PODCAST · business
The Development Debrief
by Kathryn Van Sickle
Podcast by Kathryn Van Sickle *The views on this podcast are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer.
Episodes
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180. David Wick: On the Edge of Learning
This week, I’m joined by David Wick, a Partner and Leader of the Education and Social impact practice at Spencer Stuart. On this episode we hear about his career journey, and as a result learn how he thinks about leadership and social impact for his own career and the talent pipeline now. David’s...
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179. Katie Chatas: Women in Philanthropy
This week we talk with Katie Chatas who I met in New Haven through a board we are both on and she will speak from the board member and donor perspective. Katie details the exciting women’s initiative she helped launch at Williams College called The W and what it was like for her to be a volunteer...
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178. Sergio Gonzalez: Lead with Gratitude
On this episode, I’m joined by Sergio Gonzalez for a conversation about taking the nontraditional path—and why bringing fresh eyes to your work can be hugely productive. Sergio shares his career journey, including the pivots and changes that shaped his path, and why he has never been afraid to...
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177. Jim Kenny: Making Moves
This week, I sit down with my colleague Jim Kenny, Assistant Vice President for Development, Schools and Units at Yale, to explore his career journey and the lessons he's learned along the way. In an open and candid conversation, Jim shares his insights on career growth, recognizing when it's…
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176. Wendy Connors: CDO to CEO
I’m back after my wedding and honeymoon in March—and I’m coming in with a renewed mindset. One thing it reminded me of was how much I get out of this show. This podcast has always been about three things: gaining understanding, building community, and elevating voices in our field. I hope that...
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175. Sustaining Your Journey: Sarah Bell
For the third and final episode of the "Sustaining Your Journey" series, I’m joined by Sarah Bell — Director of Principal Giftsat Harvard Business School. Sarah has spent nearly two decades at Harvard, including 19 years at Harvard Law School, building a career rooted in connection and purpose....
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174. Sustaining Your Journey: Tommy Bergstrom
In this second episode of Sustaining Your Journey, we’re exploring what it means to take a nonlinear path — to start differently, not over. Tommy Bergstrom serves as Senior Associate Director of Leadership Annual Gifts with The Penn Fund, where he’s building new pipelines for engagement...
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173. Sustaining Your Journey: Boi Carpenter
Welcome to 2026 with the Development Debrief. This month is a time for inner work—we are lucky to have a guest this week who is both wise and smart. This episode is about creating and building along the way. About the chapters in life we only understand in hindsight. About uncertainty…
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172. Solo Episode: Recalibrating Mid-career
In this episode, I read an article I wrote for LinkedIn that explores some of the conversations I've had recently with friends and colleagues. I'm asking the questions like around mid-career crossroads and how we decide if and when we are happy. This is the first episode in a series where I will...
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171. Boyden with Texas A&M: What we Celebrate and what we Tolerate
Welcome to this Development Debrief episode sponsored by Boyden Executive Search. In this episode, we’re talking with the Texas A&M Foundation about how their culture work is transforming the way they recruit, retain, and grow talented staff. Our guests are Jill Trego and Chastity Carrigan with...
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170. David Kennedy: Strategic Realignment
In this episode, we sit down with David Kennedy, Vice President for Alumni Engagement and Development at Duke University—a leader who’s navigated some of the toughest questions in higher education today. We talk about his career, why Duke's current campaign has no dollar goal, and how they have...
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169. Joanne Berger-Sweeney: Trinity's All In Campaign
This episode is a deeply personal one. I’m honored tosit down with the 22nd President of Trinity College, JoanneBerger-Sweeney, to reflect on her remarkable leadership and the impact of the All In campaign—the most ambitious fundraising effort in the college’s history. Despite serious headwinds,...
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168. Adrian Colarusso: What is your wealth's Highest Purpose?
What is your wealth's highest purpose? In this episode, we explore that question with a professional wealth advisor who is passionate about helping millennials use their resources to create real impact. We’ll dive into donor-advised funds—are you using one?—and why they matter for high-income,...
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167. Carolyn Vine: Leadership, Legacy, and the Future of Robin Hood
Today I’m thrilled to be joined by Carolyn Vine from Robin Hood, one of New York City’s most impactful organizations fighting poverty. Robin Hood is stepping into an exciting new chapter—launching an endowment campaign that will strengthen their ability to serve the city for generations to come....
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166. Joel Malina: How to Define and Respond to Crisis
Welcome to today’s conversation with Joel Malina. Together,we talk about communications and we dive into what it means to find balance in your career, while also having big impact. Joel shares his transition from Cornell to Brunswick, what it takes to define a crisis—and respond effectively...
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165. Claudia Taylor Overstrom: Parent Fundraising at Yale
Welcome to Season 16! We’re kicking off a brand-new season with a fantastic lineup of episodes ahead, and I’m so glad you’re here. It’s been a wonderful summer in New Haven—I spent time with family, snuck away to Vermont, and reconnected with friends. One highlight was attending the Parents...
