Foundations Report Increase in Number of Paid Staff Members

The number of people employed by major American foundations rose by more than 1,500 last year, according

to a new study by the Foundation Center, in New York. The increase marked the largest annual jump in the number of staff positions that the Foundation Center has reported in its surveys, and is a result of the growth in the number of grant makers now operating.

The study was based on data from 18,942 of the nation’s largest grant-making foundations — those that give at least $100,000 annually or have at least $1-million in assets. Although this year’s survey found 3,123 organizations that have paid employees, up 78 from last year’s study, results from both surveys indicated that only one in six large foundations is run by paid staff members.

This ratio represents a drop from a decade ago, when the Foundation Center reported that about one in four large foundations was staffed; 8,729 organizations, fewer than half of the number included in the current study, were surveyed by the Foundation Center in 1991.

Although the percentage of foundations with paid workers has dropped over the course of the decade, those groups that do employ people employ more of them now: In 1991, the average number of staff members was 4.5 people, while today it is 5.5.

The 2001 survey finds that the nation’s biggest grant makers employ a total of 17,013 full- and part-time staff members, up nearly 10 percent from last year’s figures and up 94 percent from a decade ago.

Asset Size

Wealth was a strong indicator of whether an institution had employees: Three-quarters of foundations with assets of more than $100-million reported that they had paid employees, and on average, they had staffs more than four times as large as those kept by foundations with assets in the $50-million to $100-million range. Institutions with at least $100-million in assets reported an average of 23.3 employees, while foundations overall reported an average of 5.5 staff members.

Most foundations, however, operate with fewer employees: Close to two-thirds of all organizations surveyed reported having only one or two staff members.

Highlights of the report, “Foundation Staffing: Update on Staffing Trends of Private and Community Foundations,” are available on the Foundation Center’s Web site at http://www.fdncenter.org/research/trends_analysis/index.html.

The full report is available to subscribers of the Foundation Center’s “Foundations Today Series,” which includes five annual research reports and costs $95 per year. Send orders to: The Foundation Center, Dept. FR, 79 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10003-3076, (800) 424-9836; in New York, (212) 807-3690.