New CMF president and CEO Kyle Caldwell is sharing some of the key themes that emerged from his eight-week multi-stop listening tour that welcomed nearly 150 members from more than 50 unique foundations. In January, February and March 2019, Caldwell traveled across the state for both regional events and informal gatherings members hosted in their homes.

 A 2.5-minute video on CMF's YouTube channel features listening tour photos and highlights.

We are grateful to the event hosts! They include the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, Grand Rapids Community Foundation, The Skillman Foundation, Rotary Charities of Traverse City, Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation and the Community Foundation of Marquette County.

Caldwell says he welcomed the chance to immediately begin to grow his relationships with and understanding of members after beginning his new role with CMF.

“While I have worked in the Michigan philanthropy field for most of my career, I knew it would be important to invest time in more deeply understanding the perspectives of our members.”  

Caldwell says he also recognized the need to talk with CMF members, face to face, about their work.

“Not since the tax reform of 1969 has our field faced as complicated a changing landscape as we face today. Our world is changing—politically, demographically, economically, environmentally—and philanthropy is at the forefront of exploring how society needs to adapt.”

In each region, three specific questions guided the dialogue:

• What are the opportunities, trends and challenges you see for Michigan philanthropy?

• What is the most important role CMF can play to address these opportunities, trends and challenges?

• What are new leadership roles you see for Michigan philanthropy and for CMF?

“Our hope was that these conversations could inform CMF’s future strategic planning efforts while also initiating local dialogues to identify common challenges and opportunities for the field. Our hopes were far exceeded.”

Through small group and large group conversations, the following common themes emerged: 

• CMF must maintain its leadership role in advancing public policy.

• Members need support in cultivating the next generation of philanthropic leaders.

• CMF is urged to consider fostering or creating “neutral space” to have civic dialogue around hard conversations.

• Michigan philanthropy needs to maintain multi-sector (business, government, nonprofit) ways to communicate together.

• Michigan philanthropy needs to support efforts that promote diversity, equity and inclusion.

• Michigan philanthropy needs to more effectively respond to new trends in giving habits.

• Michigan philanthropy needs to remain engaged in unique public-private partnerships and going forward, the economic roles and roadmaps must be clear about our respective boundaries.

• Data-informed decision making needs to be widely adopted and philanthropy should lead the way.

• Michigan philanthropy and CMF’s role may need to evolve as we explore how to respond to the changing environments for philanthropy.

These represent just some of the issue areas that emerged from conversation on the listening tour.

Which of these themes resonate most for you? We want to hear from you! A quick poll is open now through April 26. You can also share comments using #OurMIcommunity on CMF’s Twitter page and Facebook page (@michfoundations). Let’s keep the conversation going!

In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll continue to explore both short- and long-term strategic integration of the input collected during the listening tour.

One way that Caldwell says he envisions responding to this member feedback was inspired by responses to the question asking about the roles CMF can play in addressing opportunities and challenges. The most common answer: Helping to facilitate discussion and coordinate safe spaces for dialogue, not only with CMF peers, but also with community leaders, local business and nonprofit partners, and government officials, among others.

“There are issue areas unique to each region that will require hard conversations. I heard loud and clear that members are eager to dig into and wrestle with those issues together. I believe CMF can be a successful partner in that work,” Caldwell remarks.

Members are invited to stay tuned for more on these future opportunities!