 Thank you for joining us again today. We are so honored to have you back with us. Either for this live episode, there's many of you here or for the recording. And again, you can find all of these archives on our website, YouTube, Vimeo, you name it, we're there. Almost if you were to say your names out loud, we would hologram into your space right next to you. Wouldn't that be cool? Maybe next year, maybe next year. So today our show is the non-profit show, Best of 2020 or as I'm going to refer to it as the best of show. Julia Patrick, thank you for having this platform for us. Julia remains the CEO of the American Non-profit Academy. I'm Jarrett Ransom, Julia's non-profit nerd but your non-profit nerd as well. She does like to claim me and hold me quite tight but there's plenty of this nerdiness to go around. I am also CEO of the Raven Group. Julia and I are both continued to be very honored and privileged to have the continued support of all of these companies you see right in front of you. These sponsors continue these conversations. Again, today is episode 458. So we have been two years strong. Thank you. Yes, thank you. Almost 500 episodes strong. Thank you to our sponsors and to Julia for correcting my math. Good thing I'm not a CPA because your partner controller definitely does not want to hire me for that role. We are thrilled to have again, you know all of these companies supporting these episodes. And again, today's topic as we look back at 2021, many refer to this as a dumpster fire. That was also 2020. We continue to navigate forward but we decided today that we would highlight for all of you and for ourselves really the best of 2020. And so Julia and I have created this broadcast today to do just that. We would love to hear from you. If you are live with us today, feel free to use the Q&A and tell us what some of these topics were for you which episodes really stand out for you. I would love to know that because there is a lot that we have done and covered over the year but let's start with hair on fire because Julia, I have heard you say this multiple times and if we had someone, maybe our executive producer could do this but literally a culmination of all of these times yes, where you say my hair is on fire, my hair is on fire. So what would you say was that topic that really stands out and set your hair on fire? Cyber security, undoubtedly. Is it really? Yes. You know, not for the usual reasons. I think it's because Jared, I did not realize, it didn't just come from one guest. It's been things that have leaked in and it's how pervasive it is, how expensive it is and how absolutely it's coming at us whether we know it or not. And we think we're in the nonprofit sector who would hurt a nonprofit who would do anything bad to us. Doesn't matter. I'm the same. I would have never thought that of all of our episodes this year, you and I would have the same top hair on fire topic. Cyber security is something I'm going to witness. I've taken for granted but our guest, Michael Nugie with I Bailey really had some phenomenal statistics and resources to share with us but what stood out the most for me, Julia, was the cost of a cybersecurity hack. If something like that were to happen, we're talking millions. We're talking, you know, potentially shut down your organization. And Michael talked not only about the cost of that but when it happens, how you respond to it. Yes. Being more prepared for the action to take place. Yeah, I agree. I think that's something that we're going to be revisiting. Okay, for the nonprofit show best of 2021, ugly cry moment. Oh gosh. There were a few. I would say for me, Amy Schwabender from the human services campus here in my own community said some things that took me to my knees and I will witness it was so bad that I started to weep and you had to like take the rest of the show and take us out because I was literally, I was overcome with emotion. I remember that that was very emotional. She was very transparent with us and really had a lot of great information to share with us. One of the sobering statistics I remember that really hit me was the amount of organizations that may not make it through this pandemic, being the global health virus. And I believe we had some from the Utah Alliance of nonprofits and who stated, I think it was upwards of 30% across the state of Utah may not make it because hand 10, if you listened to yesterday's episode all about infrastructure and investing in the infrastructure really didn't have the resources to continue their mission. So this pandemic plural pandemics has really made a huge impact and that just struck me, you know? Well, you know, for me and that that's a good choice because you know, our nonprofits have held us up across this planet during this time of phenomenal duress. And so to think that these nonprofits the very organizations that are helping our people get through such trying times would not be able to function, would have to close their doors was frightening. I mean, it was actually frightening. So yeah, you're right, Jared. That was a stunning thing. Okay, now this is a funky thing but nonprofit show best of 2021 third degree question. Are these the curve balls and the, you know all of those, I'm gonna go first. My third degree question has definitely been the great resignation and how that has shifted our nation with the decline in workforce and that has been proven in our ask and answers. We have received so many different questions as it relates to our workforce. How do we find them? How do we retain them? How do we pay them competitively? How do we reward them for the great work and for