We have been building toward this moment at Meyer Memorial Trust for more than two years: the first grants from our issue-focused, equity-based portfolios. Today we announce 151 grant awards totalling $17.3 million made under our spring 2016 funding opportunity through our Building Community, Healthy Environment and Housing Opportunities portfolios. These grants are an important milestone in our transformative, organizational evolution. Coming at this particular moment in history, when communities that have experienced disparities face ever greater threats, the work and organizations these awards support are tangible investments toward the equitable Oregon we envision.

Making decisions about where to direct our limited funding was no easy task, especially considering the robust response to our funding call. We received 675 applications requesting $95 million. The partners and work we are supporting are impressive, inspiring and dedicated to advancing equity for and inclusion of Oregonians who experience disparities because of race, ethnicity, income, gender, sexual orientation, disability or other oppressions.

How we got here

Over the past two years, we have sharpened our focus because we have learned from our nonprofit partners, expert staff, philanthropic peers and leaders in the state that housing, education, the environment and building community are the four key areas where the biggest barriers to equity exist. The data were unequivocal: Deep disparities and inequities are barriers to our vision of a flourishing and equitable Oregon and what communities across our state say are important Oregon values. We knew that to have the greatest impact in Oregon, we must work to close gaps created by these inequities.

We knew we couldn’t do this in isolation, and so we set out to listen.

We listened to leaders in marginalized communities, which taught us more about their visions and priorities, such as having seats at the tables where local and state policies are set, addressing poor housing conditions for tribal members, and ensuring access to clean air and water. We learned that rural and urban communities share similar concerns about climate change, want Oregon to be welcoming and safe for immigrants, need more affordable housing, and want inclusive schools, health care and other systems that support diverse Oregonians in reaching their full potential.

We surveyed nearly 2,000 nonprofit leaders, who informed us of the importance of Meyer’s flexible funding for changing policies and systems, building organizational capacity, supporting general operations and launching innovations. And we listened to peer funders, government leaders, academics and private sector experts to learn about their ideas for the role of philanthropy as partners in building our shared Oregon future.  

What we learned helped transform Meyer as an organization, and it naturally led us to redesign our grantmaking. We know that inequity is experienced throughout our communities every day and in many ways, and it is a pernicious obstacle to the flourishing and equitable state Oregonians deserve.

The grants we announce today are investments in removing barriers and advancing equity through policy and systems changes, coalition building, on-the-ground programming, strengthening organizational capacity and, in very specific situations, building capital assets.

 

Four Focused Priorities

Meyer has sharply focused on areas where inequity gaps are the largest.

The 65 grants made through our Building Community portfolio aim to improve conditions for communities of color, Oregonians living on low incomes and other marginalized populations. These grants will work to accomplish that. They will strengthen leaders, networks and organizations that break down barriers and build the power of Oregon’s diverse communities. They will increase civic engagement.  And they will build inclusive communities through arts and cultures.

Awards include capacity-building grants to organizations such as Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Artists Repertory Theatre and Rural Organizing Project. They also include grants that support the operations of Basic Rights Oregon, Miracles Theatre and the Black United Fund of Oregon. And lastly, they include project-support grants to On-the-Move Community Integration, Central City Concern, Multnomah County and CASA of Oregon.

Learn more about these and all of our Building Community awards here.

Our 47 Healthy Environment portfolio investments are grounded in our belief that a flourishing Oregon depends on healthy ecosystems and clean water and air for all. Grant awards prioritize efforts to protect and improve the health of the environment while addressing underlying disparities that affect communities of color, people living in low-income neighborhoods and agriculture and forest workers.

Grants will support organizations advancing environmental justice, including Beyond Toxics, Voz Workers’ Rights Education Project, Northwest Forest Worker Center and OPAL. Many awards  advance work to build an inclusive and diverse environmental movement, such as grants to the Center for Diversity and the Environment, Climate Solutions, Nature Conservancy and Vocoform. And grants to further triple-bottom-line work and support healthy natural systems were awarded to a range of organizations, from Lomakatsi Restoration Project to Oregon Environmental Council to Our Children’s Trust.

More information about these and all of our Healthy Environment awards can be found here.

The 39 awards made in our Housing Opportunities portfolio reflect our vision for every Oregonian to have a decent, safe and affordable place to call home and our belief that housing — and the stability it offers — helps to build better lives and strengthen communities. Funding is directed to under-resourced, low-income communities, including communities of color, underserved rural communities and other marginalized populations.

