ARE YOU A
philanthropist
SEEKING SOLUTIONS TO OUR NATION'S INTRACTABLE SOCIETAL CHALLENGES?
AS LONGTIME PHILANTHROPISTS, WE HAVE BEEN FRUSTRATED BY THE LARGE DOLLARS INVESTED TO FIX OR IMPROVE A CRITICAL SOCIAL CHALLENGE AND THE LIMITED IMPACT ON ACTUALLY SOLVING THOSE PROBLEMS FOR SOCIETY
The vast majority of philanthropic funds go to large institutions like universities, museums, cultural institutions and hospitals--safe investments far from the innovation of social entrepreneurs.
Why?
-
Many philanthropists are used to success and don’t want to make a mistake in their giving by supporting an organization or idea that could fail. However, innovation is always rooted in failure that generates learning . . .
-
Many philanthropists have areas of interest, but lack the infrastructure to conduct real due diligence on opportunities in those sectors. As a result, investments are put off while social challenges broaden and deepen . . .
-
Many philanthropists want to retain decision rights on directing their funding in a particular social sector, preferring not to become part of an aggregate fund. Instead, funders want private placement to own the investments they make . . .
A wise investment strategy means diversification. Portfolios are comprised of investments with a diversity of risks; some with high risk and high return potential, while another portion of corpus is invested in safer and more predictable returns. Social Ventures believes a philanthropic portfolio should reflect the same proven investment approach. Social Ventures’ due diligence process sources and nurtures efforts towards successful systemic change with the potential for scaled impact.
philanthropy
IS REEVALUATING ITS APPROACH
In the US, there is a clear trend towards giving-while-living
-
Many philanthropists are seeking to be part of a collaborative of like-minded funders, ready to lean into intractable social challenges that hold our country back.
-
Philanthropists want to learn more about an area of interest, like climate change, affordable housing or education, without having to invest in staff or a big chunk of their own time to make smart strategic bets on social innovations with the potential for scaled impact.
-
To mitigate risk, philanthropists value a structured due diligence process to assess investment opportunities as well as the potential to join other funders in support of social entrepreneurs and their organizations.
“In particular philanthropy is good at managing high-risk projects that governments can’t take on and corporations won’t--for example, trying new approaches to eradicating malaria, which is something our foundation is working on. If a government tries an idea for improving global health that fails, someone wasn’t doing their job. Whereas if we don’t try some ideas that fail, we’re not doing our jobs.”
- BILL GATES -