Before I worked in nonprofits, my first career was making artwork and photographs and teaching others how to make them.  One of the most important things I learned during that time was not how to use a camera or work in the darkroom, but rather how to look and problem-solve creatively. Artists do not start with a solution; they start with a problem they do not yet fully understand, and they sit with it long enough to interrogate the constraints before committing to a response. That discipline, it turns out, is one of the most useful things I have ever brought into consulting work.

One in three nonprofits experienced some form of government funding disruption in the first half of 2025. The organizations that navigated it most steadily were not the ones with the most detailed plans. They were the ones whose plans had been built to flex.

I have been on both sides of this conversation. As a Development Director and later as an Executive Director, I have written job descriptions just like the ones I see in my inbox now, posted them, sifted through applicants, made offers, and then watched new hires spend their first four to six months learning the organization before doing the work I actually needed them to do.

That experience is what I keep thinking about when I look at what's happening in the sector right now. A third of nonprofits experienced federal funding disruptions in the first half of 2025. Hiring plans collapsed. And smaller organizations are still trying to fill development gaps the same way they always have. There is a faster path, and it's worth understanding before you post the job.

This video by Brown Catalyst Consulting provides an overview on how to prepare for a strong consultant engagement with positive outcomes.

Should you hire a consultant? This post discusses your options.