Through the Noise

The National Bar Association was created in 1925 for African American lawyers, judges, law students, and other supporters as the American Bar Association was still segregated. The NBA represents 66,000 members of the legal profession and has been part of the struggle for civil rights and justice since its inception. Last year they relaunched the political funding arm of the organization so we've invited Stephanie Mickle, the Director of the NBA PAC to chat with us today.

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? Sabrina Kidwai of the Public Relations Society of America clarifies some of the finer points of public relations. Sabrina is the president of the DC / National Chapter, largest in the country, with 1200 members working in nonprofits, government, and private business. Their members benefit from the diverse background of their membership.

Housing impacts each of us every day and plays a pivotal role in ensuring that we are able to live our best lives. Whether you rent or own, the work of the National Association of Home Builders has probably influenced your life in some important way. Lakisha Woods talks with us about representing the 8 million people working in the housing industry. Since the early 1940s, the NAHB has been a critical resource for homeowners and builders and making important connections between the two.

We've all heard eight hours per night is the ideal amount of sleep to strive for, and while that's only an average, the quality of sleep we are able to get is dependent on the surface on which we sleep. To find out about spending one-third of our lives in a way that benefits all of our waking hours we invited Mary Helen Rogers of the International Sleep Products Association. Founded in 1915 by mattress manufacturers to combat fraud, ISPA has been protecting consumers and manufacturers for over 100 years.

Mindy Saffer 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 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 worst invention ever, as Blake and Ernesto do? Mindy has an answer for that. She is an expert in finding space that suits your organization's day-to-day needs.

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 and show them the ropes of how it's done. Running Start empowers these young women to use their voice and they have trained 12,000 so far. With only five (bipartisan) staff, the organization is able to train about 2500 per year and we can't wait to see what they do.

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 the Chair of Venable's Nonprofit Organizations Practice Group and a Partner in the Venable law firm. Most of their business comes from referrals and Venable produces a significant amount of free legal content to help organizations like yours become better informed about potential legal challenges and how to navigate the legal system.

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 but we chat with her about the changes and challenges of working in a staff of four instead of 600.

Today's guest is Brian Turmail from the Associated General Contractors of America. The AGC represents the people who build pretty much every structure -- with the exception of homes. He helps tell the stories of general contractors, bridging the gap between what they really do and what people think they do. They are working to dispel the myth that every construction site is just a bunch of inconvenient orange cones and people standing around.

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 Assoc. of Women Business Owners in 1975 and we're thrilled to welcome Kathy Warnick, NAWBO's Nat'l Chair and Joy Lutes, the Vice President of External Affairs to chat about the groundbreaking work their organization has done over the past 42 years on behalf of the (now) more than 10 million women business owners in the U.S.

Simon Owens is 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 us for a conversation about transitions in tech, getting and retaining subscribers, and the value of connecting with people through the intimate medium of podcasts.

Sarah McCann has spent a good deal of her career in aviation advocacy and is now 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" -- versus being part of a communications team. We touch on membership -- how do you manage your communication planning when your membership is comprised of individuals compared to organizations who each have their own communications team?

Nonprofit organizations are constantly struggling to be heard so we've asked Stephanie Ceruolo, Senior Vice President of Infogroup to talk communications and fundraising. Infogroup works to help organizations "fish where the fish are" and help connect nonprofits with people that are not just able to give, but likely to give, and also give at a higher level. They help their clients get the right story to the right people and who doesn't want that?

Managing and supporting the "humans" in "human resources" is a monumental and often delicate and complicated task that is crucial to every single organization. We've invited Laurie McIntosh, the Director of Membership for the Society of Human Resource Management to join us. The SHRM has 285,000 members worldwide, and even has an office in India. With 575 chapters, there are ample opportunities for individuals engaged in human resources to become more deeply involved and to grow professionally.

Dr. Andy MacCabe of the AAVMC and Ernesto talk goals, opportunity, the health of many species, collaborating, and the benefits of a diverse profession. Dr. MacCabe is CEO of the AAVMC but brings a vast background to the position, including a degree in agriculture, time in the Air Force, a degree in public health, and even a patent law degree. Though the AAVMC has "American" in their name, their membership now represents 50 medical colleges around the world, including all 30 in the US.