Podcast Summary: What the Fundraising
Episode 270: The Cost of Standing Still: Rethinking Change in the Nonprofit World with Andrew Roger Olsen
Date: November 18, 2025
Host: Mallory Erickson
Guest: Andrew Roger Olsen, Executive Vice President of Fundraising Solutions, DickersonBakker
Episode Overview
This episode tackles the pressing paradox facing nonprofits: although the sector prides itself on change-making, most organizations struggle with adapting internally. Host Mallory Erickson and fundraising expert Andrew Roger Olsen explore why nonprofits freeze when it comes to innovation, culture shifts, and upgrading systems, even when everyone recognizes the need for change. They discuss what stands in the way, why leadership and board practices often perpetuate stagnation, and offer actionable steps to create a culture where safe, strategic change is possible.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. The Change Paradox in Nonprofits
- Despite being “change makers,” many nonprofits lock into stagnant operational habits.
- Leaders and teams overwhelmingly agree change is needed—but few have concrete plans to implement it
- “We know we need to change and we actually know the things that we need to change. Like 87%, some ridiculously high number. ... But then, over 60% said, but we have no plan to change.” — Andrew Olson [04:33]
2. What Actually Blocks Change
- Leadership and Prioritization: CEOs and leaders often blame busyness, when they are empowered to set priorities.
- “If we are not setting the tone and saying, don’t do the unimportant things so you can do the critical things, that's our fault. ... That's purely a leadership issue.” — Andrew Olson [05:50]
- Organizational Inertia:
- Fear of discomfort and avoidance of hard conversations leads to maintaining the status quo.
- Budget Constraints and Technology:
- Nonprofits routinely undervalue staff time and delay necessary tech investments, using perceived cost savings as justification.
- “We've said we're going to make it harder on our people so it's easier on us in the budgeting process... and not realize just how detrimental that is. ... That's one of those ways where somebody goes: I love our mission, I love my colleagues, but it kind of sucks to work here.” — Andrew Olson [10:38, 10:53]
3. Scarcity Mindset and the Board's Role
- Prevailing scarcity mentality means leadership avoids spending on upgrades, training, or innovation—even when investment is overdue.
- Boards and senior leaders often treat human capital as a sunk cost.
- “I've served over a thousand nonprofits and I think I've met two that have a financial strategy. ... The majority don’t have a financial strategy.” — Andrew Olson [13:57]
4. Lack of Financial Strategy and R&D Mindset
- Few nonprofits budget for experimentation, innovation, or growth—hampering their ability to evolve.
- Leaders are often promoted for programmatic skill, not for financial or people leadership—and receive little training.
- “Very few [orgs] have a reserve capital fund somewhere where you can draw down — to cover costs if something doesn’t work ... there’s such a mentality of: spend every dollar that you raise every year, and that hamstrings so many organizations.” — Andrew Olson [18:19]
5. Culture, Perfectionism, and Permission to Fail
- A fear of failure and perfectionism at leadership levels stifles experimentation.
- There’s a misalignment between what leaders say (“we want innovation”), and what they budget for or tolerate (“don’t fail”).
- “Fail fast and fail as inexpensively as possible, but don’t not fail. ... If we don’t have that as the foundational understanding, any kind of change initiative is probably not going to get off the ground.” — Andrew Olson [20:44]
6. Tactical Recommendations for Leaders
- Create a Culture That Values Change and Accepts Failure:
- Work internally and at the board level to normalize learning from mistakes and experimentation.
- Test Small Before Going Big:
- Not all innovation is a huge leap—start with “small I” innovation and apply learnings organization-wide.
- Prioritize Financial Literacy:
- Every leader and aspiring leader should understand the P&L; financial fluency is critical to effective leadership.
- “If you don’t understand the P and L, you will never be as successful as you can be.” — Andrew Olson [23:39]
- Be Consistent in What You Value:
- If you say you want innovation, show it through your budget, what you recognize, and your response to setbacks.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- “I feel like there are a lot of people who've made it into middle management ... who believe that their title is Director of Stagnation.” — Andrew Olson [04:33]
- “There’s this deflection of immediate discomfort at the expense of so much long term pain.” — Mallory Erickson [12:38]
- "We want to evolve our messaging strategy ... but when that change causes some donors to say, ‘I’m not really in for that thing’ and it impacts cash flow, all of the vision tends to go by the wayside.” — Andrew Olson [18:19]
- “Don’t tell me what you care about. Show me what you pay for, what you track.” — Mallory Erickson [17:11]
- "Test little things, learn from them ... but don’t just test and move on. Apply those lessons across the business.” — Andrew Olson [22:09]
Important Timestamps
- 03:00: Andrew’s background & perspective (introducing farm life and resilience)
- 04:33: Study findings — high awareness of need for change, low action
- 10:38: The undervaluation of staff time and leadership’s responsibility
- 12:38: Scarcity mindset and avoiding discomfort — harm of deferring investment
- 13:57: Lack of financial strategy and board-level challenges
- 18:19: The R&D mindset, budgeting for learning and growth
- 20:44: Setting a culture of safe experimentation and learning from failure
- 22:09: Tactical recommendations: start small, apply learning organization-wide, and build financial acumen
Final Takeaways
This candid conversation highlights a sector-wide dilemma: the peril of standing still is more costly than change itself. True innovation in nonprofit organizations depends on courageous leadership, aligned values, strategic financial planning, and a culture that embraces experimentation and learning from failure. Leaders at every level—especially boards and executives—must foster environments where teams feel safe to try new things, budget for growth and learning, and stay focused on the mission, not just survival.
Connect with Andrew Olsen: