The Nonprofit MBA Podcast with Stephen Halasnik

Hosted by Stephen Halasnik

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207

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Aug 2026

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About the show

The Nonprofit MBA Podcast's purpose is to provide new business insights and fresh creative ideas for Nonprofit Executive Directors and their teams that will help them improve their Nonprofit organizations. Hosted by Stephen Halasnik, Managing Partner at Financing Solutions. Stephen sits down with Nonprofit executives and discusses ways to fundraise, forecast, and even fix your organization for a larger impact. Financing Solutions is the leading provider of Lines of Credit to Nonprofits.

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August 17, 2026Episode 935 min

From Corporate to Nonprofit Leadership: What Executives Need to Know – Nonprofit MBA 9.9

What changes when an experienced corporate executive moves into nonprofit leadership? In this episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast, Stephen Halasnik of Financing Solutions speaks with Shaun Carver, Executive Director and CEO of International House UC Berkeley and President of International House Association, about the transition from for-profit to nonprofit leadership. Shaun shares what surprised him most about working with a nonprofit board, why consensus-building becomes such an important leadership skill, and how the role of an executive director changes as an organization evolves. Stephen and Shaun also discuss why nonprofit boards need to evolve with the organizations they serve, how to keep board members meaningfully engaged, and why fundraising eventually becomes a major responsibility for many nonprofit CEOs. Drawing on his experience managing sales teams in the for-profit world, Shaun explains why he views fundraising as a pipeline. Successful fundraising requires identifying the right prospects, building relationships, understanding donor interests, tracking activity, and bringing the executive director into the conversation at the right time. The conversation also explores how corporate skills in finance, operations, strategy, and organizational management can become valuable assets in nonprofit leadership, while still requiring executives to learn a different approach to governance, fundraising, and mission-driven leadership.

July 20, 2026Episode 835 min

Nonprofit Leadership Lessons: From Founder to CEO - NonProfit MBA 9.8

Every nonprofit eventually reaches a point where the leadership skills that fueled its early success are no longer enough to support its next stage of growth. Building an organization requires one set of strengths. Scaling it requires another. Strong nonprofit leadership requires more than passion. As organizations grow, executive director leadership must evolve from founder-focused decision making to building systems, developing leaders, and strengthening nonprofit organizational culture. On this episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast, Stephen Halasnik, Managing Partner of Financing Solutions, sits down with Dr. Lindsay Whorton, President of The Holdsworth Center, to discuss one of the most overlooked challenges nonprofit executives face: learning to lead a different organization than the one they originally built. Their conversation isn't about management techniques or productivity hacks. It's about the personal transformation leaders must make as their organizations grow, become more complex, and create greater impact. Whether you're leading a startup nonprofit or an established organization, the lessons are remarkably consistent. Growth doesn't simply require more resources or larger budgets. It requires leaders who are willing to evolve alongside their organizations.

June 19, 2026Episode 631 min

Why More Fundraising Data Has Not Led to Better Fundraising Decisions - NonProfit MBA 9.7

Stephen Halasnik, Managing Partner of Financing Solutions, speaks with nonprofit leaders and finance professionals about the real-world financial challenges organizations face, including nonprofit cash flow gaps, funding delays, working capital shortages, and the need for stronger fundraising decisions. In this conversation, Shahar Brukner, Founder and CRO of Impala, explains why having more fundraising data does not automatically lead to better fundraising outcomes and how nonprofits can turn information into actionable intelligence.

May 27, 2026Episode 638 min

How Nonprofits Can Use AI to Reach More Donors and Build Stronger Giving Strategies- Nonprofit MBA 9.6

Artificial intelligence is changing how nonprofits attract donors, improve visibility, and strengthen fundraising strategies. In this episode of The Nonprofit MBA Podcast, Stephen Halasnik speaks with Catherine LaCour of Blackbaud Giving Fund about AI-powered donor discovery, workplace giving, nonprofit website optimization, and practical ways organizations can use AI to improve fundraising and operational efficiency.

May 4, 2026Episode 534 min

How A Nonprofit Can Address Financial Challenges in an Era of Uncertainty

In this episode, Stephen Halasnik speaks with Dr. Adam Aponte about how nonprofits can manage cash-flow gaps, funding delays, and working-capital challenges in today's uncertain environment.

March 17, 2026Episode 433 min

Is Your Nonprofit Mission Achievable? – Nonprofit MBA 9.4

Is your nonprofit mission actually achievable? In today's uncertain funding environment, nonprofit leaders are being pushed to prove not only that their work matters, but that their mission is realistic, measurable, and aligned with real community needs. In this episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast , Stephen Halasnik speaks with Dr. Zuri Tau , founder and CEO of Social Insights , about how nonprofits can evaluate whether their mission is achievable, why theory of change matters, and how organizations can build stronger evaluation systems without needing massive budgets. They also discuss how funding instability, shifting public sentiment, and growing accountability pressures are forcing nonprofits to rethink strategy, clarify impact, and define success in ways that truly reflect community needs. In this episode, you'll learn: Why nonprofit missions should be aspirational but still measurable How nonprofits can assess whether their mission is achievable Why community-defined success matters How theory of change helps uncover blind spots Practical ways small nonprofits can begin evaluating impact This is an important conversation for nonprofit leaders, board members, funders, and anyone thinking seriously about strategy, outcomes, and long-term impact. Guest: Dr. Zuri Tau, Founder and CEO of Social Insights Host: Stephen Halasnik, Co-Founder of Financing Solutions