Grants made in this round complement our advocacy and other investments made through our Affordable Housing Initiative, and they include capital investments to preserve and expand affordable rental housing.

Grants to organizations such as Portland Community Reinvestment Initiatives, Caritas Community Housing Corporation, Bridge Meadow, Luke-Dorf and Neighborhood House will result in more affordable homes for people living on low incomes, including people who have been displaced by gentrification, people in rural Rogue River communities, foster children, seniors, veterans and people living with mental illness. Funds to support the success of residents — including low-income people at risk of displacement, youths aging out of foster care, low-income people with criminal records, and Latino seniors — were awarded to organizations such as the Native American Youth and Family Center, El Programa Hispano Catolico, Oregon Law Center and Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation. Awards also strengthen the housing sector, including grants to Community Partners for Affordable Housing, Fair Housing Council of Oregon, Farmworker Housing Development Corporation and SquareOne Villages, among others.

Read more about these and other Housing Opportunities awards here.

We are finalizing the framework for our Equitable Education portfolio now and will announce details in early 2017.  Meyer plans to emphasize strategies that improve student achievement and close gaps in educational opportunities and outcomes in Oregon, specifically focusing on underserved communities.

Read more about our emerging vision for Equitable Education here.

 

Bound by common themes

Recurrent priorities surfaced throughout the many conversations we had with Oregon’s nonprofit, public and philanthropic leaders in the course of our redesign outreach and planning. You may notice  several of those themes threading across our portfolio awards.

• Equity and inclusion are crucial: Investments directly impact issues of race, class, sexual orientation, disability and other forms of oppression and inequity. Community leadership, community voices and meaningful community partnerships are reflected in funded projects. And staying true to our intention to support organizations that are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion but who may be early on in their journey, a number of grants support nonprofits to develop their own capacity for diversity, equity and inclusion, both internally and externally.

• Policy and systems change work is vital: We heard loud and clear throughout our community outreach and planning that policy and systems change investments — and Meyer’s willingness to support bold efforts to advance equity — should be elevated. This is perhaps one of the most visible shifts in our funding. Over the past year, Meyer has deepened our understanding of how philanthropy can support policy and advocacy work and expanded investments in advocacy, policy and systems change.

• Collaborations and coalitions build strength: We also heard from our nonprofit partners about the important role Meyer can play in supporting and encouraging groups to align their efforts — and that you wanted this highlighted in our funding. To that end, we created a distinct door for collaborations to apply for funds, and we encouraged applications from groups working statewide in partnership with local partners and communities. Among our awards are many grants that involve various forms of collaboration and partnerships.

• Innovation fosters creative solutions: Meyer is known for our interest in supporting innovation, and we heard from our partners that this support is highly valued. We looked for programs that are creative and have new models or applications of proven strategies to reach desired outcomes.

• Impact matters: Meyer staff worked with applicants to understand the potential for impact. We will continue to work to better identify outcomes of our investments. We are also restructuring how we track, assess and report the impact of our grants.

• Building capacity and supporting operations are essential: We believe that investing in organizations is crucial to advancing equity. Almost half of the grants awarded in 2016 are for capacity building or general operating support.

• Isolation carries risk: One of the risks in our new portfolio model is the potential to create artificial silos, despite the many ways that housing, environment, education and community intersect. We are pleased to fund a number of proposals from organizations working in the heart of these intersections, and our staff will partner internally to stay engaged with and learn from these investments.

 

Refining and learning continues

As mentioned earlier, we were struck by the large volume of requests for these initial funding opportunities. We recognize that many were strong, compelling proposals for work that promised to make life better in Oregon in a variety of ways. It was difficult to say to those organizations, “No, we simply can’t fund your efforts this round.”

We also received proposals that were an excellent match with our goals but were not quite ready in terms of what we look for in a strong request. Other proposals reflected good work, but the applicant organization's understanding of and commitment to advancing equity within its organization and community were not clear. And in some cases, we received proposals that would have been considered strong under our former grant programs but were not a good match with our focused funding goals.

In the end, we could not be more impressed with the ideas and opportunities our nonprofit partners put forward to advance equity in Oregon. Thank you! And thanks to all of the applicants who took the time to give us thoughtful, candid and constructive feedback on our new process through our recent survey. Your perspective and experiences are so important to us and help us learn what we need to fine-tune our process to be a better funding partner when we release our 2017 funding opportunities next spring.

