Michael Gutman

Belonging Is Not a Program — It’s a Place Key Insights Communities thrive when belonging is built into the walls — not as an afterthought. Spaces like Gather San Mateo show that inclusion isn’t abstract; it can be designed. A building can become a blueprint for systems change. Applications For nonprofits: Imagine shared spaces that lower costs and raise collaboration. For families: Picture a community hub where difference isn’t hidden, but celebrated. For funders: Invest in belonging like you would in housing or healthcare — it’s essential infrastructure. Path Forward Gather is not just a dream; it’s a commitment to create spaces where everyone belongs. Together, we can reimagine what true accessibility and collaboration look like in the Bay Area and beyond. #Belonging #Community #Gather #Inclusion #SystemsChange

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Responsible tech takes more than access—it takes leadership. If workers need support to shape AI and keep it aligned with human values, so do nonprofits. This powerful piece by Michael Kubzansky and Don Howard calls on philanthropy to support worker voice, power, and participation in shaping AI. At Board.Dev, we see a parallel: nonprofits, large and small, are navigating new uses of AI by, near, and for them--but often without the resources, technical fluency, or board-level guidance they need. Nonprofits need voice, power, and participation too. Just as workers should co-design the tools that shape their future, nonprofit leaders need support to steer AI with intention and care. That effort starts with values, is strengthened by strategy and governance, and ultimately depends on clarity and alignment at the top. Board.Dev helps nonprofits build the tech fluency and board capacity to engage with AI on their terms. Tools and access matter, deeply--but they won’t carry you through the next world shift without strong leadership at the helm.

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Curious about the impact AI has in the nonprofit and philanthropy sectors? 🔎 We have two deeply interesting resources on the topic that are worth your time. 📘: AI for Nonprofits: Putting Artificial Intelligence to Work for Your Cause Based on interviews conducted with ~60 of the nonprofit industry's most innovative and reputed voices, this guide dives into field-tested strategies to leverage and tailor AI capabilities to meet your organization’s needs. https://lnkd.in/e39eXV_t 💡: How Philanthropy Can Lead in Building Ethical AI for the Public Good Here’s an excellent thought piece via @Nonprofit Quarterly outlining 10 considerations for philanthropic organizations on how prioritizing AI usage not only benefits their missions’ impact, but also helps to ensure that the future of AI serves the greater good more equitably and ethically. https://lnkd.in/edCCRs-M What are the interesting ways that your organization is using AI? Share them with us in the comments.

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✨For years, the playbook was simple: find a cause, deploy grants, scale programs, measure outputs. But today's interconnected polycrisis demands something different. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gbraBqzz 🌟We are witnessing a fundamental shift from catalytic to systemic philanthropy. What's changing? ⭐️The Gates Foundation showed us what catalytic philanthropy could achieve in the 2000s - bold bets that saved millions of lives. But that model had blind spots: "By focusing heavily on technical solutions and capital leverage, it sometimes overlooked the political, cultural and relational scaffolding that lasting change requires." ☀️The new era of intelligence-driven philanthropy considers not just funding flows, but "relationships, incentives, regulations, narratives and market signals." Next-gen philanthropists "want to see measurable impact, data dashboards and evidence that their dollars are part of a coherent, risk-tolerant strategy." Real-world orchestrators: 🔸 Lukas Walton's Builders Vision integrates philanthropy, venture capital (S2G Ventures), and policy advocacy - with Walmart's supply chain as "a built-in demand engine, turning regenerative pilots into mainstream supply-chain commitments." 🔸Chavalit Frederick Tsao's OCTAVE Institute Limited operates on a 100-year timeline, blending "Eastern concepts of harmony and interdependence with Western frameworks for impact investing and regenerative design" across foundations, family office capital, venture investments, and ESG-integrated shipping. 🎙️The world "does not just need more funders. It needs more orchestrators" - leaders who blend capital strategy with cultural influence, hard data with human relationships, and risk tolerance with systemic patience. 🌐Platforms like the World Economic Forum's GAEA are making this possible by creating spaces where "philanthropists, policymakers and business leaders can align strategies and layer different forms of capital in ways that accelerate systemic change." ✴️The future? "NGO and IPO aren't separate worlds. They are points along the same, carefully scaffolded path - a path designed not for incremental fixes, but for transformation that lasts." ⁉️What is your take on this evolution in philanthropy? #Philanthropy #ImpactInvesting #SystemsChange #SocialInnovation #ESG #Sustainability #FamilyOffices I The Business Times I SPH Media I Luis Alvarado Martinez I NO.17 Foundation 250919

