Next In Nonprofits

Kris Kewitsch is the executive director of the Charities Review Council, whose mission is "building donor and nonprofit relationships for strong, vibrant, and just communities." Their work helping nonprofits improve transparency and learn brought Kris to the podcast in 2019 to talk about the original news on the merger of the Foundation Center and Guidestar to create Candid. Candid announced last week they had received a gift of $15 million in general operating support from Mackenzie Scott. Kris joins host Steve Boland to talk about a gift of this magnitude to a nonprofit sector support organization, rather than a direct service charity, and the impact such a gift may make. They talk about the progress of Candid since the merger was announced, the expense of technology platforms to help inform donors and the sector, and much more!

This episode is a first for Next in Nonprofits: A podcast cross-over episode with A Legacy of Generosity podcast! Kristi Ackley and Carl Newbanks are two of the hosts of that program, "dedicated to provide professional development content for every fundraiser with special attention to planned and legacy giving." Kristi and Carl join host Steve Boland to talk about the questions and challenges approaching and supporting and large donors in making choices around big gifts to charities. One option would be to create or give to an endowment - earning money for future needs. Another would be to invest in a "big swing" - spending a much larger amount of money all at once to create a larger-scale impact that in turn ripples over time. Our hosts discuss the conversation with those donors, the focus of Boards in how to pursue larger-scale gifts, community-centric giving models and much more. 

Allie Meador is the Chief Revenue Officer of RightGift, whose "mission is to empower nonprofits and their donors to expand their social impact through conscious utilization of purchases and in-kind donations." Allie joins host Steve Boland to talk about how RightGift supports charities with tools such as wish-list purchasing from donors, receipts for those donors, bulk purchases, delayed shipping and storage for bulk purchases, logistics support and more.

Holly Rustick is "founder of Grant Writing & Funding, and ... create(s) effective systems so grant writers ensure that nonprofits grow capacity, increase funding and advance mission." Holly is the author of The Beginner's Guide to Grant Writing and the host of the podcast Grant Writing and Funding. Holly joins host Steve Boland to talk about the evolving nature of outsourced support for nonprofit organizations, especially in non-core areas of specialization like fund development and communications. The lessons of the COVID workplace have opened more doors to charities using a remote workforce and to considering leveraging expertise from outsourced partners. Holly talks about educating nonprofit partners on how outsourcing works, the importance of clarity in the work agreement, communicating value to nonprofits from their expert partners, and much more. Holly is a planning partner in the August 2022 Nonprofit Consulting Conference, providing additional information and sessions about successfully worki

Houda Elyazgi is the Chief Client Officer at Saxum, "an integrated digital agency obsessed for good." Houda is committed to making the world better through her work in diversity, equality, education and public policy. Houda joins host Steve Boland talk about social permitting, a practice she uses at Saxum to help charities think about engaging with audiences to support nonprofit goals. The focus on permission, multiple entry points, and user feedback builds a more effective strategy over time. One permission to seek is for donations, another may be for access to a supporter's network to expand support for the work. Houda goes over some case studies to illustrate how Saxum works in this space.

Gauri Manglik is the CEO and co-founder of Instrumentl, which "brings grant discovery, research, and tracking to one place. With Instrumentl, development staff are more effective and efficient at finding the right grants for their nonprofits." Gauri joins host Steve Boland to talk about the origins of the tool, and what makes Instrumental different from other tools for grants in the nonprofit sector. Gauri talks about the evolution of their discovery algorithm, features like understanding how much funders invest in new applicants, updating government funding opportunities and so much more.

Emily Heck is owner and marketing consultant at Evergreen Marketing Solutions, which "work(s) with clients to elevate their brands and grow the engagement of their audiences. We blend data driven decisions with our years of experience to build strategies that evolve as audiences and markets change." Emily joins host Steve Boland to talk about how users join email lists, creating and using a welcoming series in automation using tools like Mailchimp, collecting "point of pride" information from supporters when they sign up, and asking for more personalized connection over time toward better engagement. Emily and Steve briefly mention the value of tools like postal mail and print, and listeners can hear more about that topic on this past episode.

