Site Visits to Nonprofits
/In philanthropy, a site visit is when a funder arranges to meet with a potential or current grantee at a location where the nonprofit’s work is taking place. It’s an opportunity for the funder to meet the nonprofit’s staff, possibly its board members and its clients in person, and to hear about their firsthand experiences. A typical site visit is about an hour long and involves a tour of the facility, a face-to-face meeting, and in some cases, a chance to observe programs and/or to meet with people who are benefiting from the nonprofit’s work.
A site visit can happen at different times in the funding cycle. Some donors make site visits as part of the grant application process, visiting the nonprofits they are considering funding before making grant decisions. Some funders conduct them as part of the evaluation process to see the results of a funded project. And some funders conduct annual site visits during multi-year grant periods or as a way to touch base with longtime grantees.
Why do funders conduct site visits?
There are a number of reasons funders make site visits. It’s a chance to get to know the staff of an organization you are considering funding, to see the impact of your giving firsthand, or to deepen your relationship with a nonprofit you already fund. Seeing programs in action, and talking with staff or board members can be a lot more dynamic than reading a grant proposal or report. Ideally, site visits complement written proposals and reports, enhancing the funder’s knowledge of the nonprofit and providing an opportunity to ask questions and to get to know the people behind the work.
Site visits are not required, and in fact, should only take place under specifically useful circumstances for the donor and the nonprofit. An organization you have supported may invite you to come by for a tour or meeting. More likely, you may suggest a site visit to learn more about an organization you are considering funding. You might consider site visits a key part of due diligence in a clearly delineated grantmaking cycle, or as part of a larger fact-finding process to stay connected to the larger field you support. The relationship-building aspect of face-to-face discussions with staff might be a key reason for a site visit.
The vast majority of grantmaking happens without site visits and it is completely legitimate not to spend your time or the nonprofit’s on meetings that can feel a bit like a “dog-and-pony show.” Donors can simply research the organization on their own and send checks, or rely on grant applications, phone conversations and reports to provide the information they need.
Pros and Cons
Site visits can be extraordinarily beneficial for both the nonprofit and the donor when they produce insights and deeper relationships that wouldn’t have occurred by review of written materials and office meetings. Seeing nonprofit work directly in the environment where the real action takes place can provide a donor fuller context and lead to better grantmaking. Nonetheless, the donor should take a variety of issues into consideration:
Time and timing. Site visits are time-consuming for the funder, but can be all-consuming for nonprofits, requiring considerable planning and coordination among staff, clients and volunteers. The funder may only be onsite for an hour, but the nonprofit has to decide how many staff to be involved, organize the information and people the funder should interact with, prepare for walk-throughs, etc. This can all take valuable time away from mission-relevant work. Funders considering site visits should also think about the most appropriate and useful timing of a site visit. It is common for funders strongly considering a sizable first-time grant to set up a site visit before making a final decision. Some donors start funding nonprofits in smaller amounts and then conduct a site visit when they are thinking about scaling up their investments or supporting a major new project. Sometimes, funders conduct site visits well after a grant is made to better understand how the work is being carried out, perhaps as part of a larger effort to increase understanding of the field or as part of an evaluation process. There is no right or wrong way to time a site visit, but being clear in your thinking and being transparent with the nonprofit will improve the relationship and produce better learning.
Nothing to see here. Many nonprofits do immensely important work that doesn’t lend itself to observation. This might be because it is intellectual or research work that looks much like any other office work, or because the nature of the work is sensitive and might be disrupted by the presence of a funder. Nonprofit work like programs for kids and food distribution programs are great for site visits because there are actual differences in execution that might be enlightening and they can have an intense emotional impact. But funders need to ask themselves if spending valuable time on site visits to those kinds of organizations might bias them toward a certain kind of social change work over less visible work like policy and advocacy work.
