Making Sense of Nonprofit Nonsense

When talking about the Capitalism for Good project, I often get recommendations for nonprofit organizations, companies with give-back programs & associated foundations, and community-based companies focused on serving a specific underserved population. These are great! I’ll be highlighting some of these in future interviews with business leaders because I truly want to promote those that are focused on the greater good. These organizations aren’t the only ones that have the ability to do so though.

In this episode, I focus on clearing up some misconceptions around these organizations, bring in government organizations to the conversation, and explain how the context, functionality, and details of how organizations operate are key to achieving higher rates of effectiveness and efficiency. Specifically focusing on the desire to use both donations and taxpayer dollars to “directly serve clients” and when this phrase all too often does the exact opposite watering down the ROI of that donation or taxpayer dollar. This is a lesson in overhead rates and indirect cost rates as well as how nonprofits can increase the ROI on clients served by looking beyond commonly thought of “direct costs.”

References: NOT-OD-25-068: Supplemental Guidance to the 2024 NIH Grants Policy Statement; NIH = National Institutes of Health; CFR = Code of Federal Regulations; Indirect Cost Rates; IDC = Indirect Costs; ROI = Return on Investment; KY IEP Advocate’s All Things Special About Education podcast

What I'm reading: Revenge of the Tipping Point by Malcom Gladwell because its (and The Tipping Point) examination of examples of when a tipping point was reached to make a change in our world, both positively and not-so-positively.

I'm not telling you what to do, but here's where I'm putting my dollar: travel is a priority to budget my time and money because it fills my cup.

Using one of my favorite analogies about choosing which bin to put your trash in might seem like you just have two choices in front of you - trash vs. recycling bin - but perhaps the world is less black & white and really you have many more options than just the two right in front of you. Further, maybe the truly the option with the most value to you in the long run is the one that takes a couple more moments to consider and a little more time and energy on the front end.

What have I read: Atomic Habits by James Clear where he presents many examples of how the compound interest of just striving for 1% better regularly has an exponentially positive impact (and also what can happen when you don’t). Sometimes a decision about something seemingly small can have much larger impacts than they appear on the surface.

I'm not telling you what to do, but here's where I'm putting my dollar: directly to the creator! Specifically, tipping the live music at the bar/restaurant, buying artwork from the artist at the market, following Andrew Hickey’s A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs on Patreon

All the ways to find, follow, & support the Capitalism for Good universe:

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Making Sense of Nonprofit Nonsense

About this Episode

Hosts & Guests

More from Capitalism for Good - Between the Interviews

Episode 4: Business Karma

Episode 3: Set the Foundation

Episode 2: Introduction & Vision Reflection

Between the Interviews - Episode 1