Collaboration Is the New Currency with Bradley Harris

What if the answer to a tight budget isn't another ask, but a better partner?

Bradley Harris has spent more than 13 years working across nonprofit leadership, government, economic development, and corporate philanthropy. He's the founder of Bradley Harris Strategic Advisory, president of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine Foundation, and a board member who somehow always ends up on the development committee. He's also sat on the other side of the table, running a multimillion-dollar philanthropic budget for a major water utility for five and a half years.

From where he sits, the math has changed. Families are paying more at the gas pump and giving less to their local nonprofits, and grant funding is pulling back. His answer: collaboration is the new currency. When two organizations are chasing the same outcomes with separate programs, separate staff time, and separate email lists, partnering lets everybody do a little so nobody has to do a lot. And it shouldn't matter who gets the credit.

Bradley also shares the advice from his years in political consulting that stuck with him most: if you want advice, ask for money. If you want money, ask for advice. People invest in what they've helped shape, and he's watched it happen more times than you'd think.

In this episode of Nonprofit Nook, Bradley joins Wendy to talk about how to figure out who belongs at the table, why relationship mapping beats a cold ask, and what a real corporate partnership looks like beyond a logo on a banner. He shares how his utility funded bottle filling stations at the YMCA, why every one of his subcontractors stepped up when he asked them to support the United Way, and why the most common reason people give for not donating is that no one ever asked.

Underneath all of it, this is a conversation about relationships: listening to what funders actually care about, staying curious when their priorities shift, and taking care of donors long before you need something from them.

If you lead, volunteer with, support, or dream of starting a nonprofit, this conversation is a reminder that you don't have to reach your biggest goals alone, and that right now, while 2027 budgets are being set, is a good time to start the conversation.

In This Episode

You'll hear Wendy and Bradley talk about:

Why collaboration has become the new currency, and how sharing staff, social channels, and email lists with a partner stretches every dollar
Why "if you want money, ask for advice" works, and how it changes donor conversations
How to decide who actually needs to be at the table for a big goal
What relationship mapping looks like, and why board members should make introductions instead of asks
How funder priorities shift with new leadership, and why no renewal is guaranteed
What a branded corporate partnership looks like beyond a logo, including in-kind help from vendors and subcontractors
Why the fourth quarter is the time to reach out, since most 2027 budgets are being set now
Why funders should say no kindly instead of ghosting

Resources + Links

Connect with Bradley Harris Strategic Advisory

Website

https://thebradleyharris.com

Bradley Harris on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradley-harris-a4649360

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/thebradleyharris

Connect with Wendy + Nonprofit Nook

Nonprofit Nook

https://nonprofitnook.com

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