The Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP) surveyed private and community foundation leaders regarding what they know about what is and isn’t working in their foundations’ efforts to achieve their goals. Drawing from 119 survey responses and in-depth interviews with 41 foundation CEOs, the report finds that while the majority of foundation CEOs believe they understand well what is working in their programmatic efforts, more than 40 percent believe their foundation is not investing enough time and money in developing that understanding.

The report is accompanied by a series of in-depth profiles, authored by Lowell Weiss of Cascade Philanthropy Advisors, to further examine what foundations are doing to understand and share their work. The profiled funders include Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Weingart Foundation, Communities Foundation of Texas, and Impetus-PEF. The data in this report, along with the insights in the profiles, can help foundation leaders determine the best methods for learning from their work and deciding what to be open about.