Daniel Moss and Michelle Garrison are the Co-Founders & Virtual Event Strategists at We & Goliath, which "provides a beautifully branded end-to-end solution that will engage your attendees, improve their collaboration and performance, and keep them coming back for more." Daniel and Michelle join host Steve Boland to talk about the changing nature of events in 2022 and beyond, especially as it relates to changes in virtual events and hybrid events with a virtual component. We & Goliath talk more about engagement tools and strategies, integrating vendors and sponsors, tools to support this work and much more. They recommend a free e-book on tools to help nonprofits expand their reach for events and communications.

Dr. Michelle Shumate is a professor at Northwestern's School of Communication, where she "investigates the dynamics of interorganizational networks designed to impact large social issues." She is co-author of the new book, Networks for Social Impact. Dr. Shumate and her co-author Dr. Cooper depict when and how to use networks for social impact to improve issues related to educational outcomes, mental health and wellness, gender-based violence, climate change, senior and veteran care, and more, by providing a new framework for organizations to more seamlessly work together. She talks to host Steve Boland about the axioms used in framing the book, the case studies which illustrate these issues, understanding the necessity of some partners needing to pause in the work, and much more.

  Lauren Kaufman is the President of the Young Women's Alliance, and Bijal Patel is the Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Belonging of the Young Women's Alliance. The Alliance is "building a community that supports, empowers, and connects women."   Lauren and Bijal join host Steve Boland to talk about the changes community building face since the COVID-19 pandemic impacted in-person events as a primary strategy. They talk about how their work has grown during this time, how they think about support for members online and in-person, and how adapting to new tools and tactics may impact the future direction of mission-based organizations.  

Patrice Davis is the Founder and Managing Principal of Grants Works, which "helps organizations, businesses, and municipalities identify, acquire, manage, and comply with government and foundation grants." Patrice joins host Steve Boland to talk about government funding for nonprofit work, including federal grants, federally funded work which may be re-granted from state, local, tribal or territorial governments, and more. Patrice shares specific information about new resources from the American Rescue Plan Act which could really change the game for many charities in working with government sources, both in terms of amount of dollars and how they are accessed. Charities should evaluate these options to scale their impact in communities, but also be planning how to maintain that impact after this influx has been awarded.

Professor Russel James has been on the Next in Nonprofits podcast before, talking about resources for donors after the changes in itemization in 2018. Russell joins the conversation again to talk about his new book series, Fundraising Myth and Science. The books are available in audio for free on YouTube, in .pdf by connecting to Russell on LinkedIn, or in paper if desired via Amazon. The books are a series in four parts: The Storytelling Fundraiser, The Epic Fundraiser, The Primal Fundraiser, and The Socratic Fundraiser. Russell talks about research in each of these categories, and how the science of that research provides useful insights for people working in fundraising. Russell shares his insights on how different research can be considered in these different contexts, and how professionals in the field can connect in these ideas.

Rob Shavell is the CEO and Co-Founder of Abine and DeleteMe, "a hands-free subscription service that will remove your personal information that’s being sold online." Rob joins the podcast to talk about the risks of general data availability for nonprofit organizations. Groups will need and want to publish some information online about their key officers and directors for the community, but can also take measures to ensure a more secure experience and reduce possible downsides to being online. Rob also discusses how charities can honor their trusted relationships with donors by understanding how that information can best remain private when that is import to donors.

Jon Pratt recently retired as Executive Director of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits. Jon was the founding director, working in that role since 1987. The world of collective action by and for nonprofits has evolved in many ways since that time. It has also kept some very solid foundational elements through those decades. Host Steve Boland talks to Jon about this history of building one of the largest state nonprofit associations, and what we can learn about the future from that work. Some things have stayed the same - though the current web-based job-board started out as a literal bulletin board at first. Other issues of interest to the nonprofit economy continue to change and may point to new challenges in the coming years.   More information at NextInNonprofits.com/podcast.

