Topic: Economic opportunity

Working Effectively With Your Board of Directors

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

For many impact leaders, success depends in no small part on what happens in the boardroom. Engaging your board effectively can accelerate strategy, unlock resources, and strengthen accountability. But it can also be one of the trickiest parts of leadership, especially amid shifting expectations, limited time, and complex stakeholder dynamics.

On February 5, NationSwell hosted a group of social impact leaders for a solutions-focused conversation on working effectively with your board of directors. Together, we unpacked the most common challenges, share strategies for deepening alignment and impact, and explored how to get the most from your board while avoiding the pitfalls that can slow progress. Some of the key insights surfaced during the conversation appear below.

Key Takeaways:

Board effectiveness is largely built between meetings, not during them. The most engaged boards are cultivated through intentional, ongoing touchpoints outside formal meetings. Regular one-on-one check-ins, clear ownership over follow-up, and consistent communication rhythms create the trust and continuity that make board time itself more generative.

Clarity of role matters more than activity level. Boards struggle when expectations are vague. The highest-functioning boards create explicit expectations about what type of board they are (working, strategic, funding, hybrid, etc.), what each member is being asked to contribute, and where the board should — and should not — engage. 

Design meetings for decision-making, not reporting. Replace presentations with pre-reads. When board meetings are structured around discussion, judgment calls, and trade-offs rather than status updates, engagement rises and meetings stop feeling repetitive or performative.

Match engagement strategies to individual motivations and working styles. Board members show up for different reasons and process information differently. Effective leaders invest time in understanding each member’s “why” and “how”, then tailor communication, asks, and involvement accordingly. 

Consistency builds confidence and accountability. Using stable agendas, shared frameworks, and recurring formats across meetings helps boards track progress over time and understand how decisions evolve, especially in fast-moving or uncertain environments.

Accountability works best when paired with trust and peer ownership. Scorecards and assessments can be powerful, but only when introduced thoughtfully. Several leaders emphasized shifting accountability conversations toward peer-to-peer ownership (via board chairs or committees) and using self-assessment tools to invite reflection rather than defensiveness.

Strong board culture depends on strong internal coordination. Effective board engagement is often enabled by close partnership between the CEO, board chair, and roles like Chief of Staff or Executive Operations — particularly around preparation, follow-up, and clarity of expectations.

Practical Applications for AI in Impact Work

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

Most impact leaders know AI is changing and reshaping many contours of our economy and lived experience. Fewer feel confident putting it to use in their day-to-day work.

On February 3, NationSwell hosted a group of peer leaders for a virtual roundtable focused on immediate, practical applications for AI on impact teams. Together, we explored how leaders are using generative AI – and increasingly agentic AI – to increase speed, clarity, and capacity in core workflows like reporting, communications, grantee engagement, operations, and more.

From day to day low-lift use cases to opportunities for mission delivery, the session surfaced plenty of actionable insights for implementing AI within teams and organizations; a selection of those insights appears below.

Key Takeaways:

Anchor AI adoption in user-centered design from day one. AI tools are far more likely to succeed when they are built with a deep understanding of end users, informed by diverse perspectives, and tested for usability. Grounding AI in user needs reduces failure rates and drives adoption, especially as many digital transformation efforts fall short.

Start with low-risk, high-return AI use cases to build momentum. Impact teams are already gaining value by using AI for summarization, synthesis, reporting, and more. These applications save time, require minimal technical lift, and help teams build confidence before moving into more complex AI-enabled workflows.

Use AI to augment human judgment, not replace it. The strongest applications position AI as a thought partner that accelerates analysis and surfaces insights, while leaving critical thinking and strategy to people. Reviewing outputs, checking sources, and applying human judgment remains essential to responsible use.

Embed AI into products and systems to reduce friction at scale. When AI is built directly into platforms, such as grantmaking and employee engagement, it can automate administrative work, surface patterns, and recommend next steps. This allows impact leaders to focus more time on mission-critical work.

Treat AI as a capacity multiplier in resource-constrained environments. With impact teams being asked to do more with less, AI is increasingly a necessity rather than a nice-to-have. Thoughtful adoption can expand organizational capacity, accelerate access to funding and services, and ultimately drive greater impact.

Apply advanced use cases of AI to unlock insights for decision-making. AI-powered analysis of geospatial and time-based data can help organizations anticipate risks, target interventions, and allocate resources more effectively. Whether modeling climate impacts, forecasting service demand, or tailoring workforce strategies, AI can be used to better understand needs and deliver more responsive, targeted support to your communities.

Unlock new capabilities from off the shelf tools.  Big unlocks don’t require developing a full stack AI solution. Fully leveraging the existing capabilities in off the shelf low/no cost LLMS, while protecting sensitive data and respecting organizational policies, present opportunities for major advancements in productivity and impact. Be sure to check out voice to text capabilities for braindumping, deep research modes for research and insights, and experiment with Claude for writing.

Impact Next: An interview with Deloitte’s Dana O’Donovan

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

In moments of challenge and opportunity, who is advancing the vanguard of economic and social progress? Whose work is fostering growth that helps to ensure individuals thrive? Who will set the ambitious standards that mobilize whole industries, challenging their peers to reach new altitudes of social impact? 

In 2026, Impact Next — an editorial flagship series from NationSwell — will spotlight the standard-bearing impact leaders, entrepreneurs, experts, and philanthropists whose catalytic work has the potential to shape the landscape of progress.

For this installment, NationSwell interviewed Dana O’Donovan, US Purpose leader at Deloitte.

NationSwell: What brought you to the field that you’re in right now? Was there an early moment, a relationship, or an experience that galvanized your commitment to driving bold action?

Dana O’Donovan, Deloitte: I didn’t realize it at the time, but the genesis of my work really began when I was adopted at three weeks old, which completely changed the trajectory of my life. I was adopted by wonderful parents and given every opportunity to fulfill my potential and succeed.

