The Philanthropy Roundtable has a Big Hairy Audacious Goal for 2009. We’re planning for this year’s Annual Meeting to be our best ever.
Our 18th Annual Meeting will take place at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs from October 1 to October 3. More than 300 philanthropic leaders from 32 states have already registered, and we are expecting attendance of over 400.
Our conference theme is “Peak Performance in Philanthropy.” In times of economic downturn, it is all the more important for every philanthropic dollar to be wisely spent. To help donors rise to this challenge, we are honored to feature as keynote speakers two of the world’s most extraordinary teachers of excellence in business and philanthropic leadership.
Jim Collins is the author of Built to Last and Good to Great, two of the most influential business bestsellers of all time. Jim has recently extended his study of greatness to the charitable sector, examining how philanthropists and nonprofits can apply the core concepts of his research on business excellence: getting the right people on the bus, the culture of discipline, the flywheel process of building momentum by building the brand, unwavering faith in the future combined with a willingness to confront brutal facts, and Level 5 leaders who combine personal humility with a relentless professional will to do whatever it takes to achieve their organization’s mission.
Jim has also extended his “hedgehog concept” to the charitable sector. Great philanthropists and nonprofit leaders, he argues, have the discipline to say “no, thank you” to most opportunities that come their way. Instead, they focus on the intersection of three questions: What are they deeply passionate about? What can they be best in the world at? How can they build the resources (time, money, and brand) to deliver truly superior performance?
Tom Tierney was CEO of Bain, one of the world’s leaders in strategic consulting for business, and he is now chairman of Bridgespan, a nonprofit consulting firm which applies Bain’s analytic methods to foundations and other nonprofits. Drawing on his highly influential recent article in Harvard Business Review, Tom will speak at our Annual Meeting about “Delivering Philanthropic Impact: The Four Essential Questions Every Nonprofit Must Address.” Which results will we hold ourselves accountable for? How will we achieve them? What will results really cost, and how can we fund them? How do we build the organization we need to deliver results? Tom will discuss how donors can help their grantees address these questions, as well as the common mistakes donors make that get in the way of grantee effectiveness.
Other highlights of our Annual Meeting include:
I hope you can join us, and I look forward to seeing you in Colorado Springs.
Adam Meyerson is president of The Philanthropy Roundtable.
