What would it take for the people doing good in every community to have the tools, the support, and the benefits they deserve?
On this episode of Built for Good, Mazlo CEO and Founder Kian Alavi sits down with Stephanie Levin, Mazlo's Founding Head of Customer Success. Before joining Mazlo, Stephanie spent her career in the nonprofit sector, from youth programming in the San Francisco Bay Area to leadership roles at large nonprofits to consulting for a national fiscal sponsor.
Stephanie shares how she helped a growing fiscal sponsor go from 5 projects on Mazlo to 40, then work through a waiting list of 50 more, doubling the number of projects it served in about a year without adding staff. She and Kian talk about what real-time financial visibility means for frontline program staff, why fiscal sponsorship is a powerful way to connect people doing similar work, and why funders should be sending unrestricted capacity-building dollars to fiscal sponsors. They also discuss upcoming legislation, the case for sponsors setting their own standards, and why nonprofit software should be as beautiful and responsive as any other product.
IN THIS EPISODE
- From customer to colleague How Stephanie went from evaluating Mazlo as a consultant to leading its customer success team.
- Scaling without adding staff A fiscal sponsor doubled the number of projects it served in about a year by systematizing its operations.
- Real-time data for program staff No more waiting 30 to 60 days for financial reports to know what you can spend.
- Fiscal sponsorship as community Group onboarding helps solo project leaders find peers doing similar work.
- A call to funders Capacity-building grants to fiscal sponsors could fund healthcare, retirement, and training for project leaders.
- Preparing for legislation Why fiscal sponsors should help set the standards for their own field.
- Software as a relationship Why nonprofit tools should be intuitive, responsive, and built with customers.
- Fiscal sponsorship equalizes access Sponsorship opens the door for leaders who lack the money or connections to start their own nonprofit.
- How donors can find fiscally sponsored projects Add "fiscal sponsor" to your search on any cause you care about.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- With the right systems, fiscal sponsors can grow on purpose instead of reacting while overwhelmed.
- Fiscal sponsors already carry a heavier compliance burden than most nonprofits and should help shape the rules.
- Investing in fiscal sponsors gives funders leverage, lowering costs and reaching communities they might never see.
What is Built for Good?
Built for Good is for the community builders driving missions that matter. Host Kian Alavi shares real stories, hard-won lessons, and data that challenges assumptions, helping you move with more clarity and less guesswork. Each episode delivers actionable insights to accelerate decisions and make meaningful work less of a solo struggle.
Now… let’s build for good.
Built for Good is brought to you by Mazlo. Mazlo simplifies accounting, banking, compliance, and fundraising—so you can focus on your mission, not your back office.