leaning in because our nonprofit leaders truly are the glue in the fabric of our community. Thread, I should say. The thread in our community, fabric in our community. So that's really been eye opening to me is how we address the workforce that makes up the nonprofit sector. We've had Sky Mercer on that has talked about that. We've had staffing boutique. Thank you to Katie Warnick talking about that as well. And so that would be my final answer to the third degree question. You know, I would say that along those lines I have been amazed at how the questions have changed. Oh, yeah. So when the things, I mean, when we first got on two years ago we were talking about how to get people onto Zoom meetings. Yes. Okay. Pretty basic. I mean, it wasn't basic at the time. No. But some of these things that we've been talking about and how the trajectory of the questions and the answers have changed. And I think it's been fascinating and it's really to me been a clue of how socially we've been changing, you know, socially. Our society has been so transformed by these events. And for me, that's been, sometimes when you look you look at what the questions are they're far more powerful than what the answers are. Right? Well, we talk about the advancements of the questions and we also talk about the advancements of our workforce technology that helps our workforce continue. You know, one of the things that we've talked about a lot from many different guests across the nation has been the advancement of our infrastructure and technology and how that has been by far the place where most of our resources have by default gone to to be able to continue our mission, fulfill our mission and meet the needs of our family that many of us remain at home or working remotely. So that has definitely changed. And you're right. We used to talk about, you know how do you hold a Zoom meeting? You know, and I think it's really interesting. Like the aspect of how do we manage people? We had one of our viewers I met was able, very privileged to meet in public and at an event. And she came up to me and she said, you know I've been intrigued by how you've addressed and how people ask questions about our staff's behavior. And she said, I have been thinking, you know you wouldn't go walk into a meeting in the conference room and turn your back. Or, you know, which is like if you don't turn your camera on it's like holding a file folder in front of your face and not showing your face. You know, she started talking to me about the things that we would do in person, IRL in real life should still be going forward even though we're in a digital environment. And I thought that was just such an interesting aspect or way to look at it. And so, you know our behavior and our questions that we got in the beginning really I think we're so revealing as to how, what the problems that we were gonna have. So, fascinating. Well, yeah, questions are always the best. Okay, the nonprofit show, best of 2021, quick fix solution. Is there such a thing as a quick fix? Gosh, I wish. Again, I wish there was this I dream of Jeannie when we could just say, and there is the quick fix. But I'm gonna tell you, Sasha Lewis with Moves Management Consulting, she always has, so I mean, again, she makes data sexy but she had some great tips and tricks when it comes to fundraising, which as you know, Julia, fundraising is truly my main core, my main passion when it comes to the sector. But Sasha shared in one particular episode and it really hit home, talking about our 2022 annual fundraising campaign, or any, you could insert any year there. And she said, it's already in your database. So, you can pull the last five years, you can do a pivot chart, you can truly see your appeals, your campaigns, where the funding has come in and start to see your return on investment. That in and of itself is your plan for next year. I think everything, my hair went on fire, everything happened in this one moment, but that is my answer to this quick fix solution because Sasha Lewis, it really is, gosh, I don't even, she's very wise when it comes to technology and databases, that's who she is, what she does. And I have had the privilege of seeing her in action, working truly with some records, some constituent profiles, and to see how she takes all of this sage advice into the final result, and it is amazing. So, I loved hearing that our annual plan is already in our data. I love that. Yeah, I think that whole piece of it has been magical for me because it's made me rethink about my decision-making, trying to be less charismatic and bullying in my interactions as a leader internally within my own organization and for the organizations I serve, being more data savvy, I think has been a huge thing. And that's a trajectory and a retooling of my brain. I think the quick fix solution for me, it has to be a product, and that would be boardable, Jeff Banner's boardable. Because of the board portal and that concept in managing tasks and fiduciary issues that boards do, it's substantial, but in some ways for me, it was a quick fix. I was like, get this product going, whether it's boardable or another product, but get a board portal. And that is gonna solve so many problems down the road. It won't be easy up front. I mean, it's kind of a quick fix in that you make the commitment and you get everyone on board, but ultimately it becomes a phenomenal tool. I can't help but think about your love and you get on your soapbox when it comes to having a board liaison. So no shocker that boardable and this board portal is your go-to answer for this. I love that, definitely a best of 21, having