As I got older, that personal experience became deeply formative; it drove a passion in me around the belief that every child deserves the opportunity to thrive, regardless of their background or the circumstances of their birth. I’m very aware that my life could have turned out very differently — that I could just as easily have been someone the nonprofit sector exists to serve; that awareness has stayed with me.

When I first started my career, I was focused almost entirely on client service. I came from corporate and business unit strategy, worked in strategy consulting, and then shifted into client service work for nonprofits and foundations (I used to joke that my two jobs were horse camp counselor and consultant).

About 18 years ago, I took an in-house role at a nonprofit, and that experience fundamentally changed my perspective. It gave me a deep appreciation for how hard day-to-day operations are, especially in the nonprofit space. Strategy, I realized, is often the easy part — implementation and operations are where the real challenges live.

When I returned to client service after that, it changed how I worked. Strategy still mattered, but I became much more focused on how it connected to what teams actually do every day, and that mindset has guided me ever since. I’ve held hybrid roles since then, never fully leaving client service but adding management and leadership responsibilities over time.

That blend of experiences ultimately led me to my current role, and it’s what energizes me most today: drawing on that full arc of experience to lead with both vision and practicality.

NationSwell: What are some touchstones that you have for yourself from that past experience that you’re bringing into how you’re leading now?

O’Donovan, Deloitte: I think one of the core roles of any leader is shaping vision and strategy — but it’s just as important to understand the operational reality your team is living in. You have to stay close enough to the day-to-day to help remove obstacles, spot opportunities, and keep the work moving as effectively and efficiently as possible. We often underestimate how much time and energy it takes just to keep the trains running on time; that’s something I learned very clearly during my nonprofit experience, and it’s stayed with me.

I also believe deeply in the power of communication. It’s almost impossible to over-communicate with your team — about what’s exciting you, what you’re seeing in the broader landscape, and where you think things are headed, both externally and inside the organization. We actually have a standing agenda item in our team meetings called “Dana’s downloads,” where I share those reflections. It’s a good reminder for me to keep doing that consistently.

There’s no denying how much is happening in the world right now, but I also see this moment as one of extraordinary opportunity. New technologies and capabilities are opening up possibilities we couldn’t imagine before, and I’m seeing a growing willingness to engage in bolder, more meaningful collaboration to drive impact.

On the corporate side, purpose is increasingly a market driver — it’s no longer something adjacent or optional; it’s core. At Deloitte, we see growth and purpose as deeply linked, and that connection helps us stay relevant in a world that’s moving incredibly fast.

I feel fortunate to have a front-row seat to this moment — through my role at Deloitte, through our client work across industries, and through conversations with leaders across the NationSwell community. I’m encouraged by how many organizations are finding new ways to make purpose central to their strategies and to collaborate beyond what any one organization could do alone. That kind of creativity and collaboration is really the only way we’re going to meet this moment — and it’s where I see real possibility for lasting impact.

NationSwell: Is there a particular lever you’re pulling or an approach that you have to that work that you think sets it up for success? 

O’Donovan, Deloitte: I do think we’re seeing more meaningful multi-sector collaboration than in the past. We’ve talked about collaboration for years, but it hasn’t always been as common or as effective as it needs to be. The reality is that the challenges trying to be solved are far too complex for any single organization — even one as large as Deloitte — to tackle alone.

That’s why focus matters. Organizations need clarity on the issue areas they’re committed to. But the real power of corporate purpose lies in how we show up. It’s not funding alone, which will always be modest compared to large foundations; it’s not talent engagement, pro bono work, or skills-based volunteering on their own. Impact comes from intentionally combining those assets.

At Deloitte, that “how” is grounded in place-based, issue-driven ecosystems. A strong example is the Yes San Francisco urban sustainability challenge, launched in 2023 as a collaboration among Deloitte, Salesforce, the World Economic Forum, and the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. The aim was to support local urban sustainability innovators in developing solutions to help revitalize the city post-COVID, and in doing so build a more resilient economy.

That work has since evolved into a broader blueprint called Yes/Cities, focused on using cross-sector collaboration to drive sustainable change in cities globally. We’re not creating the solutions — we’re creating the conditions to help local innovators succeed.

One key lesson from San Francisco: Strong ecosystems require collaborators across sectors, each bringing distinct skills, resources, and networks. Place-based work also has to be community-centered — designed by, for, and with the people closest to the challenges. That means leading with questions, listening deeply, and building alongside communities rather than arriving with answers.

NationSwell: What’s defining the current social and economic environment that we’re in — what are the trends that you’re currently seeing, and what’s giving you hope?

O’Donovan, Deloitte: I think we still need to push ourselves to think about innovation not just for what’s required right now, but for what nonprofits will need five or ten years down the road. That’s especially true as we think about the commitments we’re making to help the social sector meet this moment from a technology perspective.

We’ve spoken with dozens of nonprofit leaders about their technology challenges and opportunities, and what’s clear is that they’re not naïve about the potential of tools like AI or integrated systems to help transform their work. The challenge isn’t awareness — it’s capacity. It’s not just about access to a platform; it’s about having the technical talent and resources to customize, maintain, and continually adapt those systems to their specific models.

As a result, technology takes up an enormous amount of nonprofit leaders’ mindshare — often at the expense of their core mission. I would love to help lower that burden so leaders can spend more time focused on impact. This is where Deloitte can play a valuable role. We bring deep experience in the social impact space alongside the scale and sophistication of our broader technology capabilities — the same kinds of platforms and support we provide to corporate clients.

Talking about innovation and potential isn’t enough if we can’t translate it into something usable and practical. The real opportunity is connecting technology to day-to-day operations in a way that helps organizations work more effectively, more efficiently, and stay deeply mission-focused. That’s the gap I’m most excited to help close.

