Partnership for Greater Impact A New Report on Budgeting for Results and Developing Youth Outcomes The ideal relationship between nonprofits, philanthropy and government is one where all partners can bring their best ideas together to solve problems. It is one where solutions come forward in the spirit of Fairness, Efficiency, Accountability, Transparency, and Responsiveness – our Partnership Principles. In our new report, Defining, Not Reinventing the Wheel: A Pilot Study on Youth Development Outcomes and Budgeting for Results (BFR), Donors Forum examines how state government and youth providers can work together to develop outcomes for greater impact. It suggests five outcomes models and examines state and provider capacity readiness for Illinois' new performance environment under BFR. With recommendations for government, philanthropy, and nonprofit providers, this new piece of research provides an opportunity for the conversation about strengthening the relationship between the public and nonprofit sectors to continue. You can find the full report and Executive Summary here. We'd like to thank our sponsor for this project, The Boeing Corporation; our partners at the Illinois Department for Human Services; our researcher and facilitator, Lisa Marie Pickens; and, in particular, the group of nonprofit leaders who shared their thoughts and impressions in our surveys and focus groups. As a small pilot study, by no means is this work meant to be definitive – but it is suggestive. While the report focuses on two specific programs we think the responses we received about resource capacity, communication, and what counts as impact can be applied across the sector. We hope there is an opportunity to expand on this initial project so that BFR will continue to be grounded in best practices, useful internal and external data will be collected, and evidence-informed outcomes will inform the best use of public resources. As always, we welcome your feedback. Feel free to talk to us about this report on our social media channels below, or email us directly at advocacy@donorsforum.org. Regards, Valerie S. Lies President & CEO Donors Forum |