Many conversations about Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) unfortunately devolve into "good vs. bad" rather than embracing the deeper, more critical conversations needed when talking about philanthropy's fastest growing vehicle. Therefore, when I see an article that delves deeper, it immediately grabs my attention! The CEO of FJC - A Foundation of Philanthropic Funds, recently published a thoughtful piece on the blog of the Center for Effective Philanthropy entitled “The Power (and Challenges) of Mobilizing DAFs in a Time of Crisis.” One fantastic question posed by the article linked below is:

"This highlights the important question about whether DAF sponsors should primarily be a mechanism for individual giving, or whether there’s a role for sponsors in inspiring their donors to consider different, and potentially more equitable, approaches to their philanthropy."

If your Board, leadership team, or development team are interested in learning more about Donor Advised Funds, we have created a Signature Program entitled “Demystifying Donor Advised Funds.” In a highly interactive format, this workshop discusses donor advised funds, how they differ from private foundations, tips for engagement, critiques and potential reforms. If you’d like to learn more, contact us today!

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Highly effective nonprofit Boards embrace strategic conversations around critical issues relevant to the mission of the organization. They recognize that the limited time the Board spends together as a team is valuable, and devote that time to discussion rather than simply a recitation of reports.

What has the attention of nonprofit Boards these days? Here are just a few critical issues that highly effective nonprofit Boards are discussing as a team:

• Bloomerang recently released the 2018-2019 State of the Nonprofit Workplace Report. Among the key findings:

  • Salary was among the top 5 most important employee benefits, but employees ranked paid time off and paid family leave even higher.

  • Approximately 30% of respondents report working multiple jobs to make ends meet

  • Women earned less in salary than men across all categories, including based on years of experience and organization size

  • About 35% of nonprofit employees predicted they wouldn’t be working at their current organization 2 years from now.

• According to a recent survey from Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), 25% of fundraisers report confronting ethical dilemmas at least 6 times per year.

  • "From a list of common ethical challenges, respondents also identified ethical issues on which they need more guidance and resources. Donor control and restrictions on how gifts can be used was identified by almost half (48%) of respondents as a critical issue, followed by conflicts of interest (41%) and “tainted” money from donors (40%)."

• The National Philanthropic Trust released their annual Donor Advised Funds Report. Key findings include:

  • The number of Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) grew 55.2% in the past year. The actual number of DAFs in the United States is now 728,563. This total should surpass one million in 2020.

  • Grants made from DAFs increased 18.9%, making them philanthropy's fastest growing vehicle.

Imagine the dynamic conversations your Board could be having as they grapple with these or the countless other issues critical to translating your vision into reality. If your Board is ready to take the first step towards towards elevating its effectiveness or bringing these discussions to your Board room, let's connect!