Shared Cause joins with leaders looking to make transformative change in the world.  Our work is not about studies and reports.  It’s not about simply providing services.  We aim to solve problems.  So we go deep, looking at the whole picture of what’s possible and serving as partners to mobilize the most powerful response possible.

How We Do It

Solving a tough social problem is like working a jigsaw puzzle.  At first, all you see are many separate pieces, but they can be formed into a coherent whole.  Cause Development helps orchestrate that process.

We address factors that frequently undermine real social progress – competition, lack of responsiveness to real conditions, indecision and absence of focus, rigid and inadequate funding streams, and the power gap between “grass roots” and “grass tops” leadership.  This requires Shared Cause to become deeply involved in learning and guiding.

Our first step is to gain a first hand understanding of the ecosystem of actors and factors related to an issue.  Consider early childhood development, for example.  The ecosystem may look like this: 

Early Childhood Ecosystem

The Shared Cause Way

The Shared Cause way is to network across the ecosystem, interviewing formal and informal leaders to answer key questions: 

  • Is there will to change the status quo?  Why is it in everyone’s interest to do so?
  • What is the nature of the need?  Who needs support the most?  What are they experiencing?  What do they want in their lives?
  • What systems exist to meet the need?  Where are there gaps or missed connections?  Where are new approaches needed?  What might they involve?
  • What organizations and individuals could contribute to the development of a better system?  What do they feel is most important to achieve?  What role could they play?  What could they gain by being part of the solution? 

We back these discussions by assessing available data and background information on key populations, local conditions, and systems.

We organize this information into an “opportunity assessment” and bring all potential partners together to validate and enhance it.  This shared understanding of need and possibility becomes the platform for collaboration.

Collaboration is the result of shared planning.  We dig in with potential partners to reveal new approaches to old problems and create pathways to solutions.  As strategies emerge, we help determine who’s ready to be a fully dedicated partner.  We work with them define roles that will make powerful contributions to the whole, while advancing their own organizational interests.  We develop ways to measure and report progress.  We then create formal structures to ensure strong leadership and ongoing partnership.

Shared Cause produces the essential conditions for large-scale impact: 

  • Clear vision
  • High performing, goal-focused organizations
  • Authentic, durable partnerships
  • Strong leadership
  • Strategic advocacy agenda
  • High impact funding, public and private
  • Sustainable systems that solve problems at the scale of need

We have a unique ability to assist resource development and sustainability.  We identify potential funding sources – public and private – and create strategies to rewire existing funding streams and attract new support.  Shared Cause works intentionally to help partners bring their cause-related efforts into the mainstream of their work.

Our philanthropic expertise comes from having designed and managed major fundraising programs and from having served numerous clients such as foundations, United Ways and voluntary organizations.  Our public funding expertise has arisen from helping create initiatives that have attracted major funding from state and local appropriations, federal programs and development banks.

Our work emphasizes equity.  We reach out to directly gather the perspectives of those the cause seeks to benefit, as well as the organizations that play important roles in their lives.  We listen deeply to aspirations, motivations and ideas.  Equally important, we bring grass roots and grass tops leaders together as problem-solving peers.  This produces ways of working in which power is shared and systems are designed around the realities of people’s lives.