NationSwell: What advice do you have for others about how they can lean in and use their superpowers to help the nonprofit sector?

O’Donovan, Deloitte: One thing I believe very deeply — and anyone on my team will tell you I say this all the time — is that Deloitte can do almost anything. But the real question isn’t what we can do — it’s what we should uniquely do to be most helpful.

I think we’re past the era of check-the-box corporate philanthropy: writing a check, running employee giving campaigns, and calling it a day. That work mattered, but we’ve learned so much more about the real superpowers corporations can bring to the table. When you do deep listening — when you talk to communities, engage people on the ground, and really understand what’s needed — you get fundamentally different answers.

That’s when you’re able to focus on what your organization is uniquely positioned to contribute. Because while you can do a lot of things, not all of them add up to the kind of change this moment actually demands.

NationSwell: How do you cultivate purpose within your team? How do you help people understand their purpose and feel guided by that?

O’Donovan, Deloitte: I think the good news about Deloitte is that we’ve cared about impact for more than 180 years. We’re starting from a place of real strength. For me, my role is about continuing to evolve that purpose in line with the moment we’re in.

A big part of that is making sure there’s as little daylight as possible between our ambitions and how we actually show up. When I think about our investments, commitments, and social impact work, we’re focused on sustainability, opportunity, and trust — areas aimed at creating positive impact in our organization and in our communities genuinely make sense for us. My work has been about sharpening that focus: aligning our portfolio with those priorities and doing the work with communities, not for them, and never alone.

Our senior leaders share this commitment and believe deeply in strengthening local efforts, convening decision-makers, and facilitating collaboration across sectors. That’s really shaped our approach — not just what we focus on, but how we show up. It’s about working alongside organizations closest to the issues, supporting strategic initiatives, and driving collective action. We started from a strong place; the work now is about raising our game and focusing on what we can uniquely do to create long-term impact — building access to opportunity, family-sustaining jobs, and more resilient communities.

I also want to be clear that leading with purpose isn’t limited to my role. I get to focus on this every day, and we empower our people to lead with purpose in how they show up with their teams and respond to opportunities including our client service professionals that can help think through the impact of their work on people and communities.

Part of my role is making that easier — helping our professionals and leaders embed purpose into their team and client engagements. Many of our clients care deeply about this too, which creates real opportunity. Whether it’s co-investing in communities, showing up together on Impact Day, our annual day of collective service, or building purpose into long-term client relationships, there are so many ways we can demonstrate what it looks like to lead with purpose as an organization.

NationSwell: Of the socially motivated leaders you consider your peers, are there any whose work inspired you and whom you hold in high esteem?

O’Donovan, Deloitte: First, I get a lot of energy from people and community — meeting new people, reconnecting with trusted peers, and talking through how we’re seeing the world. Those conversations often spark new or unexpected ideas. That’s why I value spaces like NationSwell so much. There’s real power in community building, especially when it’s a group you trust. I’ve always had what I call a “kitchen cabinet” — a personal board of directors. They’re not all in similar roles, but they’ve known me at different stages of my life, and when I’m facing a big decision, their perspectives are invaluable.

Second, I’m very intentional about continuing to invest in my own leadership. I love a good podcast or audiobook — especially thinkers who combine data with practical, human-centered insights. That blend of rigor and applicability really resonates with me and helps shape how I think about leading in complex environments.

And finally, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to learn from some exceptional mentors over the course of my career. A few former managers are still part of my kitchen cabinet today. One mentor, in particular, taught me so much about leadership—especially how to support people through different seasons of their careers. She helped me see possibilities for myself long before I could see them on my own. Watching her do that shaped how I lead today and how I think about developing others on my team.

Seeing people grow over time — and helping them prepare for what’s next — is one of the most fulfilling parts of leadership for me.

NationSwell: Are there any resources you’d recommend — books, podcasts, Ted talks — that have influenced your thinking that might influence others as well?

O’Donovan, Deloitte: I just finished the audiobook of Strong Ground, Brené Brown’s new book, and I found it incredibly insightful — especially in how it talks about leadership, transformation, and what’s actually required of leaders in this moment. I don’t think I’ve fully processed all of it yet, but it’s already prompting me to reflect on where some of my default settings might need an upgrade. It’s the kind of book that stays with you, and I know I’ll be carrying those questions with me as I think about 2026.

For people who want to come into this space, one thing I’ve found to be profoundly important is the combination of two kinds of experience and knowledge. First, deep industry knowledge in the social impact space — really understanding what it takes to create change, which for me and my team has come from decades of working closely with nonprofits, foundations, and communities. And second, a strong understanding of how change actually happens inside a corporate environment.

You need both. If you only have industry knowledge, your options can be limited if you don’t know how to galvanize people and move work forward in your organization. And if you only understand corporate systems without the depth of issue-area knowledge, the impact may not be meaningful. I certainly had to build that second muscle when I came to Deloitte 13 years ago — learning how things get done here to match my external experience.

When you bring those two together, the opportunity set expands exponentially. It’s incredibly energizing, because you start to see what’s actually possible. But it’s also complex work. This space can look appealing from the outside — and it is rewarding — but it requires a lot of reps, learning, and humility. That’s why I often tell junior professionals: go deep on one side first, build real experience, and then start layering in the other. Purpose alone isn’t enough — you need the skills and capabilities to turn it into lasting impact.

Impact Next: An interview with Results for America’s Michele Jolin

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

At a moment of inequality and division, who is advancing the vanguard of economic and social progress to bolster under-served communities? Whose work is fostering the inclusive growth that ensures every individual thrives? Who will set the ambitious standards that mobilize whole industries, challenging their peers to reach new altitudes of social impact? 

