“How can we accomplish the greatest good?”
Jim Hoolihan, president/CEO of the Blandin Foundation, says his foundation starts its work by asking this. Exploring this question has meant that partnership work is now embedded in Blandin’s culture.
Minnesota grantmakers’ belief that more can be done through collaborating is leading to substantial and innovative collaborations. Several of these are highlighted in the just-published Fall 2009 issue of MCF’s Giving Forum, including initiatives of the Blandin Foundation, Dorsey & Whitney, Hispanics in Philanthropy, IBM, Carl and Eloise Pohlad Family Foundation, St. Croix Valley Foundation, Social Venture Partners, and others.
These grantmakers say, though, that partnership work is not always easy work. Addressing power dynamics is one key issue. Is it possible to have true collaboration when one party holds the purse strings?
If funding is viewed as only one piece of the collaboration amongst several at the table, then the answer is yes.
“Each organization brings something to the table, whether it be relationships, connections, knowledge, influence or the ability to leverage other resources,” notes Jill Shannon, director of community partnerships, St. Croix Valley Foundation. “We’re all the same that way, yet we touch our communities differently. Whether a grantee or a grantor, we can work together to accomplish a common goal. The task at hand is to see what each organization can bring forward to reach that shared goal.”
Hoolihan adds, “In some cases, we may have more money, but another partner may have more experience, and another may have more knowledge. Every partner brings something unique, and we recognize that what each brings to the collaboration is just as valuable as money… We do not have all the answers, and money by itself accomplishes nothing.”
For effective collaborations, partners not only must acknowledge the value each brings to the table, grantmakers must commit to listening sincerely with the intention of learning, and nonprofits must not be afraid to speak honestly and directly.
- Chris Murakami Noonan, MCF communications associate
