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This Independent Sector National Summit recap brings you inside the Phoenix gathering through the experiences of Tiffani R. Brown and Nancy Bacon. Discover the conversations, connections, and unexpected moments they brought home and what those experiences could mean for your nonprofit’s leadership, operations, and workforce!

Tiffani R. Brown of Monroe Impact Advisors and Nancy Bacon of Nancy Bacon Consulting reflect on why they invested in attending, what caught their attention, and why they left with more than a stack of conference notes.

For Tiffani, a first-time summit attendee, a standout was the CEO intensive: a full day with dozens of leaders navigating different stages of organizational life. She met a new CEO just months into the role and another with 17 years of experience already considering succession planning. Those exchanges offered perspective that can be hard to find inside your own organization.

Nancy describes connections stretching from frontline professionals to state and national leaders. She also noticed generations learning from one another: “And I saw such a spirit of generosity of the generations connecting.” Both guests found encouragement in the emerging leaders they met.

Their summit highlights also carry nonprofit business impacts. Tiffani was excited by shared-services models supporting nonprofit finance, HR, and IT. Nancy welcomed the attention to workforce health, including compensation, retention, morale, and benefits, as part of the sector’s long-term sustainability.

“I walked away feeling really inspired and energized,” Tiffani shares.

Watch their recap for a candid look at what made this gathering worthwhile, and why you should plan to attend the next Summit!!

Key Takeaways

- Tiffani’s CEO intensive connected leaders facing onboarding, succession, and organizational change.

- Nancy’s conversations linked frontline experience with state and national perspectives.

- Shared-services sessions offered models for strengthening administrative capacity across nonprofits.

- Workforce health emerged as a sustainability priority extending beyond individual burnout.

- Both guests saw intergenerational connections and realistic optimism as summit strengths.

00:00:00 Independent Sector Summit Recap
00:01:20 Meet Summit Attendees Tiffani R. Brown and Nancy Bacon
00:04:22 Why They Invested in Attending the Summit
00:06:17 Different Regions, Shared Nonprofit Challenges
00:09:16 Tiffani’s Highlight: The CEO Intensive
00:10:40 Nancy’s Highlights: Leadership and National Connections
00:12:43 Meeting the Next Generation of Nonprofit Leaders
00:15:55 What Surprised Tiffani: Shared Services and Open Conversations
00:17:49 What Encouraged Nancy: The Workforce Health Focus
00:22:22 The Summit Atmosphere: Realism Meets Optimism
00:23:59 Serious Conversations—and Yes, Some Dancing
00:26:28 Was the Summit Worth the Time Away?

#TheNonprofitShow #IndependentSector

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
12:30pm ET   11:30am CT  10:30am MT  9:30am PT

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Wondering how to get board approval for a nonprofit CRM when “too expensive” ends the conversation? Tony Beall and Julia C. Patrick explore the business case for donor management software, then tackle board reporting, outside board service, and the work-from-home debate.

It’s Fundraisers Friday, and the questions have arrived with their sleeves rolled up!

First up: a board that sees a CRM subscription as a budget burden. Tony encourages fundraisers to explain the investment through the work it supports: managing donor information, strengthening fundraising processes, and preserving knowledge when employees leave. His question puts a different number on the conversation: “So what price tag are you putting on that information walking out the door?”

Julia and Tony discuss using vendor testimonials to help make the case and exploring capacity-building support. Tony shares a local community foundation example that he believes offers up to $5,000—an illustration of a possible funding route, rather than a universal grant opportunity.

Next comes boardroom access. How often should the development director present? Julia advocates a place at every meeting; Tony favors monthly engagement when possible, with quarterly presentations at a minimum. The goal: stronger relationships, clearer fundraising expectations, and better understanding of how revenue reaches the organization.

They also consider whether fundraisers should serve on another nonprofit’s board. The conversation centers on learning, community participation, confidentiality, and knowing when to step back from a vote.

