Participatory Research Project on
Donor Funding to Networks
From 2021 - 2023, Collective Mind undertook a participatory research project that engaged both networks and donors to better understand donor funding to networks. Through an extensive data collection and analysis process with a diverse sample of donors and networks, we captured key issues, challenges, insights, and recommendations related to funding and fundraising.
The results shed light on the “what”, “why”, and “how” of donor funding for networks, building the evidence base about how to improve funding and fundraising for networks.
What we found
The results of this effort are case studies from nine donors and nine networks capturing the experiences and insights from each group on a range of detailed, funding-related questions. Each anonymized case study serves as a snapshot in time of the respondent’s funding-related strategies, funder-grantee relationships, challenges, reflections, and recommendations from their respective vantage points.
By looking across the case studies, we developed a cross-cutting, comparative “how-to” guide for donors and networks. The guide shares and puts donor and network responses into the context of key challenges that case study respondents – and likely other networks and donors – grapple with as it relates to network-specific funding.
The guide is organized into sections specific to networks, specific to donors, and relevant to both:
Why fund networks
How to understand network funding needs
How to fundraise for a network
How to manage donor funding
How to best approach network funding
How to provide funding to networks
How to monitor and measure success
You can access the full set of resources - nine donor case studies, nine network case studies, and the guide for donors and networks - using the sign-up button to the right.
Our process
Collective Mind began this research project in mid-2021, first undertaking a literature review for background, then collecting responses through an online survey designed to inform the direction of the research.
Our initial findings aligned with what we ourselves experienced and what we consistently and regularly hear about the challenges of funding networks, both from donors and networks. In our own search for resources about how to fund and fundraise for networks, we came up with only minimal references, the majority of which were anecdotal and not evidence-based.
Based on the initial findings, we decided to develop case studies as a means for capturing extensive in-depth qualitative data. We developed detailed questions and templates to capture responses and undertook outreach to recruit a diverse set of donor and network volunteers.
What happens next
We recognize that the case studies are a trove of insights that we have only begun to uncover with the guide. There are other ways in which the case studies can be used to continue to further explore this complex topic. We strongly encourage others to use the case studies to develop their own ideas and research products (for example, looking across the case studies, identifying questions, and writing up your analysis or insights as an article or blog). If you do, please share them with us so we can share the knowledge with our community.
For more information, please contact Kerstin Tebbe at kerstin@collectivemindglobal.org.