April 1, 2026 • 36 mins
Nonprofits are built by people who care deeply, and the best ones pair that mission with serious business discipline.
In this episode of Agency for Change, Lyn welcomes back friend of the podcast, Danette O'Connell from The Nonprofit Cooperative, who joins us to share how understanding that "nonprofit" is simply a tax status is actually the key that unlocks your organization's full potential.
Danette digs into what social entrepreneurship really looks like for founders, executive directors, and development teams, covering everything from diversifying funding and building one-year strategic plans that actually get used, to free resources, deep-dive trainings, and a collaborative network where nonprofits lift each other up.
Connect with Danette and the Nonprofit Cooperative at:
· Website – https://www.thenonprofitcooperative.org
· Contact – info@thenonprofitcooperative.org
· Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/thenonprofitcooperative
· Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/thenonprofitcooperative
· LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nonprofit-cooperative
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Episode Transcript
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Danette O'Connell (00:00):
Nonprofits are businesses.
The word nonprofit is a taxstatus.
Announcer (00:10):
Welcome to Agency for Change, a podcast from KidGlov
that brings you the stories ofchange makers who are actively
working to improve ourcommunity.
In every episode, we'll meetwith people who are making a
lasting impact in the places wecall home.
Lyn Wineman (00:37):
This is Lyn Wineman, president and chief
strategist of Kid Glov.
On this episode, we are joinedonce again by Danette O'Connell
of The Nonprofit Cooperative.
We're diving into socialentrepreneurship.
We're going to talk about whatit really means, why it matters,
(00:57):
and how innovative leaders areusing it to drive real impact.
Danette, you have been aregular here.
Welcome back to the podcast.
Danette O'Connell (01:08):
I know.
It is wonderful to be here onceagain.
Lyn Wineman (01:13):
I love it.
So, Danette, even though youhave joined us on the podcast
several times, I know most ofour listeners have heard one or
more of your episodes.
For our newer listeners, I'dlove for you to tell us more
about The Nonprofit Cooperative.
Danette O'Connell (01:33):
Okay, wonderful.
So The Nonprofit Cooperativeis a membership organization
where we provide free resourcesto nonprofits.
And that comes into the form oftraining, collaboration,
networking.
We match you to mentors andmentees.
We also vet for-profits thatserve the nonprofits.
(01:55):
They're called vetted members,as you are one, and we vet them
so that nonprofits don't haveto.
So we vet for free.
Their services are not.
So, but we try to do everythingthat we can for nonprofits, and
it doesn't make a differencewhat size you are.
You could be just starting out,you could be over a hundred
(02:16):
million in revenue.
We serve all nonprofits acrossthe United States and beyond,
and we are happy to serve them.
Lyn Wineman (02:24):
I love that.
Danette, I just want to makesure people didn't miss that.
You used, I think, everybody'sfavorite four-letter word, which
was F-R-E-E.
Everything you do is free.
That's fantastic.
Everything we do is free.
To nonprofits.
To nonprofits.
That's 100% true.
That's true.
(02:45):
For us for-profits, we expectto pay something in return for
what we get.
So, Danette, you also, justbefore we jumped on, told me
some exciting news about TheNonprofit Cooperative.
You want to highlight how manymembers you are serving now?
Danette O'Connell (03:04):
We are serving over 9,000 nonprofit
associates across the UnitedStates and beyond.
So, majority, like 95%, arehere in the United States, but
we do have a few that areabroad, and we are happy to
serve all of them.
We just came off of thenonprofit fundraising summit.
(03:25):
So we always have some goodgrowth after those.
So it's very, very exciting.
We ended up getting over 12,000registrants at the summit.
I hope all of you or some ofyou had the opportunity to join
it.
If not, don't worry, we haveone in the fall.
Lyn Wineman (03:45):
I love it.
I love it.
Danette, I even sat in on,well, I got to you invited me
and I got to speak on a panel,which I loved.
But I too, during the two daysof the summit, there were some
fantastic speakers, some greatinformation.
So all of the nonprofitlisteners, and I know we have a
lot of nonprofit leaders in ouraudience.
(04:07):
Go check out The NonprofitCooperative and look for their
boot camp that's coming in thefall, right?
Danette O'Connell (04:15):
We do.
So we have the summit inSeptember and we move this boot
camp to the fall.
So the boot camp will be deepdives.
So a lot of what you get atsummits and even our trainings,
they're one-hour trainings.
But the boot camps are gonna betwo-hour deep dives into each
topic.
And it's not gonna be justfundraising, it's gonna be,
(04:39):
we're gonna talk about HR, we'regonna talk about fundraising,
technology, AI.
So we will have all differenttopics, but we'll give you
something to do.
And you know, like, so we'regonna teach you not only just
how to do a high-level budget,but we're gonna teach you that
dive into that budget.
We also have finance and teachyou how to do it.
(05:00):
And where do you pull theinformation and where do you get
that?
And how do you present it toyour board?
And how do you do the reportingto the board?
So we're gonna have all of thatin two hours.
And so it's gonna be a minicrash course.
You know, two hours is a longtime to really learn something,
but we don't want to, we didn'twant to make it high level.
(05:21):
We interviewed or we surveyedour nonprofits, and that's what
they were requesting.
We had this last year, theyloved it, but we didn't go as
deep as we're going this year.
They said that was great, butgo deeper.
Yeah, like, okay, yeah, wedon't want to make them three
hours, so we figured we'd do twoand a half hours, but we have
(05:43):
two breaks in there, so it'll bea little over two hours.
And and Lyn, we had talkedabout this.
You also do one like that, adeep dive into the topics.
You can learn so much more bydoing that.
Lyn Wineman (05:59):
A hundred percent.
I love when you have what'sgreat about two hours is it
gives you a chance not only froma speaker's standpoint, it
gives you a chance not only toshare how-tos, but to take a
little bit of time at least tolet people jump in and try it,
right?
Like, hey, here's here's how Ilike to set up a brand strategy.
(06:22):
Here's how I like to set up atarget audience persona, and you
can start filling out the tooland start using the tool.
Because sometimes, I don't knowif you've ever done this, but I
have done this where I've goneto a seminar, I've learned the
things, I've nodded my head andsaid, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep.
But then when I actually getinto it, I have questions.
(06:44):
And I think that's where youget the value of the longer
sessions and the deep dive.
You realize kind of where yourquestions are as you go while
you still have access tosomebody you can ask.
So, well, with greatprogramming like that, I know
you're gonna blow into the10,000 number of members before
(07:08):
we know it.
And you know, as I'm reflectingon this, Danette, when you
think about every nonprofit youserve is making an impact with
their group of people.
And when they impact the peoplethey serve, that then impacts
the people that are around thepeople they serve.
(07:31):
And then when you multiply thatby 9,000, soon to be 10,000.
I mean, you've got to feelpretty good about this
organization that you founded,The Nonprofit Cooperative, and
the impact it's making acrossthe country and beyond.
So congratulations and thankyou to you, Danette, for all of
(07:51):
that hard work.
Now, on top of that, if as ifthrowing summits and boot camps
and organizing members andgrowing the membership weren't
enough already, last year we hadyou on to talk about The
Cooperative joining forces withSVP New York.
Can you bring us up to date onthat relationship and some fun
(08:14):
things that are going on?
Danette O'Connell (08:16):
Yeah, so SVP New York City is growing very
rapidly, as fast as TheCooperative, the SVP is growing
just as fast.
