Is There An Upside to Telling Donors When Things Go Wrong?

An interesting blog for the Chronicle of Philanthropy highlighted a new effort by a Canadian non-profit, Engineers Without Borders Canada,  to be upfront about their own mistakes and "to get a seemingly simple but virtually non-existent practice adopted throughout the development sector.”

They have a website which explains the effort called  admittingfailure.com.

Do donors and prospective donors want us to admit failure?  Sometimes the truth is a powerfully good thing and increases an organization's credibility; sometimes it is the last thing people really want to hear.  Whomever is the first to gain the publicity on telling the truth will certainly receive acclaim.  

It's a bold move to emphasize the power of collective learning over the fear of potentially upsetting a funding source.  A donor I worked with many years ago, who over the course of our working relationship gave several million dollars to the charity that employed me said recently that it was the quality of our relationship that made the organization I worked for stand out among other charities.  It was, I think, our willingness to be optimistic but honest that set us apart. 

What will Jumo Bring?

Chris Hughes who founded Facebook is launching a site to be the Yelp of philanthropy.  Hurrah.  We have long been saying at end l start that the marketplace demands transparency -- and that includes transparency with people's experience with a charity.  Some people will say this further scrutiny and info sharing will be a burden to charities and cause them to have to focus on p.r. instead of mission.  I disagree.  Focus on excellence in mission and the quality of the work will beat any forced p.r. spin. 

Let's turn up the lights folks and join the marketplace.