What the Fundraising: Episode 257

From Scarcity to Strategy: Building Financial Resilience in Nonprofits with Karen Houghton
Release Date: September 9, 2025
Host: Mallory Erickson | Guest: Karen Houghton (CEO, Infinite Giving)

Episode Overview

This episode explores ways nonprofits, especially small and mid-sized organizations, can shift from a survival-driven "scarcity mindset" to a strategic and resilient approach to finances. Karen Houghton, CEO of Infinite Giving and experienced nonprofit leader, shares actionable insights on building reserve funds, attracting major gifts, empowering nonprofit leaders, and demystifying complex giving vehicles. The conversation blends practical strategy with compassion, emphasizing that nonprofits can – and should – have access to the same financial tools and opportunities as for-profit businesses.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Scarcity Mindset vs. Strategy Mindset

[00:00–03:24]

• Karen Houghton opens by acknowledging how exhausting the scarcity mindset is for nonprofits—and how common it is to get stuck there.
• Instead of fixating on limited resources, organizations should develop future-focused strategies, including building reserves and envisioning sustainability.
• Quote:

  "Living in the scarcity mindset is exhausting. But we also, anyone in the nonprofit space, like, yeah, been there, right? ... I think where we start to come into trouble a little bit or limit ourselves is when we can't see past that moment and we're not visioning and building towards something more."
  – Karen Houghton [00:00]

• The transition isn't just moving from scarcity to abundance (an overused cliché), but shifting into a strategy mindset.

2. Access to Financial Tools: Why Nonprofits Are Left Behind

[03:24–06:01]

• Karen describes her background in both nonprofits and tech, highlighting barriers nonprofits face accessing financial tools available to businesses—like brokerage accounts and FDIC sweep programs.
• The financial sector creates excessive friction for nonprofits (long application processes, paperwork, complexity) compared to individual or business accounts.
• Quote:

  "Why did 90% of nonprofits not have a brokerage account? Well, it's because it's incredibly difficult... A nonprofit, it can take six to 12 weeks, wet ink, snail mail, like it's a huge application process, right?"
  – Karen Houghton [04:28]

• Infinite Giving was built to remove these barriers by serving only tax-exempt entities, increasing transparency and access.

3. Practical Steps to Build Financial Resilience

[06:01–12:39]

• For nonprofits "living paycheck to paycheck", Karen stresses starting small—but starting somewhere—with building a reserve fund.
• Post-COVID guidance: Aim for 6 to 12 months of operating reserves (versus pre-COVID's 3 to 6 months).
• Reserves aren't luxuries: they're crucial for enduring missed donations, grant gaps, and ensuring mission continuity.
• Quote:

  "Having that savings, keeping it and stewarding it well, and keeping it out of your checking account, right? Putting in a money market, doing something with it...when that emergency happens, which it will at some point... it keeps your sustainability, and then as you can, then you start to build it back up."
  – Karen Houghton [08:24]

• On attracting major gifts: Many donors want to give non-cash assets (stock, etc.) but organizations often lack the infrastructure to facilitate such gifts, so the opportunity is lost.
• Dr. Russell James' research cited: nonprofits that accept both cash and stock gifts raise, on average, 55% more over five years.

4. Positioning Optionality for Donors Without Overwhelming Them

[12:39–16:27]

• Nonprofit leaders fear overwhelming donors by presenting too many giving options.
• Karen reframes non-cash giving (stocks, crypto, real estate) as a service to major donors: these donors often look for tax-advantaged ways to give.
• Remind donors: average online credit card gift ($128); average stock gift ($8,000).
• Quote:

  "When you start talking about assets, that's where 80 to 90% of their wealth is typically held. And so a major gift starts to feel a lot more doable, especially when they're saving 30% on taxes from that."
  – Karen Houghton [14:42]

• Crypto gifts, though less common, can also be significant and are easy for organizations to process even if they “don’t understand crypto”.
• Main message: Meet donors where they are; offer options without pressure.