And we have an in-person event.
So if you are in New York City,we do have a social on April
13th at Idealist.
(08:37):
All you have to do is, andwe'll have my contact
information, is reach out to me,and I can get you the link to
register for that.
So I think it's on our websitetoo.
So we're very, very excitedabout that event. We will be
having them quarterly, so wehave some in-person events. We
just finished up, Wednesday isour board meeting.
(09:01):
So we will finalize our grantsfor spring.
Lyn Wineman (09:05):
Wow.
Danette O'Connell (09:06):
So and hopefully we will have one in
the summer.
So we we're trying to get threea year, so that's my target for
this year is to have tworounds.
So, but we have a lot of newpartnerships that is making that
possible too.
So we will be having an opencall in June for a partner of
(09:31):
ours that's giving $200,000away.
Lyn Wineman (09:35):
Wow, $200,000.
Okay, I'm sure you have justperked up some people's ears.
Danette O'Connell (09:43):
All unrestricted funds.
Lyn Wineman (09:46):
Fantastic.
So tell us more about thisgrant cycle and or if there is a
link, we will make sure to getit into the show notes for this
episode of the podcast.
Danette O'Connell (09:58):
So the wonderful thing about being part
of The Nonprofit Cooperative isthat you will only hear about
our grant openings if you are anonprofit associate.
Again, it is free to joinbecause we do not broadcast our
open grants to the public.
We only broadcast them to ournonprofits under The Nonprofit
(10:21):
Cooperative.
So we have a partnership withtwo or with the two
organizations.
So we have them register sothat we can vet them just to
make sure that everyone'snonprofits.
And then when there's anavailable grant, I put it out
there, and then you have 10days.
We only keep our grant cycleopen for 10 days just because we
(10:42):
get a lot of applications inthose 10 days.
So last time we got 469applications, so you can see
that it's very competitive, butwe we are getting more and more
and more grants.
So this one in June will be alot of grants that we'll be
giving.
Lyn Wineman (11:00):
That's amazing.
That's amazing.
Congratulations on that,Danette.
And once again, we will getthose links into the show notes.
So, Danette, I want to switchgears a little bit because I
know one topic that you arereally passionate about is
social entrepreneurship.
And-
Danette O'Connell (11:18):
Absolutely.
Lyn Wineman (11:18):
Yep.
I think I think a lot of ushear that term, and it's a term
that's being used more and morelately.
But we may all kind of have adifferent idea or thought of
what it means.
I'd love to hear how you definethat term social
entrepreneurship.
Danette O'Connell (11:36):
So, you know, I always talk to the nonprofits
and let them, you know, just toexpress to them that they are
running a business.
If you have a for-profit,they're called entrepreneurs.
For nonprofits, they're calledsocial entrepreneurs.
Lyn Wineman (11:51):
Got it.
Danette O'Connell (11:52):
But one of the things that a lot of people,
especially when they'restarting out, they don't
understand that nonprofits arebusinesses, they're just a
different type of business.
That's why you have to fileyour taxes every year.
You know, we're just moreregulated than the for-profits
are.
So, and I always say, which ismy quote of the day, Lynn.
Lyn Wineman (12:12):
Oh, you're giving it to us early, but we'll come,
we'll come back to it, Danette.
You know I'm gonna ask you thisquestion.
Danette O'Connell (12:21):
So I always say nonprofits are a business.
The nonprofit is a tax status.
Lyn Wineman (12:29):
Yeah.
I mean, all of my friends who Iknow that are leaders of
nonprofits, they still have tomake payroll.
They still have to providetraining, they still have to
have office supplies andinsurance.
Sometimes they have to havemore insurance than some of us
(12:50):
for-profits, right?
So all of those things have tobalance out.
But I'm thinking of a recentpodcast episode we had on the
Agency for Change, which wasCharlie Wesche from Neighbor
Works of Lincoln, Nebraska.
And he is working to form aland trust.
(13:10):
He's combining with the energysuppliers in the community.
He's doing all kinds of thingsthat are entrepreneurial things,
new innovative things.
And he, in my mind, is someoneI've talked to recently that I
would say is definitely a socialentrepreneur.
I would also say, Danette, youare a social entrepreneur,
(13:34):
right?
Like you have built thisnonprofit cooperative from
scratch.
I mean, you truly are afounder, just like any other
startup founder, and yet you aredoing it with the nonprofit
status for nonprofits, which Ithink is really cool.
So, so talk to me about thenwhy is social entrepreneurship
(13:58):
or this nonprofitentrepreneurship so important
right now?
Danette O'Connell (14:04):
So, one of the things that we always I
always like to express tononprofits is diversify your
funding.
Lyn Wineman (14:12):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (14:13):
And so when you have a business, you could
be selling one gadget, twogadget, three gadget.
That's because they diversifytheir funding.
And so I teach a socialentrepreneur class, and that's
one of the things that we reallytalk about for sustainability
of nonprofits is to diversifyyour funding.
And also something that's verydear to my heart, and I cannot
(14:37):
express more, is have a plan.
So I always say to nonprofits,would you drive across the
United States without yourGoogle Maps?
And people are like, no way.
Lyn Wineman (14:50):
That would be a bad idea.
Danette O'Connell (14:52):
It would be crazy to do that.
Well, running a nonprofitwithout a plan is just as crazy.
You have to know where you arenow, where you want to go, and
how you're gonna get there.
Right.
So you may not have Google Mapsto tell you how to get there.
So you have to create the planon how to get there.
You can call it a strategicplan, you can call it a growth
(15:13):
plan, you can call it amarketing plan, you can call it
whatever you want. Just so thatit measures where you are now,
where you're gonna go, and howyou're gonna get there.
And what that plan on howyou're gonna get there includes
your how am I gonna fundraise?
How am I gonna market?
How am I gonna be on socialmedia?
Who am I targeting?
(15:33):
Who do I want to serve?
What kind of impact am I goingto make?
Whatever gets measured getsdone.
So you have to measure it.
So, you know, I can't expressthat more to us more to
nonprofits because it's really,really important to do that.
And diversifying your funding,you know, in today's day and
(15:55):
age, as we all know, for thepeople who lost federal funding,
and by the way, federal fundingis back.
But for the ones who lost it, alot of nonprofits were lost
because of that, because theydid not diversify their funding.
They all depended on, you know,they were getting plenty of
money from the government.
Lyn Wineman (16:14):
Right.
Danette O'Connell (16:15):
So when the government said no more, they
lost their nonprofit, which isso sad that that happened.
But that's the importance ofdiversifying.
Lyn Wineman (16:24):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (16:25):
So don't put all your eggs in one basket.
It's really, really importantfor that.
Lyn Wineman (16:30):
Danette, I want to tie back to also the idea of
having a plan.
There's a project that Kid Glovand The Nonprofit Cooperative
are partnering on, and that isour end-of-year performance
research for end-of-yearfundraising efforts.
And I just peeked at the datayesterday, and one of the key
(16:54):
threads, well, I haven't evenhad a chance to tell you here,
so you're hearing it, you're allhearing it here first.
Danette O'Connell (17:00):
For the first time, but live.
Here we go.
Lyn Wineman (17:03):
One of the key threads for those who had a 20%
or more increase in what theyraised in 2025 over 2024, one of
the common threads was having aplan, right?
And and there were so manypeople who said, you know, we
(17:24):
just ran out of time, so we justupdated the thing we did last
year and sent it again.
