Opinion: As Money Gets Tight, Donors Should Focus on High-Performing Groups

Charles Bronfman, chairman of the Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies, and Jeffrey Solomon, the organization’s president, argue in The Financial Times that the amount a donor gives to charity is often less important than the leverage that donor brings to an organization. They urge big donors to become more involved with the charities they support financially.

What’s more, they note, “in a slowing economy, foundations must carefully evaluate the efficacy of each grant recipient and, if necessary, decrease funding to those that are not yielding social dividends.”

Such efforts, they write, “will strengthen the overall performance of your grantee portfolio, thereby ensuring that your energies are not squandered on underperforming grantees.”