At every step in our awards decisions, our vision, mission, values and goals served as our North Star. As we implemented our redesign, we held close the core values of our founder, Fred G. Meyer: staying relevant as times change, meeting the needs of our community, being innovative and entrepreneurial, and demonstrating boldness and courage in calculated risk-taking

We believe Mr. Meyer would be proud of our new approach and of these awards for work that seek to bring us all closer to a flourishing and equitable Oregon.

You can stay up-to-date with future funding opportunities from Meyer when you subscribe to our e-newsletter here.

— Candy

We are excited to unveil our new look, a site with a sleeker design, simplified content and easier-to-find features. Meyer’s new site more effectively highlights what’s most important to us and our community. Our site’s functionality is also significantly improved, resulting in easier searches and a mobile-friendly design, so you can browse stories about our grantees on the go.

The new mmt.org highlights what’s most important to our partners, vistors and staff, through a more refined user experience designed to help make partnering with us easier and to share information and learning more effectively.

Here are just some of the features we’d like to highlight:

• How easy it is to use across desktop computer, smartphone and tablets, which is a big deal as Meyer’s social media metrics show that although 98 percent of our visitors used desktop computers to come to our first version of mmt.org in 2010, 20 percent of visitors had shifted to mobile devices to access our website by 2016. We expect the number of tablet and smartphone users will only increase now that our site is more mobile friendly.

• Front pages that show when Meyer is on-season — that is, open for grant requests or RFPs — and off-season, with no open grant opportunities or RFPs. The idea is to make it easier to know when Meyer is inviting requests to partner.

• A brand-new News page, with search and filter functions to easily find Meyer Voices, Award Announcements, Meyer in the News and Grantee Stories

• A simple way to find out what Meyer staff are saying by visiting the team pages

• An intuitive timeline tool to make learning about Meyer’s history an interactive experience. Stay tuned as we apply the timeline to our initiatives and investments, to make catching up on those stories easier and more enjoyable! (launching soon!)

• A cardstack feature that allows visitors to learn more and easily share content related to blog posts and grantee stories (launching soon!)

• Gorgeous photography by Oregon photographers Fred Joe, Leah Nash and Meyer’s own Darion Jones, showcasing the work of our dedicated grantees and the faces of individuals determined to make Oregon a more equitable place.

• An elegant calendar tool to keep visitors up to date on opportunities for grants from our four portfolios

Meyer worked with two local partners to design and build the new site, Smith & Connors for the visual design, user experience and front end development, and Metal Toad for the backend Drupal 8 integration. In future blog posts, we’ll write more about the process of building our new site, and our system engineer, Grant Kruger, will share the recipe of the website’s features.

For now, we hope you enjoy the experience, and we invite you to share feedback about the new site with us.

Meyer's software engineer Grant Kruger, and social media specialist Darion Jones add the finishing touches to Meyer's new website.

Cost Efficiencies Report

Meyer Memorial Trust convened a Cost Efficiencies Work Group in 2014 to explore factors driving the cost of affordable housing development. Sixteen experts from development, construction, finance and related fields formed the Work Group and were charged with three major tasks:

• Creating a clear and concise summary of key factors affecting the cost of developing affordable housing;
• Identifying opportunities — whether policy and systems changes, or innovative approaches to design, construction and financing — to deliver affordable units at a lower cost; and
• Advising Meyer on pilot or demonstration projects to test new approaches to affordable housing development.

This report synthesizes the results of work group's year-long effort. Download Meyer's 2015 Cost Efficiencies Report.

This week is a momentous time here at Meyer. Gerry Pratt – the last remaining trustee who was named in Fred G. Meyer's will establishing a charitable trust from his personal estate – is stepping down from his role as trustee.

Gerry's departure means a thread that connected directly to the man behind the Meyer Memorial Trust is broken. For the first time in Meyer's 31 years, no one on staff or among remaining trustees knew Fred Meyer.

Because he knew Fred Meyer so well, because he spent so much time with him in business and on a personal level, Gerry was able to invoke the spirit of Fred Meyer in our board room on many occasions. Gerry was the one that staff members and other trustees depended on to answer the question, "What would Fred Meyer do?"

Gerry's personal style leads him to request that no event or attention be directed his way as he takes his leave and assumes trustee emeritus status. But we can't in good conscience let this transition pass without acknowledging his indelible mark on Meyer Memorial Trust. All things considered, I would argue that Gerry Pratt has been the single most influential trustee over the life of the Trust.

