Powerful Grantmaking-Related Knowledge and Insight for You and Your Organization
January 31 at 2:00 p.m. ET

“Customer quote”
—Customer credentials
Each month our thought-leadership series will feature a variety of topics centered around grantmaking technology, processes, management, and best practices—delivered by one or more grantmaking-industry leaders, including association leadership, consultants, journalists, and Blackbaud customers and experts.
Mission-Critical Data Security Best Practices for Grantmaking Organizations
- How funders assess when sharing information poses a risk, and the types of risks they are concerned about
- Examples of the types of situations where funders have had to take steps to protect sensitive information
- Shared responsibilities -- the roles that various teams within your organization can and should play in addressing security situations, i.e. senior management, IT, grants management, legal, communications, etc.
- Security best practices.
- Blackbaud’s Global Trust & Security program – what we do to help our customers.
- And more
The knowledge that this panel will share will be of interest to any and all staff levels of community, corporate, and independent & family foundations.
Speakers:
Laia Griñó—Director of Data Discovery at candid.org
Ashley Wyand, CISM--Senior Manager, Cyber Security at Blackbaud
This webinar will last approximately 45-minutes followed by 15 minutes of Q&A.
DEI in Practice: How Seasoned Grantmakers Are Adopting These Principles
Thursday, July 28 at 1:00 p.m. ET
Most of today’s nonprofit and grantmaking organizations lack mature and effective Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs. But to look forward and build a proactive culture of respect, belonging, and trust can no longer be a should-have, but rather a must-have, priority.
Join us for this webinar event where Blackbaud’s Melissa Furr and Michel Moore will share Blackbaud’s DEI culture and considerations in our corporate grantmaking process, and will interview leaders from two prominent Blackbaud customers representing an independent foundation and a community foundation. Overall DEI cultures, how DEI fits into grantmaking practices, and advice on how organizations can get started and prioritize the principles of DEI will be shared.
Our speakers will be:
- Melissa Furr – Manager of Global Social Responsibility at Blackbaud
- Michael Boulware Moore – VP, Diversity & Inclusion at Blackbaud
- Rhett Mabry – President at The Duke Endowment
- Tonia Wellons – President & CEO at Greater Washington Community Foundation
The knowledge that this panel will share will be of interest to all staff levels of community, corporate, and independent & family foundations.
45-minute presentation, followed by 15 minutes of Q&A.
Collaborative Grantmaking – Part I: The Role of Empathy and Experimentation
Thursday, August 25 at 1:00 p.m. ET
There are early foundation-building steps that are often missed when forming collaborative partnerships, empathy, and experimentation. Empathy provides the foundation of deep and authentic understanding between collaborative partners and experimentation tests the behaviors you need to achieve success.
What if you could connect more authentically and “test drive” your collaborations and your impact before you invest time, money, and other resources? What if you could get aligned on your shared mission, address uncertainty, and test pathways to results within hours and weeks, rather than waiting years for outcomes?
In this live, online event, Heather will share how, with simple and new questions you can ask, you can deeply understand what problems you solve for your collaborative partners, and how to identify and test assumptions that are embedded within your collaborative partnerships. Once you construct a strong foundation for mutual value creation, you can drive ongoing value and reach your ultimate goals more efficiently and effectively.
The knowledge that this panel will share will be of interest to any and all staff levels of community, corporate, and independent & family foundations.
45-minute presentation, followed by 15 minutes of Q&A.
Collaborative Grantmaking – Part II: Reimagine How to Define and Assess Your Impact
Thursday, September 29 at 1:00 p.m. ET
The current and status quo ways that we expect results are very powerful and they guide our relationships, how we craft grant solicitations, applications, and reports, how we review opportunities, track progress, and ultimately how we judge and support what’s possible.
What if there was a different and better way to break free of the constraints of traditional “impact” and we used new skills rooted in shared learning to drive results in a fraction of the time, for a fraction of the resources?
