Around with Randall
by Hallett Philanthropy
BusinessE · Explicit
Latest episode
Episode 305: Reading the Room: When Behaviors Don't Match the Words
Episode 305: Reading the Room: When Behaviors Don't Match the Words
About this podcast
Listen to the weekly podcast “Around with Randall” as he discusses, in just a few minutes, a topic surrounding non-profit philanthropy. Included each week are tactical suggestions listeners can use immediately to make their non-profit, and their job activities, more effective.
Email Randall with a topic for a show: [email protected]
Email Randall with a thought regarding specific a show: [email protected]
Episodes
The newest 50 of 325 episodes
- Episode 305: Reading the Room: When Behaviors Don't Match the Words · 28 min · Episode 305When someone says everything is fine but starts questioning every decision, what deserves your attention: the reassurance or the change in behavior? How does fear, uncertainty…
- Episode 304: Are We, You, Ready for the Fundraising Office of the Future? · 24 min · Episode 304The fundraising office of the future may depend a lot less on adding people than rethinking the work already being done. Economics, donor expectations, prospect intelligence, and…
- Episode 303: Realizing the Requirements of the Role You Want, i.e. CDO, vs the One You Have · 28 min · Episode 303Moving into nonprofit leadership requires more than excelling at fundraising. It demands fluency in how the entire organization works. Chief development and philanthropy officers…
- Episode 302: The Why and How to Say NO to a Philanthropic Gift · 23 min · Episode 302When should a nonprofit say no to a gift? Financial pressure, donor relationships, reputational risk, and long-term obligations can complicate what first appears to be an easy…
- Episode 301: Integrating Program Staff Into Donor Relationships Without Diluting the Philanthropic Process · 25 min · Episode 301Major donor conversations are strongest when fundraisers stop treating program experts as an afterthought and start building the relationship together. Shared planning, a unified…
- Episode 300: Communication and Outreach By Generational Need · 26 min · Episode 300Donor communication is not a one-size-fits-all. Each generation brings distinct expectations about trust, impact, access, and ease. Let’s explore how nonprofits can use…
- Special 20: The Great Philanthropists - Dolly Parton: Making a Difference Directly · 15 min · Episode 20Philanthropy is typically measured by the size of a foundation or the scale of a public gift, but some of its deepest impact happens quietly. Through education, disaster relief…
- Episode 299: Looking to Create Accountability for the Team: Here is how to do it · 28 min · Episode 299Accountability is often mistaken for control, but its real power comes from alignment, clarity, and mutual commitment. This episode explores why realistic goals, regular…
- Episode 298: Qualification: The Difference Between Interest and Philanthropic Interest · 23 min · Episode 298Qualification isn't just about finding out what a donor is interested in, it's about discovering what they want to change, improve, or accomplish through philanthropy. In this…
- Episode 297: Creating a Quantifiable Risk Assessment for that Significant Solicitation · 27 min · Episode 297How much should you actually ask a donor for? Don’t be the fundraiser that lets capacity scores, intuition, or organizational need determine the answer. Take a more disciplined…
- Episode 296: Getting Naming Opportunities Correct · 26 min · Episode 296Naming opportunities can be one of the most valuable and most easily mishandled tools in philanthropy. But, before putting a donor's name on a building, you need a process that…
- Episode 295: The Need for Internal Collaboration with Donor Strategy · 25 min · Episode 295Gift officers can easily become isolated in the very work that requires the most strategic thinking. Moves management meetings often become reporting sessions instead of…
- Episode 294: Fighting the Familiarity Paradigm to Lead Change · 27 min · Episode 294Great leaders are often hired to create change but organizations want transformation without the discomfort that comes with it. In this episode, Randall explores the “familiarity…
- Episode 293: Do we realize that women are the key to the next 25-50 years of philanthropy? · 25 min · Episode 293The next great shift in philanthropy may not be about younger donors. It may be about who makes the decisions. Women increasingly influence financial decisions and are positioned…
- Episode 292: Are We Giving Donors All the Options, Vehicles, to Give? · 27 min · Episode 292The difference between a good gift and a transformative one is not a donor’s generosity, it is the way we help them see what is possible. This episode explores how a fundraiser…