March 10, 2026Episode 337 min

Change Management in Nonprofit Strategy: How Smart Organizations Stay Ready for What Comes Next - Nonprofit MBA 9.3

Change management in nonprofit strategy has become increasingly important as nonprofit leaders balance mission, funding uncertainty, and leadership transitions. In today's environment, that challenge is becoming far more complex. Funding can shift quickly, leadership transitions can happen unexpectedly, and external events can reshape priorities almost overnight. In this episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast , Stephen Halasnik, Co-Founder of Financing Solutions, speaks with Matt Glazer of Blue Sky Partners about one of the most important issues facing nonprofit organizations today: change management in nonprofit strategy . Glazer has led strategic planning efforts for more than 50 organizations and works with mission-driven groups on strategy, operations, leadership, and organizational development. Blue Sky Partners helps nonprofits and social impact organizations clarify vision, set priorities, and build practical roadmaps for growth and impact. The conversation highlights an increasingly clear reality in the nonprofit sector. A strategic plan is no longer enough if it sits on a shelf. In a world of funding interruptions, workforce strain, board turnover, and policy volatility, strategy must become a living process. That is where change management plays a critical role. This topic is especially timely because the nonprofit sector is facing real pressure. Data from the National Council of Nonprofits shows that nonprofits generate more than 80% of revenue from fees for services and government grants and contracts. At the same time, the 2025 Nonprofit Finance Fund survey found rising demand for services, increasing costs, and growing concern about future government funding.

March 10, 2026Episode 228 min

Why Fast, Secure, Reliable Nonprofit Websites Matter More Than Ever- Nonprofit MBA 9.2

Nonprofit leaders often overlook website maintenance, security, and speed. Yet, a nonprofit website is critical infrastructure for fundraising, donor trust, and search visibility. In the early days of the internet, a nonprofit's website was little more than a digital brochure: a static page listing a mission statement, a mailing address, and perhaps a grainy logo. Today, that same website is the organization's front door, donation engine, volunteer recruiter, grant validator, and public trust ledger all at once. For nonprofit leaders, the shift has been profound. A slow or insecure website is no longer an inconvenience. It is an operational risk. On a recent episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast, Stephen Halasnik from Financing Solutions sat down with Garrett Goldman, co-founder and CEO of StateWP, to explore what nonprofit executives need to understand about website security, performance, and governance in 2026. The conversation revealed a critical truth: nonprofits must stop treating their websites as one-time design projects and start treating them as mission-critical infrastructure.

March 3, 2026Episode 133 min

The New Math of Doing Good: How Nonprofits Can Thrive in Uncertain Times - NonProfit MBA 9.1

Nonprofit financial management has become one of the most important challenges facing nonprofit leaders today. Economic uncertainty, changing donor priorities, and shifting government funding have made financial strategy more critical than ever. In this episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast, Stephen Halasnik speaks with Nick Jain, co-founder of Eagle Rock CFO Services, about how nonprofit financial management can improve through stronger budgeting, better bookkeeping, operational discipline, and measurable outcomes. Below is a summary of their conversation, followed by the full podcast transcript. In an era of political shifts, economic whiplash, and tightening donor priorities, America's nonprofits find themselves navigating a new and unsettled terrain. For decades, the sector has been a quiet giant—employing roughly one in five American workers before 2025, powering food banks, religious institutions, arts organizations, veterans' groups, and thousands of other mission-driven enterprises. But what happens when funding priorities change? When donors redirect their giving? When government support ebbs in one region and expands in another? On a recent episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast, Stephen Halasnik, co-founder of Financing Solutions (a leading provider of nonprofit lines of credit), sat down with Nick Jain, co-founder of Eagle Rock CFO Services, to explore a question weighing heavily on nonprofit leaders: How can nonprofits manage their finances better—especially in uncertain times? Their conversation revealed something both sobering and hopeful. The nonprofit sector, Jane argues, is neither fragile nor immune to change. It is enduring—but only if leaders run it with discipline.

January 30, 2026Episode 3446 min

How We Grew Our Nonprofit to $30 million - NonProfit MBA 8.34

In this episode of the Nonprofit MBA Podcast, host Stephen Halasnik speaks with Luke Mickelson, founder of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, about how a small garage-based Christmas project grew into a nearly $30 million nonprofit operating across the U.S. and beyond. Mickelson shares the key inflection points behind that growth, including realizing the scale of child bedlessness, transitioning to a formal nonprofit, leveraging a major media moment from Returning the Favor with Mike Rowe, and—most importantly—building the right governance structure, systems, and processes to sustain rapid expansion. The conversation explores why treating a nonprofit like a real business matters, how a "franchise-like" chapter model with a single EIN enabled scalable growth while preventing mission creep, and how COVID ultimately helped the organization slow down and professionalize operations. Mickelson also discusses the critical distinction between visionary founders and operational leaders, the necessity of investing in talent, and why long-term nonprofit success depends on strong leadership, clear roles, and disciplined execution of best practices.