The NonProfit Times - March 1, 2008 - (Page 23)

FOUNDATIONS Continued from page 16 do it “relatively well and relatively seamlessly,” Englehardt said. “People have moved around…and moved onto something else, and they’ve managed to do it without a huge number of false starts.” Stonesifer became the highestranking female executive at Microsoft Corporation, where she worked for eight years and first met Bill Gates. During her tenure, she ran Microsoft Canada, revamped Microsoft’s product support operations, oversaw the consumer products group and served as senior vice president of the Interactive Media Division, where she managed 2,000 employees. Englehardt also praised the foundation for its openness to experimentation. “Rather than thinking of it as being something that’s been a direct line, they have experimented with things, seen how they’ve went, and made decisions about what they do “Are they undoing with one hand what they’re doing with the other hand,” Boris said, adding that how they manage that will be an ongoing challenge. Said Gunderson: “It’s indicative again of some of the skill she has brought to trying to move a family foundation that has not been engaged in philanthropy, that has not had any kind of size, toward understanding the fact that they’re not only into philanthropy but because of their size they are -- by accident if not by intent -- a marker that everybody else follows. Patty Stonesifer “As a result,just the visibility and the awareness of that issue, there are hundreds if not thousands of other family foundations with three people as the board who are making investment decisions that it would be nobody’s issue. But because this is the Gates Foundation, and because they are so big, it is obviously an issue,” Gunderson said. Over a period of time, Gunderson predicted, “the investments of every foundation will be very transparent and they will be open to public discussion…Time will address this issue for Gates and for everybody else.” NPT Foundation investment policies are an issue that’s important not only to Stonesifer and the Gates Foundation but the entire sector next based on that and many of their experiments worked. Some of them they’ve re-engineered, and some things they’ve moved on from. I do think that, I hope, that that same way of thinking about how you manage this unique foundation in the world I hope they continue to think of themselves that way and find a new president who can do it that well.” The foundation came under scrutiny last year after a The Los Angeles Times report examined its investment practices,investing in companies that might be doing harm in the areas that the foundation seeks to improve. Other foundations have explained that investments are “the money we have so we can do good,” Englehardt said.“But they got it very quickly, particularly because they were doing work in some of the areas of the world where some of the damage was being done.That’s a very good example of how they learn. They don’t think they made it all up, they learn from other people, including the press,” she said. Foundation investment policies are an issue that’s important not only to Stonesifer and the Gates Foundation but the entire sector, Gunderson said. MARCH 1, 2008 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.nptimes.com 23 http://www.nptimes.com http://www.nptimes.com

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The NonProfit Times - March 1, 2008 Fuel Costs Eating Up Food Banks California Legislation Pushing Foundation Funding Diversity Estate Tax Won't Die Contents Who...When...Where...How...What? Red Cross Cuts Jobs, Regional Support In $200 Million Deficit General Ramblings: What the....? Briefs Taxing Issues: New for 2008 Foundations: Rebooting At Gates Mail Drove Donors to Give Online Streetsmart Nonprofit Manager: The Power of the Founder Software: Technology Innovation Calendar Fundraising Guide NPT Jobs Resource Directory AFP International Conference Insert

The NonProfit Times - March 1, 2008

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