Strategy development

Guided by a 5-step process — immersion, research, concepting, feedback & refinement, and final design — our research-based and insight-rich strategic advice gives clients the confidence to develop a clear direction for their work. Our strategic plans are informed by needs assessments, stakeholder engagements, and peer analyses. And they take into account a variety of contextual considerations such as community need, enterprise priorities, and other considerations.  

Program design + BUILD

We work with clients on building programs that help a strategy take hold. This might mean a refinement of a company’s giving pillars, development of a signature philanthropic initiative, redesigning grantmaking processes, adoption of an earned income program, creation of a communications plan, or designing a full realized CSR platform inclusive of giving, partnerships, and employee engagement.  

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We support strategy execution by building programs, identifying and coordinating collaborations, and establishing teams that execute on a vision — often augmenting clients’ staff and operations.

Research

Before embarking on a major initiative, client’s often need help understanding the landscape, the key considerations, the challenges, best practices, significant actors in a particular field or discipline. They may want to understand what are current community needs, views of critical stakeholders, what their competitors are doing or what is considered best practice. Research that answers these questions is our bread and butter, and we can do it across a range of disciplines - health, education, and food security, among many others.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Crafting and conveying a compelling message is one thing. Changing the debate is another. We work with organizations and individuals that seek to fundamentally change the way target audiences think about certain issues. Our work has ranged from managing high-profile media campaigns to adding sophistication and impact to the way an organization communicates its priorities.  As trusted counselors to high-level executives and government officials, our public affairs advice is research-based, experience-driven, and direct.  

IMPACT ASSESSMENT

Social sector clients — whether funders or NGOs leading projects — want to measure their impact. ASG designs and leads evaluation efforts for clients looking to understand what social impacts their project are having. What makes our evaluation practice unique is we develop impact assessments that have both academic-level rigor and provide user-friendly, actionable insights. With experience in nonprofit management, public policy, issues advocacy, reputation management, we often take a holistic view of a program’s impacts — social, environmental, financial, reputational.