Institute FAQ Index What is the Community-Driven Institute? Why now? Haven’t we always had this potential? What will it take to create that level of global change? What is different about the work you are doing than the work the sector currently does? What does the Institute actually do? Do you only teach methods you have developed yourselves? Is the Institute's work aimed primarily at the Social Service part of the sector? What are the Institute’s Plans? Is the Institute a tax exempt organization?

Institute FAQ

Welcome to the Community-Driven Institute. Please let us know if you have questions that are not answered on this page.

What is the Community-Driven Institute?

With the firm belief that the Social / Community Benefit Sector holds the keys to creating the future of our communities and our the world, the Community-Driven Institute is aiming the work of this sector at creating the kinds of dramatic, visionary community / global change we know it has the potential to create.

We have all been taught that visionary change happens slowly and incrementally - that such change is disruptive; that it’s “hard” and “scary.”

In our experience, that does not have to be the case. Change often happens quickly, dramatically, and gracefully.

Our mission is therefore to align the work of this sector behind creating visionary community change, and doing so faster, more effectively, with more ease and grace than anyone has thought possible.

Why now? Haven’t we always had this potential?

Just as there are life cycles in organizations, the Community Benefit Sector is experiencing its own life cycle changes. For the past four decades, the sector has been in classic start-up mode. Forty years ago, the sector as we know it barely existed. During those decades, the sector has been inventing itself - seeing what works, and as many have noted, what does not work.

Today, U.S. Community Benefit organizations alone are a $200 billion force of more than a million organizations all aimed at doing good around the world. Several generations have now not only worked or volunteered within the sector, but many have grown up there - volunteering as a kid, finding work in an organization, moving into leadership roles.

Between its size and its maturity, the Community Benefit Sector is now ready to leverage its considerable assets to reach its potential. And that potential is nothing short of changing our world!

What will it take to create that level of global change?

There are two components to that equation.

1) The core assumptions that guide all work in this sector must be rooted in the belief that creating visionary community change is a practical objective.

2) Organizations within the sector, from the largest funder to the smallest grassroots organization, must have practical tools and systems, as well as support for achieving those visionary results.

Current “best practice” systems in areas such as governance, planning, program development and resource development are not rooted in the assumption that creating healthy, vibrant, humane communities is a practical objective towards which we could logically work.

As a result, at best, organizational goals aim reactively at community need. At worst (and sadly too often), goals of internal organizational stability take precedent over even those reactive community goals. Similar observations can be made for systems used by funders, consultants, and teachers of “nonprofit management.”

So first, it takes changing the assumptions that determine where the sector’s efforts are aimed, creating a proactive, big-picture, community-focused context within which day-to-day community and individual needs can be addressed.

Second, though, it takes having practical tools and systems for doing so.

What is different about the work you are doing than the work the sector currently does?

The Institute’s founders spent over ten years researching, exploring and experimenting to determine why current “best practice” is not achieving visionary results, and then determining what practices would achieve those results.

The key factor they found in determining the degree to which work will create visionary change is the extent to which that work is rooted in a "Vision-based" methodology vs. a “Problem-solving” methodology. The reason for this is simply that vision-based work sets the bar higher. And we humans tend to achieve what we aim for.

All the work done at the Institute is therefore reverse engineered from the highest potential outcome - the end results we want to see in our communities. That changes every functional aspect of working in this sector, from governance, planning and resource development, to funding and teaching and consulting, and everything in between.

The reverse engineering process results in change that happens more quickly, more dramatically, and more gracefully and inclusively than any of us has been taught is possible.

For a more detailed look at how those operational systems can be aimed at the results we want both in our communities and our organizations, check out the articles in our library. Or you can read full case studies in The Pollyanna Principles, which outlines the core philosophies upon which the Institute has been built.

What does the Institute actually do?

The Community-Driven Institute is a work in progress, and we hope it will always be so. Our current programs are linked through the navigation of the site and are also listed here. All our programs are rooted in education, practice and dialogue - key approaches for creating change in our sector and our world.

Because the Institute is growing, we encourage you to check back often to see what new programs we are developing. Or sign up for our newsletter, where we will share news of our ever-evolving work.

Do you only teach methods you have developed yourselves? Absolutely not! It is impossible to have a great teaching institution that is not also a great learning institution. As a Community Benefit Organization ourselves, the Community-Driven Institute does its best to walk our own talk of engaging the wisdom of others into our work. How foolish it would be to presume there is only one answer! As long as an approach aligns behind the guiding principles at the core of the Institute’s vision, we are excited to incorporate those approaches into the work we do and the lessons we teach. And to show how serious we are about that, consultants who wish to teach on behalf of the Institute are expected to bring new wisdom back into the Institute’s curriculum, as part of their learning continuum. Building on the wisdom in the room is a key tenet of the work we do, inside and out. Is the Institute's work aimed primarily at the Social Service part of the sector? Our work is aimed at every single part of the sector. Are the Arts about improving the quality of life in our communities? Is Historic Preservation? Environmental groups? Economic Development groups? And what about funders? And management support organizations? And university nonprofit programs? Isn’t the goal of all those efforts also to improve our communities? Everything really is interconnected. The work of the sector is to make our communities and our world a better place to live. And that means the Institute's work is about everything this sector has the potential to be and do. What are the Institute’s Plans? The Institute’s overarching goal is nothing short of changing the modus operandi of the entire Community Benefit Sector, to ensure that “best practice” really is best for creating the world we want. Our short-term goals for 2010 - 2012 are posted here: There are three main goals as part of that plan: 1) Further develop and expand our educational curriculum. 2) Change the dialogue in the sector, from “problem” based to “possibility” based. 3) Build the Community-Driven Institute as its own demonstration project in transparent engagement, publicly discussing all decisions that would normally be made behind closed doors. Is the Institute a tax exempt organization? The Institute is in the process of filing for tax exemption as a 501(c)(3) organization under the US Internal Revenue code. Because one of our core beliefs is that “Being the change we want to see in the world means walking the talk of our values,” the founders have chosen to do all the Institute’s internal work by transparently engaging anyone who is interested in discussing that work. By modeling the behaviors we want to see in other organizations, the Institute is demonstrating that it is indeed possible to be far more transparent than most people assume is possible. “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” African Proverb In practice that means that the issues that precede filing for tax exemption - such as building the Institute’s board and even deciding on the organization’s name - are being discussed openly at our blog and in other social media. Because of that level of engagement, many of those pre-filing questions are taking longer than they would if a small group was simply making decisions on its own and moving forward quickly. But those decisions are happening openly, with the wisdom that comes from engaging smart people all around the world. We hope you will join in those discussions at our blog! Let us know your thoughts. And let us know if you have questions we did not answer! We hope this FAQ page has answered your questions, but if not, please send us a note and ask us directly. As the Institute continues to grow, we hope you will be part of the journey. Please let us know of the work you are doing, and if you have come across anything interesting you think we should know about. We look forward to hearing from you! “The Twentieth Century will be chiefly remembered by future generations not as an era of political conflicts or technical inventions, but as an age in which human society dared to think of the welfare of the whole human race as a practical objective.” Arnold J. Toynbee