The W.K. Kellogg Foundation reconnects with its mission.
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Transforming WKKF’s reinvigorated mission into mandates for smaller groups in the organization was a daunting task. In particular, WKKF’s operational teams were in for profound change, from their grant-awarding process to their support strategies.
Jump helped the Kellogg Foundation to refocus its mission within its home state of Michigan, pointing to great need and great opportunity for impact.
OVER A SERIES OF ENGAGEMENTS, Jump has helped the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to define its strategy, increase its capacity for innovation, and align on shared priorities across groups. This has allowed the Kellogg Foundation team to better identify and develop new growth opportunities.
Increasing innovation capacity to meet the challenges of a changing society
Founded in 1930 to help under-privileged children in Southwest Michigan, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation has grown into one of the world’s largest and most-respected non-profit organizations. Growth has also made it hard to tell which strategic objectives the foundation should prioritize. Even a 2007 re-organization putting WKKF’s focus on helping vulnerable families didn’t make it clear how that mission should show up in the daily work. At the same time, the foundation wanted to improve its own capacity to innovate. WKKF didn’t want to just keep pace with change; it wanted to fundamentally change the role that foundations can play in our society.
Multiple initiatives to begin a transformation process
WKKF partnered with Jump to help build the capacity of a newly formed cross functional innovation team. Transforming WKKF’s reinvigorated mission into mandates for smaller groups in the organization was a daunting task. In particular, WKKF’s operational teams were in for profound change, from their grant-awarding process to their support strategies. Through a series of work sessions and training workshops, Jump created tools to help those teams prioritize their activities, embrace uncertainty, navigate risks, and streamline their own processes.
Maximizing impact on the foundation’s home state and setting the stage for future growth
Throughout its history, WKKF has invested more than $750 million in its home state of Michigan. Following the foundation’s reorganization, Jump worked with the Michigan team to create an over-riding framework that could help it to make more strategic investments at home. Across multiple initiatives, Jump has helped WKKF to translate its strategic vision into actionable work streams on all levels, increase its capacity for innovation, and focus on the new opportunities that the foundation is uniquely equipped to develop.
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