George Ellis and Bob Wright on Venture Philanthropy

Ten years ago when people heard the term venture philanthropy there were puzzled looks. Today, it has become considerably more mainstream. George Ellis and Bob Wright join us in this brief interview, defining what venture philanthropy is; “the marrying of the head and heart; a bridge between care based organizations”

George, Bob and David Hale Smith, collaborated in producing The Little Green Book of Venture Philanthropy; the subtitle defines what this fairly new philanthropic business model is… How Business Hats and Volunteer Hearts Can Learn to Play Well with Each Other and Make the World a Better Place.

To be successful, talent, expertise and strategic thinking need to be part of the mix. Venture philanthropists expect results and accountability from the organizations they work with. They are active donor investors who want change to happen fairly quickly. Taking a more hands on role in how their money is spent and managed, they expect a more business like operation.

Eleven years ago, Bob joined us and shared insights into this fairly new philanthropic model. His fellow panelists read like a who’s who of Philanthropy- Bill Drayton, then Chair and CEO of Ashoka-founded in 1980 and still the model for the world’s leading social entrepreneurs, Todd Wagner co-founder with Mark Cuban, of Broadcast.com, and Jim Jenkins, former Executive Director of| Entrepreneurs for North Texas. The philanthropic business models they discussed have become an integral part of the nonprofit culture.

Click here to view the McCuistion TV episode on venture philanthropy with Bill Drayton from several years ago.

Thanks again for joining me in conversations that matter…

Niki Nicastro McCuistion