Then comes the office debate: must productive fundraising happen within earshot of everyone else’s phone calls? They explore hybrid work, employee well-being, and performance monitoring. As Julia puts it, “And that trust goes both ways.”

Watch to get fresh ideas you can bring into your next budget discussion, board meeting, or conversation with your manager. 

Key Takeaways:

- Build the CRM case around fundraising processes and donor knowledge continuity.

- Explore capacity-building funding for donor management infrastructure.

- Establish regular development director presentations to strengthen board understanding.

- Address outside board service through confidentiality, conflict policies, and recusal.

- Evaluate hybrid work through performance, employee satisfaction, and available tools.

00:00:00 Fundraisers Friday: Questions Fundraising Leaders Are Asking
00:02:30 When Your Board Says a Nonprofit CRM Is Too Expensive
00:05:04 Protecting Donor Knowledge When Fundraisers Leave
00:07:31 Finding Capacity-Building Funds for CRM Software
00:08:39 How Often Should Development Directors Present to the Board?
00:11:46 Can Fundraisers Serve on Another Nonprofit’s Board?
00:15:19 Confidentiality, Boundaries, and Recusing Yourself
00:17:19 Making the Case for Working From Home
00:20:28 Noise, Neurodiversity, and Employee Well-Being
00:20:59 Explaining Remote Work Decisions Without Damaging Trust
00:24:14 The Architecture of Fundraising: Careers and Leadership
00:26:30 Send Your Nonprofit Leadership Questions

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
12:30pm ET   11:30am CT  10:30am MT  9:30am PT

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You’ve crafted the appeal, told the story, and inspired someone to give. Victory lap? Almost. Your donation form still has a job to do, and one extra field, confusing message, or inconvenient payment process can blow-up that moment of generosity!  Learn how to improve nonprofit donation forms so a donor’s “yes” becomes a completed gift. Bloomerang’s Evan DaSilva shares how simpler checkout, digital wallets, and timely thank-yous can strengthen fundraising conversion and donor retention.

Evan, Senior Vice President of Payments at Bloomerang, joins us to explore the business of getting donors across the finish line. As he puts it, “You don’t want to introduce moments of friction after you’ve already won that appeal.”

One conversation-stopper: what if you collected the donation before asking for additional donor details? Evan reports that Bloomerang’s Express Donate feature has shown a 55% increase in conversion by capturing the gift first. He addresses the fear of losing contact information and why losing the donor’s attention may be the bigger risk.

The discussion connects nonprofit donation form optimization with campaign planning, internal coordination, and donor confidence. Your appeal and landing page should tell the same mission story. Digital wallets can reduce typing on mobile devices. Even the wording used to ask donors to cover processing fees deserves attention.

Then comes the chore with fundraising upside: testing. Walk through the entire giving experience on phones, tablets, desktops, and different browsers. Invite people across generations to try it, too. 

And don’t leave the thank-you until later. Evan cites a statistic that first-time donors thanked within 48 hours are four times more likely to give again. He explains how consistent impact messaging and preferred communication channels help connect that first gift to an ongoing relationship.

Key Takeaways:

- Align campaign appeals, donation pages, and acknowledgments around the same mission.

- Capture the gift before requesting additional donor information.

- Offer digital wallets to simplify mobile giving and support donor acquisition.

- Test across devices, browsers, and donor generations.

- Prepare timely thank-yous before launch; ask how donors prefer to stay in touch.

