crafting application questions, and entering into authentic relationships with grantees, is highly satisfying and resembles little the most prescriptive processes back at the home office.

On the other end of the spectrum, individuals, couples, and families who make small but consistent donations to groups they love and causes they care about can find great energy and inspiration when they combine efforts and provoke each other’s appetite to do and learn more. 

ImpactFull’s Small Donor Giving Club program takes processes and practices learned from our work with some of the world’s biggest institutional donors and right-sizes them for pairs and small teams researching causes, forming a theory of change, and and identifying groups with which to enter into a learning and funding relationship

— introducing —

BETTER TOGETHER

Giving Circles that center transparency, humility, and humanity

  • The solo act of researching issues, problems, and solutions becomes a team effort and a chance to build community. 

  • Surrounded by friends and colleagues that share your curiosity and are unafraid to ask "dumb" questions, participants uncover entirely new approaches to solving intractable problems. 

  • “Impact hack” sessions bring grantees and funders together to learn from each other and co-author grant applications and updated theories of change.

Giving Circle clients experience the joy of working, learning, and funding together. 

FAQs

  • No, 6 to 12 months of learning together precedes any grant-making. During that time, prospective members drive a learning agenda to get smarter -- and get ready -- to put dollars in the fund.

  • No, all you need to come together is a desire to uncover a shared vision for making the world a better place. The theme of your joint-giving will take shape as members bring their  questions, ideas, and experience to the table.

  • No, the amount you will grant is a mid-point consideration, and no gift is too small. You want to raise and grant enough to make the project satisfying to the members and impactfull in the community.

  • “This is the most fun and the most impact I have ever had making grants.”

  • “The project design is beyond compare. I have been delighted to sit next to other funders -- and grantees -- to make this work better.”

ABOUT KRISTINE

At age 25, Kristine was recruited to join the “junior board” of the storied Weingart Center in downtown Los Angeles. Her delight in being courted, nominated, and warm;ly welcomed to lend a hand with the organization's vital mission has never left. Having since served on numerous boards and coached dozens of organizations through perfecting this most critical relationship, her firm not only designs board growth and transformation strategies, it has created new vocabulary and expectations about what it means to take that seat. Don't settle for service, design for delight.