Or, and those who actuallyplanned it out did better.
And so the old adage proveditself true once again.
You can either, what is it,fail to plan and you will plan
(17:45):
to fail, right?
And so having a plan,regardless of what aspect of
your business or nonprofit isreally important.
So, so all right, I'd like totie social entrepreneurship then
back to things you're workingon with both The Nonprofit
Cooperative and SVP New York.
I know you have the grantprogram, and I know you have the
(18:08):
boot camps coming up.
You just did the summit, butwhat are some of the other
things you're working on to helppropel social entrepreneurship
forward?
Danette O'Connell (18:19):
So we are going to have a series of
training sessions and workshops,as we call them. But these are
just going to be focused onsocial entrepreneurs.
So, how to create a plan.
And in the boot camp, we'realso going to have a two-hour
session on how to create yourplan.
(18:39):
And it doesn't have to be long.
You know, people say, Wow, Idon't want to create a
three-year plan.
Then don't because they'refairy tales, right?
Let's concentrate the next 12months, right?
And that is all.
Take baby steps because youknow, plans can be a little
overwhelming, and I totally getthat.
So create a small one, create aone-year plan, right?
(19:03):
But just know where you'regoing and how are you gonna
fundraise?
What is your plan to do?
What is your marketing plan?
What is your story that you'regonna tell?
What is your outreach going tobe?
So, like all of that goes intothose plans.
So, we're gonna teach that.
We're also going to be teachingbudgeting because a lot of
(19:24):
people still don't understandhow to do budgeting.
And if they do, they don'tunderstand how to report out to
their board.
That's what we're finding.
I'm not saying that everybodyis like this.
So we want to make sure that wetake a deeper dive into that.
So it's all, and we're gonnatalk about the threats to
entrepreneurs.
So that is insurance.
(19:46):
You have to have D&O insurancefor your board.
It's really, really, reallyimportant.
If you buy no other insurance,buy that one.
But make sure that you are wellprotected if you are going to
do an event.
It's really important that youhave insurance for that.
Because, you know, just like afor-profit, an insurance claim
(20:07):
or a lawsuit against you willput you out.
And so you have to make surethat you are protected just like
you know, any other.
And then the other threat thatI want to go over is
cybersecurity.
Some nonprofits think because,oh, well, we're small or we're
not big enough to get, you know,a threat.
(20:27):
Look, organizations that have$50,000 can be threatened.
They don't know what you have,they just want to go and take it
away from you.
Lyn Wineman (20:36):
Right.
Danette O'Connell (20:37):
Right.
And you don't have to be over ahundred million dollars.
And you and some people say,well, why would they target
nonprofits?
They target everybody who isincorporated, they may not even
know that you're a nonprofit.
So I want to make sure I'mgonna leave that up to the
experts, but I want to make surethat we cover those topics.
Lyn Wineman (20:58):
You know, it occurs to me too that if if you were
starting up a for-profit and youwere in a startup program or an
incubator or a college ofbusiness accelerator program,
those are exactly the things youwould learn, but they would be
skewed for for-profits.
So, what I love about this isyou're doing all of this
(21:19):
training for socialentrepreneurs through that
nonprofit lens with people whoare experienced and have done
this work with nonprofitsbecause I think that's one thing
today, too.
And I am a big, I am a big userof AI tools and large language
(21:40):
models.
And every once in a while I'llhear somebody say, I had AI
create my plan.
And I always think that is notthe place.
That is not the place to useAI.
You can find lots ofinexpensive tools there, but go
to the experts who have donethis before when you're thinking
about something so important asyou're overarching plan.
(22:00):
So I love that.
Danette O'Connell (22:03):
Yeah.
And you have to make sure thatyou know, I mean, if you're
used, if you've used AI foryears and years and years and it
really knows you, you might getaway with that.
But please, everyone, don'tever create a document in AI
without going through it wordfor word for word.
(22:23):
Because somebody's gonna readthat word for word.
And if they know that it waswritten by AI and not you, they
may not believe it as much.
Because look, we're we're in aday and age where people are
really doubting AI.
I mean, you go on Facebook, youdon't know if those videos are
real or not.
(22:43):
Right.
You don't know if the storiesare real or are not real.
I mean, they make stuff up justto make it up so that they get
clicks, right?
So, you know, people are reallyquestioning AI authenticity.
Lyn Wineman (22:59):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (22:59):
So just make sure that you read over it
really, really well if you'regoing to use it.
But you have to use AI foryears for it to get to
understand.
Lyn Wineman (23:08):
Once you lose that trust, it's hard, if not
impossible, to get it back.
Danette O'Connell (23:14):
And look, if you put if you're creating a
plan or you're creating a grant,this is even more for
grants, they think that your AIwrote it.
Guess who's not getting agrant?
You're out.
You're out.
That's why we have videoapplications.
So you can't fake them.
Lyn Wineman (23:32):
Oh, nice, impressive.
That's a really good idea.
So, Danette, I'd love to hear astory about a social
entrepreneur you've worked withwho really embodies this work.
Danette O'Connell (23:42):
Yeah, well, we actually have several of them
who have come through our pasttraining and has come back and
said, I can't believe I neverhad a plan.
And just to make sure, and Iteach this also, when you create
that plan, do not put it onyour shelf.
Report out to your board, holdyour board responsible to it,
(24:06):
hold yourself responsible to it.
And so they did that.
They created a plan where theyreport out to their board, like
we do on a quarterly basis, andthey and that's held them
accountable to make sure thatthey keep up with everything
that they're doing, theirtimeline, everything.
And then when your board isholding you responsible to it,
(24:28):
because you're reporting out tothem, it's a good way not to put
a plan on the shelf to collectdust, because that's the problem
with some plans is peoplecreate them and then they go on
the shelf.
They're working documents.
So this nonprofit came back tome.
We gave them all the tools, andafter a year, they're like, we
love it, our board loves it,because and they have been able
(24:51):
to grow because of that, becausewhat gets measured gets done.
Because then you're holdingyourself responsible.
We want to raise this much, youknow, in the first quarter.
And these are the all thedifferent ways that we're going
to do it, right?
This is our messaging, this isour branding, this is how we're
going to do it.
And then it gets done that way,you know.
(25:11):
And so having those plans are Ican't express how important
they are.
And if you're not familiar withhow to do them, there's plenty
of people within our ecosystemthat can help you create them,
or you can just come to one ofour trainings, and I'd be more
than happy to teach you how todo it.
Lyn Wineman (25:32):
That's fantastic.
Danette, I have to say thatsince you brought that up, Kid
Glov is obviously a member ofThe Nonprofit Cooperative.
And I am very proud to serve onthe board.
But one of my favorite aspectsof The Cooperative is meeting
the other members and workingwith the other members who serve
(25:52):
the nonprofits.
I'd have to say I've formedsome very strong relationships
and learned quite a bit from themember organizations who are in
do other aspects of the workthan I do.
And that's just such a greatcommunity to be a part of.
(26:13):
I'd love to actually talk alittle bit about how does, if we
have a for-profit listening,which I'm sure we do, that is
serving the nonprofit sector,how do they become involved in
The Nonprofit Cooperative?
Danette O'Connell (26:27):
All they have to do is reach out to me.
The first step of vetting istalking to me first, and then
we'll talk through what you do,how you do it, are you a fit for
The Cooperative?
And then if you are a fit, thenI'll send you information and
links on how to get started withus.
So it is very easy to do.
