Our Strategic Goals

Without our dedicated staff of talented employees, the Cleveland Foundation could not continue to fulfill its mission of enhancing the lives of Greater Clevelanders through grantmaking, leadership, and community endowment. As part of our new strategic plan, our staff has committed to six high-level strategic goals that will steer our internal and external priorities for the period from 2012 through 2016:

Grantmaking Enhance grantmaking outcomes and leverage support from our partners and donors

We are committed to continuously evaluating and strengthening the impact of our grantmaking. We will better engage donors in our work and increase leverage from local and national funders.

Fundraising Increase our focus on donors and fundraising

We strive to more closely involve and highlight our donors. We will grow our endowment, emphasizing fundraising and broadening our base of supporters, as a key priority of our senior leadership team and board.

Investment Grow and protect our assets

We aim for a positive real return on investments over rolling five-, seven-, and 10-year periods. We will increase our focus on mission- and program-related investing to achieve both social and financial returns.

Leadership Expand our leadership in the community and in the field to benefit Cleveland

We seek to partner with community and business leadership, government, and national foundations to boost funding for major initiatives with potential to bring big benefits to Clevelanders, particularly highly innovative models of philanthropy. We will enhance our already-strong leadership in the community foundation field through our active involvement in key issues.

Organization Strengthen our organization by building a high-performing culture and by upgrading systems to support the foundation of the future

We are committed to investing in our people, with improved technology, training, and career development. We will integrate our values throughout the organization, instill teamwork among all, encourage and benefit from diversity, and ensure appropriate staffing to reach our strategic goals.

Centennial Celebrate our centennial and position the Cleveland Foundation for the next century

We will commemorate the Cleveland Foundation and its rich history, celebrate the birth and birthplace of the community foundation movement, and build an even larger community endowment for the greater good of Greater Cleveland, setting the stage for the next century.