An accomplished writer, Gerry once described the role of philanthropy this way:

“There is very little the Trust can do to shape society, but it can sometimes point the way by lighting up neglected corners of need. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of making only safe grants, but that really negates the purpose of a foundation. What we do is like a flashlight in a dark room. We can help find the light switch. We are successful when we do that, not by adding light to an already bright room.”

Gerry helped Meyer shine a light on many neglected corners of need in Oregon and Clark County, Washington. We are very grateful for his 31 years of dedicated service and we know that Fred Meyer would be proud of Gerry's enormous contribution.

— Doug

Collecting and sharing demographic data has emerged as a top priority in philanthropy, especially since national research found that both foundation demographics (CEO, staff and trustees) and the level of foundation funding directly serving people of color are significantly less than the percent of the population they represent.

In Oregon, a study by the Foundation Center found that less than 10 percent of foundation funding in Oregon was explicitly targeted to reach ethnic or racial minority communities, while people of color represent approximately 20 percent of the state’s population.

Another shortcoming revealed by this research is that data collected by foundations is inadequate and unreliable when it comes to identifying specifically which populations benefit from organizations, programs and projects they fund because most foundations don’t collect that information from grant applicants or grantees. Until recently, we couldn't tell with certainty because we didn't ask. We began collecting demographic data in a systematic and formal way in 2013.

To understand whether Meyer is making progress in pursuit of our mission to help achieve a flourishing and equitable Oregon “where all current and future residents have fair access to opportunities to learn, work, prosper, and participate in a vibrant cultural and civic life,” we became diligent and intentional about measuring the impact of our grant funds. We are collecting data about whether and how much our funding supports the diverse populations that make up our state.

Our staff has been working diligently to determine what and how we should approach this endeavor, first by studying what other foundations do. We discovered there is a wide array in the content of data collected – some use highly customized categories, some with race and ethnicity combined and others separated, and some with very minimalist categories, which we recognized would not acknowledge the breadth of community members in our region.

In 2013, we asked Education Northwest to conduct a survey and convene focus groups among recent Meyer applicant organizations and grantees to better understand what demographic data they already collect, how that data is used, and ask about the challenges groups face in collecting and using this data.

We are grateful to those who participated in our online survey, which had a remarkable response rate of close to 40%. Not only was the quantity of responses impressive (444 organizations), your narrative comments were very thoughtful and helpful. We also convened several focus groups in person and over the phone, reaching 26 leaders from different types and sizes of nonprofits from all fields, working in different communities across the state. We very much appreciate the feedback, ideas and time so many of you contributed.

What we learned pointed us to our next steps:

• We learned that only about half of respondents collect and use some form of demographic data. Advocacy and human service organizations topped the list of groups that do collect such data. Less than one-third of arts, culture and humanities nonprofits collect some form of demographic data, and environmental groups even less.
• For those organizations that do use demographic data, we learned that they use it to shape programs and services as well as internal operations.
• You encouraged us to recognize the differences and diversity among the nonprofits that we fund, and you shared concerns about applying a one-size-fits-all approach to this effort.
• You indicated a variety of positive opportunities to use demographic data for building organizational capacity and to achieve impact. You noted that it could help with communication and outreach, organizational and programmatic analysis, and internal and external decision-making. You also saw the opportunity to use this data to more effectively address issues related to culture and the growing ethnic and racial diversity in our state.
• One challenge we heard was the lack of organizational capacity to collect and interpret data appropriately and effectively. You also noted that data collection methods, data gaps and the information that can be gleaned have limitations. For certain populations, confidentiality was cited as a significant consideration.
• Some of the richest feedback emerged when we asked for ideas on how we could support grantees’ experiences with demographic data. You saw a potential role for us to assist with developing common data systems and metrics, as well as providing technical assistance and capacity building grants and training to implement plans for collecting/using demographic data to advance your missions, and to coordinate with other funders to the fullest extent possible.
• Finally, you suggested that Meyer might be able to help provide access to reliable and relevant demographic data, educate the field about how to use demographic data, and communicate clearly about how we will use any data that we request from you.
• All this feedback helped inform our approach going forward.

– Karissa

One of the things we’ve learned through research Meyer Memorial Trust has done in the past few years is that many of the people who could most benefit from philanthropic dollars have the least access to them. It remains a source of great frustration: The level of foundation funding directly serving people of color is significantly lower than the percentage of population they represent. So one of the strategies we’re pursuing at Meyer to put our Vision, Mission and Values into practice and promote greater equity in Oregon is to pay closer attention to the demographic profiles of our nonprofit partners and those they serve. We want to know who is being reached and who is not.