(26:47):
But I want to mention, youknow, as it's really important
for businesses to network, it'sjust as important for nonprofits
to network.
Lyn Wineman (26:58):
Yes.
Danette O'Connell (26:58):
And not only network with the for-profits,
but network with each other.
Collaboration is key in thenonprofit community.
Nobody has competitors outthere, right?
We're all out there trying tomake an impact on the world.
So, regardless of what thatimpact is, you know,
collaboration is a perfect wayof growth.
(27:20):
And you can go ahead andpartner with another nonprofit
that does the same thing orcomplements what you do.
Lyn Wineman (27:29):
Yes.
Danette O'Connell (27:30):
Just the same way it is in the for-profit.
So you can collaborate withthem, create an event, just like
we do in the for-profit.
Like Lyn's talking about, youknow, she's met some great
people through The Cooperativeand other members, and they
don't look at each other ascompetitors.
No, we really don't.
Each other as let youcomplement what I do.
(27:52):
Even if we have twofundraisers, everybody does
something a little bitdifferent.
That's right.
So if you're out there savingpuppies, you may be doing it
just a little bit different thanyour neighbors.
Lyn Wineman (28:04):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (28:05):
And why not collaborate together and save
more puppies, right?
Like I always use puppies as anexample.
Lyn Wineman (28:11):
Puppies are a great example.
Everybody loves puppies.
Danette O'Connell (28:14):
Everybody loves puppies.
I actually love kitties.
I don't know why I don't usekitties.
I love puppies too, don't getme wrong.
But I always have kitties.
I love it.
Lyn Wineman (28:23):
I love it, Danette.
All right.
So that actually ties rightinto my next question because
that was a great piece ofadvice.
And I wanted to ask you, whatadvice would you have for
somebody who's listening who hasmaybe been thinking about
getting into the nonprofitspace, is thinking about
exploring socialentrepreneurship.
(28:46):
What advice can you give them?
Danette O'Connell (28:49):
Do your homework and come to our
trainings to make sure this issomething that you want to take
on.
And I understand that mostnonprofits are started out of
passion of something thatsomeone went through.
And that is wonderful.
But if you have never run abusiness before, you may want to
(29:10):
think that again and volunteerat an organization that does
something very similar to whatyou are feeling, right?
Entrepreneurship is not easy inthe for-profit or the
nonprofit.
I've created many businesses inthe for-profit and the
nonprofit.
None of them are easy.
And you will work tons and tonsof hours.
(29:33):
So just make sure that you knowwhat you're getting yourself
into. And understand that.
Lyn Wineman (29:40):
Danette, I have talked to a few nonprofits
recently that were, just as yousaid, founded by someone with
passion who had been through anexperience, who was an expert in
their field, but theythemselves are solely funding
their nonprofits out of theirpersonal income.
Or maybe they've received onegrant, but now they've used that
(30:03):
grant.
And that is not just like abusiness that is not a
sustainable model.
You need to have a plan and adiversified plan for where those
funds come from.
Danette O'Connell (30:14):
So in the in the for-profit world, the
highest turnover in businessesis the restaurant business.
Right.
And-
Lyn Wineman (30:24):
I t's a tough business, highly competitive.
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (30:29):
Nonprofits have a higher failure rate than
that.
They have a very high failurerate because people don't
understand how hard they are.
You may start out and you mayget some grants off the bat, but
getting them continuously andto be able to sustain your
nonprofit through that is a lotof work.
(30:51):
And if you want to work 40 to60 hours, then maybe it is for
you, but that's what you'regoing to put in.
And people say, well, youknow, I'll have flexible hours.
Yeah, flexible 80 hours a week.
If not 80 hours, you want towork because that's what you're
going to want to work.
That's what you're going tohave to do.
Lyn Wineman (31:09):
It's a startup.
Danette O'Connell (31:10):
And yeah, it's a startup.
And it takes a lot of time andeffort to do it.
And people are like, I can'tfind grants, I can't find
funding.
And it's a problem, right?
And just because just becauseyou are passionate about it
doesn't mean the rest of theworld is.
And your friends and family maybe, you know, supportive in the
(31:32):
beginning, but they only haveso many funds, also.
So then that dries out, and youhave to know where to go get
it.
How do I get grants?
How do I find donors?
Like all of that.
You have to know all of thatbefore you start a nonprofit.
That's a lot of work.
Lyn Wineman (31:48):
That's great advice.
Alright.
This is a good place for me tosay.
I've been saying we're going toput all your information in the
links in the show notes, butthis is where I'm going to ask
you where they are.
What is the best way for peopleto connect with you, Danette?
Through thenonprofitcooperative.org.
It's spelled out thenonprofitcooperative.org.
(32:12):
Or you can email me atinfo@thenonprofitcooperative.org.
Perfect.
That seems easy enough for usall to figure out.
And you've got a great websitethat's full of resources.
So check it out, become amember, tap in and connect with
(32:33):
Danette.
All right, Danette, I'm goingto ask you your least favorite,
your least favorite question.
It's my favorite question.
You've already given us someinsight into what your answer is
on, but our listeners know Ilove quotes.
And I know you've been onseveral times, so I've made you
do this several times, but I'dlove another Danette O'Connell
(32:56):
original quote to inspire ourlisteners.
Danette O'Connell (33:00):
Nonprofits are businesses.
The word nonprofit is a taxstatus.
Lyn Wineman (33:07):
I love it.
Nonprofits are businesses.
The word nonprofit is a taxstatus.
So if you start that nonprofit,be prepared.
Danette O'Connell (33:18):
Know it's a business.
Lyn Wineman (33:19):
Yeah, that's right.
Exactly.
Danette O'Connell (33:21):
You need revenue, you're gonna have
expenses, and you have anonprofit.
Like it's all the same.
We just call people different.
So director of development isreally a salesperson, right?
Lyn Wineman (33:34):
Yeah, right.
Danette O'Connell (33:34):
That's exactly right.
Lyn Wineman (33:38):
Except for it's a little it is a little bit
different because if you areselling something, people
receive something in return.
I would even challenge you tothe fact that being a director
of development may be one stepharder because you are, you
know, asking somebody to fund acause, right?
(33:59):
They may never see the benefitof their donation.
It may come 20 years later or40 years later, or the impact
will happen probably to someoneelse, not themselves within
their community.
It will definitely help, but itis an important role that is
very similar.
The skill set is very similar,I think, to sales.
(34:21):
So, Danette, as we wrap up thisgreat conversation today, I
always love talking to you.
What is the most importantthing you would like our
listeners to remember about thework that you're doing?
Danette O'Connell (34:35):
Everything we do is free for nonprofits.
Lyn Wineman (34:38):
I love it.
So check it out if you're anonprofit and you're not one of
the 9,000 members that arecurrently enrolled.
Danette O'Connell (34:46):
And even if you are, come to events, come
and learn.
You know, I always say everytraining that I go to, if I
learn one thing, I'm ahead ofthe game.
Lyn Wineman (34:56):
Yeah, 100%.
Danette O'Connell (34:58):
If you come and you only learn one thing,
hopefully you learn a lot morethan that.
But if you do, hey, you'rebetter off than you were the
hour before that.
Lyn Wineman (35:07):
I love it.
Danette, thanks so much forcoming back.
And we'll look forward to thenext time that you're on.
You're doing important work,helping nonprofits build their
impact and make a positiveimpact on the world.
Danette O'Connell (35:25):
Yes.
