Transforming Candid to achieve our bold vision 

Candid recently published an update to our 2030 vision that reflects how we will leverage our unique position to help nonprofits and philanthropists navigate rapid change and serve their communities effectively. Achieving this vision requires more than strategy—it demands we fundamentally transform how we operate.

Candid has evolved significantly over the past six years because the landscape demanded it. The social sector is moving faster than ever, driven by AI advancements and shifting needs. This past year alone brought shrinking federal support, political headwinds, rising demand for services, and declining public trust—conditions that make timely, credible data not just helpful but critical.

We see this as a defining moment. Rather than simply react to change, we’re positioning ourselves—and the sector—to anticipate and prepare for it. Here are some of the ways we’re evolving to meet the pace and complexity of today’s challenges.

Delivering better solutions, faster

We have the benefit of decades of combined experience as Candid, GuideStar, and Foundation Center, but that history comes with baggage. Historically, we’ve approached product development as a long, linear process—with one big launch years in the making. We also involved users too late in the process to fully incorporate their invaluable perspectives and feedback. That worked when the pace of change was slower, but today, it creates a perception of Candid as slow to innovate and respond to emerging needs and opportunities.

I often encourage nonprofits to fall in love with the problem, not the solution. Candid is taking this to heart, shifting to a modern, user-centered approach where teams organize around problems—with clear outcomes in mind. This approach pushes us to work iteratively and think about risk and failure in a new way—cultural traits that are essential to our future success. It will also enable us to develop and release better solutions faster.

Putting AI to work for the sector

There is an undeniable increase in demand for more efficient tools that save time. Combined with increasing for-profit competition, it’s clear we need to up our game—especially if we want to keep nonprofit data in nonprofit hands. And competition is a good thing; it pushes us to be better.

We consider it our responsibility to leverage the most advanced technology to benefit the sector. And right now, that’s AI. Rather than ask nonprofits to figure out AI on their own, we’re integrating it into our products, with features like an AI-powered letter of intent writer and personalized dashboards to save fundraisers significant time. Candid also partnered with Anthropic on Claude for Nonprofits, meeting people wherever they look for nonprofit data—even if it’s outside of Candid. We’ll continue exploring AI’s potential for predictive analytics, automated grant assistance, and real-time funding alerts. To help us get there faster, our staff uses AI daily—to develop software, conduct data analysis, design prototypes, and enhance our content—always with human oversight to ensure responsible use.

Responding rapidly to a changing funding environment

To help nonprofits and funders navigate a fast-changing policy and funding environment, we’ve been leveraging our deep understanding of the best data available about the sector. Our research team is able to proactively offer insights and context to make sense of what is happening and potential implications. When the sector faced government funding cuts and threats to SNAP benefits, we quickly provided impact data through public dashboards, advocacy partners, and expert insights on our website. We see an opportunity to ensure decisions are based on facts by using Candid’s data to highlight nonprofits’ essential contributions to civic life.

To meet the needs of nonprofits facing federal funding cuts, especially small organizations, we also offered complimentary access to Foundation Directory, held intensive training to help those reliant on government grants pivot to other funding sources, and convened issue area-specific peer learning groups. We continue to provide Candid’s resources at over 2,000 partner locations across the country, defending the sector with data, knowledge, and analysis.

Beyond providing data, this moment calls for reevaluating long-held assumptions and systems level change. What if we—as a sector—used it to tackle long-standing pain points like burdensome grant application and reporting processes and restrictive funding practices? What efficiencies could we achieve through greater collaboration and consolidation?

The world, technology, and our sector’s needs will keep evolving—faster than ever. We’re building the team and capabilities to ensure nonprofits have the quality data they need, when and how they need it. Together, we’re entering a new era where Candid and the sector we serve can move from aspiration to action.