In 2025, Impact Next — an editorial flagship series from NationSwell — will spotlight the standard-bearing corporate social responsibility and impact leaders, entrepreneurs, experts, and philanthropists whose catalytic work has the potential to shape the landscape of progress amid urgent need for social and economic action.

For this installment, NationSwell interviewed Michele Jolin, CEO and Co-Founder of Results for America. 

NationSwell: What brought you to the field that you’re in right now? Was there an early moment, a relationship, or an experience that galvanized your commitment to driving bold action?

Michele Jolin, CEO and Co-Founder of Results for America: I grew up in a small town in Wisconsin that was really battered in the 1980s by the decline of manufacturing. A lot of people were losing their jobs, families were out of work — it was a hard time. At the same time, I came from a family of Irish immigrants who deeply loved America, and that shaped me just as much.

There was this incredible optimism in my upbringing about the promise of the American dream. My grandmother met my grandfather on the Fourth of July, married him a year later on the Fourth of July, and even had a ring with a red, white, and blue stone, which I still wear. It sounds a little hokey, but that sense of pride and belief in this country was real and deeply ingrained.

That optimism was paired with a clear-eyed understanding that we could — and should — do better. My mother was always an activist, involved in civil rights and anti-war movements, so there was this constant tension between believing in America’s potential and needing to push America to constantly improve itself to reach its potential, including supporting workers like those in my hometown transition to new jobs. I was growing up in a place where the government wasn’t stepping in the way it needed to — retraining workers, improving education, or creating pathways to new jobs. Seeing that gap early on really shaped how I think about economic mobility and the role systems can play in helping people move forward.

NationSwell: What would you say is the North Star of your current leadership?

Jolin, Results for America: One of our core organizational values is empathy, and that’s very much my North Star. By empathy, I mean truly understanding people’s lived experiences and what motivates them. When you’re trying to drive social change, especially within government, that understanding matters more than anything else. People act for complex reasons, and meaningful change only happens when you design solutions with those realities in mind.

At Results for America, our work is focused on helping government deliver better results and improve economic mobility. We know more than ever about what works — clear pathways that help children born into poverty reach the middle class — yet government hasn’t consistently funded or implemented those solutions. The issue isn’t a lack of intention; most public leaders are deeply mission-driven. It’s the complexity of systems, information overload, and structural barriers that make action difficult.

Our role is to simplify that landscape and remove those barriers. We help governments access proven solutions, learn from peers, and implement change more effectively, then recognize and celebrate progress when it happens. That combination of clarity, peer learning, and recognition is powerful. It reflects our values and how I think about leadership: understand what motivates people, meet them where they are, and create the conditions for sustained impact.

NationSwell: Is there a particular program, signature initiative, or some facet of the work that you would like to spotlight for us that is driving outcomes for the work?

Jolin, Results for America: When we first started Results for America, our focus was at the federal level, shaped by my experience in the Obama administration helping launch the Social Innovation Fund and the White House Office of Social Innovation. The idea was simple: Governments should invest in solutions that work, using evidence and data to guide funding. But when I took that idea to Congress, the response was often resistance. Even though the Social Innovation Fund was small relative to the trillions spent on economic mobility, it was meant to model a better way, and the pushback was deeply frustrating.

That frustration ultimately led me to start Results for America. The goal wasn’t just to fund a program, but to create the conditions where investing in what works became the norm. It’s common sense — and bipartisan — to say government dollars should go toward proven solutions that help kids and families move up. So we set out to remove the barriers that prevented governments from acting that way.

We began at the federal level, then expanded to cities with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies through What Works Cities, and later to states. Across all levels, we focus on the funding lever — budgets, grants, and procurement — because that’s where real change happens. By embedding evidence and outcome requirements into those processes, we help dollars flow to what works. Over time, we also realized governments needed help finding and implementing proven solutions, so we built tools like our Economic Mobility Catalog and Solution Sprints to pair funding with action. That combination — funding, solutions, and peer learning — is what now drives our impact.

NationSwell: What’s defining the current social and economic environment that we’re in — what are the trends that you’re currently seeing, and what’s giving you hope?

Jolin, Results for America: One of the most notable dynamics right now is the renewed focus on government efficiency, effectiveness, and state capacity. This isn’t new or partisan — spending public dollars more effectively has always resonated across red, blue, and purple states — but recent attention, including the DOGE moment, has put a sharper spotlight on the question of how government actually improves performance. Even as that moment fades, the underlying question remains: what truly works to fix government?

We’re part of a broader field tackling that challenge, alongside organizations like Code for America, the Government Performance Lab, and Work for America. What’s exciting is the growing momentum across this ecosystem. Where we play a distinct role is by starting with results and outcomes first, and then working backward to the “plumbing” of government — budgets, grants, procurement, and systems. That results-first approach is critical. Some leaders are motivated by efficiency alone, but many, especially elected officials, are driven by outcomes like cutting child poverty or improving economic mobility. We meet them there and then help translate those goals into smarter funding and proven solutions.

That focus feels especially important at this moment, as local governments face tightening budgets and growing pressure from affordability crises, workforce disruption, and rapid technological change. Resources will be more constrained, not less. Our role is to help governments do better with what they have — to become stronger problem-solvers, more adaptive, and more capable of delivering results despite volatility. The next decade will demand that kind of capacity, and that’s where we’re focused.

NationSwell: What is unique or differentiated about the approach that you’re taking? Can you walk us through what excites you most about the work that you’re leading?

Jolin, Results for America: I think it’s worth reiterating that funding is a powerful lever — something governments can actually shape — but it works best when it’s paired with information about solutions that’s easier to access and stronger support for implementation. That’s something we’ve learned over time through testing and piloting, and our reach is big: we work with 350 local governments, in 48 states, at the federal level, and with both Republicans and Democrats.

