Having now worked in leadership positions in government and philanthropy, I have been musing on how the two sectors might collaborate more effectively to make communities better.
In my previous government position, the agency that I worked for took regulatory action to reduce racial disparities in a certain sector. One of my roles was to talk to philanthropy about how foundations might support these efforts.
I found myself in a conversation with a representative from a local foundation about the project. The representative remarked that it was going to take a lot of time to bring the organizations in question together and create buy-in for reducing the disparities. My unspoken response was I am in government and we don't need to wait for their buy in. We can subpoena them and compel action with potential litigation. However, we weren't in a position to pay for some of the resources the sector needed to truly change.
Government has the authority to compel. It has vast financial resources as well, but these resources can't always be used flexibly. Philanthropy has the ability to bring people together, create buy in and fund innovative projects and pay for important things government can't.
What would happen in the sectors formulated strategies together more regularly? How much more effective could they be together?
My view is that leadership and social change could be amplified by understanding the power and role of each and using each in way that reinforces the other.
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