00:00:00 Make It Easy for Donors to Give
00:01:43 Capturing the Gift at the Moment of Generosity
00:04:04 Align Your Donation Form With Every Campaign
00:07:08 Connect Fundraising, Marketing, and Form Design
00:08:19 Donation First, Donor Details Second
00:12:14 Improve Form Copy and Processing-Fee Requests
00:12:56 Digital Wallets for Mobile Giving and Donor Acquisition
00:15:41 Test Donation Forms Across Devices and Browsers
00:17:33 Test the Giving Experience Across Generations
00:19:49 Plan the Thank-You Before Campaign Launch
00:21:52 Match Donor Follow-Up to Communication Preferences
00:24:32 Ask Donors How They Want to Stay in Touch

#TheNonprofitShow #DigitalFundraising #DonorExperience

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
12:30pm ET   11:30am CT  10:30am MT  9:30am PT

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AI recruiting for nonprofits can help teams manage a mountain of applications, but a polished résumé still leaves one big question: can this person do the work? Dana Scurlock, Managing Director of Staffing Boutique, explores smarter screening, candidate transparency, and hiring practices that keep human judgment in the process.

Joining Julia C. Patrick and Sherry Quam Taylor, Dana considers a hiring puzzle that deserves a seat at your next leadership meeting: employers want candidates who can use AI, yet still need to understand what those candidates can contribute themselves.

That résumé might sparkle. The interview still has a job to do.

“AI is not a replacement for the human portion of recruiting and hiring, and it shouldn't be looked at as such,” Dana begins.

She describes recruiting situations where a single job posting brings hundreds of résumés, making screening efficiency a real operational concern. Applicant tracking systems (ATS) help organize candidate information, and AI-assisted screening raises questions about keywords, access, and who advances.

For nonprofit hiring managers balancing recruitment with an already-full workload, the discussion connects technology choices to staff capacity, candidate experience, and the quality of hiring decisions.

The conversation also moves beyond résumé screening into AI interviews and hiring assessments. If candidates will use AI on the job, how should that affect the assignments used to evaluate them? What should employers disclose and what should applicants explain about their own AI use?

Discover why even relationship-centered fundraising roles increasingly involve technology, how résumé optimization can signal a willingness to learn, and why impressive presentation deserves a closer look at actual capability.

Dana’s recommendation for nonprofit leaders: develop employee guidelines that explain where AI belongs, where human judgment matters, and what your organization expects.

Key Takeaways:

- Use AI to support screening while retaining human evaluation.

- Assess demonstrated ability beyond résumé polish and keywords.

- Disclose when candidates are interacting with AI.

- Set clear AI-use expectations before hiring assessments.

- Define organizational boundaries for AI in employee guidelines.

00:00:00 AI Recruiting and Nonprofit Hiring
00:03:29 AI Skills Are Appearing in Job Descriptions
00:06:57 Nonprofit Employers Weigh Efficiency and Ethics
00:08:04 Keeping Human Judgment in Recruiting
00:10:53 Applicant Tracking Systems and Résumé Screening
00:12:11 Keywords, Candidate Access, and Technology Skills
00:14:19 Why Fundraising Roles Need AI Fluency
00:15:58 What AI-Ready Résumés Signal to Hiring Managers
00:18:24 Transparency in AI Screening and Interviews
00:20:20 Setting AI Rules for Hiring Assessments
00:22:23 Evaluating Capability Beyond a Polished Application
00:25:37 Employee AI Guidelines and Human Judgment

#TheNonprofitShow #NonprofitHiring #AIRecruiting

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
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Nonprofit leadership equity strategies come to life when they shape hiring, board decisions, and everyday operations. Dr. Orletta Caldwell and Erick Seelbach explore how to close the gap between stated values and organizational behavior . . . . .especially during leadership transitions!

Your nonprofit has a values statement. Wonderful. But does it show up when the board chooses its next executive director, evaluates organizational culture, or decides which problems can wait?

Joining host Julia C. Patrick, Dr. Caldwell of Beyond Existing Enterprises and Seelbach of Third Sector Company bring candid perspectives on nonprofit governance, equitable hiring, and interim leadership. Their conversation connects equity to the business of running an organization: talent, revenue, donor relationships, and the conditions a new leader inherits.