Well, thank you so much forhaving me.
I always love coming here andtalking things out and letting
the nonprofits know what's outthere in the world.
Announcer (35:37):
We hope you enjoyed today's Agency for Change
podcast.
To hear all our interviews withthose who are making a positive
change in our communities, orto nominate a change maker you'd
love to hearfrom, visit KidGlov.com to get
in touch.
As always, if you like whatyou've heard today, be sure to
rate, review, subscribeand share.
Nonprofits are businesses.
The word nonprofit is a taxstatus.
Announcer (00:10):
Welcome to Agency for Change, a podcast from KidGlov
that brings you the stories ofchange makers who are actively
working to improve ourcommunity.
In every episode, we'll meetwith people who are making a
lasting impact in the places wecall home.
Lyn Wineman (00:37):
This is Lyn Wineman, president and chief
strategist of Kid Glov.
On this episode, we are joinedonce again by Danette O'Connell
of The Nonprofit Cooperative.
We're diving into socialentrepreneurship.
We're going to talk about whatit really means, why it matters,
(00:57):
and how innovative leaders areusing it to drive real impact.
Danette, you have been aregular here.
Welcome back to the podcast.
Danette O'Connell (01:08):
I know.
It is wonderful to be here onceagain.
Lyn Wineman (01:13):
I love it.
So, Danette, even though youhave joined us on the podcast
several times, I know most ofour listeners have heard one or
more of your episodes.
For our newer listeners, I'dlove for you to tell us more
about The Nonprofit Cooperative.
Danette O'Connell (01:33):
Okay, wonderful.
So The Nonprofit Cooperativeis a membership organization
where we provide free resourcesto nonprofits.
And that comes into the form oftraining, collaboration,
networking.
We match you to mentors andmentees.
We also vet for-profits thatserve the nonprofits.
(01:55):
They're called vetted members,as you are one, and we vet them
so that nonprofits don't haveto.
So we vet for free.
Their services are not.
So, but we try to do everythingthat we can for nonprofits, and
it doesn't make a differencewhat size you are.
You could be just starting out,you could be over a hundred
(02:16):
million in revenue.
We serve all nonprofits acrossthe United States and beyond,
and we are happy to serve them.
Lyn Wineman (02:24):
I love that.
Danette, I just want to makesure people didn't miss that.
You used, I think, everybody'sfavorite four-letter word, which
was F-R-E-E.
Everything you do is free.
That's fantastic.
Everything we do is free.
To nonprofits.
To nonprofits.
That's 100% true.
That's true.
(02:45):
For us for-profits, we expectto pay something in return for
what we get.
So, Danette, you also, justbefore we jumped on, told me
some exciting news about TheNonprofit Cooperative.
You want to highlight how manymembers you are serving now?
Danette O'Connell (03:04):
We are serving over 9,000 nonprofit
associates across the UnitedStates and beyond.
So, majority, like 95%, arehere in the United States, but
we do have a few that areabroad, and we are happy to
serve all of them.
We just came off of thenonprofit fundraising summit.
(03:25):
So we always have some goodgrowth after those.
So it's very, very exciting.
We ended up getting over 12,000registrants at the summit.
I hope all of you or some ofyou had the opportunity to join
it.
If not, don't worry, we haveone in the fall.
Lyn Wineman (03:45):
I love it.
I love it.
Danette, I even sat in on,well, I got to you invited me
and I got to speak on a panel,which I loved.
But I too, during the two daysof the summit, there were some
fantastic speakers, some greatinformation.
So all of the nonprofitlisteners, and I know we have a
lot of nonprofit leaders in ouraudience.
(04:07):
Go check out The NonprofitCooperative and look for their
boot camp that's coming in thefall, right?
Danette O'Connell (04:15):
We do.
So we have the summit inSeptember and we move this boot
camp to the fall.
So the boot camp will be deepdives.
So a lot of what you get atsummits and even our trainings,
they're one-hour trainings.
But the boot camps are gonna betwo-hour deep dives into each
topic.
And it's not gonna be justfundraising, it's gonna be,
(04:39):
we're gonna talk about HR, we'regonna talk about fundraising,
technology, AI.
So we will have all differenttopics, but we'll give you
something to do.
And you know, like, so we'regonna teach you not only just
how to do a high-level budget,but we're gonna teach you that
dive into that budget.
We also have finance and teachyou how to do it.
(05:00):
And where do you pull theinformation and where do you get
that?
And how do you present it toyour board?
And how do you do the reportingto the board?
So we're gonna have all of thatin two hours.
And so it's gonna be a minicrash course.
You know, two hours is a longtime to really learn something,
but we don't want to, we didn'twant to make it high level.
(05:21):
We interviewed or we surveyedour nonprofits, and that's what
they were requesting.
We had this last year, theyloved it, but we didn't go as
deep as we're going this year.
They said that was great, butgo deeper.
Yeah, like, okay, yeah, wedon't want to make them three
hours, so we figured we'd do twoand a half hours, but we have
(05:43):
two breaks in there, so it'll bea little over two hours.
And and Lyn, we had talkedabout this.
You also do one like that, adeep dive into the topics.
You can learn so much more bydoing that.
Lyn Wineman (05:59):
A hundred percent.
I love when you have what'sgreat about two hours is it
gives you a chance not only froma speaker's standpoint, it
gives you a chance not only toshare how-tos, but to take a
little bit of time at least tolet people jump in and try it,
right?
Like, hey, here's here's how Ilike to set up a brand strategy.
(06:22):
Here's how I like to set up atarget audience persona, and you
can start filling out the tooland start using the tool.
Because sometimes, I don't knowif you've ever done this, but I
have done this where I've goneto a seminar, I've learned the
things, I've nodded my head andsaid, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep.
But then when I actually getinto it, I have questions.
(06:44):
And I think that's where youget the value of the longer
sessions and the deep dive.
You realize kind of where yourquestions are as you go while
you still have access tosomebody you can ask.
So, well, with greatprogramming like that, I know
you're gonna blow into the10,000 number of members before
(07:08):
we know it.
And you know, as I'm reflectingon this, Danette, when you
think about every nonprofit youserve is making an impact with
their group of people.
And when they impact the peoplethey serve, that then impacts
the people that are around thepeople they serve.
(07:31):
And then when you multiply thatby 9,000, soon to be 10,000.
I mean, you've got to feelpretty good about this
organization that you founded,The Nonprofit Cooperative, and
the impact it's making acrossthe country and beyond.
So congratulations and thankyou to you, Danette, for all of
(07:51):
that hard work.
Now, on top of that, if as ifthrowing summits and boot camps
and organizing members andgrowing the membership weren't
enough already, last year we hadyou on to talk about The
Cooperative joining forces withSVP New York.
Can you bring us up to date onthat relationship and some fun
(08:14):
things that are going on?
Danette O'Connell (08:16):
Yeah, so SVP New York City is growing very
rapidly, as fast as TheCooperative, the SVP is growing
just as fast.
And we have an in-person event.
So if you are in New York City,we do have a social on April
13th at Idealist.
(08:37):
All you have to do is, andwe'll have my contact
information, is reach out to me,and I can get you the link to
register for that.
So I think it's on our websitetoo.
So we're very, very excitedabout that event. We will be
having them quarterly, so wehave some in-person events. We
just finished up, Wednesday isour board meeting.
(09:01):
So we will finalize our grantsfor spring.
Lyn Wineman (09:05):
Wow.