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We’re opening the Grant Systems & AI Accelerator for Nonprofits this January — built to help small nonprofit teams build strategic, repeatable grant systems and AI-supported workflows that deliver real submissions. This program is practical, not theoretical. You’ll: • learn how funders think and how to use AI to support stronger, clearer applications • walk away with practical AI techniques and streamlined grant workflows • develop a grant writing system that helps you handle 2–3× more opportunities with the same team This isn’t just “write grants faster.” It’s about better strategy + modern systems that work with your current capacity. 👉 If you know a nonprofit Executive Director or small team responsible for grants, please share this post, tag them, or DM it to them. We launch in January. Spots are limited. Early pricing and discount details are on the registration page. Thanks for helping this reach the right people. 🙏

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲. As the Climatebase Cohort 8 celebration approaches tomorrow, I'm reflecting on another absolutely amazing journey working with mission-driven professionals ready for their new chapter in the climate sector. It fills my heart every time 🩵🩵🩵 I remember my own isolation during my career pivot. The true magic of Climatebase lies in the fact that 𝗻𝗼 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲. It's about finding your tribe, feeling deeply supported, and achieving that magical values alignment that powers change. ✨ This cohort, we pushed the boundaries of the curriculum even further, ensuring the Fellows are equipped for today's market reality. We added two vital sessions, reflecting what I've been learning myself this year: 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 and, very importantly, 𝗔𝗜 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝘁. Before you graduate and charge into the world, here are the main lessons I hope you carry with you: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝟓 𝐍𝐨𝐧-𝐍𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐋𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬: 🧭 𝗙𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁. Without core clarity, your career strategy is just a list of tasks. Define your Ikigai. 🤫 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱’𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗸𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝘁. You have the skills; now it’s time to amplify your value. Show up, share your passion, and claim your space. 👟 𝗣𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿’𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗲𝘀. Your application is a solution to their problem. Speak their language and prove your unique value. 🤝 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵. Your next job will most likely come from a referral or intelligence you will collect from your network (weak signals!). Invest in authentic connection and mutual support. 🤖 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗲𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗵𝘂𝗻𝘁. Use AI tools to increase efficiency and cut down on tiresome tasks, but never let it replace your human strategy, critical thinking, or authentic voice. To all Cohort 8 Fellows: You are ready. You are supported. The planet needs you. A huge, heartfelt thank you to the incredible Climatebase team that supported me in running these workshops, especially: Kendall Jenkins, Erin Acosta, and Jessica Niu. And eternal gratitude to the two people who first brought me on board and believed in this work: Evan Hynes and Vesselina Apostolova. Thank you for building this tribe! 🙏 𝗙𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗶𝗲𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆? I'd love to hear it! 👇 #ClimateCareers #CareerTransition #Community #MagdaKufrej #CareerCoach #WorkAlly

