Princes Of The City

By Michele Orecklin

In the grim, uncertain weeks following Sept. 11, some New Yorkers wondered when they would ever have cause to party again. At the Robin Hood Foundation, executive director David Saltzman and his board organized both the party and the cause. The Oct. 20 Concert for New York City brought together an A list of performers that ran from Paul McCartney and Mick Jagger to Melissa Etheridge. In ticket sales alone, the televised concert generated $14 million; pledges from viewers are still being calculated.

Few other philanthropic groups could have organized such an event so fast with confidence that the proceeds would get where they needed to go. But Robin Hood--started in 1988 by Saltzman and a handful of thirtysomething Wall Streeters led by commodities trader Paul Tudor Jones--has always been as determined as the city it serves. This organization attacks the social crises that have haunted urban communities for generations: teen pregnancy, illiteracy, poor job training. Robin Hood doesn't just pay, it plays, becoming intricately involved in the management of beneficiary groups. Its staff offers expertise and procures pro bono access to the services of top New York firms like management consultants McKinsey & Co. and accountants Deloitte & Touche. The foundation's board members foot administrative costs, so all donations go directly to charity. In 13 years, Robin Hood has invested over $90 million in more than 100 grass-roots organizations.

Robin Hood uses the same approach that made its founders rich. Target charities must meet their goals effectively, cost-efficiently and repeatedly or risk losing funding. Says Saltzman, 39, the lone public-policy wonk in the original bunch (he formerly worked in New York's public schools): "We were pioneers in applying due diligence and measuring outcomes." Now they have to keep the trail open for others to follow.

--By Michele Orecklin