Cohort of Selected Grantees to Receive One Year of Training and Peer Support on the UpMetrics Platform, Expanding their Capacity to Better Collect and Analyze Data and Communicate Impact to Stakeholders

UpMetrics, the analytics company advancing the way impact organizations collect and integrate data into their stories, today announced that it has expanded its partnership with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation (“the Blue Cross Foundation”) to offer a cohort of Foundation grantees with access to technology and support to help them collect, report, and analyze data related to their impact.

The cohort of 10 grantees applied and were selected based on need and commitment to expanding their data capabilities. These Blue Cross Foundation grantees are now embarking on a yearlong professional development and peer learning experience where they will master the fundamentals and best practices for data collection, analysis, and reporting; apply these approaches to their own organizations using the UpMetrics platform; and share progress and challenges with their peers to build a learning community. The program includes monthly classes, office hours, and quarterly 1:1 meetings with UpMetrics.

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“We are pleased to be tapping into supports like UpMetrics to foster more open communication, collaboration, and inspiration for shared learnings.”

“UpMetrics has proven to be the best partner for impact data capacity-building among our grantees because of their ability to provide the technology and technical support for the grant partners in a way that honors their work and allows for them to lead on the reporting, goals and progress conversation,” said Chloe Wiley, Initiative Manager at the Blue Cross Foundation. “We are pleased to be tapping into supports like UpMetrics to foster more open communication, collaboration, and inspiration for shared learnings.”

Within the philanthropic space, the UpMetrics cohort model—where funders empower their grant partners through access to data analytics—has emerged as a new way to support grantees in a crucial but overlooked area. Only 30% of nonprofit leaders reported receiving capacity building support in their most recent fiscal year. However, those that did found the support very or extremely helpful in strengthening their organizations.

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“The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation is a treasured partner for us at UpMetrics, precisely because of the Foundation’s longstanding commitment to tracking impact and its focus on capacity-building for grantees,” said Stephen Minix, Managing Director at UpMetrics. “The power dynamic between grant-makers and grant-seekers has long favored the grant-maker. The Blue Cross Foundation and UpMetrics are in complete alignment that innovative approaches to data, technology, and impact reporting can help to balance the scales.”

The Blue Cross Foundation first partnered with UpMetrics in 2020, onboarding a cohort of five grantees onto the UpMetrics platform to offer capacity-building supports that ease the burden of reporting to grantmakers. The success of that initial cohort has led the Blue Cross Foundation to double its cohort size; beginning in November 2021, the Foundation began onboarding an additional 10 grantees to UpMetrics, including:

• The 18th Ward Project
• Line 4 Line
• Three O’clock Project
• Crossroads NOLA
• College Beyond
• Providence Road
• New Orleans Women & Children’s Shelter
• Terrebone Churches United Food Bank
• Sulphur Christian Community Coalition
• United Way of Acadiana