We believe that more inclusive strategic planning processes are a powerful and underutilized lever to accelerate organizational impact. We are working with organizations to adapt principles and values from the emerging participatory grantmaking field to change the way strategic planning is done.

The idea that funders need to listen and learn from the people they are trying to support is painfully obvious and yet still a practice to be normalized among for many foundations. Yet in the last few years, there have been notable field building initiatives that are making progress in getting foundations to embrace feedback as a way to improve their work and their partnerships. The Fund for Shared Insight a great example of a successful effort to lift up the importance of beneficiary feedback, and that provides multiple points of entry for both foundations and nonprofit that want to build their feedback muscle.

This is an encouraging trend that has only gathered more steam in the current context of the worldwide pandemic and in the racial reckoning in the United States.

Increasingly we are seeing that organizations want to revamp their strategic planning to be more inclusive of people who have not traditionally been at the table. While no two engagements are the same, we are advising our partners to consider how participatory values and approaches can enhance their planning, while not falling into the trap of having “too many cooks in the kitchen.” The Foundation Center’s GrantCraft guide to participatory grantmaking is a super useful primer and resource to get started. A few values and practices from participatory grantmaking can easily translate to a more inclusive strategic planning process. These include:

  • Shift the power of making  strategy decisions from the exclusive domain of staff within an organization to include members of communities that be affect and/or benefit from your strategies.
  • Making strategic planning a transparent process not only helps to demystify it but also supports buy in and accountability.
  • Promote social justice and equity by engaging stakeholders that have been historically marginalized in a process that values their worldview and wisdom.

So grab a cup of tea or your favorite drink and browse this guide; the possibilities are endless.