Dr. Caldwell addresses the barriers facing Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) leadership candidates and the funding fears affecting African American-led nonprofits. Her starting point is straightforward: “If it is not written, it hasn’t happened.” Written policies give an organization something concrete to discuss, implement, and revisit—and responsibility belongs across the organization.

Seelbach brings the assessment perspective, explaining how an outside leader can identify gaps, help boards prioritize improvements, and prepare for an equitable executive search. That includes examining the board’s own behavior. The mirror comes with the assignment!

As Seelbach comments, “It’s not about wanting to do good. It’s about what actually happens.”

The two guests also describe organizations retreating from equity commitments, communities strengthening their own resource networks, and the value of bringing politically charged questions back to mission. These are observations from their work, offering leaders useful starting points for conversations inside their own organizations.

Watch to discover where your policies, leadership practices, and mission messaging could work better together. Bring this conversation to your next board discussion and give those good intentions a job to do!

Key Takeaways:

- Translate stated equity values into written policies and observable leadership practices.

- Examine executive searches for barriers that overlook qualified BIPOC candidates.

- Use organizational assessments to identify short-, medium-, and long-term improvements.

- Include board behavior and executive support in the organizational diagnosis.

- Evaluate outcomes and people’s experiences when assessing equity.

- Prepare board ambassadors to connect difficult questions back to mission and values.

00:00:00 Advancing Equity in Nonprofit Leadership
00:02:17 When Equity Values Have No Operating Plan
00:03:16 Funding Fears in African American-Led Nonprofits
00:05:43 Leading Through Fear
00:09:33 Turn Equity Commitments Into Written Policies
00:12:03 Interim Leaders as Organizational Truth Tellers
00:15:46 Measure Outcomes Beyond Good Intentions
00:16:29 Connect Equity to Fundraising, HR, and Culture
00:18:17 Board Accountability and Equitable Executive Searches
00:21:18 Mission Clarity Under Political Pressure
00:24:23 Prepare Board Members as Mission Ambassadors
00:25:36 Community Resources, Mutual Aid, and Resilience

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
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Nonprofit revenue operations strategy starts with helping fundraisers succeed.  Your operations team clears the report queue. Your fundraisers get their spreadsheets. Everybody’s busy . . . .but is the work helping fundraising move forward?

Thomas Turner of charity: water reveals how a customer success approach can sharpen priorities, simplify data access, and strengthen donor relationships.

Thomas, Vice President of Revenue Operations at charity: water, joins us to explore a different approach: make fundraising success the mandate for the team supporting it.

That means agreeing with development leaders on the two or three priorities that deserve focused attention. A routine report might take longer because operations is building something that will save time or improve decisions across the team. The trick is making that tradeoff clear, and making it together!

Discover how self-service analytics can give fundraisers useful dashboards and filters without requiring them to become CRM report writers. Thomas shares a geographic filtering example that replaces repeated requests with a few selections and an export.

CRM adoption gets a refresh, too. Instead of selling staff on “more data,” connect documentation to a situation they recognize: inheriting donors with three years of missing relationship history. As Thomas puts it, “And so we do these things in service of the future.”

The conversation also connects donor portfolio management with giving capacity, project sponsorship, and longer-term partnerships. Thomas describes a target of around 150 major donors per portfolio and recommends measuring internal service before a culture shift, then repeating the survey after three or six months.

For context, Thomas reports that charity: water has served 22.1 million people with clean water, with roughly 700 million still without it. He also explains its 100% model: public donations fund water projects, while separate supporters fund operations.

Key Takeaways:

 - Set two or three shared operational priorities with fundraising leaders.

- Replace repeat report requests with usable dashboards and filters.

- Explain CRM documentation through donor continuity and portfolio transitions.

- Treat fundraisers’ relationship insights as inputs to engagement analytics.

- Establish a service baseline and reassess after three or six months.

