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What distinguishes Isaacs/Jellinek from other consulting firms is its personnel and its philosophy. The key personnel of Isaacs/Jellinek consists of highly qualified individuals with extensive experience in the foundation world - not merely the world of business or management consulting. They have first-hand knowledge of the issues about which they are consulting.
The partners of Isaacs/Jellinek believe that the bottom line is as important to philanthropy as it is to business. However, the two bottom lines are quite different. While business exists to earn a monetary return on investment, the return on a foundation's investment is measured by contributions to the public good. Business often looks for short-term gains (for example, quarterly earnings); foundations, in contrast, must look to the long-term. The basic tools of business are products (which can be ideas or services); the basic tools of foundations are grants and the communication of information accumulated by their grantees. Thus, while business offers useful models for foundations-particularly in matters of managerial efficiency-the most useful ones come from foundations themselves and from the work of their grantees.
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