Taproot Foundation

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OVERVIEW: The Taproot Foundation makes in-kind service grants of professional consulting services to nonprofit organizations primarily in the Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington D.C. metropolitan areas. However, this funder has international reach in a variety of international cities.

IP TAKE: The Taproot Foundation, a national nonprofit, connects nonprofits and social change organizations with skilled volunteers through pro bono service. Taproot's works to create a world where organizations dedicated to social change have full access—through pro bono service—to the marketing, strategy, HR, and IT resources they need to be most effective.

Overall, Taproot also serves as a thought leader for helping nonprofits learn how to identify gaps, trends, biases and other areas needing further development in philanthropy. Read their numerous articles and blog posts to learn more about how Taproot approaches it’s work and thinks about philanthropy.

PROFILE: Created in 2001 in San Francisco, the Taproot Foundation is largely a connector, above all, connecting “nonprofits with the resources they need to fulfill their missions” to full-fill “gaps in nonprofits’ critical needs.” Inspired by the core root of a plant, Taproot is on a mission to nourish “social change organizations by connecting them with the expertise and insights of skilled volunteers, enabling both to thrive.” Its service grants program does this by offering a wide variety of capacity building pro bono services to nonprofits, helping the organizations to work with top-level consultants in a manner they might not otherwise be able to afford.

Since 2001, Taproot's skilled volunteers have served 7,027 nonprofits providing 1.67 million hours of work worth over $196 million in value. Taproot is located in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and Los Angeles and offers pro bono services in the United States, United Kingdom, the European Union, India, and Singapore. Taproot also leads a network of global pro bono providers from over 50 countries around the world.

Taproot’s service grants support nonprofits through programs for the arts, pre-K and K-12 education, the environment, health and social services programs. Overall, the Taproot Foundation assists nonprofits with marketing, human resources, technology, strategy and finance issues.

Grants for Nonprofit Capacity Building

The Taproot Foundation is not a traditional grantmaker in that it does not provide direct support; instead it plays “matchmaker” between nonprofits and business professionals or other volunteers who provide pro bono support in areas like marketing, HR, strategy, finance, and technology.

The foundation also invites nonprofits to reach out if their needs do not fall under one of these areas. Its programs also include social media strategy, employee handbook development, business plan creation, financial analysis, and technology assessments.

  • Taproot’s Service Grants refer to pro-bono consulting engagement projects that provide nonprofits with at least $45,000 worth of critical marketing, information technology, strategy management, leadership development, and strategic human resources consulting, delivered by a team of five to six business professionals who donate their time and expertise to nonprofit organizations in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Washington, D.C.

    • To qualify for a grant, applicants must be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization or a public school and work within one of the foundation's program areas (the arts, education, the environment, health, and social services).

    • To be eligible for a grant, organizations must have at least 3 full-time employees and an annual budget of at least $350,000.

  • The Foundation’s Taproot Plus service is an online portal that “connects nonprofits and skilled volunteers to build stronger organizations.” Nonprofits post a project and describe their specific needs. Then, Taproot facilitates an introduction with volunteers who possess the professional skills and expertise needed to move the project forward.

  • Taproot’s Speed Consulting events are high-octane, in-person pro bono events that pair nonprofits with local experts so that they may locate answers, find solutions, and brainstorm next steps across a variety of business areas. These events are regularly offered in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and in other cities across the United States as funding permits.

  • Taproot's Pro Bono Marathons offer nonprofits the opportunity to team up with experts in order to solve their most pressing organizational challenge in the areas of marketing, HR, finance, strategy, or tech. This high-impact event is offered in-person regularly in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and other cities across the United States as funding permits. Check out the Foundation’s annual Pro Bono Week and U.S. Pro Bono Summit.

  • Read the Foundation’s Case Studies of individuals and groups that have either given or received pro bono support through Taproot’s services.

Important Grant Details:

Since 2001, Taproots’s community has served over 19,000 social change organizations and provided almost 2 million hours of service worth over $300 million. This is not the organization for nonprofits looking for financial support, funding for programs, or direct grants. However, for nonprofits looking for capacity building or assistance in the areas of marketing, HR, strategy, finance, or technology, Taproot can be a huge help.

  • The foundation has offices in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago; however, its national headquarters are in San Francisco.

  • The geographic area it serves includes United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Singapore, and India.

  • Taproot’s board meets at various times in: March, June, September and Decemeber.

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