Applied Research

Many nonprofits and private foundations require research to help them make good decisions. BTW informing change offers a variety of applied research services, such as community needs assessments, literature reviews and syntheses of population-based data. We conduct this kind of research to inform strategic decision-making regarding future investments or program/initiative design.

Ongoing & Recent Projects
Jewish Service Initiative
In the fall of 2007, three foundations commissioned BTW to assess the landscape of Jewish Service Learning and assess its potential for growth. BTW conducted research, provided strategic consultation and facilitated meetings to assist the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation and the Jim Joseph Foundation as they developed their plans to invest in this program area. In the first phase of the project, BTW examined the nature and prevalence of Jewish Service Learning practice, the current demand for programs and the current capacity of practitioners. For this assessment BTW collected data from the broader field of service as well as from Jewish Service Learning practitioners, funders and stakeholders. BTW presented a summary of the research and a related action plan to funders and practitioners in New York City, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco. BTW is currently providing additional research and consultation as the foundations move forward with plans to implement some recommendations that emerged from the research.

Henry M. Jackson Foundation
BTW worked with the Henry M. Jackson Foundation of Seattle, Washington to conceptualize and write The Nature of Leadership: Lessons from an Exemplary Statesman, a publication which examines the qualities of the late Senator Henry M. “Scoop” Jackson’s effective public service and political leadership. Based on interviews with his close colleagues and staff members, the book describes what made Senator Jackson an outstanding leader. It was published in July 2008.

NewSchools Venture Fund
NewSchools Venture Fund aims to transform public education for underserved children by supporting education entrepreneurs whose for-profit and nonprofit ventures have the potential to dramatically improve our nation’s school systems. In the summer of 2004, NewSchools embarked on a reflection process and engaged BTW informing change to assess the quality of support NewSchools provided to its first portfolio of investee organizations. BTW conducted structured key informant interviews with key stakeholders and integrated these findings with companion survey data. NewSchools is using the analysis to inform its future investments, approach and focus.

Coaching and Philanthropy Project
The Coaching and Philanthropy Project (CAP) was a collaborative project conducted by Grantmakers for Effective Organizations, BTW informing change and Leadership that Works, with funding provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The goal of CAP was to assess the prevalence of coaching within the nonprofit sector and advance its application as a strategy for cultivating strong leadership and building effective nonprofit organizations. The Blueprint for Action and its accompanying Sourcebook summarize the project findings and provide a framework around which a strategic effort can be developed to advance the application of coaching as an effective nonprofit leadership and organizational development tool.

Global Business Network (GBN)
In partnership with the W.K. Kellogg and the David and Lucile Packard Foundations, the Global Business Network worked in the philanthropic sector to apply future-oriented business practices, such as scenario planning, to foundations. As GBN's strategic partner in this project, BTW conducted key informant interviews, observed presentations and workshops, and provided ongoing feedback to inform the continued evolution of the project and the development of products and services. GBN relied on BTW's expertise in the field of philanthropy to help "translate" their work from the for-profit to the nonprofit sector.

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
When should you have a meeting? When should you fund a meeting? Can a meeting have a theory of change? These are the questions that BTW grappled with in working with the Hewlett Foundation on developing a series of tools that can be used in deciding whether a meeting is the best strategy for accomplishing a desired and clearly articulated objective. The tools walk you through all of the considerations for designing, planning, executing, evaluating and following up on a meeting. The responses to the questions in the tools are intended to provide a clear picture into a meeting's likelihood of success and value.

Continuum
BTW staff recently completed a study for Continuum, a multi-service agency providing essential services to HIV+ people who are living in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco. Using key informant interviews and a literature review, the study identified strategies and approaches for integrating HIV prevention into the process of care and treatment for formerly incarcerated HIV+ people of color. The study process culminated in a planning session facilitated by BTW with all of the key local leaders on this issue, who generated the key elements of a new vision of services for HIV+ people in the Tenderloin.