Fifty organizations participated in our demographic pilot last autumn. We asked applicants for our Responsive Grants program to supply race and ethnicity data information on the populations the organization served in general and the populations the organization intended to serve through a Meyer-funded project, as well as the organization’s board and staff.

I want to thank them for their honesty.

Collecting demographic data can be logistically, intellectually and emotionally challenging work. Some of the applicants in our pilot remain skeptical that the data is necessary or valuable. Some, who say they do not discriminate based on race or ethnicity, feel being color blind is effort enough. And others are eager to start tracking the data themselves.

In the interest of transparency, we turned the lens on ourselves, too. We posted the results of a race and ethnicity survey our staff and trustees participated in last year on our website before asking our nonprofit partners to provide their own data. We updated the data this month. If you look at the charts, one thing is clear: We are a changing organization. A few people have left, a few people have been hired. But our demographic survey revealed something else, too. Our staffers are on the same journey of self-assessment we are asking our nonprofit partners to take. It is heartfelt. It is personal. It is self-defining. It is anything but black and white.

A year ago, we promised pilot participants we would work hard to figure out the best use for the data. Our program team and other Trust staff continue to explore how to incorporate more robust demographic data into our due diligence work. I especially want to call out Meyer's grants manager, Karissa Lowe, whose painstaking work collecting and compiling the demographic data offered our first real window into who our final beneficiaries really are — and some of the barriers to reaching them. At this stage, we’ve made no firm decisions about how the data Meyer collects in our grant applications will impact the distribution of our grant dollars. But we have decided that knowing more about who our grant dollars reach and how organizational leadership reflects and engages diverse communities are crucial lenses that we will continue to apply to our grantmaking.

We care about how nonprofit boards, staff and others involved in programming include and reflect communities and constituents. And we know that many Oregon nonprofits care about the same things. Going forward, we realize that some organizations will have an easy time tracking the racial and ethnic information of their boards, their staffs, the populations they serve generally and the populations they intend to serve with Meyer funding. For other organizations, the data collection is more challenging. Meyer is committed to meeting organizations and communities where they are.

We understand that while its population demographics are in flux, Oregon is not one of the more diverse states in the nation. Many areas in the state have scant representation of communities of color. We’re not asking organizations to serve people who aren’t there. But we are asking our nonprofit partners, who share our interest in reaching the many and diverse populations that make up Oregon, to be thoughtful about two things: ensuring that community members who could benefit from their programs and services have equitable access to them and reflecting Oregon’s ethnic and racial communities in the makeup of their organizations.

— Doug

So it stands to reason that to meet Oregon’s education, environmental and health goals, to truly flourish as a state, we’ve got to make inroads in Oregon’s housing crisis. For more than a decade, a combination of high housing costs, rising energy prices and stagnant household income have challenged residents to find and hold onto housing.

Oregon’s housing crisis affects people across multiple income levels: Tens of thousands of Oregonians experienced homelessness last year — 20,000 school children in Oregon schools were homeless last year. Another 5,140 Oregonians lost their homes to foreclosure, a 25-percent increase from 2013. Families of modest means are struggling to keep up with housing costs. Gentrification has pushed entire communities out of their historic neighborhoods. A shortage of affordable housing is not merely an urban phenomenon: rural communities across the state also struggle with low vacancies and climbing rents. And our neighbors in small town Oregon have a difficult time filling service jobs because newcomers can’t find housing.

At Meyer Memorial Trust, we believe Oregonians deserve to have a safe place to wake up each morning and fall asleep at night, that housing is key to opportunity, success and breaking cycles of poverty. Hardworking families should be able to afford a home and still have enough money for groceries and other basic necessities. Seniors on fixed incomes, veterans and people with disabilities should be able to live independently with dignity. Young people should have a place to become established and grow into their dreams. Children deserve an opportunity to succeed in school and life, beginning with a safe, decent place to call home. More affordable homes in Oregon give us all a foundation on which to build better lives.

In 2007, Meyer launched its Affordable Housing Initiative to address the need for more affordable housing across the state, dedicating more than $9 million to the effort. Last year, we recommitted to the Initiative, pledging another $11 million over the next five years to support affordable housing solutions from Oregon’s wild, windy coastline to its austere eastern landscape of deserts and mountains.