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Unlock Greater Impact: When Nonprofits Partner with Consultants, Magic Happens Nonprofits often juggle lean resources, complex missions, and shifting funding landscapes. That’s why consulting plays a pivotal role in powering growth, resilience, and scalable results. Why consulting matters for nonprofits: Strategic Clarity & Planning Expert facilitators help craft actionable roadmaps—guiding mission alignment, stakeholder engagement, and surfacing long-term vision beyond just a “nice booklet.” These aren’t wish-lists—they’re blueprints for sustainable impact. Operational & Financial Strengthening Consultants help tighten operations, refine budgeting, and broaden funding sources—turning resource constraints into opportunities for smart scaling. Technology & Data Fluency Navigating CRMs, grant software, and data systems can be overwhelming. Specialist consultants bring implementation and cleanliness—unlocking data-driven decisions and freeing staff capacity. Governance & Leadership Board development, executive coaching, and succession planning are more than buzzwords—they’re strategic investments in organizational strength and continuity. Access to Pro Bono Expertise Imagine laser-focused support—from strategizing to technology—from seasoned professionals, without the bill. Taproot Foundation connects nonprofits with volunteers delivering over $200M in pro bono value—no strings attached. Why now is the moment: With 30% of organizations facing federal grant uncertainty, nonprofits must pivot fast and build internal capabilities smarter—not harder. How Ironwood Venture steps in We help nonprofits explore fit-for-purpose consulting—whether engaging boutique specialists, maximizing pro bono support, or blending fractional experts. Our approach ensures hope isn’t wishful thinking—it’s a strategy backed by the right infrastructure. Ready to multiply your impact through smarter support? Let’s connect and explore the consulting model that fits your nonprofit’s needs. Visit ironwoodventure.com #NonprofitConsulting #CapacityBuilding #ProBonoSupport #StrategicGrowth #MissionDriven #IronwoodInsights

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Exciting news from our partners at Analytics for a Better World: applications are now open for their Impact Accelerator Program. This unique opportunity will provide five nonprofits with expert guidance and #analytics and #optimization training. Applications are now open to nonprofits helping to change the world through critical humanitarian, environmental, and educational missions and close October 24, 2025. Learn more below: #SDGs #Impact #DataForGood #AI #AnalyticsforaBetterWorld #OptimizationforGood #GurobiGivesBack

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Today in Forbes - a crisis unfolding in the nonprofit/social sector. "This crisis is not self-correcting. Without intervention, the feedback loops will only intensify: organizational fragility leads to layoffs, which floods the job market with qualified candidates, which enables exploitative hiring practices, which drives talent out of the sector permanently, which weakens organizations further. And those with the power to stabilize the sector—major funders, boards, intermediaries—must act with the urgency the moment demands. The question is no longer whether a crisis exists, but whether those who claim to care about social impact will respond before it's too late." Grateful to Building Movement Project's Janaé Bonsu-Love, PhD for sharing insights from their annual Race to Lead survey, and the dozens who shared their experiences with me.

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AI is already shaping how nonprofits fundraise, connect with communities, and make decisions. But how do we make sure it aligns with mission-driven values? Namaste Data’s 2024 AI Equity Project report captures perspectives from 700+ nonprofits across the U.S. and Canada. It’s a snapshot of how orgs are engaging with AI — and what’s possible when equity is part of the process. Curious what the sector had to say? Start here: https://lnkd.in/gmYFWabp

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Time flew by at today's Compensation Breakfast at RTI International! Thousand thanks to Sean Luitjens and WorldatWork for moderating a great session with a group of local analytics and compensation enthusiasts, for Teri A. Zipper and Laura Cashion, SPHR, CCP, GRP for sharing their expertise and insights, and to Bucky Fairfax, D. B. A. for your inspiring words and hard questions! For those of you who missed it, here are the top discussion points: 💸 Compensation is a strategic signal: it shapes trust, equity, and workforce behaviour 🔬 AI is a microscope that elevates human judgment, not replaces it (credit for this analogy to Bucky Fairfax, D. B. A.) 🧹 Most teams are still data janitors: comp data is siloed across >34 HR systems and spreadsheets; clean infrastructure has to come before advanced analytics. 🤑 Three metrics move the C-suite: manager span/cost, high performer identification, and turnover. Tie it to revenue or they won't care. ⛓️‍💥 Pay equity is still broken: a ~9¢ gender gap persists due to percentage-based promotions, manager discretion, and hiring compression. (Visier Inc. data) ➡️ AI frees comp teams for strategy: near-term wins are in job architecture, natural language data queries, and resignation risk prediction; the bigger shift is finally having bandwidth for high-value work. (Collective conclusion).

