Our goal at Idealistics is to make it easier for agencies to help their clients better.  One way to accomplish this is through the use of data.  Geographic analysis is one area that we believe has a great deal of potential to help organizations.

In partnership with the Center for Nonprofit Management, Idealistics will be [...]

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I recently had the pleasure of meeting with Emerging Markets, Inc., a consulting company based in Hollywood that works with banks throughout Los Angles to help them establish branches in under banked communities.  Like Idealistics, Emerging Markets is a double bottom line social enterprise.  It was good hearing about their work and seeing that there [...]

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Tough economic times means difficulty raising funds for social services.  The irony is that when the economy is rough, demand for services goes up, especially for basic needs programs.  While I don’t know of a way to raise more money in a downturn, I do have a suggestion as to how to make your money [...]

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On August 21 I had the privilege of traveling up to Northern California to meet with an organization called Community Services Agency (CSA) in Mountain View.  I grew up in Silicon Valley, so it was nice for me being back home.  The city of Mountain View is home to several software companies and the tech [...]

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In his presentation at FDIC’s Foreclosure Symposium, Dr. Raphael Bostic (Lusk Center for Real Estate, University of Southern California) discussed, at length, some of the factors responsible for the current economic crisis. He covered many topics throughout his insightful presentation; among them was the importance of financial education as a long-term solution for helping families make [...]

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In a presentation at the Social for Social Innovation at Stanford University (the audio file is available here), Dr. Alana Conner argued for fewer and better evaluations of social service agencies. Her argument hinges on the fact that good evaluations are hard to do. She points out the importance (and difficulty) of finding [...]

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A recently published Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) report provides some sobering statistics on information technology access of low-income and minority Californians. The PPIC reports:

Less than half of California Latinos (48%) have home computers compared to about eight in 10 or more for whites (86%), Asians (84%), and blacks (79%). Just four in [...]

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I’m sure you all are quite familiar with the debate over non-profit executive compensation and whether or not non-profit professionals should be paid salaries more similar to their for-profit counterparts. This post in the Do Good Well blog draws attention to what matters most when thinking about employee compensation in a non-profit. The blogger writes:

The [...]

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The effects of the rapidly declining economy are forcing people to rethink and prioritize their needs and wants. The high cost of goods and services may prove to be a blessing in disguise in the long-term as consumers adopt more frugal behaviors that make good financial sense. In the midst of the worst housing market [...]

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On Wednesday, May 7, I had the distinct pleasure of attending a friendraiser for Proyecto Pastoral at Dolores Mission. The event took place at Mama Juana’s in Studio City (don’t blink or you’ll miss it). The event, hosted by Proyecto’s Emerging Leaders Board, served as an effort to garner support and increase awareness of [...]

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