- Episode 291: Taking Over A GO’s Portfolio: Easier Than You Might Think · 24 min · Episode 291What happens when a trusted gift officer leaves and someone new inherits the portfolio? Too often, new fundraisers worry they're replacing a beloved relationship when, in…
- Episode 290: When Absolutely Necessary – The Why and How of Changing the Nonprofit Mission · 24 min · Episode 290There is a tension many nonprofit leaders feel but rarely name: when a mission statement remains sacred, even after the organization’s work has evolved. Mission change should be…
- Episode 289: The Seven Deadly Sins and the Relationship to Philanthropy · 25 min · Episode 289What do the Seven Deadly Sins have to do with fundraising? More than you might think. Pride, greed, envy, wrath, sloth, and the others quietly find their way into nonprofit…
- Episode 288: The Donor Wants to Give: Why Aren't We Asking? · 25 min · Episode 288Most fundraising challenges don't stem from a lack of generous donors. They stem from never extending the right invitation. Organizations stay trapped in endless cultivation…
- Episode 287: Happy Birthday America: Celebrating Freedom Around the World and with Philanthropy · 20 min · Episode 287As America celebrates its 250th birthday, it's worth reflecting on something even bigger than our nation's history: the enduring value of freedom. In this special episode we…
- Episode 286: The Use of Data and Removing Bias - Known and Unknown · 26 min · Episode 286Artificial intelligence and predictive analytics are transforming fundraising, but better technology does not automatically create better decisions. Let’s look at how bias…
- Episode 285: Mapping Donor Networks: Influencer Dynamics · 27 min · Episode 285Many fundraising conversations focus on the donor sitting across the table, but rarely are major philanthropic decisions made by one person alone. Spouses, children, attorneys…
- Episode 284: The Donor Waltz Three Conversation Sequencing that Builds Momentum · 28 min · Episode 284Fundraising is relationship building, but too many donor conversations feel disconnected, repetitive, and transactional. Enter the “Donor Waltz”. A three-step sequence of…
- Special 19: The Great Philanthropists - Andrew Carnegie: The Starting Point of Modern Philanthropy · 20 minAndrew Carnegie did not believe philanthropy was simply about relieving immediate need. He believed it was about creating opportunities that could create generational change. In…
- Episode 283: Qualification Calls – Meetings: Getting to the Point and Not Wasting Time or Resources · 29 min · Episode 283Fundraisers often spend enormous amounts of time pursuing prospects who will never make a gift. Not because they lack capacity, but because nobody properly qualified their…
- Episode 282: A Physical Stewardship Matrix: Creating, Having, and Using One · 25 min · Episode 282Most nonprofits talk about stewardship, but few can actually show you a structured plan for how it happens. In this episode, we explore the idea of a donor stewardship matrix. A…
- Episode 281: Podcast 300 - Fighting a Failure of Imagination · 26 min · Episode 281A tragedy in the Apollo program revealed a powerful truth: the greatest failures aren’t always technical; they’re failures of imagination. In this milestone 300th episode…
- Episode 280: Truly Fighting the Term Overhead in our Nonprofit Work · 25 min · Episode 280Nonprofits don’t have an overhead problem, they have a narrative problem. When organizations obsess over keeping costs low, they often starve the very investments that drive…
- Episode 279: Succession Planning at All Levels: How to Not Get Caught in Bad Transition · 27 min · Episode 279Succession planning isn’t just a CEO issue. It’s a frontline necessity in a nonprofit sector where turnover is constant and stability is fragile. When organizations fail to plan…
- Episode 278: Fractional Work: How to Make It Work · 26 min · Episode 278Fractional employees are quickly becoming a practical solution for nonprofits facing talent shortages and budget constraints, but they’re not a simple fix. This episode explores…
- Episode 277: Where Advocacy Ends - Good and Lobbying Begins - Bad · 26 min · Episode 277Nonprofits often hesitate to engage in public policy, fearing they might cross into prohibited territory. But the real risk may be staying silent. Missing opportunities to shape…
- Episode 276: Shooters Keep Shooting: How to Overcome that Fundraising Drought · 27 min · Episode 276Every fundraiser eventually hits a drought. Calls go unanswered, meetings stall, and momentum disappears. In those moments, the instinct is to hesitate, to overthink, or to pull…