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164. Robin Aviv: Sharing Our Stories
Today’s guest, Robin Aviv, is a force in the nonprofit world—a leader who’s redefining how missions are amplified and communities are engaged. Robin is the Founder and Executive Chairperson of Generation S.O.S., a prominent non-profit organization that empowers teens and young adults to make...
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163. Craig Shelley: High Performing Teams
Today’s episode will focus on leadership and specificallytouches on the challenges of current times. We talk about how to build a high performing team regardless of your current circumstance. Craig Shelley is the President, Fundraising and Strategy Services at Carey & Co. he gives specific…
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162. Susan Murray: Raising Unrestricted Capital
This episode takes a deep dive into the organization Year Up. Year Up United equips students with the skills they need for success through tuition-free job training. Through access to hands-on experience and skills-first training, they help young adults achieve the future they dream of, while...
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161. Julie Braverman and Mathwon Howard: Owning Your Career
The following episode is a live conversation that took place in person at the Yale Office of Alumni Affairs and Development. This interview is with Julie Braverman and Mathwon Howard, both Associate Vice Presidents at Yale. This is a fun pairing because they compare and contrast their experiences...
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160. Ashley Budd: Irresistibly Clickable
Happy Valentine’s Day! This week, we have a fun riff onYou’ve Got Mail! Our guest Ashley Budd explains why we only have 2 seconds to get someone’s attention in email. Not only does she explain the context of our high volume phenomenon, but we then talk about ways to work around this reality.…
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159. Dr. Tina Bernot: Grit, Growth, and Gratitude
Welcome to season 15! There are some fun episodes in store this season. This week, we will listen to Tina Bernot reflect on the centennial campaign planning, strategy, and execution for Murray State University. She talks about how she trains her team, raises sites, and stewards big gifts. Dr.…
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158. Walking Through the Gate
Happy New Year, everyone! This episode is a short solo check-in about approaching the New Year. I hope you had a chance to relax, recharge, and take a break over the holidays. I know I did, but I also know that time between the holidays and jumping back into work can feel a little...…
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157. Marc Camille: Chief Storyteller
This week, Dr. Marc Camille talks to us about his career path and approach to development as a college president. He sees himself as a chief storyteller and talks to us about ways he has built a strong culture of philanthropy while planning the Centennial Celebration of Albertus Magnus College!…
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156. Liz Elting: Dream Big and Win
This week, Liz Elting joins us to talk about her book and dive deeply into her philanthropy. We discuss the lessons she learned in creating her foundation and the priorities that guide her decisions as a leader. I have looked up to Liz over the years within the Trinity College community and am...
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155. CJ Orr: AI
Welcome back! This week, we will talk about some tools within AI that save you time and money! In today’s episode, we’re breaking down the pros and cons of effective AI usage. We’ll discuss how you can save (in our estimation) $30,000 by optimizing your workflow, using simple yet powerful...
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154. Jessica Carbone: Philanthropy Means Love
Welcome to the podcast! Today, we’re thrilled to welcome Jessica Carbone, the Associate Director of Development for Major Gifts at Boston College, where she oversees initiatives in Seattle and Denver. A proud alumna of BC herself, Jessica graduated from the Lynch School of Education and Human...
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153. Ben Feller: It's not what you say, it's what they hear
Welcome back to another episode of The Development Debrief! It’s Episode 153, and today we’re diving deep into the world of effective communication with our special guest, Ben Feller, who joins us for the second time. If you’re interested in looking back, he was also featured in Episode 66, a few...
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152. Boi Carpenter: Inquisitive Leader
This week, we chat with Boi Carpenter about her career journey and her business, Inquisitive Leader. In the first half, we dive into her career path, and in the second, we explore her business. We discuss management, the role of curiosity and inquiry, strategies for preventing burnout, modeling...
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151. Justin Fincher: Inhabiting The Gap
This week, we feature Justin Fincher (Chief Deputy to the President of Stony Brook University and Senior Vice President for Government and Community Relations and Executive Director of the Stony Brook Foundation) for the second time. The first time he was featured was episode 55 where he spoke…
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150: Ben Outar: CASE Summer Intern
As we wind down the summer, I wanted to share a bit about our CASE intern. We had the opportunity to hire someone to join our team and work on a project. This summer’s project was a data driven analysis. We hired a student who told us he was interested in human behavior and economics, and we...
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149. Chris McGowan: Best practices for working with volunteers and parents
Last week, I attended the Parents Fundraising conference hosted by Cornell University. Chris McGowan (Yale's former co-chair of the Parents Leadership Council) joined me for a live audience conversation about working with parent volunteers and donors. It is worth listening to the end where we…
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148. Elizabeth Keppel: 5 Ways to Take Your Team to the Next Level
This week we talk about management and leadership. Elizabeth has developed training materials to help managers at all levels increase the performance and retention of their teams. Elizabeth Keppel is the Senior Director of Annual Giving & Digital Strategy at Johns Hopkins University, where she...
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147. Heather Kopec: Advancing, not replacing the human brain
This week we hear from Heather who just relocated to Houston, Texas for a new role as Executive Director, Annual Giving at Rice University. She talks to us about how we can get started using AI in our work and she suggests a few places to start. She equates learning new systems like training for…
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146. Mark Koenig: How do we work alongside AI?