This January, Meyer's Trustees authorized an additional $3.75 million to the Affordable Housing Initiative, demonstrating an increased commitment to meeting the housing needs of Oregonians. These added Sustaining Portfolio Strategy funds are dedicated to strengthening the long-term health and sustainability of Oregon’s existing affordable housing stock.

Rent-restricted affordable housing portfolios provide homes for more than 30,000 low-income households across Oregon. These portfolios represent a significant public investment by local, state and national funders. If Oregon hopes to increase its stock of affordable housing, it can not afford to lose the housing we already have.

Nonprofits and public agencies throughout Oregon have been engaged in building their capacity to oversee their affordable housing portfolios, ensuring accessible, affordable and high quality housing for low income Oregonians. The Initiative’s Sustaining Portfolios Strategy advances this work with a focus on long-term planning and increasing the sustainability of these crucial housing assets. Meyer awarded 13 AHI grants in February, totaling $2.19 million. Learn more about these recent grants on our website.

The Trust’s housing investments and commitment are critical, but not enough to address the state’s housing needs. Moving the needle requires a significant collective push. We need investments in homes, strategies to acquire land for future development to prevent displacement down the road, local flexibility to achieve housing goals, low-cost debt to help finance development and policy tools that will help us create the communities we want to see.

More than 50 Oregon groups are working on a broad Housing Opportunity Agenda to remove barriers that Oregonians with low incomes face when looking for a home. It’s a good thing. Housing experts, impacted communities and nonprofit leaders have identified solutions that can meaningfully address Oregon’s housing crisis. What is needed is a statewide commitment to prioritizing housing through a meaningful infusion of resources, policy flexibility to reduce development barriers and the exploration of innovation.

We can do more than hold the line. We can ensure Oregonians across the state have a place to call home. Oregon’s very future depends on getting affordable housing right.

— Doug

We're currently in the process of building a new website to replace our very dated Drupal 6 site. In January 2015, we put out a Request for Proposals and received 43 proposals in reply, far more than we expected. In the process of giving each equal care and consideration, we learned a lot about what we could have done better, what worked for us and what left us scratching our heads. In gratitude to those who gave us their time and effort, we wanted to share our takeaways from the process.

What we could have done better

Upfront soul-searching. In hindsight, we could have spent more effort defining our priorities. Approaching an RFP with wide open arms tends to result in an armful of RFPs. Had we trusted our instinctive preferences, say for a local partner and building the site in Drupal 8, we'd have saved ourselves, and dozens of firms around the world, an awful lot of effort.

Better communication. We should have set up an FAQ page from the get-go and announced it on the RFP, alerting folks that it would be updated continuously as new questions came in. We also should have scheduled a conference call for live vendor questions.

More detail beats less. Aiming for that fine line between giving too much information in the RFP and too little, we undershot. As a result, we spent a lot more time replying to questions than we anticipated. Overshooting seems a better option.

But a narrow focus beats a broad one. Along with greater RFP detail, we could have been more concrete about what we really wanted. Had we just stated outright that we only wanted to see Drupal 8 proposals, or been more explicit that we would accept full, design-only, and tech-only proposals, we might have saved Meyer — and potential vendors — time.

Team size matters. After looking at 43 proposals, we knew we didn't want a generalist freelancer or two doing the Drupal — a scenario we could have handled in-house. In the end, we discovered we needed the experience, best practices and processes more common in teams of specialists.

Of course, vendors might have more input here and we'd love to hear it and share it. Comment below or email me if there were things you wish we'd done better. Please don't mention the need to phone us directly though. It is impractical to accept calls from 43 firms (and often there were calls from more than one person at a firm). It was also frustrating when callers made hard-sell sales pitches, something our receptionist had to wade through, or attempted to trick us into revealing information we did not intend to share.

What we wished we'd seen

We looked at each website redesign proposal as a preview of a vendor's site-building abilities, professionalism and working relationships. If a proposal showed poor attention to detail or subpar communication skills, and if it disregarded instructions or contradicted the RFP, we took it as an indicator of how a vendor operates. Mediocre, cookie-cutter proposals, which might have had a shot in the absence of competition from other vendors, didn't stand a chance with us.

We get it: some vendors believe responding to RFPs is a waste of time. A San Francisco firm we'd heard great things about from other foundations told us upfront they no longer bothered with RFPs, instead prefering direct invitations to take on assignments. We appreciated their candor. But for those firms that choose to respond to RFPs, consider these tips to put your best foot forward. Many will seem obvious but we saw proposals with multiple examples of them:

Read the RFP and respond to what it asks for. Failing here will mostly get you rejected and certainly wastes time, including yours.

