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Learning and Evaluation

By shifting our understanding of evaluation so that it’s focused squarely on improvement and engaging grantees and other partners, we can learn in ways that yield rewards for everyone involved.

3 out of 4

Grantmakers (76%) say they evaluate their work.

Evaluation gives us an opportunity to take stock of what’s working. But when we adopt a learning mindset focused on continuously improving, we can use evaluation for more than just an accountability measure. Instead, we can focus on what we can learn from the data, push ourselves to experiment and deliberately look at failures as opportunities to grow.

Learning can happen in any number of ways, but what’s important to remember is that our evaluation work is only successful if nonprofits are able to learn from it as well. We should therefore only ask for evaluation data we’re going to use and strive to have evaluations be as useful to nonprofits for their own decision-making as it is for us. This requires us to share the power of evaluation, and look to nonprofits and communities to help define success, determine what data to measure and say what data means. That’s why it’s important that we work to build nonprofit evaluative capacity. By shifting our understanding of evaluation so that it’s focused squarely on improvement and engaging grantees and other partners, we can learn in ways that yield rewards for everyone involved.

“We want to create a place where people at all levels of the organization have opportunities to reflect with others about their work and to apply what they’re learning so they can do a better job.”

Amanuel Melles, former director of programs and capacity building, United Way Toronto

Helpful Tools and Resources

Stay informed of the emerging trends and promising practices from the field of philanthropy through GEO’s publications and research.

  • Perspective

    Crosspost: Centering lived experience: Unlocking the preconditions for equity-rooted evaluation

    Kresge Strategic Learning and Evaluation Officer Arturo Garcia moderated a session at the 2023 Learning Conference of Grantmakers for Effective Organizations (GEO), exploring the preconditions for centering equity in evaluation.

    • Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
    • September 2023
  • GEOList Members Only

    GEOList Summary: Payroll and Benefits Management Software/Applications

    Greetings, Our Foundation is currently looking for a new system to manage Payroll and Benefits. We are a private family foundation with 7 staff members. I am curious if there are organizations similar in size that use these applications to manage their benefits and payroll? Furthermore, I am curious to learn how folks structure HR if it is not in-house, what type of system(s) do you utilize? Please share your thoughts and insight if you have any! Kindly, Lindsey

    • Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
    • July 2023
  • GEOList Members Only

    GEOList Summary: Conflict of interest policies for board member grant reviewers

    Hello everyone, We are seeking examples of conflict of interest policies that covers the board for their review of grants, including recusals. Thank you! Georganna ___

    • Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
    • July 2023
  • GEOList Members Only

    GEOList Summary: Wellness Grants for Executive Leadership

    Dear GEO Community, Our foundation works closely with nonprofits that serve families and children in the region. We have focused on organizational resiliency and capacity building, and over the last several years, we noticed a critical need for executive leadership wellness and self-care. The foundation plans to offer new wellness grants to executives at our partner nonprofits, but this is a new funding area for us! What is your experience with wellness grants, leadership burnout support, and nonprofit leadership self-care? I would love to know more about your grant guidelines, how funds were used, and overall feedback from your grantees. Thank you very much! Laura

    • Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
    • May 2023
  • Perspective

    Using Organizational Strategy to Inform Philanthropic Effectiveness

    Over the last 25 years, the GEO community has led the field of philanthropy in exploring effective grantmaking. While our collective understanding of what “effective” means is always evolving, so are the ways that we help transform philanthropic culture and practice.

    • Grantmakers for Effective Organizations
    • April 2023

Upcoming Events

  • Remote Learning and Webinars

    Measurement to Move from Intention to Practice

    GEO and Candid are partnering to bring you this conversation with two grantmakers working with Candid to get baseline demographic data and using it to measure progress. Hear what’s worked, what hasn’t, and lessons they’ve learned to guide your efforts.

    • October 2023
  • Conferences

    2024 National Conference

    Save the Date for GEO's 2024 National Conference held in partnership with Philanthropy California from June 3 - 5, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.

    • June 2024
  • Conferences

    2025 Learning Conference

    Save the Date for GEO's 2025 Learning Conference, hosted in partnership with North Carolina Network of Grantmakers, from May 5 - 6, 2025 in Charlotte, NC.

    • May 2025

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Perspectives on Philanthropy

Interesting thoughts and ideas circulating in the GEO community.

  • Article Photo

    Bruner Foundation

    Effectiveness Initiatives

    To quote author Gail Berkowitz, this web portal "is a helpful one stop site for resources for funders and their partners on evaluation capacity building and evaluative thinking."

  • A strategic approach to evaluation requires a clear vision for evaluation; a culture that fosters individual, group, and organizational learning; a compelling and cogent strategy; coordinated evaluation and learning activities; and a supportive environment.

  • Article Photo

    Innovation Network

    State of Evaluation 2016

    State of Evaluation 2016 contains exciting updates, three special topics (evaluation storage systems and software, big data, and pay for performance), and illuminating findings for everyone who works with nonprofit organizations.

Related Topics

Equity

No matter the outcome we are working toward, our institutions and systems were built to advantage some but not all — and data shows that inequities persist to this day. These inequities become more apparent when we take race into account.

Learn More

Capacity Building

Grantmakers who put the work in to provide effective capacity-building support help ensure that nonprofits have what they need to deliver on their missions over the long term.

Learn More

Learning and Evaluation

By shifting our understanding of evaluation so that it’s focused squarely on improvement and engaging grantees and other partners, we can learn in ways that yield rewards for everyone involved.

Learn More
Nichole Hoeflich

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