This week, we continue to drill down into the burning questions about AI and how it will change our work. What comes up again and again with Mark is, how do we work alongside this? Listen to discover the answer to that overarching question. Mark Koenig is the vice president for technology and…
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145. Deb Lin: CFR 101
This week, Deb shares her perspective as a corporate and foundation relations professional. In the second episode on this topic, we compare it to individual giving and learn more about how the space is unique. Deborah Lin is the Director of Corporate, Foundation, & Association Relations at…
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144. Andrew Gossen: It is No Longer Abstract
This week we get some AI forecasting from Andrew Gossen. He reflects on how much technology has developed over the past six years, and shares predictions about ways our work will change and evolve. Andrew outlines the risks and rewards of keeping up with artificial intelligence and how we should...
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143. Stephanie Cook: Building a non-natural constituency base
This week, I get the opportunity to talk with Stephanie Cook about her career journey and most recent experiences with the National Audubon Society. We talk about how her broad higher education experience prepared her to work in a more niche area with a non-natural constituency base. Stephanie…
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142. Jennifer Zaslow: Working Through Difficult Conversations
Hello and welcome to Season 13! This season is different because ½ of the 8 episodes are going to be focused on AI. However, there are a few episodes that aren’t focused on AI including today’s. While understanding AI is important, we also need the EQ that occurs in between skilling up and one of...
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141. Looking forward and looking back
This is a two-part episode but the two parts are inextricably linked. The first is looking back at the past six months—and the second is looking forward and creating visions of an ideal future. Part 1 is a six month update on my time in New Haven and at Yale! Part 2 is a 5-step process at…
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140. Chad Paris: The Making of Parisleaf
First and foremost, Happy Birthday to today's guest, Chad Paris! Ever wondered how a campaign is born? How firms get started? What matters most with communications? Chad Paris tells us about his firm, Parisleaf and how it has grown into an international brand and digital partner working with a…
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139. Elizabeth Hines: Investing in Generations
Liz comes from a family of story tellers. This week we learn about how she found her voice as a communications specialist, a trustee, and so much more. Liz tells us how her education impacted her and lead her to write about her great uncle and philanthropist, A.G. Gaston. His investment is his...
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138. Brandon Baker: From 10M to 1B
This weeks episode explores what is looks like to work for a younger institution and realize exciting potential, the way that our guest combined a variety of skills for his current role, and the critical aspect of leadership along the way. Brandon Baker is the associate senior vice president for...
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137. Anna Schlia: Providing a Framework
This week, my guest and I explore the concept of academic research in the field of fundraising. We dig into donor motivation and ways in which scholarly research can help provide framework and clarity of thinking. Frontline fundraiser, researcher of donor inclinations, and status quo breaker…
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136. Anna Dugan: Next Generation Fundraising
This week, I talk with Anna Dugan about her work with next generation donors at Carnegie Hall. Since I knew her there, she has moved on to work at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Anna talks about building a pipeline program, answers why younger donors want more metrics and data, and explains why creating…
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135. Matt Abrahams: Think Faster, Talk Smarter
Hello! Today you are in for a treat. The following episode will explore themes of being put on the spot, networking, and sparking connections. Listen to learn how to start and stop event conversations, make a cogent pitch, and understand a tough audience. Matt Abrahams is a leading expert in the...
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134. My First Team Retreat
Welcome to Season 12. In today's solo episode, I talk about the process I took to plan our team retreat. Special thanks to Lisa Alvarez-Calderon for guiding me through the planning and execution. Planning tips: 1. Set your intention- what is the goal? 2. Space 3. Timing 4. Outside inspiration-...
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133. Wendy Sealey: Live Audience, FRDNY, AFP 2023
This episode is the last conversation of Season 11. The episode took place in NYC with a live audience of over 1,000 people. AFP-NYC puts on a fundraising day for fundraisers every year-- we were lucky enough to be the morning keynote. Enjoy the live format featuring Wendy Sealey and thank you...
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132. Emily Kernan: The joys of Annual Giving
Emily and I talk about preparing for fiscal year end, annual giving trends and changes, and her passion for leadership. Emily Kernan is the Executive Director of The Penn Fund at the University of Pennsylvania, where she oversees all annual giving efforts primarily engaging undergraduate alumni....
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131. The Wells Collective: You Can Only See From Where You Sit
The Wells Collective was born out of both necessity and the right amount of mimosas. After six Black women, who worked individually as public and private school educators, researchers, educational administrators, and psychologists, gathered together for a bubbly brunch, the kinetic energy that...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Podcast by Kathryn Van Sickle *The views on this podcast are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer.
HOSTED BY
Kathryn Van Sickle
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How many episodes does The Development Debrief have?
The Development Debrief currently has 186 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
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Podcast by Kathryn Van Sickle *The views on this podcast are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer.
How often does The Development Debrief release new episodes?
The Development Debrief publishes regularly with 186 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
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Who hosts The Development Debrief?
The Development Debrief is created and hosted by Kathryn Van Sickle.
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