Respect the stated preferences. If the RFP says "no calls," then don't call. If it says "PDFs only," then send your documents as PDFs. Sometimes the requirements are a test to see who is paying attention. You'd be surprised how often people don't pay attention, and inattention is a poor trait to build a partnership on.

Proofread and spell and fact check. Among the RFPs we considered, we discovered accidentally included information about other clients and we were invited to drop by the office of a vendor located the other side of the country, etc. Feel free to use an RFP template, but take care that mistakes are fixed before you press send. You are selling attention to detail. Skip this step at your peril.

Line up your ducks before submitting the proposal. Sales, tech and management staff MUST be in sync on what you can deliver. If, for example, sales makes a promise tech can't support, your pitch will end up in the reject pile.

Be organized. Name your documents with both your firm's and the proposed client's names, e.g.: Amazing Web Firm Meyer proposal.pdf. Trust us, juggling 43 proposals named Meyer proposal makes for a massive headache. While we're on the subject, why not send just one document, not a proposal plus six separate resumes plus an appendix plus a document of examples... just one document. See massive headache, times nine.

Put your name on it. This one seems obvious but make sure to put your firm's name on the front page of your proposal. While you're labeling stuff, use page numbers and maybe include your name and the client's in the footer. It helps a lot.

Be succinct. If you're responding to an RFP that asks for a website that is less cluttered, less wordy and less overwhelming, think twice about sending an 80-pageAbout Us addendum. It is unlikely to be read — and may harm your proposal more than help it. Keep it short.

Your own site matters. It's your storefront and reflects the work you do. It is difficult to believe a vendor when they tell us how important great branding and an excellent website are if they are not doing these things for themselves. Out-dated tech, unresponsive design and the bad visuals will count against you.

Highlight how your examples fit the project. Tell us what you did. Among our favorite proposals were ones that pointed out which pieces of a previous project a vendor tackled, and how those pieces fit our needs. If you propose working with a partner you've worked with before, show us that work. If this is the first time partnering then pick examples of both firms' work that reflect what might dovetail with the client's project.

Highlight your expertise. Pick examples that showcase your technical capabilities and experience. Show sites that look like what you're proposing, that demonstrate current best practices and that use the same software (I used Wappalyzer to tell me how websites were built). If you have any prior clients in our industry then highlight them.

Stalk us. Okay, that may be overstated but it is nice when a proposed partner takes the time to get to know the client. Take a close look at our existing website and scan our social media. Notice what industry your client belongs to and tailor your pitch. Bottom line, you'll avoid silly mistakes, like calling a foundation a company or telling a nonprofit how your work will increase sales.

Remember who you're talking to. You are setting the tone for a business partnership. Being talked down to feels icky. Assume you are dealing with an intelligent, capable and highly motivated team. Look to the tone and content of the RFP to see how much explaining you need to do. For example, in our case we had a Drupal guy on the team (me) so we expected to field high level tech questions, from one pro to another.

Provide clickable URLs. You want the client to see your work, right? Making someone Google your examples to take a closer look is not what you want. Why? Well, if your work doesn't show up in the first few results, it may just draw my attention to your poor SEO skills.

Show us your team. If we ask for resumes of the team then give us the entire team we'll be working with. Not your policy? Then give us some reassurances about the level of developers you'll put on the job. Don't just give the resumes of managers who won't be integral to the project. And if you provide links to staff member's LinkedIn profiles, make sure they are up-to-date.

Make your best case. Say we state a preference for something specific, a like a type of software or a certain number of logo revisions. If you have a better idea, make clear the benefit we'll enjoy by doing it your way instead of ours. Alternatives without justifications left us feeling like we weren't heard.

Face up to technical challenges. If there are stumbling blocks we want to know that you are aware of them, that you want to be sure we know about them and that you are up to the challenge. For example, we requested Drupal 8 well ahead of its release date (read our reasons) so we were hoping for proposals that highlighted both the challenges and your confidence and competence to overcome them.

Be realistic about budget. Don't leave anything out. It can feel like subterfuge when surprises pop up. And if you win the RFP sweepstakes, be mindful of what you promised, and at what cost. Your client surely will.

Don't nag. We're not your only prospective client; you're not our only prospective vendor. Nagging makes people exhausted. Nagging before the RFP even closes leaves a bad impression. An email that politely says, 'don't call us, we'll call you' means just that.

Ways to improve a proposal for a Drupal or other tech website

If you're bidding based on a specific CMS or other software then show us your chops and those of your staff.

