Nonprofit Leadership Podcast – Détails, épisodes et analyse

Now more than ever, it’s essential that nonprofit leaders build a strong, adaptable team. But how do you find, keep, and mold top talent that aligns with your organization’s mission? Today’s guest, William Vanderbloemen, shares key strategies for building, running, and maintaining a great team that is dedicated to your organization’s values and mission. 

Rob’s guest, William Vanderbloemen, is the Founder and CEO of Vanderbloemen. His company specializes in helping churches, schools, and nonprofits find leaders who fit their mission and culture. Vanderbloemen’s mission is to help teams not just fill a position, but build leadership that will last for the long haul. 

William explains the importance of creating a strong organizational culture and emphasizes that this culture should be clear and intentional from the start. He believes that organizations need to adapt to changing environments while staying true to their core values. William shares that hiring the right people is not just about filling a role, but finding individuals who are aligned with the mission of the organization. He adds that it’s important for leaders to clearly explain to potential staff members, what makes their organization unique. William touches on the critical role of clear communication in leadership. If leaders seek honest feedback from their staff, then they must develop a culture of giving and asking for feedback regularly. Finally, he believes that resilience and flexibility are key traits for leaders to develop in order to navigate the challenges of today’s world. 

Guest Links:

Connect with William on LinkedIn 

Vanderbloemen.com  

Be The Unicorn book

Culture Tool 

This Episode is sponsored by:

Links to Resources:

Want to work with a leadership and life coach, check out Rob’s website https://robharter.com/

If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

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Summary

William Vanderbloemen discusses the importance of recruitment and retention in the nonprofit sector. He shares his experience starting Vanderbloemen, a cause-based search firm, and emphasizes the need for nonprofits to prioritize soft skills when recruiting new staff. He also highlights the significance of clearly articulating the organization’s mission and values to attract the right talent. Additionally, Vanderbloemen emphasizes the role of a healthy organizational culture in recruitment and retention, and suggests using tools like theculturtool.com to assess and improve culture. In this conversation, Dr. Rob Harter and William Vanderbloemen discuss the importance of organizational culture and employee satisfaction in the nonprofit sector. They explore the eight cultural values that shape behavior within an organization and how to assess and improve culture. They also discuss the impact of culture on employee retention and the need for organizations to adapt to the changing expectations of millennials and Gen Z. The conversation highlights the value of feedback and collaboration in creating a positive culture, as well as the importance of balancing professional development with organizational efficiency.

Takeaways

Recruiting the right people at the right time is crucial for staff retention in nonprofits.

Soft skills, or human-to-human skills, are essential for success in the nonprofit sector.

Nonprofits should clearly articulate their mission and values to attract the right talent.

A healthy organizational culture is key to recruitment and retention in nonprofits. Assessing and improving organizational culture is crucial for nonprofit organizations to create a healthy and effective work environment.

Understanding the cultural values that shape behavior within an organization can help identify areas for improvement.

Employee satisfaction and well-being are key factors in retaining staff, especially in a generation that values career mobility.

Involving staff in the decision-making process and addressing their feedback can lead to a more engaged and committed workforce.

Balancing professional development with organizational efficiency requires identifying the right timing and opportunities for growth.

Quotes

“Businesses may or may not have a value that drives them. Why do they have a better solution for staffing than the people who are living for a cause?”

“Soft skills, H2H skills, are the ball game in nonprofit.”

“The ones that succeed are the ones that say, ‘Here’s the one thing we do that very few people do.'”

“We’re all the same age or skin color or gender, but we are all the same in our behavior around our eight cultural values.”

“What is the biggest rock that we’re getting right of these eight areas? What are we just really doing well?”

“If you focus so much on your culture that you could get six or seven years instead of four or five, because the cost to replace a staff person, it takes time, it takes energy, you lose momentum, it takes money.”

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Background

03:01 Recruitment and Retention in the Nonprofit Sector

06:16 The Importance of Soft Skills in Nonprofits

11:56 Articulating Mission and Values to Attract Talent

15:22 The Role of Organizational Culture in Recruitment and Retention

17:33 Assessing and Improving Culture

19:36 The Impact of Culture on Employee Retention

22:40 Addressing Employee Satisfaction

27:12 Adapting to the Expectations of Millennials and Gen Z

29:45 Creating a Feedback-Driven Culture

31:45 Balancing Workload and Professional Development

How can nonprofits effectively support underserved students in achieving higher education? How do you encourage both the student and their family members to believe in their potential to achieve more? Today’s guest, Dr. Johanna Moya Fabregas, explains how her nonprofit is empowering the next generation through education and emotional support. 

