What’s the most interesting effort your circle is focusing on right now?

Every 5-6 years we form a Strategic Planning Committee to help us evaluate our strengths and weaknesses, and opportunities for growth. This committee tackles some pretty big issues that our giving circle has neither the time nor resources to address during the everyday running of Impact 100. The goal is to look at our organization objectively and strategically to determine if we are still operating under our initial mission, whether our goals and/or objectives have shifted over time, and whether changes are needed to set us up for success over the next 5-6 years.

What is something your circle is currently challenged by?

We work closely with our local Community Foundation, who is our fiscal sponsor. When changes happen within their organization they affect us directly, and this year we had to migrate to a new website and database and adapt to staffing changes at the Community Foundation, all while kicking off our giving season!  It was a steep learning curve, but everyone came together and we launched our campaign with only minor delays. In the long run, the new system will provide us with more information about our donors and help us become better fundraisers for our local nonprofits.

What Philanos resource has been most helpful to you this year, and why?

The monthly webinars are wonderful!  It is so helpful to hear how other circles are dealing with the same issues that we are grappling with.