Danette O'Connell (09:06):
So and hopefully we will have one in
the summer.
So we we're trying to get threea year, so that's my target for
this year is to have tworounds.
So, but we have a lot of newpartnerships that is making that
possible too.
So we will be having an opencall in June for a partner of
(09:31):
ours that's giving $200,000away.
Lyn Wineman (09:35):
Wow, $200,000.
Okay, I'm sure you have justperked up some people's ears.
Danette O'Connell (09:43):
All unrestricted funds.
Lyn Wineman (09:46):
Fantastic.
So tell us more about thisgrant cycle and or if there is a
link, we will make sure to getit into the show notes for this
episode of the podcast.
Danette O'Connell (09:58):
So the wonderful thing about being part
of The Nonprofit Cooperative isthat you will only hear about
our grant openings if you are anonprofit associate.
Again, it is free to joinbecause we do not broadcast our
open grants to the public.
We only broadcast them to ournonprofits under The Nonprofit
(10:21):
Cooperative.
So we have a partnership withtwo or with the two
organizations.
So we have them register sothat we can vet them just to
make sure that everyone'snonprofits.
And then when there's anavailable grant, I put it out
there, and then you have 10days.
We only keep our grant cycleopen for 10 days just because we
(10:42):
get a lot of applications inthose 10 days.
So last time we got 469applications, so you can see
that it's very competitive, butwe we are getting more and more
and more grants.
So this one in June will be alot of grants that we'll be
giving.
Lyn Wineman (11:00):
That's amazing.
That's amazing.
Congratulations on that,Danette.
And once again, we will getthose links into the show notes.
So, Danette, I want to switchgears a little bit because I
know one topic that you arereally passionate about is
social entrepreneurship.
And-
Danette O'Connell (11:18):
Absolutely.
Lyn Wineman (11:18):
Yep.
I think I think a lot of ushear that term, and it's a term
that's being used more and morelately.
But we may all kind of have adifferent idea or thought of
what it means.
I'd love to hear how you definethat term social
entrepreneurship.
Danette O'Connell (11:36):
So, you know, I always talk to the nonprofits
and let them, you know, just toexpress to them that they are
running a business.
If you have a for-profit,they're called entrepreneurs.
For nonprofits, they're calledsocial entrepreneurs.
Lyn Wineman (11:51):
Got it.
Danette O'Connell (11:52):
But one of the things that a lot of people,
especially when they'restarting out, they don't
understand that nonprofits arebusinesses, they're just a
different type of business.
That's why you have to fileyour taxes every year.
You know, we're just moreregulated than the for-profits
are.
So, and I always say, which ismy quote of the day, Lynn.
Lyn Wineman (12:12):
Oh, you're giving it to us early, but we'll come,
we'll come back to it, Danette.
You know I'm gonna ask you thisquestion.
Danette O'Connell (12:21):
So I always say nonprofits are a business.
The nonprofit is a tax status.
Lyn Wineman (12:29):
Yeah.
I mean, all of my friends who Iknow that are leaders of
nonprofits, they still have tomake payroll.
They still have to providetraining, they still have to
have office supplies andinsurance.
Sometimes they have to havemore insurance than some of us
(12:50):
for-profits, right?
So all of those things have tobalance out.
But I'm thinking of a recentpodcast episode we had on the
Agency for Change, which wasCharlie Wesche from Neighbor
Works of Lincoln, Nebraska.
And he is working to form aland trust.
(13:10):
He's combining with the energysuppliers in the community.
He's doing all kinds of thingsthat are entrepreneurial things,
new innovative things.
And he, in my mind, is someoneI've talked to recently that I
would say is definitely a socialentrepreneur.
I would also say, Danette, youare a social entrepreneur,
(13:34):
right?
Like you have built thisnonprofit cooperative from
scratch.
I mean, you truly are afounder, just like any other
startup founder, and yet you aredoing it with the nonprofit
status for nonprofits, which Ithink is really cool.
So, so talk to me about thenwhy is social entrepreneurship
(13:58):
or this nonprofitentrepreneurship so important
right now?
Danette O'Connell (14:04):
So, one of the things that we always I
always like to express tononprofits is diversify your
funding.
Lyn Wineman (14:12):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (14:13):
And so when you have a business, you could
be selling one gadget, twogadget, three gadget.
That's because they diversifytheir funding.
And so I teach a socialentrepreneur class, and that's
one of the things that we reallytalk about for sustainability
of nonprofits is to diversifyyour funding.
And also something that's verydear to my heart, and I cannot
(14:37):
express more, is have a plan.
So I always say to nonprofits,would you drive across the
United States without yourGoogle Maps?
And people are like, no way.
Lyn Wineman (14:50):
That would be a bad idea.
Danette O'Connell (14:52):
It would be crazy to do that.
Well, running a nonprofitwithout a plan is just as crazy.
You have to know where you arenow, where you want to go, and
how you're gonna get there.
Right.
So you may not have Google Mapsto tell you how to get there.
So you have to create the planon how to get there.
You can call it a strategicplan, you can call it a growth
(15:13):
plan, you can call it amarketing plan, you can call it
whatever you want. Just so thatit measures where you are now,
where you're gonna go, and howyou're gonna get there.
And what that plan on howyou're gonna get there includes
your how am I gonna fundraise?
How am I gonna market?
How am I gonna be on socialmedia?
Who am I targeting?
(15:33):
Who do I want to serve?
What kind of impact am I goingto make?
Whatever gets measured getsdone.
So you have to measure it.
So, you know, I can't expressthat more to us more to
nonprofits because it's really,really important to do that.
And diversifying your funding,you know, in today's day and
(15:55):
age, as we all know, for thepeople who lost federal funding,
and by the way, federal fundingis back.
But for the ones who lost it, alot of nonprofits were lost
because of that, because theydid not diversify their funding.
They all depended on, you know,they were getting plenty of
money from the government.
Lyn Wineman (16:14):
Right.
Danette O'Connell (16:15):
So when the government said no more, they
lost their nonprofit, which isso sad that that happened.
But that's the importance ofdiversifying.
Lyn Wineman (16:24):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (16:25):
So don't put all your eggs in one basket.
It's really, really importantfor that.
Lyn Wineman (16:30):
Danette, I want to tie back to also the idea of
having a plan.
There's a project that Kid Glovand The Nonprofit Cooperative
are partnering on, and that isour end-of-year performance
research for end-of-yearfundraising efforts.
And I just peeked at the datayesterday, and one of the key
(16:54):
threads, well, I haven't evenhad a chance to tell you here,
so you're hearing it, you're allhearing it here first.
Danette O'Connell (17:00):
For the first time, but live.
Here we go.
Lyn Wineman (17:03):
One of the key threads for those who had a 20%
or more increase in what theyraised in 2025 over 2024, one of
the common threads was having aplan, right?
And and there were so manypeople who said, you know, we
(17:24):
just ran out of time, so we justupdated the thing we did last
year and sent it again.
Or, and those who actuallyplanned it out did better.
And so the old adage proveditself true once again.
You can either, what is it,fail to plan and you will plan
(17:45):
to fail, right?
And so having a plan,regardless of what aspect of
your business or nonprofit isreally important.
So, so all right, I'd like totie social entrepreneurship then
back to things you're workingon with both The Nonprofit
Cooperative and SVP New York.
I know you have the grantprogram, and I know you have the
(18:08):
boot camps coming up.