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Impact consulting isn't about frameworks and templates.  It’s about staying long enough to make sense of what’s really happening. At Urban Ethnographers, we don’t just show up with toolkits. We work alongside funders, CSR teams, and nonprofits as embedded partners - sitting in the discomfort, tracing the silences, and asking the harder questions. Because impact isn’t about what fits into a logframe. It’s about what matters to the people living the outcome. The real work? Asking what impact actually means in this place, right now Noticing what’s being left out of the dashboard Staying long enough to shift the frame - not just deliver the form We don’t do consulting at a distance. We do sensemaking from within. #ImpactConsulting #UrbanEthnographers #SocialImpact #NarrativeIntelligence #Ethnography #CSR #ImpactConsulting #Ethnography #SocialImpact

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🌟 New Resource Alert! 🌟 The Foundation for Social Connection released its latest resource: Navigating Generative AI and Youth Social Connection Through Intergenerational Conversation, developed in collaboration with��Pinterest. This interactive site offers videos, reflections, strategies, and tools to spark meaningful conversations between generations and inspire collaborative action. Together, we can: ✅ Equip adults with a deeper understanding of why young people turn to AI for companionship. ✅ Foster open, informed discussions between youth and caregivers about generative AI use. ✅ Encourage shared reflection and decision-making to meet young people’s social and emotional needs. ✅ Challenge stigma, fear, and shame around AI companionship—building supportive spaces where human connection can thrive. 🔗 Explore the resource and join us in promoting understanding, dialogue, and authentic connection in the age of AI. https://lnkd.in/daGUmAcr

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Successful GivingTuesday campaigns aren't built on data dumps—they're built on emotional connection. Learn how to leverage transformation-driven storytelling to move the focus from your organization to the impact the donor makes. This clip is just a snapshot. Get the complete blueprint for donor outreach and persuasive storytelling in our free On-Demand Webinar & Playbook. Access the Free Resource Here: https://lnkd.in/ehuu_Tmj #NonprofitFundraising #Storytelling #GivingTuesday #YearEndGiving

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People say "I'm excited" a lot on LinkedIn. But I'm legitimately super excited to share the release of our latest research. Very grateful for my incredible team who made it happen: In particular Madeleine Alegria and Sara Konrath. Also grateful to our funders Fidelity Charitable®. And finally to our research committee members Ashley Thompson, Meenakshi (Meena) Das, Patricia A. Banks, Michael Moody, Mitch Stein. Huge thank you! We started with a very simple question: As search inevitably shifts in all sectors, including philanthropy, from keywords and link lists to conversation and natural language, what happens to donor education? What happens to giving patterns? When I first laid out a product vision for what’s become our Guide to Good, I had a couple of hunches on that front: 1️⃣ That letting people explore causes without needing an EIN or specific charity names or other details would unlock more personal and diverse results. Specifically making it easier to move away from just big name (but of course still wonderful) organizations and alumni groups that we see as prominent recipients of donations across so much of the data. 2️⃣ That combining siloed philanthropic data—nonprofits, cause articles, funds, even explainer content like “what is a giving circle”—into a single vector search platform would create a whole new window into donor learning (for example nudging someone who's looked at a nonprofit to read an article) So, we tested those assumptions. Carefully. Rigorously. Through a multi-week controlled study. One group used our Guide to Good. The other used Google and traditional nonprofit search portals. The results? Honestly exceeded expectations: 💥 Donors using the Guide were 2X more likely to take civic action 73% more likely to give locally 3.8X more likely to support smaller orgs The impact was real—and measurable! Excited to talk about this in articles and in my keynote for National Association of Charitable Gift Planners in a couple of months. Innovation in philanthropy isn't just about new tools. It’s about rethinking what information donors actually need to feel informed, inspired, and ready to act. We rely a lot on data like the 990... but how much does that really move the needle? So can we take advantage of new technologies to make it easier to search and explore the philanthropic space? This is just the beginning. We're building a future where donor education is dynamic, inclusive, and deeply human. Where we're not just throwing 990 data at donors when they search for a charity but giving them data in a form that is going to engage them and an opportunity to keep going. And we're doing TONS of user testing (thank you to UserTesting for our scholarship for testing!) Check out the full report for more. AI & other new innovations are dramatically changing how we can source data, maintain data, and transform data on our sector to help donors understand it. Grateful to the funders of this work. Gotta keep pushing.

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