5. Empowering Nonprofit Leaders: You Don’t Have to Be the Expert

[16:27–21:31]

• Many nonprofit leaders hesitate to discuss complex gifts out of concern over their own lack of financial expertise.
• Karen emphasizes that fundraisers don’t need all the technical knowledge—they just need good partners and simple tools.
• Infinite Giving supports organizations by speaking with donors, drafting policies, and handling complex transactions.
• Memorable Story:
  Karen describes supporting a Nevada nonprofit through an endowment gift involving crypto, stock, and a wire—all managed smoothly on behalf of the nonprofit so they could simply say “yes”.
• Quote:

  "You are not expected to be great at everything. You're not expected to be a financial expertise, but it is about having the resources available."
  – Karen Houghton [17:26]

6. Human-Centered Support: Beyond Just Technology

[19:58–21:31]

• The emotional toll and fear (of wires, transfers, large sums) is real; Infinite Giving aims to provide hands-on, human support alongside their platform.
• Quote:

  "We have a technology platform, an award winning one. It's beautiful... But we also are a registered investment advisor and a fiduciary... How can we help? ...Thank you for the work you do. How can we be helpful?"
  – Karen Houghton [20:53]

7. Karen’s Upcoming Book: Money with Mission

[21:31–23:26]

• Karen is writing a book, "Money with Mission" (expected Oct. 2025), to fill the knowledge gap at the intersection of nonprofit leadership and financial management.
• Quote:

  "It's really a blue ocean where you have a lot of traditional financial folks who don't always understand nonprofits. And you have a lot of nonprofit leaders who are very savvy but don't always understand the traditional financial systems..."
  – Karen Houghton [22:01]

• Book aims to provide standards, advice, and practical guidance for nonprofit finance.
• Infinite Giving relies on trust and service, with no full-time sales team—just resource-sharing and support.

8. Final Thoughts & Where to Learn More

[23:26–24:50]

• Karen encourages nonprofit leaders not to expect perfection—seek out the right partners and support.
• Infinite Giving offers free consultations and hands-on help for anything from policy-drafting to better money market rates.
• Quote:

  "There are more opportunities than traditional banking and traditional investing out there and we don't always know it. And so we would just love to invite you into kind of re reframing and thinking there are other places and people made for us..."
  – Karen Houghton [24:32]

Notable Quotes

• "Living in the scarcity mindset is exhausting. But...where we start to come into trouble a little bit or limit ourselves is when we can't see past that moment and we're not visioning and building towards something more."
  — Karen Houghton [00:00]

• "Why did 90% of nonprofits not have a brokerage account? ... A nonprofit, it can take six to 12 weeks, wet ink, snail mail, like it's a huge application process, right?"
  — Karen Houghton [04:28]

• "Nonprofit organizations who ask for stock gifts in addition to cash gifts on average raise 55% more over a five year period."
  — Karen Houghton, citing Dr. Russell James [11:49]

• "You're not expected to be great at everything...So just finding partners who want to be helpful is really important."
  — Karen Houghton [23:57]

Suggested Timestamps for Key Segments

• Scarcity to Strategy Mindset: [00:00–06:01]
• Access Barriers for Nonprofits: [03:24–06:01]
• Building Reserves & Major Gifts: [06:01–12:39]
• Offering Donor Optionality: [12:39–16:27]
• Addressing Financial Expertise Gaps: [16:27–21:31]
• Human Support vs. Tech Solutions: [19:58–21:31]
• “Money with Mission” Book Preview: [21:31–23:26]
• Final Takeaways & Finding Support: [23:26–24:50]

Resources & Next Steps

• Infinite Giving: infinitegiving.com

  • Free consults for stock, crypto, policy, endowment, or other financial questions.

• Mallory Erickson & Power Partners Formula: MalloryErickson.com/Podcast

  • Additional resources, full transcripts, episode quotes, and implementation guides.

Summary Tone

The conversation is supportive, practical, hopeful, and empathetic—spoken in plain language with genuine encouragement for nonprofit leaders to get curious, step into financial empowerment, and seek out partners who understand their mission and constraints.