Innovation Episodes

“There's a younger generation of donors who really don't see themselves as much a donor as they do generous and wanting to stand for certain values. And so their contribution… is an expression of the injustice that they want to fight and their perception of themselves of being that: the fighter for justice and equality in the world.” – Mark Miller Nonprofit leaders share a collective sigh of relief when the clock hits midnight on December 31. The year-end push is over, and you’re ready for a fr...

"There is a decent chance that this works, and then if it works, and that if it can be what the vision and the promise is, then for our mission, which is to pioneer solutions to end global homelessness, it's actually irresponsible for us not to try it.” - Brett Hagler When age-old problems aren’t being solved by current practices or aren’t keeping up with the rate at which they are growing, new solutions are needed. But new solutions require innovative ideas and a perfect balance between bold...

"I looked into it and couldn't believe it, like I felt like a freaking chump because I had been paying medical bills for all of these people that would've been eligible for free or reduced care if I would've known about these programs." - Jared Walker So many organizations get caught with their heads down, hyper-focused on what they’re doing, that they don’t realize there is often a better way. Sometimes being innovative just means taking a step back and putting yourself in spaces to find the...

“You also want to avoid this culture of ‘innovation is this shiny magic bullet’. No.That's also a culture that we want to demystify. Innovation is ways of thinking, ways of doing, and of course ways of achieving concrete, tangible results (and) outcomes –impact at scale.” Adaptation is essential to innovation. Growing up in Togo, West Africa, Laté Lawson-Lartego worked a summer job as a community volunteer, exposing him early on to the disparities happening in his backyard. As more of the indust...

Liquid Death is more than just a beverage company. As CEO Mike Cessario puts it, their product is entertainment just as much as it is drinks. And while they are a for-profit company, their passionate commitment to the cause of “killing” plastic pollution has been vital to their success. Building a likable brand with an authentic charitable message isn't easy, but Liquid Death has mastered the art of being genuinely impactful while maintaining its cool factor. It's not just about flashy graphics ...

"Where things fall apart is in the system design. It's in the how. It's not that the people are lazy. It's not that they're stupid, it's not that they're not trained well. It's not that the plan is flawed, –it's that we are working in complexity and there is no attention paid to how we are actually going to work differently." - Rodney Evans Innovation comes from boldness. Too often, companies and organizations seek out innovative solutions without building the groundwork to make those ideas poss...