You just did the summit, butwhat are some of the other
things you're working on to helppropel social entrepreneurship
forward?
Danette O'Connell (18:19):
So we are going to have a series of
training sessions and workshops,as we call them. But these are
just going to be focused onsocial entrepreneurs.
So, how to create a plan.
And in the boot camp, we'realso going to have a two-hour
session on how to create yourplan.
(18:39):
And it doesn't have to be long.
You know, people say, Wow, Idon't want to create a
three-year plan.
Then don't because they'refairy tales, right?
Let's concentrate the next 12months, right?
And that is all.
Take baby steps because youknow, plans can be a little
overwhelming, and I totally getthat.
So create a small one, create aone-year plan, right?
(19:03):
But just know where you'regoing and how are you gonna
fundraise?
What is your plan to do?
What is your marketing plan?
What is your story that you'regonna tell?
What is your outreach going tobe?
So, like all of that goes intothose plans.
So, we're gonna teach that.
We're also going to be teachingbudgeting because a lot of
(19:24):
people still don't understandhow to do budgeting.
And if they do, they don'tunderstand how to report out to
their board.
That's what we're finding.
I'm not saying that everybodyis like this.
So we want to make sure that wetake a deeper dive into that.
So it's all, and we're gonnatalk about the threats to
entrepreneurs.
So that is insurance.
(19:46):
You have to have D&O insurancefor your board.
It's really, really, reallyimportant.
If you buy no other insurance,buy that one.
But make sure that you are wellprotected if you are going to
do an event.
It's really important that youhave insurance for that.
Because, you know, just like afor-profit, an insurance claim
(20:07):
or a lawsuit against you willput you out.
And so you have to make surethat you are protected just like
you know, any other.
And then the other threat thatI want to go over is
cybersecurity.
Some nonprofits think because,oh, well, we're small or we're
not big enough to get, you know,a threat.
(20:27):
Look, organizations that have$50,000 can be threatened.
They don't know what you have,they just want to go and take it
away from you.
Lyn Wineman (20:36):
Right.
Danette O'Connell (20:37):
Right.
And you don't have to be over ahundred million dollars.
And you and some people say,well, why would they target
nonprofits?
They target everybody who isincorporated, they may not even
know that you're a nonprofit.
So I want to make sure I'mgonna leave that up to the
experts, but I want to make surethat we cover those topics.
Lyn Wineman (20:58):
You know, it occurs to me too that if if you were
starting up a for-profit and youwere in a startup program or an
incubator or a college ofbusiness accelerator program,
those are exactly the things youwould learn, but they would be
skewed for for-profits.
So, what I love about this isyou're doing all of this
(21:19):
training for socialentrepreneurs through that
nonprofit lens with people whoare experienced and have done
this work with nonprofitsbecause I think that's one thing
today, too.
And I am a big, I am a big userof AI tools and large language
(21:40):
models.
And every once in a while I'llhear somebody say, I had AI
create my plan.
And I always think that is notthe place.
That is not the place to useAI.
You can find lots ofinexpensive tools there, but go
to the experts who have donethis before when you're thinking
about something so important asyou're overarching plan.
(22:00):
So I love that.
Danette O'Connell (22:03):
Yeah.
And you have to make sure thatyou know, I mean, if you're
used, if you've used AI foryears and years and years and it
really knows you, you might getaway with that.
But please, everyone, don'tever create a document in AI
without going through it wordfor word for word.
(22:23):
Because somebody's gonna readthat word for word.
And if they know that it waswritten by AI and not you, they
may not believe it as much.
Because look, we're we're in aday and age where people are
really doubting AI.
I mean, you go on Facebook, youdon't know if those videos are
real or not.
(22:43):
Right.
You don't know if the storiesare real or are not real.
I mean, they make stuff up justto make it up so that they get
clicks, right?
So, you know, people are reallyquestioning AI authenticity.
Lyn Wineman (22:59):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (22:59):
So just make sure that you read over it
really, really well if you'regoing to use it.
But you have to use AI foryears for it to get to
understand.
Lyn Wineman (23:08):
Once you lose that trust, it's hard, if not
impossible, to get it back.
Danette O'Connell (23:14):
And look, if you put if you're creating a
plan or you're creating a grant,this is even more for
grants, they think that your AIwrote it.
Guess who's not getting agrant?
You're out.
You're out.
That's why we have videoapplications.
So you can't fake them.
Lyn Wineman (23:32):
Oh, nice, impressive.
That's a really good idea.
So, Danette, I'd love to hear astory about a social
entrepreneur you've worked withwho really embodies this work.
Danette O'Connell (23:42):
Yeah, well, we actually have several of them
who have come through our pasttraining and has come back and
said, I can't believe I neverhad a plan.
And just to make sure, and Iteach this also, when you create
that plan, do not put it onyour shelf.
Report out to your board, holdyour board responsible to it,
(24:06):
hold yourself responsible to it.
And so they did that.
They created a plan where theyreport out to their board, like
we do on a quarterly basis, andthey and that's held them
accountable to make sure thatthey keep up with everything
that they're doing, theirtimeline, everything.
And then when your board isholding you responsible to it,
(24:28):
because you're reporting out tothem, it's a good way not to put
a plan on the shelf to collectdust, because that's the problem
with some plans is peoplecreate them and then they go on
the shelf.
They're working documents.
So this nonprofit came back tome.
We gave them all the tools, andafter a year, they're like, we
love it, our board loves it,because and they have been able
(24:51):
to grow because of that, becausewhat gets measured gets done.
Because then you're holdingyourself responsible.
We want to raise this much, youknow, in the first quarter.
And these are the all thedifferent ways that we're going
to do it, right?
This is our messaging, this isour branding, this is how we're
going to do it.
And then it gets done that way,you know.
(25:11):
And so having those plans are Ican't express how important
they are.
And if you're not familiar withhow to do them, there's plenty
of people within our ecosystemthat can help you create them,
or you can just come to one ofour trainings, and I'd be more
than happy to teach you how todo it.
Lyn Wineman (25:32):
That's fantastic.
Danette, I have to say thatsince you brought that up, Kid
Glov is obviously a member ofThe Nonprofit Cooperative.
And I am very proud to serve onthe board.
But one of my favorite aspectsof The Cooperative is meeting
the other members and workingwith the other members who serve
(25:52):
the nonprofits.
I'd have to say I've formedsome very strong relationships
and learned quite a bit from themember organizations who are in
do other aspects of the workthan I do.
And that's just such a greatcommunity to be a part of.
(26:13):
I'd love to actually talk alittle bit about how does, if we
have a for-profit listening,which I'm sure we do, that is
serving the nonprofit sector,how do they become involved in
The Nonprofit Cooperative?
Danette O'Connell (26:27):
All they have to do is reach out to me.
The first step of vetting istalking to me first, and then
we'll talk through what you do,how you do it, are you a fit for
The Cooperative?
And then if you are a fit, thenI'll send you information and
links on how to get started withus.
So it is very easy to do.
(26:47):
But I want to mention, youknow, as it's really important
for businesses to network, it'sjust as important for nonprofits
to network.
Lyn Wineman (26:58):
Yes.
Danette O'Connell (26:58):
And not only network with the for-profits,
but network with each other.
Collaboration is key in thenonprofit community.
Nobody has competitors outthere, right?
We're all out there trying tomake an impact on the world.
So, regardless of what thatimpact is, you know,
collaboration is a perfect wayof growth.