- Episode 275: Emotional Quotient-Intelligence in Philanthropy – the Office, Donors, and Teamwork · 29 min · Episode 275Emotional intelligence isn’t a “soft skill” in nonprofit work. It’s the foundation of everything that works. In a field built entirely on relationships, the ability to read the…
- Episode 274: The Importance of Culture: How to Ensure the Right One to Drive Results · 23 min · Episode 274Talent alone doesn’t determine success – culture does. The same individual can struggle in one environment and thrive in another, not because their ability changed, but because…
- Episode 273: Has Fundraising Work Really Changed much in 50 Years: A Question to be Answered · 24 min · Episode 273
- Episode 272: The Fundraisers Bill of Rights - What we Should be Looking for to Achieve Success · 24 min · Episode 272Most fundraisers know the Donor Bill of Rights – but what about the Fundraiser’s Bill of Rights? It’s about the organization behind them. Leadership engagement, board…
- Episode 271: Communication Fatigue in a Hyperconnected World - Better mass communication tactics · 25 min · Episode 271In a world of overflowing inboxes and nonstop notifications, nonprofits risk becoming part of the noise. Tackle donor fatigue head-on. Most organizations don’t have a generosity…
- Episode 270: Using Faith Based Fundraising Lessons in Secular Organizations · 28 min · Episode 270Faith-based giving and secular nonprofits aren’t opposites. They share a powerful common thread: values. Today, we explore how nonprofits can learn from faith-driven philanthropy…
- Episode 269: Peer to Peer Fundraising: Expectations and Getting It Right · 28 min · Episode 269Peer-to-peer fundraising isn’t a magic fix for struggling nonprofits. It’s a strategy that requires discipline, clarity, and real support. In this episode, Randall breaks down…
- Episode 268: Interim Leadership: What to do From the Staff and Leader Perspective · 32 min · Episode 268Interim leadership is no longer the exception in nonprofits, it’s becoming the norm. As executive tenures shrink and pressure mounts, organizations increasingly rely on interim…
- Episode 267: How to Work with a Family After Loss - It is all About Them and Gratitude · 30 min · Episode 267When donors experience loss, the instinct to “do something” can quietly turn into pressure—yet the most meaningful work in these moments has nothing to do with closing a gift…
- Episode 266: Being the CPO, The Chief Political Officer: Moving Fundraising Forward Internally · 24 min · Episode 266The title “Chief Philanthropy Officer” doesn’t fully capture the real job, because much of the role is political, relational, and deeply strategic. CPO's navigate power dynamics…
- Episode 265: Dealing with Adversity for an Organization, And my Favorite Saying · 25 min · Episode 265Adversity isn’t a pause for nonprofits - it’s a pivot point. As we head into 2026, organizations facing leadership turnover, donor fatigue, staffing gaps, and revenue volatility…
- Episode 264: Counting Planned Gifts for MGO's: Incentives that Drive the Correct Behaviors · 20 min · Episode 264Planned giving won’t grow if we keep rewarding gift officers as if it doesn’t exist. When incentives focus only on cash and pledges, we unintentionally steer MGO’s away from the…
- Episode 263: Why NOW is the Time for Planned Giving Conversations with Donors · 24 min · Episode 263Uncertainty has become the backdrop of modern philanthropy. Volatile markets, shifting interest rates, political noise, and a massive transfer of wealth all colliding at once. In…
- Episode 262: Nonprofit Predictions - Looking into 2026 · 26 min · Episode 262It’s time once again for Randall’s highly anticipated yearly predictions. As many know, the nonprofit landscape in 2026 won’t be defined by doing more, it will be defined by…
- Episode 261: Looking Back and Evaluating HP's 2025 Predictions Made in Dec of 2024 · 23 min · Episode 261Looking back on 2025, the real story isn’t which predictions landed, it’s what they exposed about modern philanthropy. Strong markets and record giving mean a deeper shift: fewer…
- Episode 260: When to Start a Support Foundation: Rationale and Implications · 26 min · Episode 260Should a nonprofit create its own foundation? The answer is surprisingly simple and at the same time, relentlessly hard: will it raise more money? Foundations only make sense…
- Episode 259: Endowment Restrictions by Donors or by the Board - How to Create the Proper Options for Both · 22 min · Episode 259Endowments are the engine that keeps nonprofits strong—not just today, but decades from now. Yet, the fine print matters: overly restrictive funds can choke impact, while…
- Episode 258: Cultivating Multigenerational Family Donors · 25 min · Episode 258The greatest opportunity in philanthropy today isn’t just the transfer of wealth, it’s the transfer of values across generations. With trillions set to move from silent…