00:00:00 Revenue Operations: Helping Fundraisers Succeed
00:01:57 charity: water’s Mission and Scale
00:02:53 The 100% Model and Funding Operations
00:04:51 Donor Portfolios and Moves Management
00:07:01 From Project Sponsorship to Multi-Year Partnerships
00:08:51 Self-Service Analytics for Fundraisers
00:11:21 Building a Partnership Around Fundraising Data
00:14:34 Defining Internal Customer Success
00:17:10 Choosing the Priorities That Move Fundraising Forward
00:18:47 CRM Adoption and Protecting Donor History
00:20:58 Portfolio Targets and Measuring Culture Change
00:24:29 Fundraiser Insights and Donor Engagement Scores

#TheNonprofitShow #FundraisingOperations #charitywater

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
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Nonprofit budgeting beyond the annual budget starts with a surprising shift: stop treating the numbers as a deadline and start using them to guide decisions! Peyton Burch of Martus Solutions and John Tiso of JMT Consulting explore how shared ownership, stronger revenue assumptions, and ongoing forecasting can turn budget season into a leadership advantage.

“We don’t have the budget!!!.” Conversation over. Idea shelved. Everyone back to their spreadsheets.

But what if that familiar response is hiding the problem your nonprofit actually needs to solve?

Peyton and John challenge the annual scramble to produce a budget, secure approval, and move on. Their conversation connects nonprofit financial planning to the decisions leaders make every day: hiring staff, funding programs, responding to revenue changes, and keeping the board informed.

As John puts it, “The budget is a mirror of the organization and the team and the processes and the systems.” When the numbers stop working, the underlying issue may be communication, data quality, or assumptions that nobody has revisited.

The duo explain why revenue forecasting deserves closer attention, how financial literacy strengthens department-level participation, and why reforecasting should become a normal response to changing conditions. They also explore the cultural shift that happens when program managers understand how their decisions contribute to organization-wide financial goals.

Peyton offers a memorable priority: “So the time needs to be spent in conversations and being strategic, not in building a budget spreadsheet.”

There’s a milestone, too!  Peyton announces that Martus has reached 1,000 customers using Sage accounting platforms, including 600 added over the previous three years, with JMT closing the 1,000th deal.

Watch the full discussion for a fresh perspective on collaborative nonprofit budgeting, and bring this conversation to the people who build, approve, and work within your financial plan.

Key Takeaways:

- Test revenue assumptions; accurate expense estimates cannot compensate for unreliable income projections.

- Make budget ownership a leadership responsibility shared across finance and program teams.

- Build financial literacy so department managers understand the consequences of their assumptions.

- Communicate funding and expense changes immediately, then reforecast as needed.

- Reduce spreadsheet maintenance to create more time for analysis, collaboration, and mission decisions.

00:00:00 Stop Blaming the Nonprofit Budget
00:01:47 Budgeting, Reporting, and Financial Planning
00:04:16 Martus Announces 1,000 Sage Customers
00:07:26 Turn Financial Technology Changes Into Growth
00:11:24 Why Budgets Fail: Revenue Assumptions and Ownership
00:14:16 Move Beyond the Once-a-Year Budget
00:15:48 Financial Literacy and Department Participation
00:17:06 Build a Culture of Collaborative Budgeting
00:19:39 Structure the Budget Process Into Manageable Steps
00:22:10 Connect Leadership, Finance, and Program Goals
00:24:02 Shared Assumptions, Trust, and Strategic Conversations
00:26:55 Communicate Changes and Reforecast Promptly

#TheNonprofitShow #NonprofitBudgeting 

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
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A donor offers land. Wonderful! Then comes a condition: your nonprofit must farm it for the next 50 years! Suddenly, “thank you” needs a little company . . .

Planned giving legal support for nonprofits can help turn complex donations into gifts your team is prepared to accept. Jamie Holzer White joined us to explore noncash gifts, donor confidence, and why bringing an attorney in early can keep generosity moving.

Jamie, J.D., LL.M., Vice President of Legal Services at Crescendo Interactive, explains how legal expertise can help fundraising teams identify obligations, shape realistic expectations, and protect relationships before a promising gift gets tangled in surprises. When should counsel join the conversation? “And my answer is always early.”

The opportunity extends well beyond cash. Jamie estimates that probably 90% of the gifts she encounters are noncash, with examples ranging from publicly traded securities and business interests to cryptocurrency and farming equipment. She also references Dr. Russell James’s research linking consistent securities giving with roughly six times the contribution growth of cash-only fundraising.

But opportunity needs an operating system. Gift acceptance policies should help staff understand which assets the organization accepts, who approves them, what due diligence is required, and how receipt and liquidation work. Jamie recommends reviewing policies at least annually, with more frequent reviews where changing assets warrant attention.

The conversation also explores independent donor counsel, concerns about paying donors’ legal fees, and ways local planned giving councils may connect nonprofits with legal expertise. Separate attorneys can support a shared goal: “They complement each other, but there are different interests that are being represented on both sides of the table.”

Watch to discover how stronger preparation can help your team welcome generosity with confidence, and give the “Department of No” a more productive assignment.

Key Takeaways:

- Involve qualified counsel before donor expectations harden.

- Define approvals, due diligence, and handling procedures for noncash gifts.

- Preserve separate representation for donor and nonprofit interests.

- Review gift acceptance policies annually; update sooner when needed.

- Train staff and board members to communicate the gift process confidently.

- Explore planned giving councils for legal connections and possible pro bono support.

00:00:00 Planned Giving: Who Belongs on Your Team?
00:02:19 Legal and Tax Expertise in Gift Planning
00:04:00 How Legal Support Helps Shape Complex Gifts
00:05:25 Major Gifts Beyond Cash
00:07:03 Noncash Gifts and Fundraising Growth
00:08:55 When to Bring an Attorney into the Conversation
00:11:49 Legal Costs, Donor Capacity, and Unhappy Heirs
00:13:24 Who Pays for the Donor’s Attorney?
00:16:33 Gift Acceptance Policies That Build Confidence
00:19:44 Policy Reviews and Team Training
00:22:21 Separate Attorneys, Shared Giving Goals
00:23:12 Finding Legal Support and Building Capacity

#TheNonprofitShow #PlannedGiving #NonprofitFundraising

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Managing multigenerational nonprofit teams takes more than a shared mission. Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z bring different experiences to nonprofit leadership, fundraising, and daily operations. But assuming someone’s age tells you how they communicate (or whether they embrace technology) can send your management strategy sideways before the meeting even starts!

Our Co-hosts, Tim Sarrantonio and Julia Patrick, explore how communication standards, clear decision ownership, and better feedback help four generations work together without turning every difference into a workplace showdown.

The conversation gets wonderfully specific with a fish tank. Tim explains RACI—Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed—through his family’s fish-feeding responsibilities. Multiple people can perform tasks, but one person remains accountable for the outcome. Translate that to a campaign, board meeting, or finance deliverable, and suddenly “I thought somebody else had it” becomes much harder to hide behind.

As Tim puts it: “And then once people understand the rules of communication, I think a lot of the friction goes away.”

Julia shares a leadership approach that gives employees room to think: bring two or three possible solutions, then work through them together if support is needed. Tim also challenges overreliance on feedback scores and makes the case for listening long enough to hear what people actually mean.

Their discussion connects staff retention, leadership access, and hybrid work to a fundamental human need. Tim points to the most important question: “I've worked for people younger than me, older than me, and really it comes down to, do you see me?”

Key Takeaways:

- Define communication channels before preferences become organizational friction.

- Use RACI to distinguish task responsibility from final accountability.

- Help employees make decisions by requesting two or three proposed solutions.

- Combine feedback measures with conversation, observation, and patient listening.

- Make leadership accessible while keeping decision authority clear.

- Approach hybrid work through team needs and individual circumstances.

00:00:00 Four Generations, One Nonprofit Mission
00:01:29 Learning Across Generations Through Play
00:02:27 Generational Labels and Shared Experiences
00:04:44 Why Workplace Stereotypes Get in the Way
00:09:25 Set Communication Standards Before Friction Builds
00:12:34 RACI: Who Does the Work, Who Owns the Outcome?
00:15:50 Finding the Right Balance of Team Feedback
00:17:47 Beyond Feedback Scores: Listen and Observe
00:19:41 Help Employees Feel Safe Making Decisions
00:23:20 Give Teams a Place to Practice and Experiment
00:24:21 Staff Retention, Leadership Access, and Authority
00:26:12 Hybrid Work: Balancing Flexibility and Connection

#TheNonprofitShow #NonprofitLeadership #NonprofitTeamManagement

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
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Funding women of color-led nonprofits in the South means looking closely at who receives philanthropic investment, and who keeps being overlooked. Carmen James Randolph of the Women’s Foundation of the South shares how funding, leadership support, and regional collaboration can build health, wealth, and power for women, girls, and gender-expansive people of color.

These leaders are holding communities together. Is philanthropy giving them the resources to keep going and grow?

Carmen explores the relationship between Southern generosity and unequal access to funding. Drawing on 28 years in philanthropy, she describes how racism, patriarchy, and judgments about “worthiness” can influence which organizations receive support.

She also shares accounts from nonprofit leaders whose work appeared in funding proposals without resources reaching their organizations. For grantmakers, fundraisers, and boards, that raises a business question: are funding relationships strengthening the organizations doing the work?

WFS approaches that challenge as a regional public foundation that raises and invests money, connecting donors with community organizations across the South.

Leadership support is part of that investment. After opening in August 2021 and encountering Hurricane Ida within 30 days, WFS changed its approach to engaging exhausted nonprofit leaders. Care and connection came before another listening session.

“What would freedom look like for you in your work?” Carmen recalls asking participants at a two-and-a-half-day retreat.

Their responses helped shape WŌC @ Rest and ongoing capacity support. Carmen reports reaching 131 leaders across six states, with support addressing succession planning, effective teams, boards through crisis, messaging, and branding.

“We have to think more collaboratively and understand that we’re all in this together,” she says.

Watch to discover how regional relationships, more inclusive funding decisions, and investment in women of color leaders can strengthen nonprofit operations and community outcomes. Learn more about WFS at https://womensfoundationsouth.org.

Key Takeaways:

- Examine how funding criteria can overlook women of color-led organizations.

- Ask foundation partners whom they fund—and whom they cannot fund.

- Build capacity support around needs identified by nonprofit leaders.

- Treat rest and peer connection as investments in leadership.

- Align personnel policies with the values your organization promotes.

- Connect leaders across states to exchange strategies and resources.

00:00:00 Regional Philanthropy and Community Change
00:01:52 Building Health, Wealth, and Power in the South
00:03:10 Why a Regional Foundation for Women of Color
00:05:40 Connecting Donors and Community Organizations
00:06:20 Building Organizational Values Into Personnel Policies
00:07:56 Hurricane Ida Changes WFS’s Approach
00:09:34 Rest and Connection as Leadership Investments
00:11:08 Capacity Support for 131 Leaders Across Six States
00:13:28 Generosity, Race, and “Worthiness” in Southern Philanthropy
00:17:30 Underinvestment in Women and Girls of Color
00:20:00 Shared Benefits, Donor Narratives, and Family Leave
00:27:02 Finding Overlooked Grantees and Following Through

#TheNonprofitShow #WomenOfColor #Philanthropy

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Our national co-hosts and amazing guests discuss management, money and missions of nonprofits! 
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Send us your ideas for Show Guests or Topics: [email protected]
Visit us on the web:The Nonprofit Show