This episode makes clear the need for and value of talent-investing for community foundations and other place-focused funders. Our guest, Elizabeth Kidd of the Community Foundation of the Holland/Zeeland Area, demonstrates how even the most modest dollar amounts used in strategic, responsive talent-investing at key inflection points in the lifecycle of leaders and their institutions, can have exponentially positive impact for nonprofit executives, workers, organizations, and communities.
Listen to gain an understanding of…
- Why and how talent-investing has become valuable to the board and staff of the Community Foundation.
- How the Community Foundation has created and sustained value for grantees and the community through its grantmaking to strengthen the local nonprofit sector.
- Why it’s important to invest in the nonprofit workforce at key moments of organizational change and across the life-cycle stages of individuals and organizations.
Contact Info:
Community Foundation for the Holland/Zeeland Area
Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn
Case for support for our Strengthening the Nonprofit Sector Campaign
Celebrating the completion of the Campaign
Lakeshore Nonprofit Alliance’s website
Guest Bio:
Elizabeth Kidd joined the Foundation in 2008 and serves as the Vice President of Community Impact/People and Culture. Elizabeth manages the Board’s community impact strategies for grantmaking and strengthening the local nonprofit sector. She works closely with the Distribution Committee, Program Related Investment (PRI) Committee, and Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) and represents the Community Foundation on a number of collaborative community initiatives.
Prior to joining the Foundation, Elizabeth worked in the state legislature and nonprofit sector. She received her Bachelor of Arts in international relations cum laude from Michigan State University in 2005 where she was a member of the Honors College. Elizabeth received her Masters of Public Affairs with concentrations in nonprofit management and public management from Indiana University in 2007. She is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Pi Alpha Alpha and was a SPEA Service Corps Fellow at Indiana University. She completed the NewNorth Center for Design in Business Innovation Methods Certification in 2014.
Elizabeth is currently Michigan Steering Committee Co-Chair of Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy. She is a Lakeshore Nonprofit Alliance board member and serves on the MSU Honors College Alumni Association Executive Board and the Program Committee for the Boys and Girls Club of Grand Rapids. She is a graduate of Leadership Holland and has served as vice-chair and chair of the Chamber’s West Coast Leadership Health and Human Services Day. Elizabeth was recognized by YNPN GR as a Top Finalist at the YNPN 2015 Leadership Awards and received the Breakthrough Award at the 2016 YNPN Leadership Awards. She has been named a Lakeshore Young Athena Finalist three times and was a top finalist for the 2016 HYP Awards “Equity Matters” Award. She was featured as part of the Grand Rapids Business Journal’s Influential Women series in 2016.
Elizabeth credits her time at Indiana University for helping her discover her passion for philanthropy and enjoys keeping connected to her roots there. She served as an Alumni Association Executive Committee Member for Indiana University’s Center on Philanthropy from 2009-2011 and co-authored the chapters on donor advised funds in the 2012 and 2013 editions of the Center’s Giving USA reports.
Season 6 is sponsored by Loftis Partners. They've launched the Pay Equity Collective, a peer learning experience that provides capacity building, strategic resources, and a supportive community for nonprofits seeking pathways to pay equity. Visit payequitycollective.com to learn more! Loftis Partners – Empowering organizations and advancing equity, one collective step at a time!