The PM Podcast

Recognized as one of the Top Five CNN Heroes of 2025, Heidi Carman is the founder and Executive Director of First Responder Therapy Dogs, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting the emotional well-being of first responders. What began with Heidi and her own dog visiting local fire stations in California has grown into a national effort reaching firefighters, paramedics, dispatchers, and law enforcement officers across forty-six states....

Recognized as one of the Top Five CNN Heroes of 2025, Debra Des Vignes is the founder and Executive Director of the Indiana Prison Writers Workshop (IPWW), a nonprofit dedicated to transforming the lives of incarcerated individuals through the power of creative writing. Launched in 2018 after her decade-long career as a crime reporter, IPWW began as a single 12-week class inside one Indiana prison and has since expanded across eigh...

Julie Yurko is President & CEO of Northern Illinois Food Bank, where she leads a neighbor-centric transformation of the charitable food system to deliver dignified, equitable access across 13 counties. A respected nonprofit leader and past president of Apra International, she serves on the boards of the Global FoodBanking Network, Better Business Bureau of Chicago, Feeding Illinois, and the Thrivent Member Network. In this epis...

In this special episode, we bring together some of the most influential voices in healthcare philanthropy—Nancy Bussani, Executive Vice President and Chief Philanthropy Officer for CommonSpirit Health and President of the CommonSpirit Health Foundation; Julie Cox, Vice President of Development at LifeBridge Health; John Drake, President of the BSW Irving Foundation at Baylor Scott & White Health; David Flood, Enterprise Chief D...

Lindsey Nadeau is Vice President of Philanthropy Insight at UNICEF USA, where she leads data-driven strategy and enterprise systems that deepen donor engagement and accelerate revenue growth. A nationally recognized voice in prospect development, she also serves as President-Elect of Apra International. In this episode, we follow Lindsey’s journey from her early days in development operations to steering insight-driven strategy for...

Christy Coleman is the Executive Director of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, where she leads institutional efforts to reinterpret early American history and engage the public in complex national narratives. 

A nationally recognized museum leader, she was raised within the historically significant community of Williamsburg and played a significant role at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation before taking on the role of President...

Bill TeDesco is the founder of DonorSearch, the leading provider of fundraising intelligence solutions in the nonprofit world. Raised in Pennsylvania, he studied Landscape Architecture and then earned a Master of Public Administration from Penn State before beginning his career in technology and then moving into a key development role at the Fund for Educational Excellence and later at the University of Maryland School of Medicine....

Brent Grinna is the founder and President of EverTrue, a platform reimagining how nonprofits connect with their supporters. Raised on a farm in Iowa, he went on to Brown University, where he captained the varsity football team and chaired the senior class gift campaign, before moving into the private equity and then earning his MBA at Harvard Business School. His early experiences in alumni fundraising led him to see how outdated s...

David Callahan is the founder and editor of Inside Philanthropy, the leading site tracking “who’s funding what, and why,” and founder of Blue Tent, which guides progressive donors. Raised in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, he earned a B.A. from Hampshire College and a Ph.D. in Politics from Princeton. The author of nine books, including The Cheating Culture and The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age, Callahan...

Dr. Abraham George is the founder of Shanti Bhavan and The George Foundation, dedicated to transforming the lives of India’s most disadvantaged children. A former captain in the Indian Army, he moved to the United States, earned an MBA and Ph.D. at NYU, and built a successful career in international finance before turning to philanthropy. His work at Shanti Bhavan—featured in the Netflix series Daughters of Destiny—continues to bre...

In this episode, we speak with two leaders in philanthropy.

Lee Ernst is Chief Executive Officer and Senior Consultant at Johnson, Grossnickle and Associates, where she leads strategic partnerships and new product development while advising nonprofit clients across education, the arts, and social services. Her career spans major institutions, including a leadership role at the University of Chicago during the institution’s $2 billi...

H. Art Taylor is the President and CEO of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, representing fundraisers who generate over $100 billion in charitable support each year. He previously led the BBB Wise Giving Alliance for 23 years, advancing nonprofit transparency and donor trust, launching the Accredited Charity Seal and GiveSafely.io, and hosting The Heart of Giving Podcast. In this conversation, we explore his life and car...

Kay Sprinkel Grace is one of the most respected voices in global fundraising and board leadership. As the founder of Transforming Philanthropy, she has worked with over 1,000 organizations worldwide and authored seven influential books, including "Beyond Fundraising" and "The AAA Way to Fundraising Success." Her impact has been recognized with some of the sector’s highest honors, including the Henry A. Rosso Medal for lifetime achi...

Sydney Moss is a junior at Dunwoody High School in Georgia and one of two recipients of the 2025 William R. Simms Award for Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy, presented by the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Born with a rare liver disease, Sydney turned her health journey into a mission—launching Concert for a Cause while awaiting a transplant. Since then, she’s raised over $75,000 for biliary atresia research at Children...

Xavier “Javi” Swinarski is a junior at Gilmour Academy and one of two recipients of the 2025 William R. Simms Award for Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy, presented by the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Javi launched his annual “SOCKtober” sock drive in the fourth grade after learning that socks are the most requested item in homeless shelters. Since then, he has mobilized classmates, local organizations, and national pa...

Brian Marquez-Hall is a Development Officer at the Southern Scholarship Foundation and one of two recipients of the 2025 Outstanding Young Professional award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals. From launching inclusive initiatives and tripling donor gifts at Elder Care Services to raising $100,000 in just ten weeks at SSF, Brian has consistently delivered results rooted in equity, innovation, and authentic engagement...

Dwayne Ashley is the Founder and CEO of Bridge Philanthropic Consulting, the nation’s only full-service Black-owned fundraising firm. A passionate champion for social justice, he has raised over $2 billion to support communities of color. With more than 30 years of experience, he’s a respected leader, author, and advocate for equity in philanthropy. We spoke with Dwayne about his personal and professional journey—beginning with the...

Roger Ali is Chair of the AFP Global Board and one of the most respected voices in nonprofit leadership. With more than two decades in the field, he has led teams that have raised over $150 million through transformative capital campaigns and major gift strategies, holding senior roles at Niagara Health Foundation, Hamilton Health Sciences Foundation, and The Bishop Strachan School Foundation. Today, Roger is an independent consult...

Abby Trahan is the Associate Director of Philanthropy at MD Anderson Cancer Center and one of two recipients of the 2025 Outstanding Young Professional award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals. In just five years, Abby has delivered transformational fundraising results—from growing monthly giving at the Houston Food Bank to securing major gifts and endowed support at the University of Houston Law Center. Now at MD An...