Through the Noise

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#130 Northern Virginia Family Service - Stephanie Berkowitz Dec 06, 2015

Show notes

Today we're excited to welcome Cost Tree as a new sponsor. You may recall their appearance on episode 124. Thanks to their generous support, we're able to sit down today with Stephanie Berkowitz of the Northern Virginia Family Service. The NVFS is an organization working to strengthen communities in Northern Virginia by providing life-saving tools, resources, and training to those who need it most. NVSF provides a vast array of services to families in need and is constantly searching for additional revenue streams. Stephanie Berkowitz shares some of the struggles her catch-all organization faces and reiterates a point made by many guests on Through the Noise: storytelling is powerful and is the secret to connecting with your audience.

Stephanie Berkowitz, M.S.W., was selected to lead NVFS in 2015 after a nationwide search. Stephanie's 16-year career with NVFS included leading the Survivors' Fund Project for victims of the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon, along with a diverse spectrum of programs serving clients in workforce development, health and mental health, legal assistance and housing programs. Prior to her promotion to president and CEO, Stephanie was Senior Vice President of Programs.

Northern Virginia Family Service serves more than 34,000 individuals each year, providing essential programs to lift families above the poverty line and secure brighter futures. NVFS manages three local shelters, offers health and mental health services, runs youth prevention programs, coordinates foster care with local jurisdictions and provides early childhood education.

#129 Code of Support - Kristy Kaufman Dec 02, 2015

Show notes

Providing a life-saving and life-changing service is something many organizations strive to do -- but once you've hit gold and have found a solution, the challenge becomes how to let potential clients know it exists. This is a good problem to have and one currently facing Code of Support, a four-year old organization based in Washington, DC. Code of Support is something of a "matchmaking organziation" which works to connect vets with essential services. Today we speak with Kristy Kaufman, Code of Support's Executive Director about the "Code" and learn ways to support the men and women who make up the Armed Services. This young nonprofit is making a big splash -- don't miss this episode to find out their secret to success.

Kristy has served as an advocate for military and veteran families for over 12 years and is a subject matter expert regarding the mental health impacts of war on military families. Her publications and media appearances include the Washington Post, New York Times, NPR, CNN, NBC and ABC. Kristy has been a speaker and panelist at numerous conferences across the country, and has addressed congress about the gaps in military mental health challenges facing military and veteran family members.

The Code of Support Foundation (COSF) provides essential and critical one-on-one assistance to those struggling service members, veterans and their families (SMVF) who have the most complex needs. We are dedicated to leveraging the nation's full spectrum of resources to ensure all members of our military, veterans and their families receive the support services they need and, through their collective sacrifice, have earned.

#128 Global Communities - David Humphries Dec 01, 2015

Show notes

We were lucky to get David Humphries in the studio today -- he's not traveling to all corners of the earth facilitating community-based education and development right now. We had a great conversation that goes from Kenya to Colombia to Liberia and connects the dots between vastly different communities to find a common thread of success. We've heard this from previous guests on Through the Noise: development specialists widely recognize the crucial need to involve the local community in education and health-transformation efforts. Even if your organization has a wildly different focus, there's still much to learn that can be widely applied across all fields. Don't miss this conversation or David's melodic Scottish accent today on Through the Noise.

David Humphries is Vice President for Communications & Public Affairs at Global Communities, where he oversees all aspects of outreach from branding to media and government relations across 25 countries. David has lived and worked in the USA, Japan and the UK, is a prize-winning playwright, a 2011 Aspen Ideas Scholar, and a 2013 recipient of PR Week's 40 Under 40 award.

Global Communities is an international non-profit organization that works closely with communities worldwide to bring about sustainable changes that improve the lives and livelihoods of the vulnerable.

#127 InterAction - Burt Edwards Nov 30, 2015

Show notes

On Through the Noise, we often explore the value of collaboration between individuals and organizations and today we sit down with Burt Edwards whose work with InterAction facilitates collaboration between organizations with similar goals. Operating from the idea that organizations are more successful when working together, InterAction is something of a clearinghouse of information for those working in the fields of international development, sustainability, and humanitarian assistance. We'll examine the role of the media and journalists and how to respond effectively to catastrophes without simply being reactive.

Burt joined InterAction in July 2014 and brings over 18 years of experience designing successful strategies to help shape public opinion and influence decision makers on key policy issues from climate change to international conflict.

InterAction is an alliance organization in Washington, D.C. of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Our 180-plus members work around the world. What unites us is a commitment to working with the world's poor and vulnerable, and a belief that we can make the world a more peaceful, just and prosperous place – together.

#126 ACT for Alexandria - John Porter Nov 22, 2015

Show notes

John Porter, today's guest, has been named a Living Legend of Alexandria and has contributed to the success of the community his entire life. He first worked in Alexandria Public Schools as a teacher and was later principal of TC Williams for 22 years. He's well-known around Alexandria and is now helping his hometown in a different manner. As Executive Director of ACT for Alexandria, he helps fund and support other important organizations doing essential work in Alexandria and elsewhere. Last year alone, they helped 130 nonprofits raise money. Maybe they can help you too...

John retired from the Alexandria City Public Schools in 2009 after a distinguished career with the Alexandria City Public Schools, which was highlighted by his twenty-two year tenure as principal of T. C. Williams High School of Remember the Titans movie fame. After retirement, John continued his work in Alexandria and is presently serving as president and CEO of ACT for Alexandria, Alexandria's community foundation.

ACT's mission is to increase the level and effectiveness of giving and engagement in Alexandria.

#125 Habitat for Humanity Metro Maryland - John Paukstis Nov 20, 2015

Show notes

Housing insecurity is one of the greatest problems facing millions of Americans today and the lack of safe, quality, affordable housing invites a host of other problems that can affect one's health as well as limit access to employment and healthy food. Fortunately there are many creative and thoughtful people working on this and we have one of them in the studio today. John Paukstis of Habitat for Humanity Metro Maryland joins us for a conversation about the unique approach Habitat takes to tackling the problem of housing and how they involve businesses and community members in the solutions. With a massive volunteer base through Habitat for Humanity International, the organization has turned affordable housing on its head. Can you guess how many defaults the Maryland affiliate has faced since they got into the business in 1982? 50? 100? 500?

John has served as Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity Metro Maryland since 2006. Originally from the South Side of Chicago where he worked in a family owned printing business prior to assuming executive roles at Safeguard Business Systems and becoming CEO of McBee Systems, Inc., a manufacturer of accounting forms, payroll services, and the development of digital printing in partnership with the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel. As well, he was the facilitator of CEO Roundtable groups in Philadelphia and strategic planning throughout the U.S. John owned and operated building construction businesses in Florida prior to relocating to Maryland.

Habitat sells homes to working people in certain income ranges. Habitat provides a long-term zero interest mortgage to qualified families.

#124 CostTree - Nicolie Lettini and Cathy Galbraith Nov 19, 2015

Show notes

Ever wondered where your money is going? Looking through your books at the end of the quarter or end of the year to discover that all your hard-raised money has evaporated into unforeseen costs? This is a common problem for nonprofits who have yet to figure out the difference between direct and indirect costs and how to accurately anticipate and budget for them. If your organization has struggled with these issues before, you won't want to miss this episode with Cathy Galbraith and Nicolie Lettini of CostTree, a software that tackles these issues so you never have to guess again. Getting a firm grasp on these elements will help you sleep better at night and, who knows? Maybe you'll be able to allocate some money for that raise...

Overhead on the mind of most nonprofit leaders these days. The new Uniform Guidance, which pulls together eight different OMB circulars, has changed the way federally funded nonprofits get reimbursed for their indirect costs (overhead). For more than 16 years, CostTree's CEO, Nicolie Lettini, has created cost allocation plans and indirect cost rate proposals (ICRP) for government agencies. Now she is bringing that experience to the nonprofit world. According to Lettini, "It's time to stop starving nonprofits and allow them to achieve their true impact. It starts with reimbursing them for their true costs,"

Cathy Galbraith, Director of Nonprofits, focuses on educating and training nonprofits about cost allocation and cost rates. Her mission is to help nonprofits understand how to create an indirect cost rate, how to use it in everyday strategic development and how to ensure organizational accountability and sustainability.

CostTree is a cloud-based cost allocation software that simplifies the process of creating an indirect cost rate and allows for maximum transparency.

#123 ABET - Danielle Baron Nov 15, 2015

Show notes

Does your branding say what you think it's saying? Today's guest, Danielle Baron of ABET, reveals the problems her organization faced when undertaking a rebranding. As she explains, if you asked 200 people what ABET meant, you could get 200 different answers. By undertaking a massive survey and hiring outside consultants for the rebranding, they were able to craft a uniform message that is direct, easy to remember, and a call to action. Has your organization struggled to project a single idea? Have you lost potential supporters because inconsistent branding left your message muddled? Do you know? Don't miss this episode.

Danielle Duran Baron is the Senior Director for Global Communications and Marketing at ABET, the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering and engineering technology at the associate, bachelor and master degree levels. In her current role, she has led the organization through a massive rebranding initiative to help position ABET as forward-thinking global organization and to align it more closely with the sectors it represents.

With ABET accreditation, students, employers, and the society we serve can be confident that a program meets the quality standards that produce graduates prepared to enter a global workforce.

#122 ElectroBOOM - Mehdi Sadaghdar Nov 12, 2015

Show notes

Today's episode is a little different. We're joined by Mehdi Sadaghdar, star of the popular YouTube series, ElectroBOOM. Videos on ElectroBOOM receive hundreds of thousands, if not millions of views, and the success of the series could be a lesson in communication for nonprofits and other organization. ElectroBOOM is valuable and popular, not just for the fascinating and funny way that Mehdi Sadaghdar demonstrates the principles of electrical engineering, but also because of his personality and willingness to show and laugh through failure. Is YouTube a medium that could advance your mission and attract more supporters?

I am an Iranian Canadian Engineer at day, and a youtuber at night. I was not born in Canada!

Electroboom is dedicated to entertain and somewhat educate at the same time.

#121 501cTech - Todd Peterson Nov 10, 2015

Show notes

The folks at 501cTech describes themselves as "the people who help the people who help the people," and today we sit down with Todd Peterson who runs their Client Services division. Are you storing sensitive data on an Excel spreadsheet or flash drive? It's time to modernize. No matter how many staff an organization has, it will require IT services and 501cTech provides a full-range of services to nonprofits. While providing help-desk and other services to over 70 clients across the DC region, one question comes up again and again. Can you guess the most pressing question? To find the answer and how you could improve the performance of your own organization, don't miss today's episode.

As 501cTECH's VP, Client Relations, Todd oversees account management and new client acquisition. Previously, he managed 501cTECH's service desk, network administration procedure and staff—doing everything from developing high-level IT strategy for clients, to managing 501cTECH technical personnel and client projects.

501cTECH, formerly known as NPower Greater DC and previously Technology Works for Good, was created in 1999 by our region's philanthropic and business leaders to serve as a trusted source for the nonprofit community in the critical area of information technology.

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