Leading private foundations in Germany joined forces to create a support structure for community fou

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Alexandra Schmied
Community Foundations Initiative Germany

• Leading private foundations in Germany joined
  forces to create a support structure for
  community foundations.
• Bertelsmann Foundation Koerber
  Foundation Klaus-Tschira Foundation Associatio
  n of German Foundations
• CFI will create a co-ordination, know how
  brokerage and consulting structure
• The target is to promote the establishment of new
  CFs and to professionalise the work being
  performed by existing ones.

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Community Foundations in Germany

• Community Foundations in Germany exist since 1996
• In 2002 more than 35 CFs are founded
• Total assets of German CFs in 2002 12.000.000
• The largest CF is the Stadt Stiftung Gütersloh
  with 3.000.000
• 4 CFs have donor advised founds

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Alexandra Schmied
Community Foundations in Germany

• Cfs in Germany are still in their start up phase
  - none of them are working in a professional way
• Only one CF works with a special software
• CFs just start to realize that a budget for
  operational costs and paid staff are necessary
• today only 9 of them operate with paid staff -
  all work with varying volunteers

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Alexandra Schmied
Technology Software for German CFs

• Initial Situation
• In 2000 we realised, that CFs need technical
  support to set up a professional working
  foundation which serves donors. So we consulted
  the CFs for their opinion and their needs.
• From this survey we learned which tools are
  needed for daily foundation-work. These are
  especially tools to manage advised funds,
  donations (flow-through money), addresses and
  projects.
• Managing grants is only a small topic in Germany
  - only few CFs are grant-giving foundations.

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Alexandra Schmied
Technology Software for German CFs

• What is needed in Germany
• Most of the CFs are operating their own
  projects. That for they need software
• to manage voluntaries timetable-management
• communication tools (i.g. shared work space)
• For a strategic asset development the software
  must provide
• various tools to collect informations about
  donors other contributors(i.g. giving
  histories donor characteristics)
• for the administration of donor advised funds
  (i.g. variable account system)
• Data Analysis (development of assets, projects,
  grants)
• a database which is easy to handle for various
  users
• tools for the grant management

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Alexandra Schmied
Technology Software for German CFs

• Obstacles Actual Situation
• Obstacles
• only few CFs can afford to pay a professional
  software
• most CFs think that there are more important
  things to do first
• it is hard to find a partner to develop a
  tailor-made software for such a little target
  group
• we still have little experience about the way
  CFs in Germany work so it is hard to predict
  which tools they will need in the near future
• Actual Situation
• the Community Foundations Initiative Germany is
  searching for partners to develop a tailor-made
  software or for a software which we can adapt to
  our needs
• CFI wants to make this software available for all
  CFs in Germany (little costs)