(27:20):
And you can go ahead andpartner with another nonprofit
that does the same thing orcomplements what you do.
Lyn Wineman (27:29):
Yes.
Danette O'Connell (27:30):
Just the same way it is in the for-profit.
So you can collaborate withthem, create an event, just like
we do in the for-profit.
Like Lyn's talking about, youknow, she's met some great
people through The Cooperativeand other members, and they
don't look at each other ascompetitors.
No, we really don't.
Each other as let youcomplement what I do.
(27:52):
Even if we have twofundraisers, everybody does
something a little bitdifferent.
That's right.
So if you're out there savingpuppies, you may be doing it
just a little bit different thanyour neighbors.
Lyn Wineman (28:04):
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (28:05):
And why not collaborate together and save
more puppies, right?
Like I always use puppies as anexample.
Lyn Wineman (28:11):
Puppies are a great example.
Everybody loves puppies.
Danette O'Connell (28:14):
Everybody loves puppies.
I actually love kitties.
I don't know why I don't usekitties.
I love puppies too, don't getme wrong.
But I always have kitties.
I love it.
Lyn Wineman (28:23):
I love it, Danette.
All right.
So that actually ties rightinto my next question because
that was a great piece ofadvice.
And I wanted to ask you, whatadvice would you have for
somebody who's listening who hasmaybe been thinking about
getting into the nonprofitspace, is thinking about
exploring socialentrepreneurship.
(28:46):
What advice can you give them?
Danette O'Connell (28:49):
Do your homework and come to our
trainings to make sure this issomething that you want to take
on.
And I understand that mostnonprofits are started out of
passion of something thatsomeone went through.
And that is wonderful.
But if you have never run abusiness before, you may want to
(29:10):
think that again and volunteerat an organization that does
something very similar to whatyou are feeling, right?
Entrepreneurship is not easy inthe for-profit or the
nonprofit.
I've created many businesses inthe for-profit and the
nonprofit.
None of them are easy.
And you will work tons and tonsof hours.
(29:33):
So just make sure that you knowwhat you're getting yourself
into. And understand that.
Lyn Wineman (29:40):
Danette, I have talked to a few nonprofits
recently that were, just as yousaid, founded by someone with
passion who had been through anexperience, who was an expert in
their field, but theythemselves are solely funding
their nonprofits out of theirpersonal income.
Or maybe they've received onegrant, but now they've used that
(30:03):
grant.
And that is not just like abusiness that is not a
sustainable model.
You need to have a plan and adiversified plan for where those
funds come from.
Danette O'Connell (30:14):
So in the in the for-profit world, the
highest turnover in businessesis the restaurant business.
Right.
And-
Lyn Wineman (30:24):
I t's a tough business, highly competitive.
Yeah.
Danette O'Connell (30:29):
Nonprofits have a higher failure rate than
that.
They have a very high failurerate because people don't
understand how hard they are.
You may start out and you mayget some grants off the bat, but
getting them continuously andto be able to sustain your
nonprofit through that is a lotof work.
(30:51):
And if you want to work 40 to60 hours, then maybe it is for
you, but that's what you'regoing to put in.
And people say, well, youknow, I'll have flexible hours.
Yeah, flexible 80 hours a week.
If not 80 hours, you want towork because that's what you're
going to want to work.
That's what you're going tohave to do.
Lyn Wineman (31:09):
It's a startup.
Danette O'Connell (31:10):
And yeah, it's a startup.
And it takes a lot of time andeffort to do it.
And people are like, I can'tfind grants, I can't find
funding.
And it's a problem, right?
And just because just becauseyou are passionate about it
doesn't mean the rest of theworld is.
And your friends and family maybe, you know, supportive in the
(31:32):
beginning, but they only haveso many funds, also.
So then that dries out, and youhave to know where to go get
it.
How do I get grants?
How do I find donors?
Like all of that.
You have to know all of thatbefore you start a nonprofit.
That's a lot of work.
Lyn Wineman (31:48):
That's great advice.
Alright.
This is a good place for me tosay.
I've been saying we're going toput all your information in the
links in the show notes, butthis is where I'm going to ask
you where they are.
What is the best way for peopleto connect with you, Danette?
Through thenonprofitcooperative.org.
It's spelled out thenonprofitcooperative.org.
(32:12):
Or you can email me atinfo@thenonprofitcooperative.org.
Perfect.
That seems easy enough for usall to figure out.
And you've got a great websitethat's full of resources.
So check it out, become amember, tap in and connect with
(32:33):
Danette.
All right, Danette, I'm goingto ask you your least favorite,
your least favorite question.
It's my favorite question.
You've already given us someinsight into what your answer is
on, but our listeners know Ilove quotes.
And I know you've been onseveral times, so I've made you
do this several times, but I'dlove another Danette O'Connell
(32:56):
original quote to inspire ourlisteners.
Danette O'Connell (33:00):
Nonprofits are businesses.
The word nonprofit is a taxstatus.
Lyn Wineman (33:07):
I love it.
Nonprofits are businesses.
The word nonprofit is a taxstatus.
So if you start that nonprofit,be prepared.
Danette O'Connell (33:18):
Know it's a business.
Lyn Wineman (33:19):
Yeah, that's right.
Exactly.
Danette O'Connell (33:21):
You need revenue, you're gonna have
expenses, and you have anonprofit.
Like it's all the same.
We just call people different.
So director of development isreally a salesperson, right?
Lyn Wineman (33:34):
Yeah, right.
Danette O'Connell (33:34):
That's exactly right.
Lyn Wineman (33:38):
Except for it's a little it is a little bit
different because if you areselling something, people
receive something in return.
I would even challenge you tothe fact that being a director
of development may be one stepharder because you are, you
know, asking somebody to fund acause, right?
(33:59):
They may never see the benefitof their donation.
It may come 20 years later or40 years later, or the impact
will happen probably to someoneelse, not themselves within
their community.
It will definitely help, but itis an important role that is
very similar.
The skill set is very similar,I think, to sales.
(34:21):
So, Danette, as we wrap up thisgreat conversation today, I
always love talking to you.
What is the most importantthing you would like our
listeners to remember about thework that you're doing?
Danette O'Connell (34:35):
Everything we do is free for nonprofits.
Lyn Wineman (34:38):
I love it.
So check it out if you're anonprofit and you're not one of
the 9,000 members that arecurrently enrolled.
Danette O'Connell (34:46):
And even if you are, come to events, come
and learn.
You know, I always say everytraining that I go to, if I
learn one thing, I'm ahead ofthe game.
Lyn Wineman (34:56):
Yeah, 100%.
Danette O'Connell (34:58):
If you come and you only learn one thing,
hopefully you learn a lot morethan that.
But if you do, hey, you'rebetter off than you were the
hour before that.
Lyn Wineman (35:07):
I love it.
Danette, thanks so much forcoming back.
And we'll look forward to thenext time that you're on.
You're doing important work,helping nonprofits build their
impact and make a positiveimpact on the world.
Danette O'Connell (35:25):
Yes.
Well, thank you so much forhaving me.
I always love coming here andtalking things out and letting
the nonprofits know what's outthere in the world.
Announcer (35:37):
We hope you enjoyed today's Agency for Change
podcast.
To hear all our interviews withthose who are making a positive
change in our communities, orto nominate a change maker you'd
love to hearfrom, visit KidGlov.com to get
in touch.
As always, if you like whatyou've heard today, be sure to
rate, review, subscribeand share.
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