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The Philanthropic Scale

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By: Jonathan Permetti, BBA 2017

Editor’s Note: Due to a glitch, this blog post is being published two days late, after the Board Meeting referenced in the post.

The American writer and philosopher Elbert Hubbard once stated, “It does not take much strength to do things, but it requires a great deal of strength to decide what to do.”  After our most recent Board Meeting, I can relate.

It is now decision time in the Philanthropy Lab. The months of carefully reviewing, vetting, and narrowing down proposals are coming to a close as we approach our final voting day tomorrow. While all of the groups presented at our last Board Meeting are excellent nonprofits, each tackling a need in the community, we must decide which ones we are going to donate to, and which ones we can’t partner with at this time. Which leads us to the question, how does one measure philanthropy?

From very early in our lives, we are presented with this concept of “the common good”. The common good, defined as what is best for society, is impressed on us as a goal we should strive for. But how can one truly know what is best for society? In the case of philanthropy, what makes one nonprofit’s mission and actions more “good” than another? This is the all-important question this class is faced with, one we have attempted to answer in the abstract since we began our semester together, and one that we will each answer in a very real way tomorrow afternoon.

The program area to which I have been assigned, Children, Youth, and Education, put together our own measuring scale to aid in our decisions. In an effort to further distill the Board’s mission statement for decision-making purposes, we narrowed our focus to three criteria: sustainability, leadership investment, and innovativeness (ability to effectively address a relevant issue). We even, as an exercise, made a bar chart that attempted to quantify these qualities with each non-profit we examined. However, the main problem is that this is only for our group, “our” organizations. Each of the other four teams utilized their own unique method to determine the 2-3 charities that they propose we fund. On an even deeper level, each individual probably has their own perception of what makes those particular philanthropies more “good” than the rest.

So how do we, as a Board, sift through all of these viewpoints and frameworks to construct a common vision of the most beneficial donations? The short answer: I don’t know. The best response I can give is for each member and each team to formulate their value structure in terms of the donation to the best of their abilities. This requires careful reflection and analyzing of the opportunities in front of us. Only then can we begin to communicate a common goal towards what we consider the best possible choices.

As a final contemplation, we must realize as well that our decisions have consequences. Choosing to fulfill one charity grant means that another we care about may go without funding. Given the limited amount of resources available, this is almost a certainty. For example, one of the non-profits in my group has connected with all of us due to the passion and vision radiating from its management. Yet while it is truly inspiring, it costs more than many of the other presented solutions. So do we choose to give a large portion of the funds to this charity, even if it means other, less expensive, projects go unfunded? These are some of the variables we must carefully consider given what is at stake.

To reference Elbert Hubbard once more, the hardest part of this internship has not been the site visits, the readings, or the meticulous prospecting of potential grantees. It has been choosing which groups to move forward with, or more importantly, creating a framework to justify these decisions. Tomorrow’s Board Meeting will conclude this period, as our class will finally determine its own version of the philanthropic scale.

About the Author: Jonathan Permetti is junior Business Fellow from Friendswood, Texas majoring in Entrepreneurship and Real Estate. Possessing a strong passion for startups, he hopes to pursue a career revolving around the formation of innovative companies that promote the welfare of society. Jonathan is also an active member of the Baylor Student Government and Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity.

A Clearer Perspective

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By: Jonathan Permetti, 2017

In the midst of the fifth week of our class, we have become fully immersed in the philanthropic process. Having completed roughly half of the 12 calls with various organizations, we now understand the often busy and complex nature of the field. While it is an incredibly rewarding experience, coordinating and managing the different elements of the initial vetting process has proven to be a challenge due to the vast differences in each group, as well as the incredible spirit we have seen in every organization thus far.

What has been most striking about this week is the tremendous passion evident in every representative we’ve had the chance to converse with. While it was obvious for us to assume a certain level of charity in each organization, the actual introduction to true, powerful sincerity towards the serving of others has blown us away. The level of sacrifice and commitment to providing much-needed solutions to pressing issues in the community has been both inspiring and humbling. In one instance, the president of a certain non-profit stated that her organization has garnered 8,000 volunteers over the last year. When asked how many staff she had, she replied with, “It’s just me for now.” As in this example, these individuals have demonstrated enormous effort toward building up the lives of others, and in multiple cases dedicated their careers to the fulfillment of such an objective.

While every organization’s passion has served as a motivator for our class’s endeavor, it also makes it that much more difficult to narrow the list. Many of the different organizations target radically different sectors, all of which need attention. After viewing the strong focus and involvement present in each non-profit, it is a challenge to determine how we measure whether one group is more deserving of a grant than another. To combat such an issue, we have continually referred back to our mission statement and its criteria for guidance. As such, we have focused much of our analysis on the level in which an organization a. provides an innovative solution to a problem of high priority b. whether the founders and leadership are truly invested in the success of the project c. and lastly the mentality of the organization towards the people it serves. Are they immersing themselves in the lives of the people and truly trying to understand their pain? Ultimately, asking these and similar questions has aided us in providing criteria in which to determine what organizations align most highly with the values established in our mission statement.

I believe the greatest aspect of this week has been the experience of applying the philosophy we’ve discussed in class to real-life situations. Although theoretical discussion and study is an essential and formative part of the philanthropic process, the immersion in the day-to-day joys and challenges of charitable giving has begun to cement these principles in our heads. It can be easy to view this type of work from a textbook black and white perspective. After a brief introduction into the realities of this world, we now understand that it is in fact very complex but also incredibly exciting and gratifying. The exposure we have received thus far has brought to the life the values behind our mission, granting us new insight and a clearer perspective.

About the Author: Jonathan Permetti is junior Business Fellow from Friendswood, Texas majoring in Entrepreneurship and Real Estate. Possessing a strong passion for startups, he hopes to pursue a career revolving around the formation of innovative companies that promote the welfare of society. Jonathan is also an active member of the Baylor Student Government and Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity.