Imagine you're the captain of a ship navigating through uncertain waters. The seas might seem calm, but hidden beneath the surface are icebergs—silent, invisible threats that could destroy your vessel if you don’t see them coming. In the world of nonprofits, these icebergs represent the risks that can disrupt your mission, drain your resources, and even sink your organization if you’re not vigilant. A so-called Read More
Nonprofit Risk Management: Expect the Unexpected
A large institution that provides hundreds of millions of dollars in grants every year shared a secret with me. They would be reevaluating nearly 1,000 recurring grants to determine whether their nonprofit recipients were fiscally and operationally sound enough to carry out their intended impact. In other words, nonprofits that have been counting on a large grant year after year might get nothing very soon. True Read More
Nonprofit Financial Resilience and the Network Gap
Having a powerful network can bolster a nonprofit’s donor base, ensure financial resilience and open access to additional funding sources. But what happens when the Executive Director and Board Members do not have a powerful network? The result is a Network Gap. I have been following LinkedIn’s Research and Social Impact focus on The Network Gap and have been continuing to ponder it terms of nonprofit fundraising and Read More
Cracking Your Imposter Code: How to Find Your Authentic Voice as a Nonprofit Leader
At our monthly Social Impact Advisory Group meeting, we heard from Human Resources leadership expert and executive coach, Paul N Larsen, who showed our group actionable ideas Nonprofit Leaders can take to integrate and celebrate our “imposter” in our everyday lives. The following presentation was edited for length and clarity in printed format. Stephanie Shaterian In our Social Impact Advisory Group, we tend Read More
Social Impact Leaders Series: Can Technology Save the Homeless Epidemic with Jonathan Parkhurst, Seekhaven
The Social Impact Leaders Series is a collaboration between Fairlight and The Silicon Valley Podcast, spotlighting groundbreaking philanthropists and social entrepreneurs who are striving to elevate communities, improve the economy and protect the earth. These discussions are summarized and edited excerpts from interviews conducted by Shawn Flynn with social impact leaders we think you should know about. Next in the Read More
Women’s Economic Empowerment: Committed Citizens Making Changes
We have found that the damaging social and economic aftershocks from the pandemic has many people asking themselves, “How can I serve my community? How can I make a difference?” One way both Katharine and I have worked to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women is by serving and supporting our local Commissions on the Status of Women. The original Commission on Status of Women (CSW) was established in Read More
Nonprofit Boards: Learn to Build Them Well
At our monthly Social Impact Advisory Group meeting, we heard from nonprofit governance and leadership expert, Mary Hiland, who empowered our group with understanding why boards matter, spotting the source of most board trouble and how to recruit and develop boards. Our host, Stephanie Shaterian, moderated audience questions which are also provided in this article. The following presentation was edited for length and Read More
Demystifying Legacy Nonprofit Giving with Lori Kranczer
With so much uncertainty in philanthropic giving due to the pandemic, the Social Impact Advisory Group spoke with Lori Kranczer, the CEO and Founder of Everyday Planned Giving, about how legacy giving can broaden a nonprofit’s donor base and build stronger engagement with existing donors. Leveraging 20 years in the nonprofit space as an attorney and consultant, Lori has created and managed several substantial Read More
Social Impact Advisory: Trends in Nonprofit Philanthropy
At our monthly Social Impact Advisory Group meeting, we wanted to explore the impacts of the pandemic and racial justice movement in shaping the future of philanthropy. We invited moderator, Lisa Salomon of and panelists, Theary Chan, and Nicole Kyauk to discuss the range and nature of relationships funders want to have with the nonprofits they support. The following panel presentation was edited for length and Read More
How to Tell Your Nonprofit Story and Drive Action
With so much marketing going online in the aftermath of the pandemic, your nonprofit story needs to be even more potent than ever. We invited Jerri Rosen, founder and CEO of Working Wardrobes, and Katie Wagner, President and CEO of KWSM, a digital marketing agency, to talk about the key elements of an effective story to energize your donors and many other supporters needed to run a successful Read More
