Consulting Services
For direct service nonprofits, school-based programs, state and county-run programs, and for-profit, mission-driven direct service organizations
Whether you’re raising money for a capital campaign, launching a new program, or building an ambitious vision for your organization’s future, one thing remains constant:
You need your team to work together toward clear goals.
This doesn’t happen automatically. Most nonprofits struggle with internal consensus and clarity. We assume that commitment to the mission will carry us through. But it simply isn’t enough. At Ann E. Criswell Consulting, we help your team work better together and give you tools to set and achieve ambitious goals.
How We Work
Facilitation
- Staff and leadership retreats
- Board meetings
- Difficult conversations
Strategic Planning
- Strategic planning
- Board development
- Program planning
- Leadership coaching
Fundraising
- Fundraising strategy and planning
- Training and coaching for board and staff
- Donor data and portfolio review
- Capital campaign feasibility studies
Get clarity. Get consensus. Get working.
In the nonprofit sector, there’s one thing too many of us avoid: difficult conversations.
Whether it’s conversations with staff, board, volunteers, or donors, we highlight the positive and downplay the negative. But what works in promotional materials doesn’t work in the day-to-day.
That’s why we believe in the power of participation and authentic communication. With expert facilitation, your team can learn to transform how you work together.
Achieve your impact goals. Raise more funding. Build an organization that delivers.
The Power of Authentic Participation
Picture this: You leave a meeting thinking everyone agrees with the new direction you proposed.
Sure, few people spoke up. But everyone nodded their heads at some point. Later, though, you hear grumblings that several important people don’t like your idea. Others think it’s a waste of time.
“But everyone agreed!”
This scenario is all too common in the nonprofit world. We think that simply getting people in a room together is the same as participation. We forget the impact of power dynamics, groupthink, or how overworked our teams are.
When you get nonprofit staff in a room, most of the time they aren’t thinking about the conversation at hand. They’re thinking about the next deadline they have to meet!
Real, authentic participation requires a more intentional approach.
At Ann E. Criswell Consulting, we’ve worked with diverse nonprofit leaders and organizations to hone a proven facilitation method. Whether you’re developing a strategic or fundraising plan, we get everyone on the same page and excited for the collaborative work ahead.
