The Nonprofit Insider Podcast · Swim Karim

Ep.59-From Warren Wilson to AmeriCorps & Beyond: The Realities of Nonprofit Fundraising with Jenn Tutor

February 19, 2025·55 min·5 clips

The episode opens with a casual apology for the delay in getting Jen Tudor onto the show. It quickly settles into a conversation about why fundraising matters so much in nonprofit work. The host frames the role as central to an organization’s health. Jen talks through the different kinds of relationships fundraisers have to build. Some are deep and ongoing. Some are lighter touch but still matter. She also treats email and social media as forms of relationship-building. That idea stays near the center of the discussion. The host gives fundraisers a lot of credit for how well they understand the broader community. He points out that they often know what other organizations are doing, who is active in the area, and how different groups connect. That leads into a warm appreciation of the skills fundraisers use every day. Jen acknowledges the compliment without losing the practical tone. The conversation then turns to her recent CFRE credential. The host asks what the designation means. Jen explains that it recognizes a professional who follows a set of standards and practices, works within a shared ethical framework, and has the knowledge needed to do the role well in a standardized way. She notes that fundraising does not have the same built-in professional pipeline that some other fields have. There are not many higher education programs that lead into it the way an MD does for medicine. The certification helps fill that gap. It stands in for a clearer standard in a field that is often learned through experience, practice, and on-the-job judgment. The discussion stays candid rather than ceremonial. It keeps returning to the lived reality of nonprofit work. By the end, the episode feels like a grounded exchange about what development people actually do, how they think, and why their work holds so much of the sector together.

As heard by us

A clear look at fundraising as relationship work inside nonprofit life.

This conversation stays close to the day to day work of nonprofit fundraising, where relationships, community awareness, and steady mission support do most of the heavy lifting.

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Why you'd press play

Hear how fundraising becomes relationship work, not just a line item.

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