PENN Creative Strategy works with mission-driven leaders to help them thrive in a changing world.
PCS is a certified Womens Business Enterprise that values and embeds diversity in our personnel, services, and our consulting approach.
What makes us different
PENN Creative Strategy (PCS) was founded in 2018 after 25 years of consulting with nonprofits and foundations. We provide an uncommon approach to strategic planning, organizational development and professional facilitation services that align stakeholders and tap their passions so everyone is rowing in the same direction. We have deliberately kept our firm boutique in size, so we do not have to take on significant overhead costs that end up being passed on to clients in our fee structure. With PCS, you get the adaptiveness of a solo consultant with the deep expertise of a firm. We bring:
Sector-specific knowledge and Tools - having worked in the nonprofit sector as consultants for nearly 30 years, we stay up to date on industry best practices and share them with our clients. We always encourage our clients to interrogate these best practices and only use those that feel organic to their mission and approach. As consultants, we bring tools to facilitate different kinds of analysis, help stakeholders clearly understand what the analysis is telling us, and provide new perspectives on your organization’s work. However, tools are only as good as their application.
Facilitation - We are trained facilitators, who bring a meaning-making approach to every meeting and have an inclusive style that draws out all your stakeholder vocies. We draw on our training in Technology of Participation, Appreciative Inquiry and other strengths-based, generative, consensus-building facilitation techniques.
Expertise and Project Management - As consultants with nearly 30 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, PCS brings expertise, knowledge of the field, and we ensure the process stays on track, freeing leadership to participate, rather than drive the process. We know you have to keep stakeholders updated every step of the way, and we help you stay on top of proactive communication. We have worked with a variety of organizations and funders, from start-ups to mature organizations with budgets ranging from $350K to $100M.
How we add value:
- Facilitate strategic conversations with provocative questions we help you shift perspectives and break out of old mental models to see what’s possible
- Build stakeholder alignment we get all your stakeholders aligned around common aspirations and intentions to support change efforts
- Structure to help navigate complexity we offer you objective insight and compassionate analysis to support your thinking about the future
- Align your business model with your aspirations we help you ensure your resources are in sync with your intentions to unlock greater impact
- Learning-focused project management we foster a trusting relationship with open communication to co-manage the engagement with our clients
- Lived experience combined with consulting expertise we bring lived experience that mirrors your stakeholders and use our consulting expertise to translate that insight into action.
If you’re ready to invest in taking your organization to the next level, let’s talk to see how we how we can partner to create a better world!
Our Values
Co-Creation
We work collaboratively because we believe expertise is best found in community.
Intersectionality
We are richer for the contributions of people with different lived experiences. We acknowledge the intersections of people's identity by centering diverse voices because we believe that is essential to rebalancing power, access and opportunity.
Listening & Curiosity
We ask generative questions to provoke insight and movement, acting as supportive coaches to our clients.
Learning & Unlearning
We seek out new ideas and challenge the status quo because improvement is not a destination, it’s a state of being.
Justice & Equity
We seek to build more equitable systems for those we serve because we believe in making the world a better place.
Trust
We create safe spaces for generative dialogue and honesty rooted in connection and shared accountability.