1. 2016 Columbus Survey Results

2. the IDEA BEHIND IS SIMPLE
What if EACH community foundation could know what ALL community foundations collectively know?
© CF Insights 2017

3. Member Services Manager
The CF Insights Team
David Rosado
Member Services Manager
CF Insights
Diana Esposito
Consultant
CF Insights
© CF Insights 2017

4. Agenda What is the Columbus Survey? What are the findings from 2016?
How can CF Insights data help you?
How can you contribute?
Also available from CF Insights
© CF Insights 2017

5. What is the Columbus Survey?
The Columbus Survey is the “census of the community foundation field” started by the Columbus Foundation in 1988, and administered by CF Insights since 2008.
The Columbus Survey collects data to uncover financial trends and operational activity among community foundations in the United States.
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6. Agenda What is the Columbus Survey? What are the findings from 2016?
How can CF Insights data help you?
How can you contribute?
Also available from CF Insights
© CF Insights 2017

7. 253 Participants FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Distribution of Geographies Served
NORTHEAST
10%
SOUTH
23%
MIDWEST
54%
WEST
13%
Asset Size Distribution
29%
15% 9%
19%
13%
© CF Insights 2017

8. Field-Wide Asset Growth
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
253 Participants
Field-Wide Asset Growth
Median = 5.2%
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9. Assets FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Data reflects the largest 100 community foundations by asset size as of FY 2015 and includes only those from the cohort that have data for all years represented (n=95).
N=95
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10. Gifts and Grants FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results Gifts $8.2B $7.7B
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11. Gift and Grant Change Rates
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Gift and Grant Change Rates
The proportion of respondents who experienced a dramatic decrease in gifts doubled from 2015, though as in previous years, gift change rates remain difficult to predict. Grants are predictably more stable, driven by fund holders and in keeping with the community foundation’s mission and payout goals. More than half of all survey respondents saw grantmaking totals change less than 20%.
14%
28%
17%
19%
22% 3%
21%
31%
31%
13%
Degree of change: Dramatic decrease = -50% or greater; Moderate decrease = %; Neutral = -10% - +10%; Moderate increase = +11% - +49%; Dramatic increase = +50% or greater  (n=249)
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12. Gifts and Grants Per Capita
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Gifts and Grants Per Capita
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13. Endowed and Non Endowed Assets
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Endowed and Non Endowed Assets
Median percentages for the proportion of assets that are endowed and non-endowed may not add up to 100% due to rounding. 
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14. †Averages were used to total 100%
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Donor-Advised, Discretionary, and All Other Funds
Donor-advised funds tend to make up a more significant portion of assets in larger community foundations, which, while also having a higher proportion of non-endowed assets, could be reflective of their ability to provide flexible grantmaking options to their donors.
Averages were used to total 100%.
© CF Insights 2017
†Averages were used to total 100%

15. Donor-Advised, Discretionary, and All Other Funds
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Donor-Advised, Discretionary, and All Other Funds
13%
13%
11%
11% 7% 9% 8% 7% 6% 4% 5% 4%
Sample size for DAF distribution rates are slightly smaller (n=238) than for the whole foundation (n=246).
© CF Insights 2017

16. †Averages were used to total 100%
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Operating Revenues
While the basic community foundation operating model is supported mainly by administrative fees on funds, differences in the revenue mix do emerge among foundations of different sizes. Emerging and smaller community foundations rely more heavily on outside fundraising and distributions from endowments and reserves to support operations. The continued diversification of community foundation offerings has not, to this point, led to a significant shift in one's typical revenue mix. Continued growth in funds, supplemented by alternative sources of revenues, can provide the flexibility needed to drive foundation-led community efforts (e.g. community leadership or special initiatives).
Averages were used to total 100%.
†Averages were used to total 100%
© CF Insights 2017

17. †Averages were used to total 100%
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Operational Expenses
Staffing expenses typically make up around two-thirds of overall community foundation expenses, regardless of foundation size.
36%
36%
33%
64%
64%
67%
34%
66%
32%
31%
32%
68%
69%
68%
Averages were used to total 100%. 
†Averages were used to total 100%
© CF Insights 2017

18. Surplus vs. Subsidy FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results 8% 14% 41% 24% 13%
Calculated as revenues divided by expenses: Significant surplus >125%; Modest surplus = 105%-124%; Breakeven = 95%-105%; Modest subsidy = 75%-94%; Significant subsidy <75% 
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19. Expense to Asset Ratio FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results 1.9% 1.4% 1.4%
1.1%
0.9%
0.8%
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20. Funds Per Full Time Equivalent
FY 2016 Columbus Survey Results
Funds Per Full Time Equivalent
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21. Agenda What is the Columbus Survey? What are the findings from 2016?
How can CF Insights data help you?
How can you contribute?
Also available from CF Insights
© CF Insights 2017

22. Benchmark Using Live Data
Examples of Non-Member Reports
Examples of Member Reports
Longitudinal
Peer Benchmarking
Change in assets, 15-16
Change in gifts, 15-16
Change in grants, 15-16
Total annual asset growth rate
Average fund size
Gift and grant ratios
Assets per Capita
Assets
Average fund size among peers
Assets by product among peers
Asset growth/historical assets among peers
Percent of assets endowed and non endowed vs. peers
Gifts & Grants
Average gift/grant size among peers
Average DAF/discretionary gift size vs. peers
Annual payout rate among peers
Gifts/Grants per capita among peers
Operating Efficiency
Expense to asset ratio among peers
Revenues among peers
Staffing
Funds per FTE among peers
FTEs by Functional Area Among Peers
CF Insights offers over 90 on-demand reports to help you gauge your performance relative to the field.
© CF Insights 2017

23. Extensive data collection means a robust peer comparison tool.
Define Peer Groups Using Any Criteria
Examples of Ways to Define Peers:
Asset size
Age
Size of population served
Asset Composition (Discretionary, DAF, etc.)
Staffing
Levels of endowment
Revenue mix
Staff expenses
…and more!
Extensive data collection means a robust peer comparison tool.
What is unique about your community foundation? How would you define your peers?
© CF Insights 2017

24. How do you stack up against your peers?
Peer benchmarking dashboards provide members a snapshot of their performance, and serve as a powerful and concise way to present metrics to your Board of Directors
© CF Insights 2017

25. Answers at your fingertips
How do my gifts received per capita align with other statewide peer foundations?
How does the average fund size at my foundation compare to peers who also serve smaller populations in rural areas?
How does this intersect with the number of funds managed by each FTE for peers?
Explore.
Learn.
Share.
CF Insights members can use on-demand reports to answer questions quickly, or request custom reports and analysis from CF Insights’ expert staff.
© CF Insights 2017

26. Gifts Per Capita Among Peers
Visual or Data
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27. Average Fund Size & and Funds per FTE
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28. Average Fund Size & and Funds per FTE
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29. Export and Print Reports
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30. Agenda What is the Columbus Survey? What are the findings from 2016?
How can CF Insights data help you?
How can you contribute?
Also available from CF Insights
© CF Insights 2017

31. Participate in the Columbus Survey
Be counted! Share your unaudited financial data 60 days after the close of your fiscal year to help CF Insights make trend data available to the field.
Members – Complete all survey pages, including the Product Composition section.
Remember CF Insights for your Data Needs
Use CF Insights’ database to develop comparative reports and discover your own insights
Visit cfinsights.org to learn more about the resources available to the field.
Connect with us
Contact David Rosado at or Diana Esposito at to learn more about CF Insights, or to create a free login account to access the database.
© CF Insights 2017

32. Agenda What is the Columbus Survey? What are the findings from 2016?
How can CF Insights data help you?
How can you contribute?
Also available from CF Insights
© CF Insights 2017

33. Economic Scenario Planning Interactive Strategy Model
CF Insights provides financial analysis tools designed specifically for community foundations
Generate and analyze three different five-year projections using your foundation’s baseline data.
Economic Scenario Planning
Activity-Based
Costing
Perform a detailed analysis into your foundation’s economics, uncovering which of your products are generating surplus revenue and which require an investment.
Recommend specific changes to your community foundation’s operations.
Interactive Strategy Model
Take the long view on your foundation’s performance, utilizing the same staff time, cost, and revenue information used during the ABC to establish your CF’s baseline year.
All are available as a free download via cfinsights.org/tools
© CF Insights 2017

34. Activity-Based Costing
Learn about the performance of your foundation’s individual products
Gain intelligence around the allocation of your resources
Use data to inform future strategic thinking
Make specific recommendations to bring business model into alignment with organizational priorities
© CF Insights 2017

35. Total Surplus or Subsidy by Product – Operating Budget Only
Determine which of your foundation’s products is producing a surplus, and which require an investment
Total Surplus or Subsidy by Product – Operating Budget Only
Fee-Based Products
Leadership Efforts
Cross-subsidies are typical for the community foundation business model, but deliberate decisions should be made about where to invest resources
© CF Insights 2017

36. Economic Scenario Planning
Five year forecasts.
Driven by external variables.
Test your operating model’s sustainability.
© CF Insights 2017

37. Economic Scenario Planning Model
Viewing the forecast results
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38. Interactive Strategy Model
Determine alternative scenarios and play them out over a 10 year period
Ask “what if?” when considering specific strategic changes to your operating model
Direct future strategic planning with detailed, guiding results
© CF Insights 2017

39. CF Insights is available to help you through any or all of these processes
Members receive 10 hours of technical assistance per year, some or all of which can be used at any point during the study, included as part of their membership fee.
CF Insights offers different fee-based levels of consulting.
Visit CFInsights.org to download and familiarize yourself with the complete toolkit for any of the three forecasting tools, as well as detailed user guides, all of which are licensed through Creative Commons.
© CF Insights 2017

40. Coming Soon From CF Insights…

41. Coming Soon From Foundation Center…
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42. Visit ColumbusSurvey.CFInsights.org TODAY!

43. SHARING KNOWLEDGE. GROWING IMPACT.
Questions?
The CF Insights Team
David Rosado, Member Services Manager
Diana Esposito, Consultant, CF Insights
(212)
(978)
SHARING KNOWLEDGE. GROWING IMPACT.
© CF Insights 2017