Social Impact Leader

Today we are wrapping up Season One of The Plywood Podcast: Real talk for Social Entrepreneurs and Nonprofit Leaders. The whole team is here talking about our favorite episodes, takeaways, and things we’ve learned this season. We also dive deep into how we end the year as a nonprofit, what people are looking for in a job in a time of “the great resignation”, and the theme of people needing people...

Today we are bringing you another Plywood Pro Tip. We are getting into How to Build a Better Board. In this conversation, Jeff, Tuere, and Jim Dudley talk about all things board of directors. You’ll hear advice on how to bring together a board, managing board culture, setting board expectations, and how and why we foster actual friendships with our board. They discuss their own experiences with Pl...

Today we sit down with John Brandon, a writer and productivity expert. He has written over 15,000 articles published by Inc. Magazine, Forbes, and more! We talk about how to minimize distraction and increase productivity. Every entrepreneur, creative, and leader needs this reminder. Grab a cup of coffee and learn with us! Pre-Order John's Book, The 7-Minute Productivity Solution: How to Manage You...

Today we are sitting down with John Onwuchekwa and Aaron Fender, co-founders of Portrait Coffee. A  black-owned coffee company which sources their coffee from mostly black and brown origin farmers, Portrait Coffee is changing the narrative of coffee by bringing a more diverse representation to Atlanta’s coffee culture. We dive into how they pivoted as a new business during the pandemic, running a...

Today we are sitting down with Rodney Bullard. Rodney is the Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility for Chick-fil-A. He leads their community engagement, philanthropic, and sustainable strategies. He also serves as the Executive Director of the Chick-fil-A foundation, he has served at the Pentagon, as the assistant United States Attorney, White House Fellow, and worked closely with NASA...

Today we get to hear from Shannon Sedgwick Davis, attorney, activist, author of To Stop A Warlord , and CEO of Bridgeway Foundation. Bridgeway Foundations is a philanthropic organization dedicated to ending and preventing mass atrocities around the world. We dive into the topics of restorative justice, navigating what we do with the problems that we see everyday, balancing family and work, and SO...

Today, we are sitting down with Kitiya Mischo King, Founder of Mischo Beauty. Mischo has been featured in Essence Magazine, named the 2021 Cosmopolitan Beauty Award winner, and most recently was featured on Oprah's Favorite Things list for 2021 (WOAH!). This line of nail polish is non-toxic and free from the 10 ingredients we are told to avoid in our skincare products, something Kitiya found hard...

In this episode, Jeff sits down with Kyle Korver, NBA All-star and one of the greatest three-point shooters of all time. You might be wondering why we are sharing an interview with a professional basketball player. There's a good reason. When someone is a true pro's pro, there's something to the work they do. It might seem like they are on autopilot, but in reality, there are years worth of practi...

Today, we are sitting down with Mr. Horst Schulze, a founding partner of the Ritz Carlton Hotel Company and the Capella Hotel Group. It's not often that we have a chance to learn from another generation, but there's something so valuable about learning from someone with more and different life experiences. Mr. Schulze is an author (of "Excellence Wins"), speaker, and consultant across industries....

This episode is pretty special! Jeff and Kayla sit down with Bethaney Wilkinson, a former teammate at Plywood, who is now leading the organization The Diversity Gap. This week she released her book "The Diversity Gap: Where Good Intentions Meet True Cultural Change." In this episode, we talk about how organizations can move from diversity to creating organizations where everyone belongs. We get in...

We're excited to share a new segment with you today. The Plywood Podcast Presents: Pro Tips! Too much alliteration, We'll work on it?  Every so often, our team will dive into the community's most Frequently Asked Questions. Today, we are getting into How to Plan a Successful Fundraiser. If you don't lead a nonprofit, we still think this episode is for you. As a board member or supporter of a nonpr...

We are really excited to share this episode with you today! Jeff gets the chance to sit down with his friend Andy Mineo for an interview at Plywood Presents. If you don't know Andy, he's a hip-hop artist, producer, entrepreneur, and more. We get a unique look at his creative process, and we talk about fear of failure and how to embody confidence.  Learn more and find Andy's music: https://andymine...

In this week's episode, we are sitting down with Jen Hidinger-Kendrick, Co-Founder of the nonprofit The Giving Kitchen and Staplehouse Restaurant (Bon Appétit magazine's Best New Restaurant in America in 2016). Currently, she is Senior Director of Community Engagement at the Giving Kitchen. Jen shares her story of loss and how The Giving Kitchen is directly related to the work the organization doe...

Today our team is sitting down with Archie Clay III, Co-founder of WEAR BRIMS -a  luxury hat company elevating high-end fashion while instilling unapologetic confidence into everyone, one brim at a time. Archie and his business partner Tahj run their business out of Plywood Place. Wear Brims has been featured in Nordstrom, O Magazine, British GQ, Huffington Post, and The Root as well as Beyonce's...

Today we are sitting down with Jeremy Cowart, an award-winning photographer, artist, and entrepreneur whose mission in life is to "explore the intersection of creativity and empathy." We learn about how he got started, and we delve into his journey as a creative entrepreneur. As entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders, there are times when we have a dream or an idea, and the process of bringing it to...

This week we have a Dr. Key Hallmon, founder of The Village Market on the Plywood Podcast. She is full of SO much wisdom. In this episode, we cover what makes a good partnership, how to deliver news with grace and gentleness, and the heart questions to ask an entrepreneur. This episode is for everyone - entrepreneur or not; Dr. Key shares about how we can all make a difference when it comes to equ...

Exuding positivity, today we are sitting down with the Founder of Good Good Good, Branden Harvey! GGG is a media company focused on helping us all feel more hopeful and do more good. They do this through their print newspaper (delivered to your door monthly), Podcast,  weekly email newsletter, and social media. Good news doesn't always mean feel good. In this episode, Branden talks about the threa...

Are you curious about NFTs? Are you exploring what it means to create a good partnership or collaboration? Are you considering taking a risk in your work?  In this episode of the Plywood Podcast, we hear from Greg Mike - Artist, Designer, and Muralist, based out of Atlanta. Not only is Greg an artist, but he’s also an entrepreneur and the Founder of The Outer Space Project and ABV Agency + Gallery...

Thanks for joining us! Today we are going to look at the world through the lens of ice cream to be specific, Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams! Jeni joined the Plywood crew and started talking, so we started recording. Jeni is not only a seasoned ice cream maker, but she's an entrepreneur and CEO. Jeni brings some new language to what it looks like to lead your team (or Fellowship as she calls it). We ar...

When preparing the launch of the Plywood Podcast, we decided to launch by sharing two interviews of very different women! Jeni Britton Bauer was first.  Next up, we ALL have the GIFT to hear from Danielle Coke, a designer turned illustrator, social justice advocate, and entrepreneur.  She seeks to encourage faith, inspire justice, and guide us through loving our neighbors well. Her illustrations a...

Welcome to the Plywood Podcast: Real talk for social entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders.  Plywood is a nonprofit in Atlanta leading a community of startups doing good. Over the past 12 years, we have worked with over 800 startup founders and nonprofit leaders wrestling with the tensions of starting, growing, and sustaining. Think of The Plywood Podcast as a kitchen table conversation debating the...