a portal, a dashboard, especially now, again, when our board members are all, they're not often coming together in one same room. In fact, I don't think I've seen or been a part of that at all over the last two years. It's been shocking. And we know that many individuals have taken this time to relocate themselves. So they may serve on your board and they may no longer live in your community. So having that board portal and that true access to information, hopefully with a board liaison. Yeah, such a great opportunity. Yeah, and I love what you just said and that is it's the changing nature of where our leadership is physically residing. So it's not like everybody's just gonna move back to the community that they were in. I mean, this is a major sociological shift. So yeah. Okay, I gotta say I love this one, the nonprofit show, best of 2021, Jolt of Shock. I love this image that's here for this topic. I'm always shocked by the Giving Tuesday data. And in particular, Stephen Shaddock with Blumerang, he every single year does what we've called coined the Shaddock Test. So he gives a nominal donation to organizations throughout a variety of the nonprofit sectors to see how they steward his gift. And this is his first time gift. And Giving Tuesday, as we know, we've had a couple of them, even more during the global pandemic. But I also, this Jolt of Shock, when it comes to Giving Tuesday is the amount of donations that came in through cryptocurrency. That was a Jolt of Shock. So much so, and of course we've had the Giving Block on, Alex and Pat, the two co-founders of the Giving Block. And so much so that after that episode and hearing of the cumulative donations through crypto, I have done some research and am considering that for a client of mine for next year. So really looking at how that has added to the diversified revenue of our philanthropy. Yeah. And that was proven on Giving Tuesday. Right. And again, that goes back to the specifics on data. Yes. You could have this discussion and you could be like, charismaticly, yay or nay and make decisions. And then it's not based in science, basically. So you're right. I think that's fascinating. I think for me, the Jolt of Shock, for me, has been fundraising academies, cause selling instruction to us. And I have never been afraid to solicit funds or garner support for some. That's something that I love doing. I have no fear of going out and asking for money. But that's not enough. And I think that was my Jolt of Shock. And I think the thing as I turned 60, I looked at myself and I thought I've been a part of so many big asks, some that worked and some that did not. And if I had been more successful with my philanthropic asks, my community would be better. And so that's a regret I have because I know specifically multimillion dollar asks that I wasn't able to bring home. And if I had been more educated and trained with the cause selling method, my community would have been better. Well, it's never too late to start, right? It's phenomenal. Yeah, I mean, that has really, I mean, I live with that, Jared. I truly live with that. I think God back on specific moments, specific things that I couldn't get home. I couldn't close. I love the call selling education as well. And we've all said it myself, yourself and Tony Bell, Fundraising Academy. He has said that. Wish we had this 20 years ago. Yeah, I mean, he's the guru and even he admits, if he, you know, as a younger man, if he had known this. And I think intuitively you do some of these things and when you're successful, this is what I found. When I had successful major asks, when I looked, we had done those things. You know, we had followed the cycle. And then when we had unsuccessful asks, we hadn't been doing that, you know? So that for me was like a personal thing that just was like, holy moly. And also, I keep hearing, I know it's like, it's not a great image. I should have put my face on that image. Oh my gosh. Okay, the nonprofit show best of 2021, greatest gift. I'll go first. It's the nonprofit nerd, Jared Ransom, joining me every day, thicker than on this journey. I've learned so much from you and your questions and answers and approaches are not always mine. We don't always agree, but that has been the true gift. It's just been remarkable. Thank you. That's really kind. No, it's not kind. It's true, baby. It's the truth. I appreciate it so much. You know, I love nerding out. I love doing what we do. You came to me and said, this is gonna be a two week endeavor. And I said, what the heck? I've got nothing else to do, but just, you know, stay in bed, fetal position. And here we are two years strong. And my greatest gift has truly been this platform and all of the amazing leaders across the nation. I feel blessed because every single day I wake up and we perform an environmental analysis with our guest, with our viewers, because we have learned through various geographic locations, what's happening in our sector. We have taught, you name it, we've talked about it, right? We've talked about programming and fundraising and board and administration and cybersecurity and our workforce. We have touched on, if not everything, just about everything within our nonprofit sector. And that has truly elevated my knowledge. I mean, I'm already a nerd, but now I'm like a, I don't know, nerd pro. Yeah. If I was an iPhone, I'm a nerd pro max. And really just elevated my knowledge when it comes to, you know, it's specific areas that I am not versed in. Cybersecurity, again, I shared earlier in today's episode, I take for granted, that is not something that is really within my peripheral of concern. And