I bring more than 25 years of experience in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors to this work. I have been a grantmaker, a capacity builder, a strategist, and a donor advisor. When I sit across from a leader or funder navigating a consequential decision, I already understand a lot of what they are carrying before they say a word.
Strategic advising is different from coaching. In coaching, I hold space for leaders to access their own insight. In strategic advising, I bring external judgment, sector knowledge, and direct analysis to help you think through high-stakes choices, organizational direction, and what it actually means to align your resources with your values. I name what I see. I tell you what I think. And I stay with you through the decision.
Who This Work is For
This work is well suited for two primary situations.
Donors and philanthropic leaders who want to give with more intention. Whether you are an individual donor, a giving circle member, a family foundation, or a philanthropic intermediary, this work helps you get clear on what you value, where your resources came from, and where they should go. This is particularly meaningful for donors of color who are reconnecting with the communities their families came from and want their giving to reflect that history.
Nonprofit leaders and organizations navigating complexity. When existing strategies are no longer producing the results you need, when a leadership transition is creating uncertainty, or when you need a trusted outside perspective on a decision that carries real consequences, strategic advising gives you access to sustained judgment and honest partnership. This includes work around grantmaking strategy, funder relationship building, and grantee partner engagement for foundations and philanthropic organizations seeking to strengthen how they deploy and steward resources.
What Strategic Advising Is Not
This work does not include DEI training or assessments, traditional organizational strategic planning processes, or fundraising plan development. I partner best with organizations and donors who have an established commitment to equity and are looking for support with leadership judgment and alignment, not outsourced planning.
PhilanthroSouth
For donors of color who want to return resources to the South, I offer a structured advising process called PhilanthroSouth. It moves from a genealogical survey that maps your family’s history and where your wealth originated, through values and priorities mapping, to a donor impact statement, an engagement plan, and a final impact report. It is not a generic giving strategy. It is a process grounded in ancestry, geography, and the specific communities your family called home.
Learn more about PhilanthroSouth →
How We Work Together
Strategic advising engagements are shaped by your context, goals, and what decisions are actually in front of you. Most clients begin with a brain picker session to determine whether advising is the right fit and what a longer engagement might look like.
Brain Picker Session 90 minutes, $750 A focused conversation to examine a specific challenge, decision, or question. This is a good starting point if you are not yet sure what kind of support you need.
Donor/Foundation Advising $450 per hour Ongoing advisory support for individual donors, giving circle members, and family foundations working to align their giving with their values and community commitments.
Monthly Retainer Four 90-minute sessions per month, $2,500 Sustained partnership for leaders and funders navigating ongoing complexity who want consistent access to outside judgment and perspective.
This work may also be integrated with leadership assessments or leadership labs when collective learning supports the goals of the engagement.
*Prices do not include travel costs outside of the Houston region.
Here is what this work has looked like in practice:
A nonprofit organization engaged me for a three-month advising retainer to get traction on a stalled strategic plan. I did a full review of the plan and what had been accomplished to date. Then, we met weekly, examined where decisions were getting stuck, and built enough clarity and prioritization that the organization could move forward with confidence. By the end of the engagement, leadership had a working plan and a clearer sense of how to sustain momentum without outside support.
Ready to get started? Complete the intro questionnaire below: