Nov 17, 2025
Community listening sessions are essential for effective nonprofit work, yet too often they become a box-checking exercise rather than a chance to uncover blind spots and foster true collaboration. In today's episode, Josh Gryniewicz interviews Dana Perlman to explore practical strategies for meaningful, co-creative listening. Tune in for a fresh perspective on systems change, community listening, and narrative strategy.
Want to suggest a topic, guest, or nonprofit organization for an upcoming episode? Send an email with the subject "NPFX suggestion" to contact@ipmadvancement.com.
Additional Resources
Dana Pearlman's Systems Change toolkits (free
download)
https://danapearlman.com/toolkits
[NPFX] From Micro-Stories to
Meta-Narratives: How to Influence Perception and Drive
Change
https://www.ipmadvancement.com/npfx/from-micro-stories-to-meta-narratives-how-to-influence-perception-and-drive-change-narrative-strategy
[NPFX] Authentic, Ethical, and
Effective Messaging — From Theory to Practice
https://www.ipmadvancement.com/npfx/authentic-ethical-and-effective-messaging-from-theory-to-practice
[NPFX] Flipping the Script: Using
Narrative Strategy to Improve Messaging and Prevent Donor
Attrition
https://www.ipmadvancement.com/npfx/flipping-the-script-using-narrative-strategy-to-improve-messaging-and-prevent-donor-attrition
[NPFX] When Your Nonprofit's Case
for Support Just Isn't Working
https://www.ipmadvancement.com/npfx/when-your-nonprofit-s-case-for-support-just-isn-t-working
[NPFX] How to Find Authentic Voices
That Inspire Action
https://www.ipmadvancement.com/npfx/narrative-strategy-how-to-find-authentic-voices-that-inspire-action
Guests
Josh Gryniewicz is the founder and Chief
Narrative Strategist at Odd Duck, a
storytelling-for-social-change creative consultancy focused on
impact-driven organizations. Josh is the co-author of the
award-winning national bestseller, Interrupting Violence. For over a decade, he
has worked in nonprofit communication. In 2018, he founded Odd Duck
to combine his passions for storytelling and social change. The
agency’s Navigating Misinformation for Community Health framework
has been shared with over a thousand community health
organizations. Odd Duck has worked with nearly a hundred
change-making organizations and advised hundreds more, including
the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, the Harvard School of
Public Health, and the White House.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jgryniewicz/
https://oddduck.io/
https://www.interruptingviolence.com/
Dana Pearlman is the
founder of ChangeLeaders Network. As a systems change designer,
facilitator, and catalyst, she helps individuals, teams, and
organizations innovate and thrive. Her work spans one-on-one
mentoring, multi-stakeholder workshops, and large-scale
transformation efforts. She equips groups with practical skills in
dialogue, systems thinking, complexity navigation, and creative
problem solving while fostering inclusive environments that honor
diverse perspectives. Drawing on a versatile toolkit of frameworks
and methodologies, Dana collaborates across sectors to co-create
pathways toward shared goals. She also speaks on co-creation and
leadership development and designs education programs and change
labs, bringing a holistic and experiential approach grounded in her
multidisciplinary academic background.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/dana-pearlman-27134312/
https://danapearlman.com/
Hosts
Russ Phaneuf, a
co-founder of IPM Advancement, has a background in
higher education development, with positions at the University of
Hartford, Northern Arizona University, and Thunderbird School of
Global Management. As IPM's managing director & chief strategist,
Russ serves as lead fundraising strategist, award-winning content
creator, and program analyst specializing in applied system
dynamics.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/russphaneuf/
https://www.ipmadvancement.com/
Rich Frazier has
worked in the nonprofit sector for over 35 years. In his roles as
senior consultant with IPM Advancement and founder of VisionConnect LLC, Rich offers extensive
understanding and knowledge in capital campaigns, fund development,
strategic planning, and board of directors development.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/richfrazier/
https://www.visionconnectllc.com/