I've learned so much about how cybersecurity impacts our sector. Gosh, we've had Jennifer or Aliva on and many of the leaders at your part-time controller, accounting also not my wheelhouse. And so truly having the ability to have these high level conversations, real life, no script, that's something maybe you don't understand. There is no script behind these episodes. So we come on with a topic, Julie and I, you know, are honored and extremely privileged to have these conversations and dialogue with people like Rita Sornin, right? At the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. And there's no script thanks to our sponsors that trust and invest in us to truly open a conversation. So I, you know, signed up for two weeks. Here we are two years and I am the one that's benefiting from this. Yeah, I agree. I'm so much, I'm so much, I have so much more gratitude and wisdom and knowledge, you know, and it's not because of anything I've done, it's just what's come at us and just the different people. And I mean, really amazing human beings. It makes me proud of my country. Also makes me have hope for the future when I see these people doing these amazing things and really thinking about it. I mean, really, really thinking about being educated, educating themselves, educating others, you know, writing, speaking, working at. It's pretty amazing. If you could see what we see. Yeah, you see something fascinating during a green room chatter. And it talks about the nonprofit champs as well. But I don't know if you could recall and maybe say it again, but you have learned and absorbed so much as opposed to giving of information that you have. We both have, especially in our master classes, but you have received and I'm curious if you'd be willing to share that. Well, I would say that prior to the pandemic, you know, my life was going out and spewing out my information, pushing out my information, right? Speaking, training, you know, doing that. But what this has done is it has made me receive information, right? Because we're interviewing people. It's not just about me and my vision and me and my bully pulpit, right? And so that is what has been a transition for me in my life, is that it's reduced that charismatic, I'm gonna tell you how to do it, when to do it and why to do it. And it has made me more open to hearing new and different things. And that has been a huge, huge value for me. But I think there's just so much information that's out there and it's changing. So that's the other thing, Jared, is that if I had stayed in my community doing the same thing that I'm doing, I wouldn't have grown as I have in terms of learning from all these amazing people. And some of these amazing people are what we would call our nonprofit champs. I mean, so many, so many far more than we could put on this slide. But some of our favorite guests and people that have really illuminated a new path, a new idea. Sometimes it's just been a reminder of things that we knew but maybe we forgot or we needed to be encouraged to reassert, these have been some of them. Yeah, phenomenal guests and there's so many more. And we have already for next year, have so many more guests, many coming back. So we're grateful and thankful for that. And so many new voices will be heard and faces will be seen in the national live broadcast for next year. But so many great conversations. And as we said earlier in today's episode, we even see that by our Friday or Friday, ask and answer the questions. The questions have changed based on where we are in current events and the happenings around the nation. And just so grateful to have all of you as our amazing viewers or as we like to call raving fans in our staff meetings. We refer to you as our raving fans. Now, next, our Friday, we are not having our episode. So we will celebrate Friday, tomorrow as Thursday for our ask and answer episode. Again, thank you to Fundraising Academy. So please do join us back here tomorrow. We might be popping some bubbly. We invite you to do the same as we wrap up 2021 with our ask and answer questions tomorrow. You know, it's gonna be a lot of fun. And Jared, you figured out something that I didn't even realize as we move forward. And again, remind everybody where they can find us on Roku, YouTube, TV, Amazon Fire TV and Vimeo. This is a big shout out to our sponsors because they've allowed us to do what on our very first show of 2022. What do we do? What is gonna be the big milestone of our first episode? We're 50, yes. Yeah. So this is episode 448. I thought that's what you're gonna ask. So I pulled up a spreadsheet, but I was like, wait, what did we do? I was waiting for the shepherds to take off, you know, screen left. Yes, so thank you to our sponsors. Our very first episode of next year will be 450, quite a milestone, super honored to be of service, to be of service truly. Yeah, so 450th episode on Monday. That just is like stunning to me. It really, really is. Well, hey, what a great year we've had. Thanks to you, all of our viewers, all of our guests, all the people that have written in, the people that have stopped me at the street, on the street, at events, and the few that I've gone to and said things or given us ideas. Wow, it has been a ride. And it will continue to be so for 2022. Non-profit sector, we're 1.8 million organizations strong. We have a lot of work to do. We have a lot of work to do. Get those muscles, that's right. We need to be pumping up. We need to be pumping up. Hey, everybody, as we like to end every day, we want to remind you to stay well so you can do well. We'll see you back here. You tomorrow. Thanks, Jared.