Through the Noise

We're excited to welcome Dennis Goris back to the show today. He's the President and Creative Director of Goris Communications and helps nonprofits tell their story and refine their branding and messaging. Trying to raise money for your cause? Make sure your elevator is on-point. Trying to redefine your mission? An outside perspective can ensure it's succinct and coherent. It's important to tell y...

No one ever thinks about air conditioning until it's not working -- that's what our guest Paul Stalknecht of the Air Conditioning Contractors of America says. They represent 4000 member companies that work in residential and commercial air conditioning and even if people aren't thinking about them too much at this time of year, there's still a lot of important things that the ACCA has to offer. Th...

Shawn Boynes is the Executive Director of the American Association of Anatomists, one of the oldest scientific societies in the United States. Since 1888 the AAA has been a resource for researchers and educators around the world who work in the field of anatomy. The organization is at a crossroads and working to come to terms with a name that does not fully reflect the potential membership that th...

The human resources field has changed dramatically over the past several decades. Dr. Amy Dufrane, CEO of the Human Resource Certification Institute joins us to discuss the changes and why certified human resources personnel are so critical to a well-functioning organization. The HRCI produces a new certification test every single year to verify the skills and knowledge of those working in the fie...

"The rapid loss of so many senior officers has a serious, immediate, and tangible effect on the capacity of the United States to shape world events," according to today's guest, Ambassador Barbara Stephenson, President of the American Foreign Service Association. We're thrilled to welcome her to Through the Noise and we had the opportunity to sit down with her to talk about the work of AFSA which...

Did you know 33 million Americans see chiropractors each year? The American Chiropractic Association is the professional organization for practitioners of chiropractic medicine and represents 10,500 doctors and students. We've invited their Executive VP, Karen Silberman to the show. Titles vary wildly in the nonprofit world and her title of Executive VP puts her in charge of the operations of the...

Our population is aging, our health care system is crumbling, and our transportation system often isolates people who can no longer drive. Enter Meals on Wheels. Ellie Hollander is the President and CEO of Meals on Wheels America which represents 5000 different Meals on Wheels programs across the United States. Meals on Wheels makes it possible for people to remain independent and stay in their ow...

With technology moving so quickly these days, it's easy to make changes to websites, campaigns, and programs at the click of a button. But that ease can also create complications and allow for the implementation of unvetted ideas so we've invited Merrill Shugoll to the show to talk about her expertise in market research. Merrill Shugoll is the President of Shugoll Research, a marketing research fi...

Stephanie Mickle of The National Bar Association Political Action Committee joins us for an overview of PACs, how and why they work, and how you could use one. The National Bar Association was created in 1925 to give (primarily) African American lawyers, judges, law students, and other supporters a professional organization as the American Bar Association was still segregated and they were not all...

Most people working for nonprofits probably consider the work they're doing to be pretty important but the challenge is to convince other people of the value of your work and that of your organization. You may be doing the most transformative work in the entire world, but if you can't tell your story and can't let people know about it -- then what is the point? To answer some of the important ques...

Housing impacts each of us every single day and plays a pivotal role in ensuring that we are able to live our best lives and do the work that makes the world a better place. Whether you rent or own, the work of the National Association of Home Builders has probably influenced your life in some important way, so we've invited Lakisha Woods to the show to talk with us about representing the 8 millio...

We've all heard eight hours per night is the ideal amount of sleep to strive for -- and while some need less and many need more -- the quality of sleep we are able to get is heavily dependent on the surface on which we sleep. To find out more about spending one-third of our lives in a way that benefits all of our waking hours -- particularly for the new parents that host and listen to the show --...

Mindy Saffer -- rhymes with laugher -- is a Managing Principal at Cresa, the only company that solely represents the tenants/users of office spaces. Her specialty is working with nonprofits and we're thrilled to have her on the episode today to get some insight into what it takes to find a space that works for the wide variety of needs for different organizations. Think open office spaces are the...

Susannah Wellford is the President & Founder of Running Start, an organization with an unusual mission -- to get girls and young women ready and excited about running for office. They start working with girls that are just 14, before they are jaded, and show them the ropes of how it's done. Many girls and young women are passionate about helping people through politics but are often hesitant becau...

We're excited to bring you another show with Jeffrey Tenenbaum for some rare insight into the legal side of the nonprofit world. He is one of -- if not the -- leading expert on nonprofit law in the Washington, DC area and is consistently recognized for his work amongst lawyers around the country. He is the Chair of Venable's Nonprofit Organizations Practice Group and a Partner in the Venable law f...

Stefanie Reeves has spent much of her career running government affairs programs for large national associations but has recently transitioned to the broader role of Executive Director for the state organization -- the Maryland Psychological Association. The MPA works with the doctors that do talk therapy, rather than the ones that prescribe medicine. It's been a couple of years since that move bu...

Blake returns! He's back from his travels creating podcasts for several different industries around the country, just in time to welcome Brian Turmail from the Associated General Contractors of America. The AGC represents the people who build pretty much every structure -- and the facilities that support them -- with the exception of homes. He is the Senior Executive Director of Public Affairs and...

Can you believe that women were unable to join the Chamber of Commerce until 1988 unless their husbands were members? That was one of the (many) reasons for the founding of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 1975 and we're thrilled to welcome Kathy Warnick, NAWBO's National Chair and Joy Lutes, the Vice President of External Affairs to chat about the groundbreaking work their org...

Simon Owens is a returning guest to Through the Noise, having been one of our earliest guests on the show. He's a journalist employed by many who has departed from his freelance marketing career in favor of pursuing the leads and stories that call to him. Writing about tech, media, and marketing, his niche is broad enough to appeal to and provide important content for a huge range of people. Join...

Sarah McCann has spent a good deal of her career in aviation advocacy and has recently become the Director of Communications for General Aviation Manufacturers Association. Ernesto and Sarah discuss the ins and outs of working as a member of a "one man shop" -- running the communications program for the organization versus being part of a communications team. We also touch on membership -- how do...

Nonprofit organizations are constantly struggling to be heard "through the noise" so we've asked Stephanie Ceruolo, Senior Vice President of Infogroup to join us on the show to talk communications and fundraising. With so many ways to reach potential supporters, it can be difficult to tell which method will be most effective -- and to compete with all the other organizations (and distractions) vyi...

Managing and supporting the "humans" in "human resources" is a monumental and often delicate and complicated task that is crucial to every single organization. Since resources impact all of our listeners, we've invited Laurie McIntosh, the Director of Membership for the Society of Human Resource Management to join us on Through the Noise. Pronounced "Shirm," the SHRM has 285,000 members worldwide...

Dr. Andy MacCabe of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges sits down in the studio with Ernesto to talk goals, opportunity, the health of many species, collaborating with other organizations, and the benefits of a diverse profession. Dr. MacCabe is CEO of the AAVMC but brings a vast and varied background to the position, including a degree in agriculture, time in the Air Force, a...

While Blake parties, er, works in Vegas, Through the Noise is hosted by Ernesto and his partner at Infamia, Mickey Panayiotakis, and today they're joined by Henri Makembe of the Beekeeper Group. Mr. Makembe is a partner at the Beekeeper Group, a Washington, DC-based firm that works with associations and nonprofits (and some of those for-profits as well) to engage their target audiences in creative...

Today's Through the Noise is a quickie takeover by our sister podcast, Tech in Ten. Mickey Panayiotakis, Ernesto's partner at Infamia joins us on the show today for an informal conversation about their new podcast Tech in Ten where they quickly tackle all things related to association tech needs. You can find this succinct weekly podcast on the Through the Noise website and we hope you'll check it...