Link to your staff members' Drupal.org profile. Or link to a similar professional profile that shows your team's community standing, skills and contributions. And make sure the profile is filled in. Empty profiles do a vendor no favors. Also, consider that the client might read your proposal offline so offering a preview can be very user-friendly.

Open source communities are gift communities. Nonprofits have a lot in common with free and open source software (FOSS.) Showing nonprofits that you also give back is a good thing.

Don't explain to us what we already know. If we asked for a Drupal site then we already know why Drupal is a strong choice, so you don't need to tell us how awesome it is.

Watch your building blocks. This one should go without saying: Whatever you do, don't build your company website using Weebly, Webs, SquareSpace or any similar service aimed at non-coders, unless you are suggesting we use it too.

Equity and diversity

One final thing to discuss is diversity.

Tech is a field with a notorious lack of diversity. It is predominantly white, male and young and the data suggests that we're driving diversity away at every level, from high school through college to mid-career. Most firms don't question this or how they might be part of the problem. They wrongly throw their arms up and say the problem is too big and not their fault, enabling them to ignore the issue.

Equity and diversity are vitally important to Meyer. We stressed it in our RFP, and it's front and center on our website. In the majority of the proposals, there was no acknowledgement that equity and diversity matters and stock photographs showing predominately white, predominately male faces. Obtuse? Arrogant? Either way, we didn't feel listened to.

Diversity matters not only because it's right, fair and just, and because more and more of your clients will be looking for it from tech firms. It also matters because it makes firms like yours more productive, profitable and competitive. Sound like a crazy claim? Well, then you really need to watch Erynn Petersen's Keynote from the most recent DrupalCon on the financially measurable value of well-managed diversity in the workplace. She backed it all up with data and studies for which she included citations and references. Watch it and take note.

Wrap-up

The RFP process can feel an awful lot like online dating. You're comparing choices, trying them on for size and making decisions based on your best understanding of an possible partner.

Everyone can't make the final cut. But a number of firms that we did not select nonetheless grew in our esteem. We were impressed and grateful to have gotten to know them better. We regularly make recommendations to others in the nonprofit sector and we now have several new firms that we can point to. Though they didn't get this gig, they still may gain and there's a lot to be said for that. This backs up all of the above, which is to say do RFPs well, or don't do them at all.

— Grant

While you know Jill from four years as a program officer at Meyer, juggling both Responsive and Grassroots grants, her background and skills that make her a great fit for this position.

Before Meyer, Jill spent 16 years in the environmental field developing a broad base of knowledge and experience, from traditional conservation to sustainability to environmental justice. Her experience integrating and operationalizing equity into environmental work is quite unique in the field.

Her educational background — a masters degree in environmental studies and a baccalaureate in government — offers a solid grounding in understanding environmental issues and policy. And Jill's management experience as co-executive director at CLF and as operations manager for the Sisters of the Road Cafe provides a base of planning, budget management and supervision experience that will serve her well in this role.

I couldn’t be happier to have Jill lead Meyer Trust’s new Healthy Environment portfolio.

Please join me and Doug in congratulating Jill on her new transition!

— Candy

I'm delighted to share the good news that Theresa Deibele will be Meyer's new Housing Opportunities Portfolio Director!

While you know Theresa from her three years as a program officer at Meyer Memorial Trust, focused on Responsive Grants and PRIs, her background and skill sets make her an excellent fit for this specialized leadership position. Theresa has deep roots in housing, management, finance, community development and the law that will compliment our current AHI team and set the standard for our new portfolio directors.

As an attorney, Theresa gained significant experience in public finance and a broad understanding of Oregon's housing landscape, along with the complex regulatory framework for housing transactions. She brings deep and unique insights from her years as Chief Financial Officer at ChristieCare, where she oversaw an $8 million budget during a rocky period in the children's mental health policy and funding environment, and shepherded the organization through a merger. As supervisor of professional staff with deep content expertise, Theresa also oversaw a staff of 14, including finance, human resources, facilities and IT. And she has served as a mentor to up-and-coming professionals.

While at Meyer, she has established relationships in the statewide housing nonprofit community, including housing authorities, large multifamily housing developers, housing advocates, land trusts and organizations serving people experiencing homelessness. And over the last two years, she has managed Meyer's Habitat for Humanity program and fully engaged in Meyer Trust's PRI work.

Please join me and Candy in congratulating Theresa on her new transition!

— Candy