What happens when your generosity runs into a broken system?

We talk a lot about donating...giving back and doing good. But most of us don't really know where our money goes, how it moves, or what actually changes because of it.

Behind every donation is a whole world of nonprofits, governments, technology, trust and human behavior.

And a lot of that world is complex, outdated and hard to see from the outside.

Old tools, fragmented systems and shaky funding quietly shape how help reaches people who need it most.

My guest today is someone I've known for several years. We worked together in Stockholm, and I've watched his path move deeper into a space many founders would probably avoid.

Philip Börjesson is the CEO and co-founder of Samfora, where he's building what he describes as an operating system for nonprofit organizations.

His work sits at the intersection of data, donor psychology and social impact. basically fixing the complicated plumbing behind charities and donations.

Philip didn’t take a straight route to get here.

He grew up in Stockholm, studied literature and philosophy, worked for the Red Cross in Copenhagen, spent time in the Alps and later trained as a mechanical engineer with a masters in innovation and product realization.

Along the way, he built things, failed, pivoted and learned firsthand how nonprofits actually work from the inside.

In this episode we talked about:

→ why nonprofits often struggle with outdated technology
→ how government funding cuts are changing the sector
→ why trust between donors and charities is so fragile
→ how behavior and social norms shape generosity
→ what it really means to build slowly

If you've ever wondered how real change happens inside nonprofits, this conversation will give you a clear window into that world.

Philip ⁠LinkedIn⁠

Organisations
* Samfora: ⁠samfora.org
* Red Cross: ⁠icrc.org⁠
* WaterAid: ⁠wateraid.org⁠
* World Food Programme: ⁠wfp.org⁠
* UNICEF: ⁠unicef.org⁠
* Founders Pledge: ⁠founderspledge.com⁠
* Giving What We Can: ⁠givingwhatwecan.org⁠

Tools
* Salesforce
* HubSpot
* Microsoft Dynamics

Books
* The Passion According to G.H. — Clarice Lispector
* The Melancholy of Resistance — László Krasznahorkai
* Gravity’s Rainbow — Thomas Pynchon
* Ulysses — James Joyce
* Of Mice and Men — John Steinbeck
* Bird by Bird — Anne Lamott
* The Brain That Changes Itself — Norman Doidge
* Scripts People Live — Claude Steiner