Another learning is that partnering with community organizations — especially place-based partnerships — can speed government delivery and results. Over the last five years, we’ve worked much more closely with networks like StriveTogether, the William Julius Wilson Institute, Purpose Built Communities, Partners for Rural Impact, and others. When a community is already aligned around outcomes, it can help drive faster uptake of solutions and faster results for residents. That’s something I see us leaning into even more over the next decade.

One example is in Dallas, where we worked with the city alongside the Commit Partnership (part of the Strive network) and CPAL (Children’s Poverty Action Lab). We identified an agency that funds many of the social service programs tied to key outcomes, but it wasn’t transparent what was being funded or how much of it was evidence-based. So we helped create an inventory of what they’re funding, what has evidence behind it, and where the gaps are — so leaders can make better decisions. We also worked to incorporate language into city processes that encourages funding programs with an evidence base. It’s a two-part approach: transparency about what’s happening, and incentives to fund what works.

NationSwell: Of the socially motivated leaders you consider your peers, who are 2-3 whose work inspired you and whom you hold in high esteem?

Jolin, Results for America: The first is Janet Yellen. I was her chief of staff at the Council of Economic Advisers during the Clinton administration, and I’ve worked closely with her over the years, including helping her stand up the Treasury Department when she became Secretary. She leads with a deep commitment to excellence, rigor, and evidence. The CEA is essentially the White House’s internal think tank, and that experience — grounding policy decisions in what actually works, whether on climate, welfare reform, or economic policy — was incredibly formative for me. She’s also been a pathbreaking woman in a deeply male-dominated field, and her courage, discipline, and integrity have inspired generations of leaders.

Another major influence is Bill Drayton, the founder of Ashoka. After leaving the Clinton administration, I worked there and saw firsthand how he built a global network of social entrepreneurs — people applying entrepreneurial thinking to social problems with extraordinary impact. What struck me was how universal that spirit is: you see it in India, Kenya, Germany, Colombia. Working with Bill helped crystallize the idea that innovation and entrepreneurship are just as powerful in the social sector as they are in the private sector, and that locally rooted solutions can drive change at scale.

The third is Rosanne Haggerty, who leads Community Solutions. Her work on homelessness — especially the concept of “functional zero,” where communities know exactly who is unhoused and can move people quickly into housing — has deeply influenced my thinking. It gets to the root of what results-driven government looks like: building the systems, habits, and problem-solving capacity to respond effectively to whatever challenge comes next. That mindset — helping governments build durable capacity to solve problems again and again — is exactly what excites me about the work we do today.

NationSwell: Are there any resources you’d recommend — books, podcasts, Ted talks — that have influenced your thinking that might influence others as well?

Jolin, Results for America: My go-to podcasts are Masters of Scale and Possible. I love how optimistic they are, and how practical they are about building organizations, shaping culture, and making big things happen at scale. There’s always something in there that sparks a new way of thinking.

Books are a huge part of my life — I read constantly. The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein and The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson were especially formative for me. Both trace how government policies — sometimes intentionally, sometimes not — have created and reinforced racial disparities. They make clear that reducing inequality requires changing the “plumbing” of government: how laws are written, applied, and administered.

Another book that really stayed with me is Evicted by Matthew Desmond. Set in Wisconsin, it powerfully shows how housing policy and government systems leave families — especially children — extraordinarily vulnerable to displacement. That book deeply influenced how I think about fairness in government processes, and it makes me especially proud that Results for America is actively working with governments to adopt solutions that prevent displacement and improve housing stability.

Childcare for All Solutions Wheel

Childcare for All Solutions Wheel

The Case for Childcare Collaborative designed this interactive resource hub to help employers explore childcare solutions that support working families and strengthen their workforce. Through research, real-world examples, and practical tools, the site helps organizations understand the business impact of childcare and identify benefits and policies that work for employees across industries and income levels.

Whether employers are just getting started or expanding existing supports, the platform offers actionable guidance to help build more inclusive, resilient workplaces where workers — and businesses — can thrive.

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Collective Wealth Building: Innovation in Homeownership

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

Homeownership remains one of the most powerful—and most unevenly distributed—wealth-building tools in America. Rising housing costs, limited supply, structural inequities in lending and appraisals, and stagnant wages have pushed the dream of owning a home out of reach for millions. Yet across the country, impact-driven actors are testing new solutions that merit deeper investigation and exploration.

On January 15, NationSwell hosted a virtual Leader Roundtable designed to what’s working, what’s emerging, and what still needs to be invented. Alongside a group of leaders from the corporate, philanthropic, and nonprofit sectors, we examined the opportunities and constraints organizations face in expanding access to homeownership, surfaced promising models that can scale, and identified where multi-sector collaboration could move dollars and outcomes.

Some of the most salient takeaways appear below:

Key takeaways:

Treat vacancy as latent supply and rebuild demand alongside units. In hyper-vacancy contexts, the challenge is not only deteriorated housing stock but the absence of market confidence. Pairing acquisition with intentional demand creation (and, in Parity’s case, support for building financial knowledge among buyers) helps ensure neighborhoods are repopulated by residents rather than speculative capital.

Acquisition and clear title are the longest, least predictable phases of the work — and require patient capital. Much of the real labor happens before construction ever begins, particularly when properties involve estates, liens, or unclear ownership. These timelines rarely conform to funding cycles or political urgency; progress depends on legal persistence and institutional patience. Without flexible capital at this stage, downstream innovation rarely materializes. 

Center legal and policy innovation to accelerate rehabilitation and prevent investor capture. Intervening earlier in foreclosure or receivership processes can shift outcomes dramatically. Legal tools that transfer control to mission-aligned actors shorten vacancy timelines, reduce blight, and increase the likelihood of owner-occupied housing.

Recognize that interest rates, not sale prices, often determine affordability. Every 1% the interest rate it wipes out $30k buying power which is make or break for first-time buyers. In this context, interest-rate buy-downs can restore feasibility more efficiently than price subsidy alone because they directly address monthly payment constraints.

