During the time of year when many impact leaders are preparing their 2026 budgets – and making their case for sustained or increased funding — NationSwell convened a virtual Leader Roundtable dedicated to providing a space for our community to connect on best practices, talking points, and novel approaches for making the case for investment, accessing adjacent budgets through deeper business alignment, and navigating stakeholder dynamics with confidence.

Some of the key takeaways from the discussion appear below:

Key takeaways

Advance multi-channel resourcing strategies. Organizations can adapt to flat or reduced budgets by creatively aligning with discretionary funds, cross-departmental resources, and pro bono assets. Embedding impact priorities into broader business strategies supports continued relevance and resilience in constrained financial environments.

Elevate holistic definitions of corporate giving. Leaders are moving beyond foundation dollars to account for the “totality of giving,” including volunteerism, product donations, and operational investments. Tracking and celebrating these broader contributions helps unlock hidden value and provides a fuller picture of corporate impact to key stakeholders.

Benchmark against peers while embracing discretion. Companies are increasingly willing to share impact data in aggregate but hesitant to disclose specifics, reflecting reputational sensitivities. Collective benchmarking can guide strategic planning while respecting privacy, and offers opportunities to highlight product-based and in-kind giving models as complements to cash philanthropy.

Embed executive sponsorship in impact initiatives. Executive champions can unlock access to budgets, headcount, and expertise across the enterprise. Formal sponsorship programs and structured “away models” for employee participation provide scalable ways to extend impact teams without new headcount.

Balance visibility and employee engagement in shifting climates. With many corporations opting for quieter public-facing stances, there is a growing emphasis on internal employee engagement. Nonprofits can adapt and embrace this momentum by providing safe  and risk-aware opportunities to corporate partners. 

Promote cross-sector collaboration to meet systemic challenges. Leaders are eager for truth-seeking and collective momentum in a moment where organizations are largely working in silos. Building integrated approaches that link corporate assets, nonprofit expertise, and public funding streams can build shared resilience in the face of economic, environmental, and compliance pressures.

Leverage AI and technology responsibly for capacity-building. With fundraising and impact teams already stretched, enterprise AI tools can provide efficiencies – but must be deployed with clear guardrails to ensure ethical use, compliance, and trust.