By Delphine Moralis and Max von Abendroth, Philea
There’s an old adage that asserts that the journey is more important than the destination. In Philea’s case, that isn’t quite true, yet nonetheless the journey of Dafne and the EFC towards our final convergence this year has brought with it challenges, learnings and insights that in themselves are worthy of sharing and reflection.
Let’s begin at the beginning.
Nearly two years ago, the European Foundation Centre (EFC), a membership association of 250 institutional philanthropy organisations, and Donors and Foundations Networks in Europe (Dafne), a network of 29 national associations of funders (representing a collective membership of some 10,000 foundations) decided that it was in the best interests of our members and those of the wider philanthropy ecosystem to come together as a new forward-facing platform.
What were these best interests? First and foremost, by coming together as one stronger, clearer voice we would raise the volume of European philanthropy in order for it to be better heard by those outside the sector, harness its immense multidimensional potential, and be a valuable and trustworthy sector to partner with. A stronger voice to a sector that strives, often below the radar, to improve the lives of citizens and communities each and every day.
All this at a time when partnership and collaboration are critical – there is simply no way that any organisation or sector on its own could attempt to rectify the polycrises the world currently faces, from pandemics to climate change to inequality and injustice. As we witness ever-increasing collaboration among foundations, not only among themselves and their grantees but also with the private and state sectors, it was the perfect time to reflect on how both membership associations could best catalyse all the good being done by our constituents.
The conclusion? Going far meant going together.
Here are a few of the key lessons learned along the way, as we brought these two established European organisations together to form Philea:
— Organisational pruning is important. Both organisations have a proud history, but growing something new sometimes means letting go.
— Member buy-in and active participation is critically important. From working groups to task forces, if you want members to be interested in the outcome, then they need to be engaged from the start.
— Everything seems impossible until it is done. Bumps in the road, or boulders midstream – insert your metaphor as desired – however obstructive they seem at the time they can be bypassed with patience and creativity.
— Minds need to remain open. Building a European philanthropy organisation that is inclusive, engages with organisations and colleagues across the ecosystem in an open and collaborative way requires courage and trust. Developing this mindset has been a key building block in the process.
— We need more ears than mouths. The most important part is listening to each other and trying to understand the other’s perspective. In a change process, all involved have reasons to be afraid, and if you don’t understand your partner’s fears, you can’t look for solutions together.
— Form has to follow function. If you start by looking at the ‘how’ without having discussed the ‘why’ and the ‘what’, the solutions crafted will not get you where you want to be. Focusing on function first and form later makes you feel uncomfortable in the middle, but that is ok – and perhaps even necessary to change.
— John Kotter (professor and change management thought leader) proved to be right in our case: to have a chance of succeeding with a change process (70% of the processes fail), you need to have a vision, a group of champions who will do the hard work, and be on a burning platform (in our case the burning platform would be the fact that the world is tackling so many crises that philanthropy needs to be better than ever in responding).
— Converging does not equal combining. A new organisation is exactly that, something new, something better or fitter for purpose than what came before. Otherwise, it isn’t worth all the time and effort you will need to put in.
— Organisational evolution is a naturally occurring phenomenon and organisations that are not adaptable or open to change will probably have change thrust upon them anyway.
— Life is what happens in-between your plans. Even with the best strategies and will, sometimes things will go awry. When they do, keep your humour and your humility, and remember that today’s setback will not even be one line in any future reference book.
— It’s not about us, it’s about them. We had to remain focused on the bigger picture – not EFC’s or Dafne’s needs, but what our twin memberships and the wider sector need.
These lessons are vital because they are being learned at a juncture when the landscape – both inside the sector and all around us – is changing by the day. In these dark times, we have seen how our members are finding creative opportunities in the midst of crises and Philea is being born at a turbulent but crucial point in history. We know that we need to adapt at the same rate as our membership and that if we aren’t part of the solution then we are part of the problem. That is why we are putting climate, equality and democracy front and centre of all that we do at Philea. We simply don’t have time to tread water.
With so much of the social fabric being frayed around the world, we need philanthropy to stand up and be counted – as efficient, innovative and accountable as possible – and we have created Philea to support this goal. Because only with a joint effort on the part of all sectors, including philanthropy, can we hope to safeguard the future of generations to come.
If this sounds like something you would like to get involved in, don’t be a stranger – we would love to hear from you.
For Philea, this is just the beginning. The next part of our journey starts now.
Delphine Moralis is the Chief Executive Officer of the European Foundation Centre, and designated Chief Executive Officer of the Philanthropy Europe Association–Philea. Prior to joining Philea, Delphine was Secretary General of Terre des Hommes International Federation, a network of nine organisations working in 71 countries working for the rights of children and to promote equitable development. She has a Master’s degree in Philosophy and an Advanced Master’s Degree in European Studies.
Max von Abendroth is the Executive Director of Dafne – Donors and Foundations Networks in Europe, soon converging with EFC to become Philea. Max is the initiator of PEX, a European collaboration network of more than 70 philanthropy infrastructure organisations. In 2020, he started the Philanthropy Coalition for Climate and co-created the International Philanthropy Commitment on Climate Change. He is also the founder of the Future Media Lab. (2012-2017), an innovative European advocacy platform for media, technology, journalism, academia and politicians. Max studied Economics and Business Administration at the Witten/Herdecke University in Germany.