Balance wealth building with long-term affordability through shared-equity and soft-second structures. Down payment assistance can expand access while still protecting public and philanthropic investment. Carefully designed equity-sharing mechanisms allow households to build wealth without turning affordability into a one-time event.

Rather than treating displacement as a downstream problem, pair revitalization with retention. Neighborhood improvement often triggers rising tax burdens that destabilize long-time residents, particularly elders on fixed incomes. Without parallel retention strategies, revitalization can unintentionally replicate the same extractive dynamics it seeks to undo. Retention must be designed in from the beginning, not layered on after values rise.

Treat homeowner retention as a core wealth-preservation strategy. Preventing tax sale, foreclosure, or forced exit protects accumulated equity and intergenerational assets. In many cases, stabilizing existing homeowners delivers greater impact — and does so faster — than new production alone.

Cross-sector misalignment is the primary barrier to scale. Many effective tools already exist, but they live in silos across philanthropy, government, finance, and nonprofits. The hardest work is often sequencing participation: who de-risks first, who follows, and who sustains the effort over time. Scale depends less on invention than on coordination.

Recognize that credibility, narrative, and design quality actively shape markets. Homes that signal dignity and pride influence how neighborhoods are perceived by residents, lenders, and buyers alike. Aesthetic quality and storytelling are not cosmetic; they help rebuild imagination, confidence, and demand in places long defined by disinvestment. In this way, narrative becomes a form of infrastructure.

Impact Next: An interview with Wellthy’s Lindsay Jurist-Rosner

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

At a moment of inequality and division, who is advancing the vanguard of economic and social progress to bolster under-served communities? Whose work is fostering the inclusive growth that ensures every individual thrives? Who will set the ambitious standards that mobilize whole industries, challenging their peers to reach new altitudes of social impact? 

In 2025, Impact Next — an editorial flagship series from NationSwell — is spotlighting the standard-bearing corporate social responsibility and impact leaders, entrepreneurs, experts, and philanthropists whose catalytic work has the potential to shape the landscape of progress amid urgent need for social and economic action.

For this installment, NationSwell interviewed Lindsay Jurist-Rosner, CEO of Wellthy. Here’s what she had to say:

Virginia Tenpenny, Chief Social Impact Officer, NationSwell: Tell us a little bit about what brought you into Wellthy — what galvanized the bold action you’re driving through the company?

Lindsay Jurist-Rosner, CEO, Wellthy: Wellthy was founded in 2014, and the idea came directly from my own caregiving journey with my mom. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when I was a kid — not the more common relapsing-remitting type, but the rarer, progressive form that causes a steady decline in mobility. Over the years, she gradually lost the ability to walk, then to use her arms, though she remained emotionally strong. She was my world, and caring for her shaped who I am.

After college, I moved home to take care of her while working full-time, which eventually led to burnout. When I finally moved out, I continued managing her care from afar, setting up systems, catching last-minute flights, handling the middle-of-the-night emergencies. In her final years, she was in hospice, and she passed away eight years ago.

That experience left me determined to make caregiving easier for other families. I kept thinking, if this was so hard for me — with every possible advantage — how do others do it? I started talking to families and realized how universal the struggle is. The healthcare system does a great job treating medical conditions but offers almost no support for the day-to-day realities of care. Families shoulder 90% of long-term care in this country, often at the expense of their own well-being.

Wellthy was born out of that realization — a desire to build the infrastructure and support I wish my family had. And honestly, that caregiving hasn’t stopped. After my mom passed, I helped care for my grandfather and mother-in-law — both of whom have since passed. I got married, had a child, and now navigate childcare in a blended family. Care is just part of my life from every direction, which keeps me close to our work at Wellthy. I’m not just leading the company — I’m also one of our customers. And living through these different chapters has shown me what so many families experience every day: care rarely fits into neat categories. It spans generations, moments of joy and loss, and every kind of need. That’s why Wellthy has evolved into a true birth-through-bereavement service, because families don’t live in siloes, and their care support shouldn’t either.

Tenpenny, NationSwell: In the 11 years you’ve been at Wellthy, what are some of the bright spots? What’s the moment that you find yourself in right now in terms of the progress that you’ve made and your ambition going forward? 

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built — it’s been the most gratifying 11 years. We get to change people’s lives every day. Families tell us we “saved the day,” that their care coordinator was their angel; there’s nothing better than that.

Our original hypothesis was simple: if we could unburden families from the administrative and logistical chaos of caregiving, we could free them up to focus on what really matters: being present with their loved ones. That idea led us to pair every family with a dedicated care coordinator, much like a financial advisor, who helps them navigate complex care decisions. Most of our coordinators are social workers by training — an incredible, underutilized talent pool we’ve been able to elevate and empower.

We use technology to help those care teams work at the top of their degree and deliver a consistent, high-quality experience for families, now on a global scale. Wellthy partners with companies of all sizes that offer our services as an employee benefit, helping their teams balance work and care. We’ve also expanded into backup care and, most recently, acquired Patch — founded by two incredible women — whose team provides on-site and near-site childcare for frontline workforces.

At the end of the day, everything we do comes back to the same question: where are the gaps in care, and how can we step in to solve them?

Tenpenny, NationSwell: This is clearly an ongoing issue and gap in our society — how do you evolve Wellthy in order to make sure you’re meeting the needs on the ground?

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: We’re constantly evolving. One of our biggest pushes in the last two years has been building a better backup care program. Traditional providers like Bright Horizons and Care.com have been around for decades, but clients kept telling us they wanted something different. So we built our own from the ground up, including a full fintech system to process payments and an entirely new network of backup care providers offering drop-in care.

