Groundswell Consulting guides clients as they explore their current realities, opportunities, and challenges, harness their assets, and move toward their vision for the future. It is our belief that individuals, groups, and communities often have the solutions they are seeking right at their fingertips, and as such can benefit from a facilitated approach to examining their assets, asking the right questions, analyzing data, and problem-solving together to inform a complete plan of action.
Core Capactities
Strategic Planning
The Groundswell approach starts with the notion that strategic planning is a practice, not an event. Using a consensus-building process designed to engage all stakeholders, we will establish strategic directions, identify goals, assign leadership, and design a followup strategy. Our team is trained in and believes deeply in the merits of ICA Associates: TOP Methods for setting the course for organization's to move forward.
Through the strategic planning process, we will:
- Align visions within the group for the future
- Shape questions that stimulate candid feedback and discussion
- Tackle the roadblocks impeding progress and growth
- Assemble a plan that participants feel excited for and ownership over
- Save time and money with increased productivity
Community Engagement
- Data collection, analysis, and reporting
- Strategy design, workshop development, and facilitation
- Communication services, including building campaigns and social media management
Mediation + Negotiation
Many of the problems plaguing individuals and organizations alike stem from a resistance to, or fear of, addressing conflict. Individuals and organizations spend significant time avoiding conflict—as well as managing the consequences of conflict—without ever directly addressing it. To help build an opportunity for thoughtful and measured conversations and resolutions, Groundswell's means of mediation and negotiation creates a space to:
- Assess both the situation and the organization
- Facilitate complex and controversial discussions
- Build individual and organizational capacity for communication and conflict resolution
Philanthropy Advising
- Research and analysis
- Grants management
- Administration and management services for committees
Capacity Building
Whether within a group, organization, or community, there are times when current needs and future goals exceed present capacity. The Groundswell team works with clients to:
- Identify gaps in capacity and develop the strategies and skills necessary to fill them
- Train, assess, and recruit board members
- Coach new and existing executive staff
- Manage the hiring process
- Plan a line of future succession
- Serve as interim Executive Director
Large Grants Program
+ Manage grantee relations before, during, and after the application period
+ Reviewe and analyze concept papers and proposals
+ Prepare written analyses and recommendations of grants between $25,000 and $300,000 for fund advisers
Small Grants Program
+ Recruit, train, manage, and lead a ten-person advisory committee
+ Steward a grant-making process for grants up to $20,000 that reflect the values, goals, and priorities of the fund
+ Conduct due diligence for all applicants and maintain relationships before, during, and after the grant period
Empower Coos Youth
+ Collaborated with researchers to build a logic model based on research findings in order to increase community awareness and engagement
+ Recruited participants from all Coos County high schools to design, plan, and implement a public awareness campaign
+ Facilitated inquiry-based focus groups to examine the youth perspective on the data findings, as well as to explore and document their on-the-ground experiences living in Coos County
+ Synthesized student input to inform the design of campaign images and vehicles for dissemination, including a website
+ Identified metrics for campaign success using web-based analytics and qualitative feedback from the community to evaluate successes and challenges
+Reserached, analysied and prepared recommendations for the Foundation's first youth grantmaking program which were adopted and now the second year of a pilot.
Board / Governance
- Develop and execute a strategic planning process to guide the organization's growth over three years
- Develop and implement effective board policies and procedures
- Support board committees to facilitate effective function and action
- Present regular written and verbal reports to the board on all aspects of foundation business
Financial Management
- Establish book keeping and financial reporting system
- Create and maintain an annual budget and plan
- Facilitate quarterly reports to board
- Facilitate proper IRS and other reporting procedures as required
- Facilitate annual audit or financial review
Development / Fundraising
- Create and implement fundraising plan that addresses solicitation of foundations, individuals and groups
- Effectively solicit foundations, individuals, and corporations
- Report clear benchmarking progress to board on quarterly basis
Program Support
- Maintain values based, culutraully sensitive, high quality programs
- Manage program staff (3) including two international staff members
- Work in partnership with local community leaders to identify opportunities for future program development
- Evalute current programs
- Ensure the safety of all participants and staff
Marketing
- Establish positive working relationship with collaborative organizations and potential program partners
- Develop brochures, educational materials and newsletters
- Maintain a robust digitial presence untilizing social media and the foundation website
Office and Administrative
- Develop database and shared record keeping system