How can evidence-driven evaluation help a major foundation deepen grantee impact and strengthen an entire philanthropic field?
Turning Grantee Feedback into Field-Wide Impact
The Jewish nonprofit sector is navigating growing complexity, with organizations seeking the tools, leadership, and strategies to remain resilient and effective. The Jim Joseph Foundation, dedicated to fostering compelling Jewish learning experiences, recognized that strong grantee capacity is essential to achieving its mission. In 2023, the Foundation partnered with Third Plateau to evaluate and enhance the impact of its capacity-building strategy — strengthening grantees while uncovering opportunities to advance the broader Jewish philanthropic ecosystem.
Evidence-Driven Insights for Stronger Grantees
The Foundation sought to understand whether its capacity-building grants were truly meeting grantee needs, identify gaps across the Jewish community and philanthropic landscape, and explore opportunities for funder collaboration. Challenges included maintaining trust and minimizing burden on grantees while collecting candid feedback, as well as addressing a sector-wide misalignment between nonprofit needs and available support. Third Plateau was brought in to provide strategic guidance, research, and actionable recommendations to bridge these gaps.
“Their dollars go very far – unrestricted – that’s what makes a nonprofit able to do its work. When we launched our plan, we doubled staff and impact. That was a direct result of their investment.”
— Grantee
Research, Relationships, and Real Recommendations
Third Plateau and the Jim Joseph Foundation approached this work with the same conviction that drives all meaningful evaluation: that the best recommendations are only as strong as the listening that shapes them. Rather than moving straight to solutions, we started by going deep — assessing existing capacity-building grants, researching sector best practices, and conducting candid interviews with grantee organizations to surface real strengths, hidden gaps, and overlooked opportunities. A partnership with Schusterman Family Philanthropies extended that listening even further, mapping capacity-building needs and offerings across the Jewish nonprofit ecosystem.
With those insights in hand, the work shifted to building. The evaluation and analysis translated into concrete, actionable recommendations — covering grantee communications, grant structures, consulting supports, and opportunities for coordinated funder action. Equally important was helping the Foundation see not just what was working, but how to position itself as a connector and convener across the broader philanthropic field.
From Evaluation to Lasting Change
Through this partnership, the Jim Joseph Foundation strengthened its capacity-building approach and deepened its engagement with grantees. The Foundation implemented recommendations to improve communications, extend grant timelines, and provide targeted consulting support — enhancing grantee autonomy and fostering collaboration across the Jewish community and philanthropic sector. By building on its existing strengths, the Foundation continues to advance a responsive, field-informed approach that supports organizations and amplifies impact across the ecosystem.
Interested in partnering with us to design an evaluation strategy that strengthens grantees and advances your field? Reach out to start the conversation.