Rob’s guest, Dr. Johanna Moya Fabregas, is the Executive Director of Con Mi MADRE, a nonprofit dedicated to empowering Latina girls and their loved ones through education and emotional support. The organization’s mission is to ensure these young women achieve higher education and are well-prepared for the workforce, supported by their families throughout the process. 

Johanna explains how her background in higher education and her passion for impacting youth, led her to transition into nonprofit leadership. She shares how Con Mi MADRE’s dual-generation approach supports both the students and their loved ones, fostering a deep connection that drives academic and personal success. Johanna believes in the importance of addressing both the social-emotional and academic needs of students, starting from middle school through college. She also describes how the program includes workshops, college visits, and a leadership series that helps students and parents alike. Johanna emphasizes the significance of building long-term relationships with the families they serve, which is key to achieving an impressive college persistence rate. She also highlights the organization’s commitment to cultural affirmation, ensuring that students can embrace their full identity as they pursue their professional goals. Finally, Johanna discusses the impact of Con Mi MADRE’s annual gala awards event, which celebrates community leaders and raises funds for the organization. 

Mentioned:
Connect with Johanna on LinkedIn

Con MI MADRE website 

This Episode is sponsored by:

Links to Resources:

Want to work with a leadership and life coach, check out Rob’s website https://robharter.com/

If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

For more episodes and to subscribe to our newsletter, check out https://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/ 

Join the discussion over on Rob’s LinkedIn page

Summary:

Dr. Johanna Moya Fábregas, the executive director of Con Mi Madre, shares her journey from a career in education to leading a nonprofit organization. Con Mi Madre is a dual-generation program that supports girls in sixth through twelfth grade and their mothers or a loving adult in their family. The program focuses on social-emotional support and academic preparation to help students achieve a post-secondary degree and be prepared for the workforce. They provide a comprehensive curriculum, parent workshops, a networking group, and a leadership series. Con Mi Madre also collaborates with local school districts to bridge the gap between students and their families, providing ongoing support and resources. The organization has achieved a 72% college persistence rate among its high school graduates, thanks to their long-term relationship building and comprehensive support. Con Mi Madre’s approach to multicultural education and empowerment impacts the community they serve by affirming students’ cultural identities and celebrating their achievements. They also host an annual event, the Corazon Awards, to honor community members and raise funds for scholarships. To learn more about Con Mi Madre, visit their website or follow them on social media.

Takeaways

Con Mi Madre is a dual-generation program that supports girls in sixth through twelfth grade and their mothers or a loving adult in their family.

The program focuses on social-emotional support and academic preparation to help students achieve a post-secondary degree and be prepared for the workforce.

Con Mi Madre collaborates with local school districts to bridge the gap between students and their families, providing ongoing support and resources.

The organization has achieved a 72% college persistence rate among its high school graduates, thanks to their long-term relationship building and comprehensive support.

Con Mi Madre’s approach to multicultural education and empowerment impacts the community by affirming students’ cultural identities and celebrating their achievements.

The annual Corazon Awards event honors community members and raises funds for scholarships.

The program focuses on social-emotional support and academic preparation to help students achieve a post-secondary degree and be prepared for the workforce.

Con Mi Madre collaborates with local school districts to bridge the gap between students and their families, providing ongoing support and resources.

The organization has achieved a 72% college persistence rate among its high school graduates, thanks to their long-term relationship building and comprehensive support.

Con Mi Madre’s approach to multicultural education and empowerment impacts the community by affirming students’ cultural identities and celebrating their achievements.

Sound Bites

“I wish I had an organization like the one we have when I was a first-gen college student, as an immigrant, as someone who moved to this country and had to learn the language and navigate all of that.”
 
“We support supporting the parents, for instance, through there is an organization called EGBI. It’s like a small business incubator. So you’re supporting the parents and that communicates to the student from an early age that you care not just about a number or an achievement on paper, you care about the well-being of their whole family.”
 
“It’s building a long-term relationship and that is not just between the student and us, but they’re part of a larger community, and that organization is like a big family.”

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Transition to Nonprofit Leadership

02:08 Overview of Con Mi Madre’s Program and Approach

06:57 Collaboration with School Districts

09:47 Achieving a 72% College Persistence Rate

14:37 Influence of Public Education Background on Nonprofit Leadership

17:21 Multicultural Education and Empowerment

20:47 The Corazon Awards and Community Impact

23:27 How to Learn More About Con Mi Madre

How can AI help your nonprofit? Today’s guests are going to continue a conversation I had a few months back with Justin Spelhaug of Microsoft. The topic is AI, and more specifically the good use of AI to benefit your nonprofit. So how can AI be used for good to help you and your organization? Rob’s guests are going to talk about just a few of the ways they are seeking to do just that. On the show are Anne Nies and Sam Caplan from Submittable, which is a software company that is helping thousands of organizations worldwide launch, manage and measure social impact programs. Sam is the Vice President of Social Impact at Submittable and Anne is the Director of Machine Learning/AI/Data Science at Submittable.

Submittable is a software company that helps nonprofit organizations launch, manage, and measure their social impact programs. They offer a grants management system and CSR and employee engagement software. Submittable is a proponent of responsible AI technology for grant management and helps organizations adopt AI intentionally. They prioritize privacy by not letting data go into models for training and building on platforms with strong privacy and security measures. They also give users the option to opt out of using AI. Submittable balances high tech with high touch by conducting extensive user research and incorporating feedback from customers and applicants. They aim to ensure that people remain at the center of the grant-making process. The biggest benefit of implementing AI tools for nonprofits is improved efficiency and the ability to focus on more impactful work. Submittable offers examples of AI being used for good, such as Goodwill Industries using AI to generate descriptions and prices for clothing items, saving time and generating revenue. They also highlight the use of AI for translation, allowing nonprofits to reach a broader audience. Submittable mitigates potential bias by involving experts in the development process, incorporating feedback mechanisms, and continuously working to address biases. They are excited about AI’s potential to eliminate administrative work and free up time for more meaningful tasks. They also see AI as a tool to aggregate and analyze data to better understand the impact of nonprofit organizations collectively. To learn more about Submittable, visit their website or connect with the team on LinkedIn.

Takeaways:

-Submittable helps nonprofit organizations launch, manage, and measure their social impact programs through their grants management and CSR software.

-Anne and Sam talk about how Submittable prioritizes privacy by not using data for training models and building on platforms with strong privacy measures.

-Submittable seeks to strike a balance between being high tech and high touch by conducting user research and incorporating feedback from customers and applicants.

-Sam and Anne talk about various AI tools that can improve efficiency and free up time for nonprofit leaders to invest in more impactful work.

-Sam and Anne share how AI is currently being used for good include generating descriptions and prices for clothing items among other examples.

-Submittable seeks to mitigate potential bias by involving experts, incorporating intentional feedback, and continuously addressing biases.

Mentioned:

Submittable’s website

Connect with Sam Caplan on LinkedIn

Connect with on Ann Nies LinkedIn

This Episode is sponsored by:

Links to Resources:
Want to work with a leadership and life coach, check out Rob’s website https://robharter.com/

If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

For more episodes and to subscribe to our newsletter, check out https://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/ 

Join the discussion over on Rob’s LinkedIn page

2020 skyrocketed the move to online giving for all donors who give to nonprofits. Organizations who already had a clear and robust process for donors to give online really  benefited—those who didn’t, really struggled. They struggled to keep their giving on par with  previous years. Now, the question for all nonprofits of how to “future-proof” fundraising is constantly on our collective minds. So how does your organization go about doing that? Rob’s guest shares some fascinating data points gleaned from a recent report on the “state of philanthropy” within the nonprofit sector and why an easy and efficient online giving experience for your donors is absolutely essential for your organization’s future success and sustainability.

Rob’s guest today is Elizabeth Pun, Manager of Content at Classy. Classy is a B-Corp that  focuses on closing the gap between nonprofit and for-profit businesses and Elizabeth is the  primary editor of Classy’s recent report entitled: The State of Modern Philanthropy 2021. 

Elizabeth explains how empowering your event attendees to fundraise can organically increase your donations and provide more engagement. She breaks down why recurring giving, subscription services, and donation matching are excellent strategies to drive more funds and donations to your organization. Finally, Elizabeth shares valuable insight about creating a more robust online giving experience, and a powerful reminder that if you want to maximize donations to help safeguard and scale your organization, you must be able and willing to meet donors where they are. (This episode previously aired)

#FromTheArchives

Links to Resources:

Classy: Website 

Read the report here.

