SmartyGrants - an enterprise of Our Community

🚀 Social Value & SROI accredited training in Melbourne! 🚀 Join SIMNA on 25-26 November for this two-day course led by Simon Faivel from SVA Consulting. If you're keen to measure the impact of your organisation, program or investment, or assist others in doing so, this training is for you. Don’t miss out on the final session this year – secure your spot today! Details below.

Our UK lead Kathy Richardson, in this blog for NPC (New Philanthropy Capital) says the key to good #grantmaking is using that money more effectively. She writes ... Grantmaking is undergoing a seismic shift. Recent global events – from shocks like the Covid pandemic, social movements like #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo, and growing issues such as reproductive rights and climate justice – have sparked a transformation of the way grantmaking operates. But equally important has been technological change. AI and data science offer new opportunities, while also bringing significant risks. We need to bring together both these trends – the impact of social movements and technological progress – to create a more unified approach to embracing change and innovation in grantmaking. Tap to read more below:

New research has laid bare Australians vastly differing attitudes towards the community sector. The groundbreaking study has uncovered significant differences in the way different groups in the nation perceive the community sector, with major implications for the way grantmakers engage with different attitudinal cohorts. Researcher Rebecca Huntley has written the report, which was jointly commission by SmartyGrants parent enterprise Our Community and the Community Council for Australia. As the Charities Minister Andrew Leigh (who wrote the foreward) says, this report is “a call to action” to "policymakers, community leaders and citizens alike to recognise the contributions of the community sector". Read more here: https://buff.ly/4fdXaCh

We've just published the latest edition of Grants Management Intelligence, which as the name suggests, gives a decisive edge to grant nerds everywhere. Don't miss this free publication, powered by SmartyGrants. https://buff.ly/3zWWdOE #grantmaking #funding #socialsector #research

Proud to be a sponsor of this excellent event. We're also pleased to hear that #NPCIgnites will be accessible online (and on replay) to charities, funders, philanthropists, social enterprises, corporates and the public sector wherever they are.

Huge congratulations to all involved in delivering this extraordinary cross-sector callaboration for having the vision, gumption and smarts to deliver such a world-leading grants data initiative. Special call out to Tania Cohen MBE and the team at 360Giving for putting in place the scaffolding that made this possible. Data structure is not glamorous but it's so important! Kudos to 360Giving and project partners Association of Charitable Foundations, ACO - The Association of Charitable Organisations, London Funders, UK Community Foundations, Pears Foundation and CCLA Investment Management. Hats off to you all. 🙇♀️ We are looking forward to helping grantmakers seamlessly contribute data to this fantastic initiative as we rollout SmartyGrants - an enterprise of Our Community across the UK. https://lnkd.in/gSY43FTG

Huge congratulations to all involved in delivering this extraordinary cross-sector callaboration for having the vision, gumption and smarts to deliver such a world-leading grants data initiative. Special call out to Tania Cohen MBE and the team at 360Giving for putting in place the scaffolding that made this possible. Data structure is not glamorous but it's so important! Kudos to 360Giving and project partners Association of Charitable Foundations, ACO - The Association of Charitable Organisations, London Funders, UK Community Foundations, Pears Foundation and CCLA Investment Management. Hats off to you all. 🙇♀️ We are looking forward to helping grantmakers seamlessly contribute data to this fantastic initiative as we rollout SmartyGrants - an enterprise of Our Community across the UK.

The Labor Government has renewed its push for better evaluation in the Australian public sector, with the minister in charge calling for widespread adoption of randomised control trials, announcing $2.1 million worth of grants, and supporting the creation of a new professional network.

On Monday, I attended the Australian Centre for Evaluation impact evaluation showcase, there are some key takeaways for Australia's granting community around the use of evidence and the role of RCT/quasi-experimental designs in the design and evaluation of projects. I would love to hear the grant community's thoughts and my evaluation colleagues out there - are many granting programs undertaking this type of impact evaluation? Philanthropy Australia, SmartyGrants - an enterprise of Our Community https://lnkd.in/gP22skSE Jess Dart Kevin Robbie Simon Faivel Judy Gold Emma Thomas Julian Thomas

This week this #grantnerd has been thinking a lot about the myth of merit in grants assessment. I've always been uneasy with the assessment processes most of us use - and have been so interested to discover there is another way! Here's my 5-minute read. Big thanks to Dr Stefanie Schneider (EDI Caucus), Dr Ken Emond (The British Academy), Dr Lisa Williams from UNSW, Mathew Tata (Cancer Research UK), Gearóid Maguire (Wellcome) and Prof. Tom Stafford from the Research on Research Institute for lending their wisdom. #grantnerds #grantmaking #grants #funding #mythofmerit #DEI #accessibility