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Before he became president of the Greater New Orleans Foundation President last year, Albert Ruesga was a blogger at White Courtesy Telephone who rarely pulled punches when examining the work of organized philanthropy. In this episode, Communications Network Contributor Susan Herr picks Albert's brain about the stumbling blocks CEO's may have toward social media, and what you can do to reassure them.
Dr. Albert Ruesga joined the Greater New Orleans Foundation in January 2009. He served for seven years as Vice President for Programs and Communications at the Meyer Foundation in Washington, DC. Dr. Ruesga was the founding director of New Ventures in Philanthropy, a national initiative that has helped generate more than $500 million in new philanthropic resources against an investment of $14 million. Prior to serving at New Ventures, he was the Donor Resources Manager at the Boston Foundation.
- Running time of this episode is 27 minutes. To view selected sections, use the guide below to forward to the time indicated: Albert starts with the dark side of cyberspace (1:47-2:46)
- Really, truly – why does a foundation need social media? (2:47-7:52)
- Are foundation communications more like a funeral march or a party? (9:19-11:51)
- Objections your CEO may have to social media 1(13:30-18:36)
- What expectations we should have? (23:29-26:44)
In this video chat, Phil Buchanan, President of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, and Communications Network Contributor Susan Herr, explore attacks on philanthropy, what is motivating these charges, and why it is important for more of us to challenge broad stereotypes that aren't based on evidence.
In addition to serving as President for the Center for Effective Philanthropy, Buchanan was named to the Nonprofit Times 2007 and 2008 “Power and Influence Top 50” list. He holds an MBA from Harvard University and received his undergraduate degree in Government from Wesleyan University.
Whose Job Is It to Speak Up for Philanthropy? from Communications Network on Vimeo.
Running time of this episode is 29 minutes. To view selected sections, use the guide below to forward to the time indicated:
- Center for Effective Philanthropy - Right Place, Right Time (0:00-1:20)
- "Philanthropy is under attack." Hyperbole? (1:20-7:46)
- Who is attacking from inside the gates? (3:24-5:00)
- What is motivating these attacks? )7:47-12:56)
- How can effectively deliver simultaneous the message that the nonprofit sector is good but that it needs to be better? (13:42-18:38)
- Why should I have to speak to what philanthropy as a whole is doing v. my own organization's efforts? (18:39-22:41)
- Why is it time to start violating "communication commandments?" (22:42-26:07)
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Has this happened to your organization: after experimenting with social media you found that nothing happened at all?
If so, you're not alone. One of the most frequent complaints from organizations grappling with social media tools is that after taking the plunge -- whether Tweeting, blogging, or starting new Facebook pages -- nothing happens.
In this special webinar, produced for the Communications Network by the Nonprofit Technology Network (NTEN), session leaders Holly Ross, Executive Director of NTEN, and Nancy Schwartz, NTEN board member and blogger (www.gettingattention.org), and Communications Network member, share examples of how other organizations are successfully harnessing the power of social media to build buzz that contributes to their foundations’ reach.
Their presentation covers the nuts and bolts of social media success and the readiness to put them to work for your foundation.
Click here to view the webinar. For a copy of the presentation, click here.
Also, to stay on top of technology news you can use, click here to sign up for NTEN's newsletter.
In the Communications Network's debut of a new video feature -- our diavlog series (dialog+video+blog) -- we explore the question: "Should Foundations speak in human voices?" Susan Herr, president of PhilanthroMedia, and a regular contributor to the Communications Network website, speaks with Michael Margolis, principal of Get Storied, about how the new communications technologies -- notably Twitter -- enable foundations to engage in conversations with audiences, not as institutions, but as individuals. Over the course of their wide-ranging conversation, they also discuss Philanthropy 411's research about which foundations are Twittering, an assessment by social media expert Beth Kanter about the different ways foundations are Twittering, and blogger Sean Stannard-Stockton's (Tactical Philanthropy) assertion that these human-to-human interactions underscore the difference between sharing knowledge and wisdom.
Margolis comes to the conversation not as a new media guru but as a consultant who helps organizations harness their internal stories as key to building brands that reflect the values that underscore their work. His work and writings have been featured in Fast Company, Brandweek, Storytelling Magazine, LA Business Journal, and Silicon Alley Reporter, among others. Margolis is the also the author of the forthcoming Believe Me: Why Your Brand, Vision, and Leadership Need a Bigger Story, to be published in October.
Running time of the diavlog is 28 minutes. To view selected sections, use the guide below to fast forward to the time code indicated:
- Which Foundations are Twittering and Why (1:05-6:12)
- Should Anyone Besides Your CEO Represent the Foundation Brand? (6:12-8:39)
- Existential Crisis: Do We Have to Speak in Human Voices? (8:39-12:00)
- What’s Authenticity Got to Do, Got to Do with It? (15:30-19:21)
- Storytelling: It's Not Just For Outsider Audiences (19:21-28:00)
After viewing the diavlog, feel free to leave a comment. if you have ideas for future topics, email us.
Does it make sense for foundations to talk about failure? In this diavlog (dialog+video+blog), Grant Oliphant, president of the Pittsburgh Foundation, discusses with interviewer Susan Herr why foundations shouldn't be so afraid to admit "when we're not perfect." As Oliphant says, if foundations see themselves as "entities in American society that can take risks that no one else can, then we have to be contributing to learning about what works and what doesn't."