During this live event, Heather will guide you to identify status quo habits in collaborative grantmaking, and how you can learn new ways to make the impact process more clear, equitable, efficient, and effective.
The knowledge that this panel will share will be of interest to any and all staff levels of community, corporate, and independent & family foundations.
45-minute presentation, followed by 15 minutes of Q&A.
Mission-Critical Data Security Best Practices for Grantmaking Organizations
- How funders assess when sharing information poses a risk, and the types of risks they are concerned about
- Examples of the types of situations where funders have had to take steps to protect sensitive information
- Shared responsibilities -- the roles that various teams within your organization can and should play in addressing security situations, i.e. senior management, IT, grants management, legal, communications, etc.
- Security best practices.
- Blackbaud’s Global Trust & Security program – what we do to help our customers.
- And more
The knowledge that this panel will share will be of interest to any and all staff levels of community, corporate, and independent & family foundations.
Speakers:
Laia Griñó—Director of Data Discovery at candid.org
Ashley Wyand, CISM--Senior Manager, Cyber Security at Blackbaud
This webinar will last approximately 45-minutes followed by 15 minutes of Q&A.
The Rising Role of Technology—and the People Behind It—in Advancing Philanthropy's Mission
Due Diligence Defined: What ‘Being Compliant’ Really Means for Grantmakers
Why is due diligence important in grantmaking organizations? The process of satisfying legal requirements impacts many areas within an organization— mission alignment, stewardship, duty of care, reputation, outcomes & impact, and overall effectiveness to name a few.
- Due diligence models
- Grant applications and risk identification
- Structure and Governance
- Financial information, including budgets, financial statements, and IRS Form 990
- Information Technology and internal controls
- Streamlining operations and increasing productivity
- And more.
The knowledge Liz will share will be of interest to any and all staff levels of independent & family foundations as well as grantmaking companies and corporate foundations.
Creating and Sustaining a Culture of Wellbeing for Grantmakers
If this sounds like you, this fun and interactive webinar will inspire you with mindful approaches for creating sustained balance in your life so you can lower your stress level, focus on getting the important things done, and be more present for yourself, your team, and your family.
Join us as we host Meico Marquette Whitlock—a.k.a. The Mindful Techie— as he shares lessons learned from the pandemic and practical shifts to create and sustain a healthy, vibrant culture that works better for everyone in your organization.
Transparency as a Grantmaking Strategy to Build Trust and Mutual Accountability
In this live, online event, we'll hear from leaders in the field about tactical ways to embrace transparency, the "faceplant" moments they've had along the way, and how they and their foundations have benefited from taking a more transparent approach.
We'll explore questions such as:
- How can you be more transparent with prospective grantees about what you do and don’t fund?
- How can we strive for transparency with current grantees, especially if it has to do with making changes to your funding strategies?
- How can we remain responsive to our grantee partners amidst our very busy schedules and crowded inboxes? And…
- What might we be missing even when we think we’re being transparent and responsive?
- The knowledge that this panel will share will be of interest to any and all staff levels of community, corporate, and independent & family foundations.
Shaady Salehi – Executive Director, Trust-Based Philanthropy Project
Lisa Maloney-Vinz — Director of Global Community Relations, Ecolab Foundation
Drexel Owusu – Chief Impact Officer, The Dallas Foundation
Lauren Scott — Executive Director, Harris and Eliza Kempner Fund
Mastering the Ins and Outs of an Annual Report
A thoughtfully-crafted annual report can do more than communicate financial data and program statistics. It can bring awareness to your work, garner support for your mission, and build trust with your stakeholders.
Our own Alexis Fish interviews Tere Segarra of Pacific Life and Susan Merfeld of Pebble Beach Company Foundation to discuss the hows, the whys and the whats of their annual reports. Join us as they share their best practices and suggestions.
Webinar title
Date & Time
Webinar title
Date & Time

Lorem Ipsum
Lorem Ipsum