Rad Ops - The Podcast

Life Cycle of Organizations w/Raquel Laviña

The Rad Ops Podcast is one component of a dialogue-based tool that supports organizations assessing and discussing the possibilities and limitations of putting liberatory values into practice. Each guest will share their Rad Ops lineages, their expertise on today’s pressing operations questions and leave listeners with resources and discussion questions to take back to your teams. In this closing episode of season one, we take on the tough topic of the Life Cycle of Organizations with our guest, Raquel Laviña, Consultant, most recently with the Grassroots Power Project.  Resources from this episode: * Transforming Our Organizations, Transforming Ourselves [https://convergencemag.com/articles/transforming-our-organizations-and-ourselves/] article by Sha Grogan-Brown contains many links to resources that can support organizational culture shifts * When you are leading with other people, try out this somatic practice called CFEEB [https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!unfC!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F3a3c1e50-9dc2-4b49-a29d-d24bae9423a5_1080x1350.png] (Center, Face, Extend, Enter, Blend) together * Rad Ops Workbook [https://radops.substack.com/p/rad-ops-workbook-libro-de-actividades] - try out these activities with your colleagues * Visit the Rad Ops Resources page [https://radops.substack.com/p/resources] Discussion questions to take to your team: * Questions for our Organizations * How does the purpose of this organization need to pivot under the conditions of rising authoritarianism? * Is this organization we built in previous conditions still the one that is needed in this current moment? * If many organizations may not make it through this period of rising authoritarianism, how can we clearly assess the unique purpose of this organization? * What are the new formations we might need for the times ahead, beyond our current organizations? * How can the Rad Ops principles inform our collective understanding of what our organization can and cannot do? * How can resilient relationships be baked into organizational structures so we are not relying on individual mastery, or set back due to transitions? * Questions for Ourselves * Can I be okay with what my organization can and cannot put in place?  * How can I ensure my relationships outlast current organizational structures? * How can I use the qualities that I’ve learned of starting, stewarding, pivoting, sunsetting in our movement building, even if my organization doesn’t make it? * What will I need in order to sustain myself through whatever transitions are ahead? Subscribe & Support Rad Ops and Convergence Magazine * Subscribe to Rad Ops substack [https://radops.substack.com/] to get notified when we post new content * Follow RadOps on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/rad.ops/] * Donate to Rad Ops [https://app.betterunite.com/rad-ops] * Support Convergence Magazine [http://convergencemag.com/donate] producing this show and movement media like it Produced by Josh Elstro with Convergence magazine. Design support from Kimmie David. Music by Tigercat, Sha’s amazing 10-year-old, with polish by Josh.

Culture of Care w/Adaku Utah

The Rad Ops Podcast is one component of a dialogue-based tool that supports organizations assessing and discussing the possibilities and limitations of putting liberatory values into practice. Each guest will share their Rad Ops lineages, their expertise on today’s pressing operations questions and leave listeners with resources and discussion questions to take back to your teams. In this episode we talk about Culture of Care with our guest, Adaku Utah, Director of Movement Building Programs at the Building Movement Project.  Resources from this episode: * Solidarity Lessons from a Year of Crisis and Change [https://www.solidarityis.org/solidaritylessons] * How to Build Solidarity Infrastructure for the Long Haul [https://nonprofitquarterly.org/how-to-build-solidarity-infrastructure-for-the-long-haul/] by Adaku Utah and Deepa Iyer * Solidarity Is This podcast [https://www.solidarityis.org/podcast]  * Social Change Ecosystem Map - Building Movement [https://buildingmovement.org/our-work/movement-building/social-change-ecosystem-map/]  * Stories for Power Podcast: Durham | creative interventions [https://www.creative-interventions.org/sfp/durham/]  * Communities of Care [https://convergencemag.com/articles/communities-of-care/] article by Yashna Maya Padamsee * Transforming Our Organizations, Transforming Ourselves [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iomnxbVpg8ovDokR5zQCd9TfNY9kHuMF4EwjPBmACt8/edit?tab=t.0] article by Sha Grogan-Brown * Book: The Future is Collective: Effective Workplace Strategies for Building a Culture of Care by Niloufar Khonsari * Starting in 2026, get 25% off with the code RADOPS when you place your order  [https://www.northatlanticbooks.com/shop/the-future-is-collective/] * here with North Atlantic Books [https://www.northatlanticbooks.com/shop/the-future-is-collective/] Discussion questions to take to your team: * How is your organization defining and directing care? * Where do you see a gap between what your organization values and cares about publicly and how things actually function internally in your organization, and what would it take to close that gap in practice?  * What boundaries would make care more durable for you and others ? * What contradictions around care are most alive in your work right now? What does it reveal about where your organization needs to grow?  * What season is your organization in? (Summer, Spring, Autumn or Winter)  Subscribe & Support Rad Ops and Convergence Magazine * Subscribe to Rad Ops substack [https://radops.substack.com/] to get notified when we post new content * Follow RadOps on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/rad.ops/] * Donate to Rad Ops [https://app.betterunite.com/rad-ops] * Support Convergence Magazine [http://convergencemag.com/donate] producing this show and movement media like it Produced by Josh Elstro with Convergence magazine. Design support from Kimmie David. Music by Tigercat, Sha’s amazing 10-year-old, with polish by Josh.

