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What the Fundraising

What the Fundraising

Written by: Mallory Erickson
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What the Fundraising is the podcast for impact leaders and change-makers who are tired of doing things the old school way and are looking for best practices to raise money, run their organization, and think about the nonprofit sector in a whole new way. Every Tuesday for 40-60 min, your host, Mallory Erickson, will be having real and raw conversations with some of the best personal and professional development experts, many of whom are outside the nonprofit sector. These are bestselling authors, world-renowned researchers, and TEDx experts, most of whom have never spoken to a non-profit audience before. They have come ready to share expertise, lessons, and stories that will fundamentally change the way you show up as a leader and fundraiser. There are so many valuable lessons nonprofit leaders are missing because they are outside of their typical orbit, but no more. Mallory is bringing them in and helping to apply her guest's expertise to disrupt the nonprofit sector once and for all. So if you are ready to learn how to upgrade your fundraising strategy, leadership skills, energy, habits, and mindset to bring in more funding and actually have some fun doing it, then this is the right podcast for you. If you’re wanting to implement ideas you heard, visit MalloryErickson.com/Podcast for the top tips and tools, full transcripts, quotes, videos, and additional resources from each episode.Mallory Erickson Coaching Economics Management Management & Leadership Self-Help Success
Episodes
  • 309: Responsible AI Adoption for Grassroots and Justice-Focused Nonprofits with DeAnna Hoskins

    309: Responsible AI Adoption for Grassroots and Justice-Focused Nonprofits with DeAnna Hoskins
    Jul 21 2026
    AI is no longer a future trend. It is reshaping how organizations lead, innovate, and create impact today, and nonprofits are no exception. DeAnna Hoskins is the President and CEO of JustLeadershipUSA, an organization led by formerly incarcerated people. She also served as a senior policy advisor during the Obama administration. Her experience in government and nonprofit leadership gives her a unique view on how technology, policy, and community work can come together to create positive change. During the conversation, DeAnna explains why nonprofits should invest in AI training before adopting new tools. She mentions that AI should support people, not replace them, and that human oversight is always important. She also talks about the need to reduce bias in AI, to create clear guidelines for its use, and to continue learning as the technology evolves. Furthermore, DeAnna discusses the role of philanthropy in funding AI education and helping organizations build the skills they need. In this episode, you will be able to: Recognize the value of AI training. Use AI with human oversight. Build responsible AI guidelines. Identify AI bias and risks. Create long-term AI strategies. Use AI to support teams. Understand AI funding needs. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.
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    28 mins
  • 308: Using Donor Matching to Grow Impact and Community with Pooya Pourak

    308: Using Donor Matching to Grow Impact and Community with Pooya Pourak
    Jul 14 2026
    What if the best way to raise more money is not just to find new donors, but to help existing donors give more meaningfully? Today, let's explore how matching campaigns can turn fundraising into a shared experience that builds trust, excitement, and community. Pooya Pourak is an industrial and systems engineer, human-centered designer, host of The Nonprofit Lab podcast, and the founder of MatchNice. His career began in consulting, where he created human-centered solutions for health and human services programs that support families through Medicaid, foster care, food assistance, and childcare. Passionate about creating social impact, he built MatchNice to help nonprofits, businesses, communities, and donors work together to make a bigger difference. In this conversation, Pooya shares how the COVID-19 pandemic led to the creation of MatchNice and why donation matching is a powerful but often overlooked fundraising approach. He explains how matching works, why transparency and urgency motivate donors, and how nonprofits can engage everyday supporters and mid-level donors as matching partners. Through real examples, Pooya shows how matching campaigns can increase donations, bring in new supporters, strengthen donor relationships, and help nonprofits create greater impact. In this episode, you will be able to: Explain how donation matching boosts fundraising. Understand the psychology of matching gifts. Identify different types of matching donors. Engage existing donors as match sponsors. Create milestone-based matching campaigns. Use progress tracking to motivate giving. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.
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    28 mins
  • 307 - The Partnerships That Change More Than Metrics with Renee Daniel Flagler

    307 - The Partnerships That Change More Than Metrics with Renee Daniel Flagler
    Jul 7 2026
    Raising young people out of poverty takes far more than good intentions. It requires trust, healing, opportunity, and unwavering community support. Also, meaningful mentorship can become a powerful force for breaking generational barriers. Meet Renee Daniel Flagler, President of the National CARES Mentoring Movement. Today, she reflects on her personal journey into nonprofit leadership, inspired by a transformative volunteer experience that revealed the life-changing impact of supporting vulnerable youth. She discusses her organization's mission to empower young people through mentoring, trauma-informed healing, wellness, and workforce development. Moreover, the conversation explores the organization's holistic mentoring model, which combines mentor recruitment, emotional wellness, workforce readiness, and economic mobility to address the complex realities facing underserved communities. Renee explains why trauma-informed care is essential for long-term success, particularly in the aftermath of COVID-19, and discusses the challenges of securing funding for comprehensive programs. She also highlights the importance of mission-aligned philanthropic partnerships, organizational adaptability, and reimagining philanthropy by removing unnecessary barriers so nonprofits can focus on creating lasting, life-changing impact. In this episode, you will be able to: Understand how mentoring can help break the cycle of generational poverty. Recognize the importance of trauma-informed and healing-centered approaches in youth development. Explain why mental health and emotional well-being are essential for long-term success. Identify the value of combining mentoring, workforce development, and wellness into one holistic model. Understand why addressing root causes leads to more meaningful and lasting impact. Learn how strong, mission-aligned partnerships can strengthen nonprofit outcomes. Get all the resources from today’s episode here. Support for this show is brought to you by Donor Perfect. Our friends at Donor Perfect really understand fundraising on so many levels. Stay aligned while working online with a seamless and secure payments experience for your donors and your team. Empower donors to give where they are, whenever they like, automate data entry, and process online, monthly, and mobile payments, and accept payments over the phone. Connect with me: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_malloryerickson/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthefundraising YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@malloryerickson7946 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/mallory-erickson-bressler/ Website: malloryerickson.com/podcast Loved this episode? Leave us a review and rating here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-the-fundraising/id1575421652 If you haven’t already, please visit our new What the Fundraising community forum. Check it out and join the conversation at this link. If you’re looking to raise more from the right funders, then you’ll want to check out my Power Partners Formula, a step-by-step approach to identifying the optimal partners for your organization. This free masterclass offers a great starting point.
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    27 mins
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