Has Venture Philanthropy Passed Its Peak? | Stanford Social Innovation Review

Has Venture Philanthropy Passed Its Peak? | Stanford Social Innovation Review: In philanthropy, we are seeing a lot of early-stage nonprofits with ideas and leadership that aren’t ready for prime time. Unfortunately, many are getting funded. Some talented and not-so-talented social entrepreneurs are getting hold of sizeable amounts of money to give their idea a go. This trend is reminiscent of the 1999-2000 Internet funding bubble.

Another indication that the end is near is when there are multiple variations of the same idea, or when the ideas themselves are on the periphery or so amorphous that it’s hard to know what the idea is, exactly. The number of tangential education-related nonprofits that claim that they will substantively change educational outcomes for kids is staggering. Many are doing good things for kids, but they don’t have meaningful, measurable impact and are diverting philanthropic dollars from organizations and interventions that have true impact.

Venture philanthropy risky but rewarding - The Denver Post

Venture philanthropy risky but rewarding - The Denver Post: Venture philanthropy, on the other hand, is more like investing in hedge funds: The risks are greater and the potential for outsized social returns and impact from the donation is enormous. As a philanthropist, you can evaluate your risk tolerance and determine which types of philanthropy work best for you.

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Voices from the Field: The Inescapable Importance of Culture, Part I

The Nonprofit Quarterly | @npquarterly | Voices from the Field: The Inescapable Importance of Culture, Part I: "Over the course of the past two years, I’ve used the Venture Philanthropy website to focus attention on organizational imperatives from mission effectiveness to managing to outcomes to values-based transparency. Recently, a good friend pushed me to go further. He said, “You need to tie all this together…Take it further to stress what folks can to do change their organizational culture.” His advice resonated strongly, because I believe an organization’s culture makes or breaks its ability to deliver on all of the organizational imperatives I’ve previously covered."

Charities find unlikely new champion in private equity - Telegraph

Charities find unlikely new champion in private equity - Telegraph: "An emerging model, known as venture philanthropy, aims to boost the productivity of an often bloated and inefficient third sector, using venture capital techniques of due diligence, ongoing engagement and rigorous performance measurement.

The practice has found its poster girl in Daniela Barone Soares, the engaging chief executive of London-based venture philanthropy firm Impetus."

Charity Village®NewsWeek: Cover Story

Charity Village®NewsWeek: Cover Story: "Venture Philanthropy: Boldly going forward
Andy Levy-Ajzenkopf By Andy Levy-Ajzenkopf
February 16, 2009

Once the new kid on the block, venture philanthropy has grown into its own in the past decade. The urge by young and emerging entrepreneurs to spur social change and increase capacity in the charitable sector while still making a profit may have started off small, but it's gaining a lot of credence. And Canadian organizations are helping the tide along."

Groups seek new ways to spread the health | Philadelphia Inquirer | 01/15/2009

Groups seek new ways to spread the health | Philadelphia Inquirer | 01/15/2009: "You've got to be able to write food on a prescription pad, and we did,' Farmer told the members of globalislocal at Gladwyne's Philadelphia Country Club. The fund is innovative in how its members, called partners, give money to social entrepreneurs."

TCW: Venture Philanthropy is on the Rise, Reaches $75M in 2007

TCW: Venture Philanthropy is on the Rise, Reaches $75M in 2007: "Venture Philanthropy is on the Rise, Reaches $75M in 2007 By Sara Gambrill Venture philanthropy is a term coined in the past few years to describe the funding that disease foundations provide to biopharmaceutical companies to research potential drugs and therapies in their respective diseases. Investment by U.S. disease foundations in the biopharmaceutical industry this year will be about $75 million—10 times as much as its investment in 2000, according to CenterWatch estimates."