News and Insights

Third Sector is pleased to present, in partnership with GuideStar and America Forward, the new survey, “Towards a Performance-Driven Social Sector: A Service Provider Perspective on Trends in Government Contracting.”

Across the country, communities are changing the way they serve people in need. Local and state governments are taking a new look at how they contract for social services delivered to our most valuable citizens. Closer examination of current contracting practices may ultimately outline a path to healthier, safer, and more just communities, but only if all stakeholders have a voice.

The trend

In celebration of their 25th Anniversary, Living Cities recognized 25 Disruptive Leaders who are working to improve economic outcomes for low-income people in America’s cities. We are proud to share that Third Sector president Caroline Whistler was included on this remarkable list. Caroline was recognized for her leadership and work at Third Sector to bring [...]

By Nadia Ahmed

On August 28th, Third Sector was invited to the 7th annual Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) Executive Leadership Institute in Austin, TX. For the first time, the two-day conference, in addition to its sessions on the latest in the green and healthy housing movement, offered a parallel set of sessions on Pay for Success (PFS). This brought together government, foundations, providers, evaluators, and organizations with PFS expertise to discuss how such an innovative contracting model can work in the lens of healthcare.

Third Sector participated in a panel

Across the country, a growing number of governments are contracting for human services on a performance basis. Many are implementing innovative cross-sector models like Pay for Success (PFS), with many more considering the model for services in their own communities. This increased appetite for Pay for Success (PFS) partnerships has redirected taxpayer dollars toward interventions that provide data-driven solutions for social impact.

Because PFS is well suited to complex social challenges, there are situations where it is unrealistic to expect a single service provider or intervention to address the multifaceted

On June 30th, the Department of Labor (DOL) released the Final Rule1 on the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). As the five workforce boards of Third Sector’s second cohort of Social Innovation Fund sub-grantees are working to leverage the Pay-for-Performance (P4P) provisions of WIOA to better serve youth, this guidance directly informs our efforts. It is also important to note that WIOA requires local areas to shift their focus, spending 75 percent of youth funding on out-of-school youth. The DOL’s Final Rule on WIOA provides the necessary information to

This month, New Profit, Inc. launched the #AdvanceEquity campaign. The creative campaign seeks to expand equity in America by sparking dialogue and action. It asks a critical question – "how do we change as a nation to reduce inequity?" Third Sector offered one answer to this question by highlighting its second cohort of Social Innovation [...]