“Grow for Change” is a project dedicated to sharing information and best practices from leaders in the nonprofit and charitable sector.
Comments, ideas, and suggestions for future topics are always welcome.
About the Program
Craig Swistun, Portfolio Manager and founder of Lexicon Financial Group of Raymond James Investment Counsel describes why he believes “Grow for Change” will help nonprofits and charities make an even bigger impact in the communities they serve.
Sophisticated charities and nonprofits have time and resources dedicated to measuring the impact of their work, but also the success of the programs they operate. And, they learn from both their successes and their failures, precisely because they take time to measure, record, and report against their activities. So how can a medium-sized organisation scale up?
Perhaps, according to Gordon Goldschleger, Founder of Leaders Who Break Barriers, they need to start by measuring what they are doing today and incorporating that learning into their strategic plans.
How did innovative thinking help an avant-garde opera company maintain their audience despite being shut down by COVID? How did innovative partnerships allow them to create performance space at the heart of Canada's largest city?
Jaime Martino, Executive Director of Tapestry Opera explains how — and why — innovation has allowed their company to stay relevant and at the vanguard of showcasing new, emerging works of art.
Eric Saarvala is Executive Director of Raymond James Canada Foundation. In this video, he talks about "donor advised funds" (DAFs), the role they play in the charitable ecosystem, and how charities must adapt to ensure they continue to stay meaningfully connected to the individual decided which charities to support with a grant.
Hassel Aviles spent a career in the food and beverage industry. Wanted to help workers in the sector deal with mental health challenges, she founded Not9to5. She talks openly about how being vulnerable has made her a better leader, and why she embraces honesty and transparency as powerful tools to push her mission forward.
Jessica Diniz is President and CEO of Breakthrough T1D Canada (formerly Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation). She talks about the important role leveraging data and engaging deeply with their supporters played in their rebranding of an organisation that has been making a difference for over 50 years. In addition, she shares how switching from event-based fundraising to major donors has played a significant role helping them achieving their own "big, hairy, audacious goal" of raising $100 million.
Lucy Cullen knew she had the skills to create social change by creating and launching her own non-profit. She applied the lessons and skills she learned launching successful “for profit” businesses and working in the start-up ecosystem for over ten years. In addition to perfecting her pitch to grant makers and funders, she also shares how to nonprofit leaders can perfect their pitch to people in their extended network.
It's hard for large, established organisations to change. It's also hard for nonprofits to change, even though both groups know instinctively that change is inevitable. Jade Pichette may be Director of Programming with Pride at Work Canada, but they are so much more. In this episode, Jade discusses how organisational change must come from within and the importance of building a culture that supports that.
As an estate planning professional, Greg Jizmejian works with families and individuals to help them build a robust plan. Often, this involves making sure that assets are directed to the causes his clients care about most. But, there are ways that individuals can support causes today that they may not be aware of. In this conversation, he touches on gifts of life insurance, donation of appreciated securities, and donor-advised funds.
Claudette Hutchinson has dedicated years working with nonprofits across various sectors. Now, she’s channelling her expertise into driving social change through her OwningMy Initiatives. In this conversation, Claudette shares the key steps she took to ensure her project started strong from Day One.
Claudette can be reached at here on LinkedIn.
Craig can be reached at Craig.swistun@raymondjames.ca
Communication Strategist James Morris explains how consideration and empathy can be used as tools to enhance the communication strategies for nonprofits and charities. The result? Better relationships with existing supporters and better outreach to new supporters.
James can be reached at james@bon-mot.ca
Craig can be reached at craig.swistun@raymondjames.ca
Industry leader Patrick Bizindavyi shares why a good governance framework is important for nonprofits and charities. Patrick has helped dozens of nonprofits -- from start-ups to established organisations. He also has direct experience, operating and managing his own nonprofit, a sports-related group in his native Burundi.
Patrick can be reached at patrick.bizindavyi@fortnbiz.com
Craig can be reached at craig.swistun@raymondjames.ca