Getting the song and dance. Nonprofits agreeing to site visits naturally want to put on their best face and provide an experience that moves a funder. This often means pulling staff from their normal work to give tours and make presentations. The performance factor is often extended to clients. In particularly egregious situations, they are displayed and prodded in inauthentic or retraumatizing ways. Said one nonprofit, “Despite the intention to both inform funders and deepen relationships, site visits often exploit overworked staff and further marginalize communities.”
Funders can’t observe without influencing. You may want to be a fly on the wall, but the fact is that any site visit is a form of intervention. The act of being present, taking time, and asking questions is an insertion of yourself that influences the people and dynamics of the site. Funders can’t avoid this reality, but they can be considerate and aware. Part of that is being conscious of your biases as a highly resourced person who is coming into a place where the organization and the people it serves are likely constantly scrambling for finances. Your ideas about professionalism, cleanliness and orderliness might not fit the reality of a survival economy that nonprofits deal with every day.
Taking Action
Only initiate or accept a nonprofit’s offer of a site visit if you are seriously considering giving to the organization or have already done so. Site visits take a lot of organizational resources, so be sure it will be worth the organization’s time and effort. Site visits are usually around 60 to 90 minutes, and they are often carefully planned by the nonprofit. They will most likely guide you through a tour and/or meetings.
Schedule well in advance. You’ll probably want to start with an email to the development director. Explain your purpose (whether it’s part of a funding process or more general fact-finding). Ask if the organization is willing to host you, and if so, determine the best person (or people) to meet with and the best time for a visit. Give the organization plenty of time to prepare (at least a few weeks). Also let them know if you’ll be coming alone or bringing anyone else with you, whether that’s a spouse or someone else from your foundation.
Plan together. If you have expectations about who you will meet or what you will see during the visit, be sure to communicate about this in advance. If you want to observe a specific program or meet a particular staff member, they’ll need to schedule your visit when that program is happening or make sure that staff member will be on site and available. If you know you can only be there for a limited amount of time, that is another thing to communicate in advance. Organizations often create structured agendas for site visits, so any expectations about the timing or content of your visit should be made clear to them ahead of time. In an attempt to empower the nonprofit, some funders leave the planning of the site visit entirely up to organization, but this can have unintended consequences. “While this appears generous, it actually often leaves the nonprofit scrambling to determine what to do and how to do it with resources already stretched thin. Furthermore, expecting the nonprofit to anticipate our needs on a site visit and to provide us with everything in advance is a large request,” says Philanthropy Without Borders.
Prepare your questions. Before you go, think about what you hope to learn from the visit and consider writing down a list of questions.
If you are visiting as part of the grant application process, think about probing beyond the answers in the grant application:
Can you share with me how the work I’m seeing today relates to the totality of what the organization does and the grant request we’re reviewing?
How will this grant make a difference for your organization / this project?
Are other funders involved? Who else have you approached for funding?
What challenges are this program and the organization as a whole facing?
How big is the staff? Who will be working on this project?
Is there anything that would help you to work more effectively on this project?
If you are visiting as part of grant evaluation:
Do you think the project was successful? How so?
What impact has the project had?
Is there anything you’ve learned or would do differently in the future?
If you are visiting a multi-year/ongoing grantee:
Try to invite an open conversation about how things are going — successes, challenges, ideas and plans for the future.
What has changed since we last met?
What do you need to continue to do this work, or to expand or build upon this work?
Explain the funder process. If you are going on a site visit as part of the process to vet an organization for funding, explain the grant process. Let the organization know, to the degree appropriate, where the site visit fits within the process, and whether or not the visit automatically means the organization is getting a grant.
Welcome questions about you. Be prepared for questions that nonprofit staff will likely ask you, such as how the donor thinks about giving strategy in this field, when you expect to make a decision about the grant or whether they can approach you about a renewal grant.
Capture the learning. If you are part of a family foundation, giving circle or any other group to which you will be reporting after the visit, you might want to take notes or even write up a summary of the visit shortly afterward.
A site visit can be illuminating, inspiring and even fun. You’re there to learn about an organization whose work you support, or are considering supporting, so it’s great to approach the visit with a positive spirit focused on learning and building relationships.