Resource Mobilization w/Allison Budschalow

The Rad Ops Podcast is one component of a dialogue-based tool that supports organizations assessing and discussing the possibilities and limitations of putting liberatory values into practice. Each guest will share their Rad Ops lineages, their expertise on today’s pressing operations questions and leave listeners with resources and discussion questions to take back to your teams. In this episode we talk about Resource Mobilization with our guest, Allison Budschalow, Consulting Partner at Dragonfly Partners, Co-facilitator at Securing the Roots, and co-host of the podcast Movement Money.  Resources from this episode: * The team at Dragonfly Partners [https://www.dragonfly-partners.com/] takes a 360-degree approach to support the work of resource mobilizers, including assessing our most valuable resources—our relationships with one another through: * In It Together [https://www.dragonfly-partners.com/events-and-training/inittogetherworkshop]—a toolkit and workshop that helps movement-building groups navigate conflict, strengthen accountability, and work together in healthier, principled ways.  * When We Fall Apart [https://www.dragonfly-partners.com/events-and-training/whenwefallwpartworkshop]—a workbook and workshop to provide social justice groups with a vital framework for navigating necessary organizational and group breakups with integrity and intention.  * Movement Money episodes [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2456220/episodes/17234629-movement-money-trailer] on Organize the Rich Radio * Peer connection: Radical Fundraisers Network [https://www.radfundraisers.org/] * Books: * Ella Baker & the Black Freedom Movement [https://bookshop.org/p/books/ella-baker-and-the-black-freedom-movement-second-edition-a-radical-democratic-vision-barbara-ransby/54aba54f66dea5c9?ean=9781469681344&next=t] by Barbara Ransby * Free the People to Free the Money to Free the People [https://itascabooks.com/products/free-the-people-to-free-the-money-to-free-the-people-an-organize-the-rich-anthology-2], Edited by: Michael Gast, Marian Moore & Alex T. Tom * Organizations: * Securing the Roots [https://www.securingtheroots.org/] * Wealth Reclamation Academy of Practitioners (WRAP) [https://www.reclaimcommunitywealth.org/rmcolp] * Solidaire Network [https://solidairenetwork.org/] * Resource Generation [https://resourcegeneration.org/] * Justice Funders [https://justicefunders.org/fundamentals/] Discussion questions to take to your team: * What is your 30 year vision—for yourself? For your group, organization, community, people? What will become possible by being honest — with yourself, philanthropy, donors — about what you or your organization or your movement needs to get closer to your vision?  * What is your relationship to the middle class? What do you think the relationship is for the middle class to the millionaires in our communities?  * It's 2051, and a 21 year-old in your life is asking you about the most valuable resource/s in your life. What will you say?  * When you connect with your most honest parts, what do you want to tell * a) people who have access to land, wealth, and money?  * b) people without access to land, wealth, and money?  * How will what you tell them get you and our collective movements (organizations, coalitions, neighborhoods, communities, families) closer to freedom?  * How does it feel to think about these questions?  Subscribe & Support Rad Ops and Convergence Magazine * Subscribe to Rad Ops substack [https://radops.substack.com/] to get notified when we post new content * Follow RadOps on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/rad.ops/] * Donate to Rad Ops [https://app.betterunite.com/rad-ops] * Support Convergence Magazine [http://convergencemag.com/donate] producing this show and movement media like it Produced by Josh Elstro with Convergence magazine. Design support from Kimmie David. Music by Tigercat, Sha’s amazing 10-year-old, with polish by Josh.