Global expansion has been another major focus. Many of our U.S. clients wanted to extend Wealthy’s services to their colleagues abroad, so we went market by market, country by country, studying healthcare, childcare, and eldercare systems to understand where we could add value. In late 2026, we launched with Cisco across 95 countries, building truly global caregiving support.

We’ve also been exploring the intersection of care and climate. When natural disasters strike — including wildfires, floods, hurricanes — we step in to support employees who can’t get to work or safely care for loved ones. After major storms in Houston, for example, we worked with Memorial Hermann Hospital to source generators and provide financial and logistical support for affected staff.

Our latest expansion is through our acquisition of Patch, an incredibly innovative company founded by two women who created on-site and near-site childcare for frontline and in-person workforces. They operate centers in places like UPS sorting facilities, hospital campuses, and manufacturing lines — high-intensity environments where flexible, affordable childcare can literally change lives. I met a worker at one of their sites who, because of a Patch room, was able to keep her job and care for her two-year-old after her husband was incarcerated.

Patch represents the future of childcare: nimble, accessible, and life-changing. Our next big focus is scaling that model: getting more Patch rooms in more places to support more families.

Tenpenny, NationSwell: As you think about the demands that you face as a CEO of this fast-growing company and all the demands outside of the job, how do you take care of yourself and also lead effectively? 

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: I don’t know that there’s a silver bullet; every day looks different. I’m actually training for the New York City Marathon right now, which might qualify as either self-care or self-torture, depending on the day. But over time, I’ve found a rhythm that works.

The real key, though, is partnership. My husband and I both have demanding jobs — he’s the CEO of a public company — and we make it work through constant communication and trade-offs. We’re really respectful of each other’s ambitions and commitments. If I have to travel or go to an event, he’ll adjust, and vice versa. We make sure we both get time for self-care, time with our kids, and time to focus on our work.

As for the personal side, I’ve just gotten better about the basics — prioritizing workouts, eating well, drinking less — all the things we all try to do. There’s no magic formula, but I’m always working on doing a little better each day.

Tenpenny, NationSwell: What is the North Star for your leadership style that makes you most effective?

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: Honestly, I think I have it easier than a lot of leaders because we’re a mission-driven company. We naturally attract people who are deeply connected to what we do, so the culture and my leadership style evolve pretty organically. I imagine it’s harder in more traditional organizations, where you have to work harder to manufacture that sense of purpose.

Our focus is always on reminding the team of the impact they’re having. The work can be intense, but the outcomes are so real. We make that visible every day — sharing real-time member feedback in Slack, highlighting family testimonials during our monthly “All Hearts” meetings, and playing videos that bring our members’ voices directly to the team. It keeps everyone connected to why we do this work.

At the end of the day, that mission is the fuel. It makes the tough days easier and the culture stronger.

Tenpenny, NationSwell: What are the trends you’re seeing right now that are giving you hope? 

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: I feel a lot of hope right now. In the early days of Wellthy, no one was really talking about caregiving — it just wasn’t on the radar. Now, it’s incredible to see how much that’s changed. Companies are thinking holistically about how to support their employees, not just through us but through broader policies, programs, and benefits. We work with dozens of large employers, and it’s inspiring to have a front-row seat to the way they’re building truly people-centered workplaces.

I’ve also been doing work in D.C. with the Bipartisan Policy Center, helping to make recommendations around the federal role in childcare. That’s been energizing, especially seeing recent progress in Congress, like the expansion of tax credits that will make a real difference for families.

It’s also the case that backup care needs a new era, and at Wellthy we see ourselves as part of that shift. So many organizations have had the same backup care benefit in place for years, sometimes decades, and now they’re taking a fresh look. We’re getting the chance to show them a program built for the modern and diverse realities of family life, one that tackles the pain points HR teams have wrestled with for so long. There’s real momentum right now — whether in companies putting their programs back out to bid or simply in the number of HR leaders who want to talk about what it looks like for backup care to truly work for both employees and employers.

And finally, I’m so inspired by what I see on business school campuses. Wellthy is now taught as a case study at Harvard Business School and Stanford GSB, and every time I visit, I’m struck by how aware and motivated these students are. A few years ago, no one even used the term “care economy.” Now, it’s part of the conversation — and students want to invest, build, and innovate in this space. The class at HBS that used to be a small seminar on social entrepreneurship and systems change now fills the largest lecture halls. That level of energy and purpose in the next generation gives me so much hope for what’s ahead.

Tenpenny, NationSwell: As you think about the socially motivated leaders that you consider your peers, are there two or three whose work has really inspired you and who you hold in high esteem? 

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: I’m very inspired by my husband. His leadership style is completely different from mine — he’s patient, measured, deliberate, and thoughtful, while I tend to be more reactive. I love learning from him and observing how he leads; he’s an incredible leader and does an amazing job at his company.

Before starting Wellthy, my mentor was Dave Morgan, who led the marketing tech company where I worked. Watching his leadership was hugely motivational. But honestly, I find inspiration everywhere — there are so many people whose approach to leading, thinking, and showing up continues to push me to grow.

Tenpenny, NationSwell: Are there any books, podcasts, or other resources that you’d recommend? What’s been your source of inspiration or influence lately? 

Jurist-Rosner, Wellthy: Right now, I’m listening to David Goggins’ book while training for the marathon — his story is incredible and definitely keeps me motivated during the long runs. I’m also a big fan of the Acquired and Science Vs podcasts; they’re great for learning how companies and leaders got their start and for diving into complex topics in a really engaging way.

Since I’m running so much, I’ve been consuming a lot of content lately. I’m reading Genesis by Henry Kissinger on AI, which has been fascinating, and recently revisited Ezra Klein’s book, Abundance. There’s no shortage of inspiration out there — I’m just trying to take it all in mile by mile.

The Workforce of the Future: Skills and Strategies for What’s Next

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

The pace of change in the workforce is high.  Artificial intelligence, demographic shifts, economic uncertainty, and other disruptive forces  are reshaping the jobs of tomorrow, redefining the skills employees need, and challenging employers to build stronger, more adaptable talent pipelines. 

On December 2, in partnership with our Workforce Innovation Collaborative, NationSwell hosted a virtual Leader Roundtable designed to bring together impact leaders across sectors to surface the most promising models, partnerships, and strategies shaping the future of work. Some of the most salient takeaways from the discussion appear below:

Key Takeaways:

Normalize many paths over one pipeline. The four-year degree can’t be the only story we tell about success; apprenticeships and tech training need equal visibility. When young people can stack paid work, credentials, and education in parallel, they build higher earning power and employers gain a real, renewable talent strategy instead of a nice-to-have program.

Treat talent as a system, not a series of programs. The bright spots aren’t isolated pilots, but sector-level models where industry, K–12, higher ed, philanthropy, and government rewire how they work together. When employers define skills, commit to hires, and co-fund shared infrastructure, training stops being philanthropy and starts being core business.

Make AI a muscle everyone builds instead of a specialty held by few. AI “readiness” requires weaving tools, experimentation, and ethics into every role, curriculum, and career stage. When learners and employees practice using role-specific AI in real workflows, they show up as operators and co-designers in a rapidly changing economy.

Design for a figure-eight career. The new reality is looping: people move into a role, come back for training, pivot to a new role, and repeat. Workforce systems should celebrate these shifts, provide ongoing upskilling, and build clear internal pathways.

Meet emerging workers where they are. Gen Z expects mobile-first, gamified, peer-driven experiences that help them explore, belong, and level up. Career hubs, points, leaderboards, reels, and mentors – especially when built by young people – translate opaque industries like technicians, data centers, and advanced manufacturing into tangible and desirable futures.

Center narrative, transparency, and trust in the AI era. There’s a growing gap between expert optimism about AI and everyday workers’ questions about surveillance, environmental impact, and job security. Leaders who listen continuously, speak plainly about how tools are used, and invite employees into shaping guardrails can turn anxiety into agency.

Build for scale by proving ROI and impact. Philanthropy can ignite innovation, but durable solutions hinge on employer investment tied to clear returns. When companies can see and measure how apprenticeships, scholarships, and AI-enabled matching drive productivity and retention, “workforce of the future” shifts from a social good project to a competitive advantage.

Q3 2025 Social Impact Trends

Q3 2025 Social Impact Trends

NationSwell’s quarterly trend spotter provides impact professionals with visibility into the most noteworthy, timely, and material shifts in the field. For Q3 of 2025, our report explores the following six trends:

  1. Corporations are quieter on ESG/DEI – and delaying some reports
  2. “One Big Beautiful Bill” has material implications for corporate giving strategies
  3. Values-driven public pressure is influencing reputations and sales
  4. Workforce development is surging as a strategic priority, driven by widening skills gaps
  5. Impact teams are increasing AI adoption while attention grows on need for ethical governance
  6. The U.S. is experiencing climate & ESG policy setbacks while global rules march on
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Place-Based Impact: Building Beyond the Pilot

Posted on by Brianna Provenzano

Place-based initiatives often begin with promising pilots, but the real challenge lies in building models that endure, evolve, and create lasting change for communities. From knowing when to sunset a project, to adapting an initiative as conditions shift, or to nurture long-term, community-driven impact, place-based work raises important questions about what success truly looks like. Should scale always be the goal—or are shifts in power and resources, and other changes representative of deeper measures of progress?

On November 13, NationSwell hosted a virtual Leader Roundtable event designed to explore what it takes to move beyond the pilot phase and built place-based impact that lasts. Some of the most salient takeaways from the discussion appear below:

Center on-the-ground leadership and lived experience. Effective place-based work starts with local leaders, residents, and young people as co-designers and decision-makers, not just “voices in the room.” When communities define the problems, interpret the data, and choose strategies, funders are able to support work that is more trusted, relevant, and durable.

Shift from standalone projects to long-term strategies. Moving from a collection of disconnected pilots to a portfolio and strategy approach allows leaders to track progress over time, reallocate resources, and adapt without “killing” programs overnight. This zoomed-out view makes it easier to align partners around shared outcomes.

Treat scale as systems change, not just numbers served. In place-based work, scale often looks like stronger civic infrastructure, policy shifts, better-aligned funding streams, and new local capacities, rather than big “vanity” reach numbers. What equally matters is what lasts after a grant cycle ends: local organizations that can attract new resources, shared data systems, and cross-sector tables that keep working.

Lead with values over metrics and logic models. Shared guiding principles – such as non-negotiable youth leadership, community involvement in all decisions, and non-extractive partnership – create the trust and alignment needed for complex collaborations. When values are explicit, they shape governance, grantmaking practices, and how power is shared between parties.

Use national power to open doors, not dictate direction. Large institutions can add enormous value by validating local models, attracting co-funders, and lending policy or communications support. But they don’t need to dictate the agenda. Showing up with humility, naming reputational or political risks transparently, and “walking alongside” community partners helps make sure big brands amplify local leadership instead of overshadowing it.

Standardize the framework but localize the solution. What transfers across communities is the evidence base, theory of change, and shared indicators for success; what must be locally tailored are the specific strategies and programs. The work is a continuous loop: look at the data, ground-truth it with residents, choose evidence-informed approaches that fit local realities, test, learn, and adapt.

Measure both the journey and the destination. Robust, shared data systems are important, but so are simple, practical signals: who’s showing up, which relationships are forming, and whether local leaders feel more connected and capable. Tracking process indicators alongside long-term outcomes helps manage leadership expectations, tells a more honest story of progress, and keeps everyone committed to the multi-year horizon real systems change requires.