Opening Up Demystifying Funder Transparency

Opening Up: Demystifying Funder Transparency explores how transparency can strengthen credibility, improve grantee relationships, facilitate greater collaboration, increase public trust, reduce duplication of effort, and build communities of shared learning. We organized the content into five topical chapters so that you can focus on exploring one approach to transparency at a time.

Listen to our Transparency Chat podcasts, which elaborate on themes explored in the guide using the spoken wisdom of funders from around the globe; read, print, and share our infographic about taking steps towards greater transparency; and review our GrantCraft community survey results. Additionally, if you would like to share your experiences with transparency through a guest blog post, let us know.

Discuss the themes in these resources using #transparency.

This guide and related content were supported by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and were produced in collaboration with Glasspockets.

What's in the Guide?

  • Introduction: What is transparency, and why is it important?
  • Behind Closed Doors: Sharing Grantee Selection Processes and Grantee Data: Opening up about selection processes is an important first step towards transparency.
  • Is the Needle Moving? Sharing Performance Assessments: Learn about how sharing assessments promotes trusts, increases credibility, and helps to improve learning.
  • Improving Relationships: Strengthening Engagement with Grantees and Other Nonprofits: Transparency is a tool to improve relationships, which can strengthen the overall impact of funders' work and the nonprofits they support.
  • Peers Helping Peers: Improving the Practice of Philanthropy: When foundation staff are transparent in sharing their goals, lessons learned, and challenges with colleagues, they increase philanthropy’s overall impact.
  • Window of Technology: Communicating Using Every Opportunity: Examples of how various communications outlets and strategies can further a funder's transparency efforts.
  • Conclusion: We tie together themes throughout the guide and give you steps for moving forward.

About the author(s)

About the author(s)

Opening Up: Demystifying Funder Transparency explores how transparency can strengthen credibility, improve grantee relationships, facilitate greater collaboration, increase public trust, reduce duplication of effort, and build communities of shared learning. We organized the content into five topical chapters so that you can focus on exploring one approach to transparency at a time.

Listen to our Transparency Chat podcasts, which elaborate on themes explored in the guide using the spoken wisdom of funders from around the globe; read, print, and share our infographic about taking steps towards greater transparency; and review our GrantCraft community survey results. Additionally, if you would like to share your experiences with transparency through a guest blog post, let us know.

Discuss the themes in these resources using #transparency.

This guide and related content were supported by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and were produced in collaboration with Glasspockets.

What's in the Guide?

  • Introduction: What is transparency, and why is it important?
  • Behind Closed Doors: Sharing Grantee Selection Processes and Grantee Data: Opening up about selection processes is an important first step towards transparency.
  • Is the Needle Moving? Sharing Performance Assessments: Learn about how sharing assessments promotes trusts, increases credibility, and helps to improve learning.
  • Improving Relationships: Strengthening Engagement with Grantees and Other Nonprofits: Transparency is a tool to improve relationships, which can strengthen the overall impact of funders' work and the nonprofits they support.
  • Peers Helping Peers: Improving the Practice of Philanthropy: When foundation staff are transparent in sharing their goals, lessons learned, and challenges with colleagues, they increase philanthropy’s overall impact.
  • Window of Technology: Communicating Using Every Opportunity: Examples of how various communications outlets and strategies can further a funder's transparency efforts.
  • Conclusion: We tie together themes throughout the guide and give you steps for moving forward.
 

About the author(s)