Collaborative Virtual Sessions Conference

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/

Despite the market being hit hard as of late, thankfully charitable giving has remained resilient. One particular tool that is fueling philanthropy is Donor Advised Funds (DAF). Today’s guest, Stephen Kump, explains the benefits of this fast growing tool and why so many donors prefer to give through a DAF.

Rob’s guest, Stephen Kump, is the co-founder and CEO of Charityvest. Charityvest is a startup that simplifies the setup and management of a Donor Advised Fund. A DAF is a third-party entity set up to manage the charitable donations of individuals, families, and/or organizations. 

Rob and Stephen discuss a recent report from Fidelity Charitable where it is reported that DAFs have helped to sustain philanthropic giving. Stephen explains that while the market cycles may go up and down, it does not affect donor giving. Stephen compares his nonprofit to old DAFs of the past and explains how Charityvest offers a frictionless experience, low fees, and low barriers. Stephen describes the yearly contributions going into Donor Advised Funds and why donors prefer giving to a DAF. Stephen and Rob also discuss why philanthropy is democratizing DAF’s for more people in the future. 

This episode was sponsored by Charityvest.

Links to Resources:

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com
To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/
If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

The traditional model of having a singular Executive Director can actually be an unsustainable way to lead an organization. This model can be overwhelming for one person and often leads to burn out. Today’s guests are Brooke McKenna and Naomi Spence who are Co-Executive Directors at the Hunger Coalition in Blaine County, Idaho (Sun Valley area). They have been working together for over a decade. They explain how a nonprofit organization can thrive with a distributive leadership model. 

Their organization seeks to build a healthy community through providing access to good food and addressing the root causes of food insecurity, in collaboration with key partners. The Hunger Coalition is not your traditional food pantry, as they seek to provide a welcoming space where people can enjoy a healthy meal, make deep connections, and share about their lives.

Brooke and Naomi explain what food insecurity is and how it is different in their region compared to a traditional urban area. They discuss why it is so difficult for unaffected people to understand the issue of hunger. They are regularly trying to communicate the real stories of people dealing with food insecurity in order to mitigate this misunderstanding.

When it comes to their Co-Executive Directors model, Naomi explains the unique ways they involve their participants in the decision making processes. Brooke explains that distributive leadership is wonderful for cross training, creating a feeling of ownership for all, and building great career paths. Naomi offers advice to other nonprofit leaders that want to adopt this type of leadership model and advises why one needs to be committed to unlearning some of what we have learned about leading nonprofits. Brooke explains the role of an effective leader and the way a leader should give feedback to those they lead. Naomi describes the benefits to the weekly staff meetings they hold and why every staff member needs to be present. Both Brooke and Naomi explain how a well rounded leader can create a well rounded organization. 

Links to Resources:

Find out more about the Hunger Coalition and their story here. https://thehungercoalition.org/about/the-story/

Here is the link they refer to with RVC https://rvcseattle.org

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com
To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/
If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

Across the United States, nonprofit organizations are all struggling to serve their communities due to the current economic climate. Many people are having issues to afford housing and food and nonprofits need to adapt to the economic changes so they can serve their growing number of clients. Today’s guests are Brianne Snow and Sharel Lund, both Executive Directors of nonprofit organizations in their respective towns. They explain the current challenges their organizations are enduring along with their advice to other nonprofits across the country.

Rob’s guests both run nonprofits that serve in resort mountain towns. Brianne Snow is the Executive Director of Family & Intercultural Resource Center (FIRC) in Summit County, Colorado. FIRC is a social services nonprofit that works to strengthen local families through education and financial resources. They offer assistance with housing, food and education. 

Sharel Lund is the Executive Director of One22 Resource Center in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. One22 is a nonprofit that was created from a merger of other organizations. They offer assistance with housing, food, language support, and financial assistance.

Brianne and Sharel share why they were attracted to the nonprofit sector and what it is like to be an Executive Director of a nonprofit organization. They both agree that it is very difficult to get funding in a mountain town, since a lot of funding goes to urban cities. Brianne and Sharel both recognize that while local governments and businesses they work with are active in giving back to the community, they believe nonprofits have certain advantages over the government and for-profit sectors. They also describe the trends they are seeing in the nonprofit sector, mainly when it comes to turnover for staffing. Brianne shares how the move to remote work has negatively impacted her community in that many city dwellers are now moving to Summit County and thus raising the cost of living for other residents. Sharel wants donors to know the benefits to donating, one of which is the opportunity to make deeper connections in the community. Brianne and Sharel share advice and encouragement for those who are considering joining the nonprofit sector. They also explain their advice for the challenges that face the nonprofit sector, in the next few years.

Links to Resources:

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com
To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/
If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

Today’s episode is Part 2 of a fascinating conversation with Dr. Jan Rivkin of the Harvard Business School. In Part 1, Doctor Rivkin dives deep into how the Young American Leaders Program (YALP) is solving important problems by bringing together local leaders from all over the United States. In today’s episode, he explains how one can develop the skills that are necessary to be a successful leader.

Dr. Jan Rivkin is the Senior Associate Dean and Chair of the MBA program at Harvard. He is also a professor in the Strategy Unit at Harvard Business School. Dr. Rivkin is also credited with starting YALP.

Jan explains the top traits of effective cross-sector collaborators, and how successful collaborators respond to the setbacks they will encounter. He also explains that leaders need to make the most out of differences. Jan shares his concern for the lack of civility in our society and believes it is the underlying factor in our ability to solve other problems. Jan believes in order to develop leadership skills, one needs to experiment, learn, and reflect. Jan shares why the YALP leaders he gets to work with really do give him hope and helps him avoid feeling discouraged in a world full of problems.

Links to Resources:

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com
To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/
If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

Right now in the United States, 95% of the sector is being overlooked and underinvested when it comes to nonprofit donations, according to Philanthropy Together. Thankfully, the collective giving movement is growing and making a positive change in underinvested communities. Today’s guest explains how more diverse communities can get funded when there are more diverse philanthropists involved. 

Rob’s guest today is Sara Lomelin who is a philanthropist, TED speaker, and the CEO of Philanthropy Together. Philanthropy Together is a global initiative, co-created by hundreds of giving circle and network leaders, to scale and strengthen the collective giving movement through the power of giving circles. Their mission is to democratize and diversify philanthropy through the power of giving circles.

Sara explains that a giving circle is a group of people with shared values that come together to make change. They pool their time and money, and decide as a circle where it should go. Sara describes the five key aspects of a giving circle and the five valuable things that each individual member inherently brings to the circle they join. Sara shares some very inspiring examples of the impact collective giving is having across our nation. She also explains what is motivating this increase of diversity and inclusion in philanthropy. Sara also shares how one can join or create their own giving circle, with the help of Philanthropy Together and the many resources they offer online. 

To join a giving circle in your community, check out Philanthropy Together’s Global Giving Circle Directory. Or to start one, join Philanthropy Together’s Launchpad program to learn how! 

Mentioned: 

Links to Resources:

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at rob@ccofpc.org
To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/
If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com

It can be difficult to see actual change to today’s big problems, especially when starting at the federal level. Change usually occurs due to the efforts of dedicated individuals at the local level. Rob’s guest shares how a program at Harvard Business School is dedicated to solving big issues by bringing together local leaders from all over the United States.

Rob’s guest today is Dr. Jan Rivkin who is the Senior Associate Dean and Chair of the MBA program at Harvard. He is also a professor in the Strategy Unit at Harvard Business School. Dr. Rivkin is also credited with starting YALP, the Young American Leaders Program.

Jan explains his role at Harvard Business School and why he was led into academia. Jan shares that while involved in the US Competitiveness Project which started in 2011, he and his colleagues at Harvard realized the US economy was lacking shared prosperity. Jan explains that they realized sustainable change would not come from the federal level alone because of the gridlock that often occurred at this level. This prompted the Harvard Business School to create a program that would aim to solve these issues. Jan describes how the Young American Leaders Program chooses the participants each year and what the program provides to these leaders from across the United States. Jan shares some examples of the positive influence the program has made in US cities and the benefits of addressing issues at the local level. Rob gets the opportunity to share about his experience of participating in the program and adds what he found most impactful when he was a part of YALP.

Links to Resources:

If you have questions or want to come on the show, email Rob at nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com
To be added to the monthly email update, go to http://nonprofitleadershippodcast.org/
If you have any suggestions for the show, email nonprofitleadershippodcast@gmail.com