Role of Assistants w/Felicia Martinez

The Rad Ops Podcast is one component of a dialogue-based tool that supports organizations assessing and discussing the possibilities and limitations of putting liberatory values into practice. Each guest will share their Rad Ops lineages, their expertise on today’s pressing operations questions and leave listeners with resources and discussion questions to take back to your teams. In this episode we talk about the Role of Assistants (and so much more) with our guest, Felicia Martinez, freelance consultant and co-founder of Rad Ops social media network.  Resources from this episode: * Rad Ops Workbook [https://radops.substack.com/p/rad-ops-workbook-libro-de-actividades] – Putting Rad Ops into Practice activity (pages 16–20) * Choose and use a tool with teams of two or more people (such as a Director and an Assistant) to discern division of labor and coordination: DARCI/MOCHA/RACI * Check out descriptions and a comparison of these three models in this guide by Nonprofit Learning Lab [https://www.nonprofitlearninglab.org/post/a-guide-to-project-management-in-nonprofits-strategies-for-project-management-in-small-teams] * DARCI: DARCI ACCOUNTABILITY GRID Tool What it is What it can do How it works [http://stproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/darci-accountability-grid.pdf]  * MOCHA: MOCHA Framework: How to Assign Responsibilities - The Management Center [https://www.managementcenter.org/resources/assigning-responsibilities/]  Discussion questions to take to your team: * What does the Director want and need from the Assistant? What does the organization want and need from the Assistant? Is there alignment between the Director and the organization about what the priorities of the Assistant are? (Principles 4 & 6) * What access does the Assistant have to professional and political development, especially as it relates to their work for this Director? (Principles 1 & 7) * What possibilities does the Assistant have for building relationships across the organization? (Principle 2) * If you don’t have positional power at your organization, do you have positional authority? Do you have a positional view point and discernment that no one else has but could reflect important emerging needs for the organization? (Principle 1)  Subscribe & Support Rad Ops and Convergence Magazine * Subscribe to Rad Ops substack [https://radops.substack.com/] to get notified when we post new content * Follow RadOps on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/rad.ops/] * Donate to Rad Ops [https://app.betterunite.com/rad-ops] * Support Convergence Magazine [http://convergencemag.com/donate] producing this show and movement media like it Produced by Josh Elstro with Convergence magazine. Design support from Kimmie David. Music by Tigercat, Sha’s amazing 10-year-old, with polish by Josh.

Human Resources w/Tara Shuai Ellison

The Rad Ops Podcast is one component of a dialogue-based tool that supports organizations assessing and discussing the possibilities and limitations of putting liberatory values into practice. Each guest will share their Rad Ops lineages, their expertise on today’s pressing operations questions and leave listeners with resources and discussion questions to take back to your teams. In this episode we talk about Human Resources with our guest, Tara Shuai Ellison, Founder of Shuai Strategies and co-founder of Rad Ops social media network.  Resources from this episode: * Shuai Strategies [https://www.shuaistrategies.com/]  * The Equitable Hiring Guide & Toolkit [https://www.equityhr.guide/guides/p/equitable-hiring-guide-bundle] * Webinars: * Be Strategic, Not Scared webinar [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqJAvfAXa38&list=PLF4KI20wvlQCQZpH9JH96f8COYOORyqh5] with Tara Shuai Ellison and Kehsi Iman Wilson * Strategies for Equitable Hiring webinar [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_Jcu5inw4M&list=PLF4KI20wvlQCQZpH9JH96f8COYOORyqh5&index=2] with Tara Shuai Ellison and Kehsi Iman Wilson * RadHR Community [https://radhr.org/]  * Vent Diagrams [https://www.ventdiagrams.com/vision-and-values]  * Books: Leading for Justice & Supervision Matters (Rita Sever) [https://supervisionmatters.com/books/] Discussion questions to take to your team from the Rad Ops workbook:  If you find yourself pitting concepts against each other, or believing one is more important than the other, it’s time to pause and consider: * How are both sides of the binary existing in contradiction to each other? * How might one side engage with or strengthen the other? Download Rad Ops workbook [https://radops.substack.com/p/rad-ops-workbook-libro-de-actividades] (page 21-22) for an activity about False Binaries & Contradictions Subscribe & Support Rad Ops and Convergence Magazine * Subscribe to Rad Ops substack [https://radops.substack.com/] to get notified when we post new content * Follow RadOps on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/rad.ops/] * Donate to Rad Ops [https://app.betterunite.com/rad-ops] * Support Convergence Magazine [http://convergencemag.com/donate] producing this show and movement media like it Produced by Josh Elstro with Convergence magazine. Design support from Kimmie David. Music by Tigercat, Sha’s amazing 10-year-old, with polish by Josh.