Veronica Garcia is Lead Organizer for Wealth Reclamation Academy of Practitioners, "a community of practice organized by and for Resource Mobilizers. As Resource Mobilizers, we are the individuals in our communities who specialize in cultivating relationship networks and stewarding the flow of assets (social and material) back into social justice movement and community-building." Veronica joins host Steve Boland to talk about the evolution of the mission, the idea of reclamation and rehabilitation in mobilizing resources for nonprofit work, talking to partners in philanthropy about this framework (including asking about support for the ACE Act in Congress) and much more. Veronica encourages fund development people to learn more about cohort support, open office hours for check-ins, and more via their website.

Diane Lebson is the CEO and Co-Founder of Evergreen Philanthropic Solutions and the author of the new book, For a Good Cause. Diane joins host Steve Boland to talk about all the ways people can support a cause, from donations to volunteering to creating a new charity. Diane talks about this work from different perspectives, including how women approach philanthropy differently, how a gendered-lens of power impacts those decisions, and how one considers impact when making decisions. More information available at Next in Nonprofits.

Sona Khosla is the Chief Impact Officer of Benevity, which "is trusted by the world’s most purpose-driven brands to engage their people and communities in doing good." Benevity provides workplace giving and engagement tools, resources to nonprofits, and more. The State of Corporate Purpose report is the first such report issued by Benevity, and highlights trends observed in philanthropy and volunteerism via 650 participating Benevity partners. Some findings are less surprising (volunteer hours were down in the pandemic where many volunteers used to give time in person), but other findings show unexpected and dramatic shifts, including the focus in 2020 on social and racial justice causes.

Dominique Calixte is the Associate Director of Annual Giving and Special Events for YW Boston. She spends a lot of time considering the mix of support options to pay for mission work in the world, and has been a previous guest on the Next in Nonprofits podcast. Check out Fundraising While Black to learn more! Dominique joins host Steve Boland to talk about the pluses and minuses of outside organizations partnering with nonprofits for what Dominique calls "microdonations." A prime example (pun intended) is the Amazon Smile program, which donates .5% of eligible purchases to a charity if the microdonor uses the correct web address. Dominique talks about other examples, such as rounding up programs at local stores, specific deals with creators rather than retailers, and more. An important theme in her thinking is connecting to donors more than small dollars raised. Listen now by clicking the player or subscribe to the podcast on your phone for automatic updates. Get more details on how to subscribe on

Tim Kachuriak is the CEO and Founder of NextAfter, which "combines the perpetual learning of a fundraising research lab, the practical application of a digital-first agency, and the rigorous instruction of a training institute." Tim joins host Steve Boland to talk about how "people give to people" and the tools and tactics nonprofits can use to maximize the personal connection to donors while using some levels of automation to keep the process fast and affordable. Tim talks about the experiments run by NextAfter, what they have learned from this data, and how they help implement what they've learned and tested. A little personalization and the right tools can go a long way in earning trust with donors. Download the Fundraiser's Creed Tim mentions in the episode.

Nneka Allen is the principal and founder of The Empathy Agency, which "offer(s) a better understanding of dominant cultures' impact on organizational culture because we are all responsible for the environments we create." Chris Conroy is a partner at The Wellspring Group, "a complete Human Resources and training consultancy helping healthcare providers, educational institutions, and social impact/nonprofit organizations build more inclusive, higher performing teams." Nneka and Chris join host Steve Boland to talk about their joint work in equity in the nonprofit sector, including their curriculum, Racial Equity Journey. They talk about defining equity in work (and talk about diversity and inclusion as terms), addressing cultures of whiteness in charities, engaging people for change and much more. Acknowledging the problems aloud can be a first step, but nonprofits often don't move forward in breaking down systemic barriers which they may not even understand without assistance.