What do you think? Should foundations talk more and more openly about failure? What are the upsides as well as potential downsides? View the video by clicking on the image below. Afterward, feel free to leave a comment on our blog.
What's the Upside of Philanthropic Failure? from Communications Network on Vimeo.
In this conversation, Mark Sedway, Project Director of the Philanthropy Awareness Initiative (PAI) and Communications Network Contributor Susan Herr, explore the challenges foundations face in informing both the larger public, and in particular, "influential" Americans about the many important contributions philanthropy makes to the nation and world. That said, Sedway says new research shows that there is a growing interest among key members of the public to learn more about the work of foundations. As a result, Sedway asks, will more foundation leaders -- including trustees -- embrace this opportunity and become vocal ambassadors who aggressively make the case for how philanthropy can help drive change in partnership with others, such as policymakers?
In addition to serving as project director for PAI, Sedway manages his own consulting firm. Prior to establishing Sedway Associates, Mark worked for the Williams Group and as well as serving as the first communications director for The James Irvine Foundation.
Running time of this episode is 28 minutes. To view selected sections, use the guide below to forward to the time indicated:
Why Do So Few Care About What Foundations Really Do? from Communications Network on Vimeo.
- Communication execs are finally getting some R-E-S-P-E-C-T! (0:00-2:34)
- Overview of Philanthropy Awareness Initiative research findings (2:34-7:34)
- Who cares what people think of philanthropy? (7:49-13:23)
- Can philanthropists really be more effective when folks know and like us? (13:24-20:45)
- Go forth and break communication commandments! (21:11-24:33)
- Community foundations in this realm and the Philanthropy 3D Project (23:15-25:12)
One of the ways that foundations help advance social issues is to commission research. However, to fully take advantage of the opportunity that high-quality research has to offer -- both to advance issues and demonstrate the foundation as a leader in topic areas -- there are more effective ways to get attention than simply posting a report on a website or sending out press releases. In this conversation, Gabriela Fitz, Co-Director of IssueLab, and Communications Network Contributor Susan Herr, explore how to use new tools that can help foundations use social policy research to achieve actual societal impact.
Before co-founding IssueLab, Gabriela spent ten years working as an online strategist and web designer for nonprofit organizations. She received her M.A. in Sociology from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2006, with an emphasis in Organizational Sociology and her B.A. in Sociology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1994.
To listen to an audio recording of the file, click here.
Running time of this episode is 30 minutes. To view selected sections, use the guide below to forward to the time indicated:
- What is IssueLab and what’s in it for me? (00:35-02:35)
- What is the specific purpose of social policy research and what are the implications for communicators? (02:35-5:26)
- What are gaps between talking and walking the work of research dissemination? (5:27-12:00)
- Inserting the communications perspective earlier in the research definition process. (12:00-16:00)
- What are the top three things that characterize research worth disseminating? (16:00-24:50)
- What is open licensing of our research and why is it important? (24:50-30:29)
A lot of the work you do as foundation and nonprofit communicators revolves around getting attention for the issues and causes that drive the work of your res
pective organizations. But have you ever wondered why, despite your best efforts, the message that you think you're communicating isn't the one that the public is hearing? Or sometimes, instead of rallying people to your cause, they turn away from you, if not against you?
The problem may be how you frame your message.
In this webinar, Hunter Cutting, associate director of Resource Media, a nonprofit that assists environmental groups with their media strategies, discusses with host Andy Goodman tips and lessons for effectively framing messages.
Among the topics covered:
--How to tell your message
--Where to tell it
--Who should tell it
--Who needs to hear it
Good foundation and nonprofit communications efforts rightly start with the question: What are we trying to accomplish?
But just as important, if not more so, is: Are we aiming our messages at the right audiences?
During a past Communications Network webinar, Lisa Witter and Lisa Chen, authors of a new book The She Spot: Why Women Are the Market for Changing the World and How to Reach Them, discussed with host Andy Goodman, why women must be a key target in any social change campaign.
In fact, Witter and Chen, both executives with Fenton Communications, argued that if you are planning a campaign or other kind of communications activities to influence public opinion, change behavior, or help your grantees with their work, you are more likely to succeed at winning support for your issues and causes if you make a greater – and primary – effort to engage women.
When foundation communicators get together to talk about the work they do, branding is often a topic that dominates their conversation. But is the way most people understand and practice branding today still relevant or is it time for some new approaches? In this conversation, Chery Heller, president of Heller Communication Design and Communications Network Contributor Susan Herr, explore that question. Heller, an experienced strategist, writer and creative director, says that today -- when everyone is a communicator and information is no longer top down but bottom up -- branding is much more than just creating fancy images and logos, it's also about behavior -- what you and everyone in your organization does, says -- and how they say it.
In addition to work with clients such as Reebok, Ford Motor Company, and the Girls Scouts of America, Heller is on the faculty of PopTech! Innovation Fellows, a program that helps high potential change agents from around the world develop the skills and gain access to tools to innovate areas like healthcare, energy, development, climate, education, and civic engagement, among many others. Heller also has developed and will chair a Masters Degree Program for the School of Visual Arts in New York on Design for Social Innovation.
Beyond Branding -- A Conversation with Cheryl Heller from Communications Network on Vimeo.
