The Discovery Pod

Nothing beats a comeback more than becoming a CEO of an organization you used to work in. That is exactly what Jonny Morris’ story looks like. Having worked at the Canadian Mental Health Association for a number of years, Jonny left to work at the provincial government and came back as the CEO. He narrates his fascinating story of rising to the top while maintaining a heart that is passionate for...

Not so many people understand the value of foundations and community trusts. In this episode, Jason Baxendale , the Chief Development Officer of the Chicago Community Trust and the Co-Director of the We Are Chicago campaign, enlightens us about the wonders that the organization can do to everyone in the community. Jason shares his approaches to issues concerning their trust, his thoughts on their...

The awareness of philanthropy has changed over the past couple of years. There is a much greater general awareness and a higher level of sophistication now in the wealth environment with the available resources and the understanding that people have about being philanthropic. Philanthropic advisor Malcolm Burrows from Scotia Wealth Management says more and more people are showing up and saying, “I...

Fundraising has been a vital part of the social profit sector. That is why it is important to do it right, especially when you are the one leading it. President Emerita of the University of Calgary and officer of the Order of Canada, Elizabeth Cannon shares her wisdom about fundraisers. Having raised $1.3 billion in the Energize campaign, Elizabeth shows the important role of leaders in ensuring t...

Mental health is health, and it is a fact that many families have been touched by difficulties in this area in varying levels of severity. Thanks to mental health advocates like Deborah Gillis, the CEO of CAMH (Center for Addiction and Mental Health), more people have found a powerful meaning in their lives. In this episode, she shares what influenced her to be part of the organization and how adv...

When people think about hospice, they think about the end of life. However, for Margaret McNeil, the CEO of Canuck Place Children’s Hospice, they go beyond that and give as much opportunity for life to the children and their family as they possibly can. Margaret highlights the difference of Canuck Place from others – from the intimacy of their connection to the people there to the quality of care...

Many discovery-orientated types of research across the country make the headlines. However, most of these were breakthroughs from a scientific perspective and not from a clinical perspective. This means that the patients don’t benefit from it, and sometimes the discovery doesn’t get translated for quite a long time. This is what the Terry Fox Research Institute or TFRI is trying to solve with thei...

As the world offers more means for people to help, the social profit sector has come to adapt to it. Paul Nazareth, the Vice President of Education and Development for the Canadian Association of Gift Planners, opens up the doors to take us into the perspectives on change and innovation in social profit. With the rise of crowdfunding, the sector has undeniably been feeling the weight of competitio...

The social profit world is so big that no leadership and organization are the same. Taking us into the arts and cultural sector of social profit, Kim Gaynor, the General Director of the Vancouver Opera, sheds light to its differences against other kinds of organizations. Entailing a different type of leadership, Kim shares how she handles her team and board, and also talks about keeping organizati...

More and more unfortunate patients are spending their final weeks, days, and minutes of life hidden away from the people they love, and sometimes they are in significant amounts of pain. Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider, a physician and a palliative care activist, believes that a new day of medicine is coming where the end of life is not a medical issue to be solved, but rather something that all human be...

Many organizations are confounded with the problem of having their boards support them. Judy Savage, the CEO of Lions Gate Hospital Foundation, has successfully veered from that by building credibility through campaigns and letting the boards actively engage. The meteoric rise of Judy’s foundation over the last number of years shows this, and she lets us in on how they have nurtured the relationsh...

The less we understand what philanthropy is all about, the less our ability to have the impact that we want. Guest Phil Buchanan, the President of The Center for Effective Philanthropy, greatly advocates for the importance of philanthropy and the nonprofit sector and helps foundations and individual donors to maximize their impact. Today on The Discovery Pod, Phil dives deep into the link between...

Running an organization against cancer for years, Coast to Coast Against Cancer Foundation’s Executive Director Jaime Wilson has developed a strategy on how to efficiently build a fundraising campaign and work hand in hand with others. As Jaimie capitalizes on providing hope and faith for cancer patients, she also builds a database and aims at extending the organization’s reach. Jaime shares her e...

Working in any mental health organization in itself is technically challenging and keeps any worker emotionally invested where focusing on the mission can be more challenging. Darrell Burnham, the CEO of a community-based mental health organization called Coast Mental Health, talks about how he manages to stay connected with the mission while working with the staff and board. He shares that he’s b...

Providing welfare to those in need or what is called philanthropy is not as easy as it seems. Veronica Carroll, CEO of Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver, points out that philanthropy is not just about donations and rich people giving their money to poor communities; it is more than that. Veronica says that donors do not just donate but also work with them hand in hand after the organizatio...

There are a lot of means to develop a community, but it is incomparable to build one through the power of food. David Long, the CEO of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, walks us through how he became the leader of a donor-centric organization. As he recounts the compassionate people who helped through donations and other assistance, he shares what the perception of the food bank is and how he sees...

Deep engagement in an organization can only be made possible through radical listening. President and CEO of Central City Foundation, Jennifer Johnstone, defines what radical listening is and how it has created an authentic and healthy relationship within a community. Starting off her career in the non-profit sector as the founding program coordinator with the Whistler Centre for Business and the...

There is so much hope in young entrepreneurs and promising future to every startup that we tend to forego. Conversely, Karen Greve Young never misses out on these business ideas that may actually change the world. CEO of the Futurpreneur Canada, a non-profit organization that has been fueling the entrepreneurial passions of Canada’s young enterprise for two decades, Karen touches on how they help...

Generative leadership means getting the board at the appropriate level, and keeping them there in a very successful and strategically beneficial way. Kevin McCort, CEO of the Vancouver Foundation, dives deep into generative leadership when working with your board. Kevin shares his journey towards taking the shift from being in the international realm for 25 years working with two leading Canadian...

Not everyone can be a leader. Leadership is a privilege and it is about getting people together to achieve a specific purpose. Having the opportunity to be a leader is Pascal Spothelfer, CEO of Genome BC, who has taken on leadership roles in both the business and social sector. Shifting from profit to non-profit organizations and vice versa, Pascal describes that leading both sectors is not entire...

All of us are capable of doing extraordinary things that help and uplift other people. Bringing this to healthcare and philanthropy, Karen Jeu – President of California Pacific Medical Center Foundation – takes us into the final stages of a really important campaign which aims to open two brand new hospitals within the whole Bay Area. Karen talks about the importance of the conversation on philant...

Losing a loved one can be tragic and traumatic. It takes a lot of courage and determination to bounce back from the grief that it takes along. Patrick Sullivan, Founder and President of Team Finn Foundation, shares how losing his son to cancer changed his life. A lawyer by profession, Patrick walks us through his transition from leading a journey to conquer cancer and making scientists more aware...

Social profit organizations have their respective mission that sets their team into motion. As much as it is essential to have a clear vision of where an organization is positioned, to keep it engaged to the purpose is also crucial. Diana Gibson, a serial founder of social profit organizations, gives insights on the relevance of bottom-up leadership and flex time in an organization. Even with her...

No one is insignificant in driving forward that sense of mission and purpose when you are part of a social profit organization. Barbara Grantham, CEO of VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation, dives into the power of healthcare philanthropy as she instills the vision and mission of their organization. Accentuating their purpose to allow people to show a different side of them, Barbara shares how they b...

Not all social profit organizations have massive attention. Some are focused on the youth while others are dedicated to environmental issues. United Way of the Lower Mainland is an organization who is not only focused on one but three areas – the youth, the unfortunate, and the senior citizens. Michael McKnight, CEO of United Way of the Lower Mainland, shares how he faced the biggest challenge of...