Season 1 is over! We learned a lot since we started our venture into live shows and podcasting. We made some mistakes. We did some things right but we had great fun on the way. This episode will be dedicated to all of our learnings, experiences, relationships built and mistakes made during the process of starting the Future Of Impact Show! In the meantime, why don't you share with us on social media YOUR highlights of our podcast? We'd love to know! Connect with me: On my LinkedIn:...

Fundraising feels like the biggest priority when running your non-profit, but the most important thing is the impact you create. That's why we all need to hear from someone who has been able to consistently do both for 15 years- Chad Bernstein. Ever since its inception, Chad's organization, Guitars Over Guns, has revolutionized the way non-profits are run across the country while also raising over $3.5 million to expand their operations over the years. With over 7,000 students positively...

Steve Lantham is the Co-Founder and CEO of DonateStock. A company focused on revolutionizing charity through stock giving. You might be wondering how stocks, (you know the ones that are a symbol of profit and capitalism) can contribute to a NON-profit cause but you'd be surprised! Here's what we'll cover in the episode: - Why it took so long for a solution like DonateStock to exist? - The future of Impact according to Steve. - The complexities and contradictions in the non-profit...

For the vast majority of people, finance is dull, tedious, way too science-y for their liking, and just a necessary evil for you to thrive in this world. This episode's guest begs to differ. Brian Haney is the Founder and CEO of The Haney Company. A firm based in the greater Washington Area that aims to ease the process of insurance and employee benefits - the process that so many companies dread. Brian's career has been an illustrious rollercoaster of many apprenticeships that shaped him...

It’s time to change the way you go about designing solutions- WITH the community- for a bigger impact. Organizations are accustomed to funders and government agencies coming in and dictating what they need to do without any input or participation from the community. It’s easier said than done to find the right leadership within the community. It takes dedication to show up, listen and take action- and do you really have the right solution the community needs? In reality, no one knows the...

There's a new frontier on the horizon. The space race is here. An era that will span a new renaissance of science, technology, and culture, forever changing the fabric of our lives and the ones that come after. But, although there's no lack of curiosity about the great vastness that comes after we leave our atmosphere, education at scale is lacking. The world has yet to prepare its workforce for the space economy- which is why the work of people like Dr. Mark Wagner matters. Mark Wagner...

Are you telling the right story with your metrics? Are they really moving the needle? As technology has evolved over recent years, grantees are becoming more aware of the importance of defining, collecting, analyzing then leveraging data to make the biggest impact. Some organizations have avoided implementing the technology because they assume it is a capacity building expense that they just can’t afford.  Lisa’s organization is turning this around with UpMetrics, an impact analytics...

We all dream of massive, rapid growth, but is your organization ready for it?  Starting with 32 students, now have grown to over 50,000 served in the ACES program since 2013- Krissy’s organization has expanded rapidly by prioritizing the voice of their community, developing a system that evolves as they grow, and harnessing the power of tracking outcomes.  In this episode, Krissy Webb, the Co-Founder and Executive Director of ACES, and host Jess Merrell deep dive into: The power of...

Storytelling is the most impactful way to share an experience with another human to drive specific actions or help form opinions on a particular issue. It is infused into so many areas of a nonprofit's daily operations from marketing to programming to fundraising appeals. However, there is a difference between creating trendy Tik Tok videos and developing a goal-oriented storytelling strategy that conveys an organization's impact and compels one to take action. Getting it right can change...

A person's journey in life doesn't always, or perhaps ever, follow a straight path and how you manage the moments of fear and uncertainty can either motivate you or crush you. If you want to be a positive disruptor in the world you will need to learn to harness the fear into purpose and view your failures as learnings. So it helps when your life's work is building and leading an organization that aligns so clearly with your purpose that it seems kismet.  That is the story of our amazing...

Nonprofits need to be opportunistic when it comes to securing resources and crypto is a major fundraising opportunity!  But its not about the coins its about the owners of the coins and their unique giving philosophy.  That is what Steven and Alicia, co-founders of givepact, the free crypto fundraising platform for nonprofits, figured out and they are joining the show to talk about it.  They are taking the best part of grassroots, individual fundraising and adding the scale of...

Running a successful non-profit demands your ability to do many things at once, and that can sometimes feel like you're not getting anything done completely. But if you can get strategic around planning, innovation, and relationships there is a way to actually move the needle across all your roles. That's what makes this conversation with Glenn Jenkins, the outgoing Executive Director of Embrace Kids, so valuable.  Through a strategic relationship with Rutgers University, he was able to...

Measuring and analyzing your organization's impact is crucial to making a difference, but most nonprofits don't have the budget to hire a PhD consultant. Cost effective technology needs to be developed to measure impact... and THAT is why we're so excited to host Kim Flores on the show! Kim is the Co-Founder and CEO of Hello Insight, an online platform that leverages AI and researched-based tools to evaluate social emotional learning in order to truly understand what it takes for a young...

Building and then growing a successful grant program is no easy feat and definitely not a set-it-and-forget-it initiative.  It takes multiple, high-value skill sets sets to maneuver the complexities of the grant space. And this is just one of the many responsibilities on the plates of nonprofit leaders so it is no wonder that many look to the experts to manage and grow their grant programs. But not all partnerships are created equal and it takes commitment from both sides to ensure maximum...

Introducing the world premiere of the Future of Impact Show! Here’s the problem, non-profit systems were developed from a “funder down” approach at a time when data was not available at scale, which means because passion for mission alone doesn’t quantify impact. We have a better vision…a world where missions, metrics, and incentives align to actually get problems solved. On this show, we will bring together specialized experts to explore innovative ways to accelerate change and make...

Here’s the problem, non-profit systems were developed from a “funder down” approach at a time when data was not available at scale, which means because passion for mission alone doesn’t quantify impact.  We have a better vision…a world where missions, metrics, and incentives align to actually get problems solved. We are on a quest to find innovative ways to accelerate change and make IMPACT an industry, BUT we can’t do it without the right metrics…and we can’t do it alone.  This is not a...