Who You Are

Franz Liszt had mad range. So do we.

Not so many consulting practices engage both grant makers and grant seekers under the same roof. With respect to the latter, we are not mercenaries-- we need to love those for whom we would seek grants-- and there is nothing cookie-cutter about our approach. The service we provide is bespoke. If you are a service-providing nonprofit that is looking for assistance with grant writing or, more broadly, with the development of a fund-raising strategy, then it is best to reach out to us to set up a meeting to see if our values align. If we discern that we can break bread together, then we can talk about how we might help you to write better grant proposals and grant reports, and to build stronger relationships with donors.

With respect to donors, we have the experience and expertise to partner successfully with many different kinds of them. That said, it is fair to say that we specialize in advising donors whose philanthropy is family and/or faith-based.

Family philanthropy

We consult with generous families to help them 'up' their philanthropy game. Our natural client is a small family foundation that is thinking about professionalizing but is not yet big enough or confident enough in its philanthropic approach to justify the expense and complications of hiring full-time staff. We are also a good match for a more established foundation that is looking to do something creative programmatically, or one that is looking to reinvigorate itself by looking intentionally 'under the hood' to diagnose hidden issues with its grant making culture, mission or strategy. Also, with donor-advised funds being all the rage these days, we are certainly a good place for you to come to make certain the advice you are giving to your fund manager or family office is as strong as it should be.

Faith-based philanthropy

Many religious institutions are hybrid entities, functioning at times like nonprofit service providers and grant seekers while at other times engaging in 'donor-like' activities. We have the expertise to help you think clearly with both sides of your philanthropic mind. If faith is the number-one driver of your philanthropy, then we are very likely a good match for you, regardless of your particular religious affiliation.