About US
WE ARE COLLABORATIVE & CUSTOMER FOCUSED.Onward is a network of veteran nonprofit leaders; CEOs, executive directors, and senior managers who joined together in 2010 to bring top quality consulting services to the nonprofit sector without exorbitant consulting costs.
WHAT WE DO BEST
STRATEGY
Transformational or Operational Strategic Plans for Growth, Change, & Excellence.
ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Strategic Coherence, Alignment, & Structures to Maximize Efficiencies & Impact.
PROGRAM EXCELLENCE
Progress & Performance Metrics & Indicators. Continuous Improvement Systems.
FUNDRAISING
Plans, Systems, & Content to Increase, Diversify, and Sustain Revenue.
THOUGHT PARTNERSHIP
Expanding your Intellectual Capital and Operational Capability with a CEO Peer.
CRISIS MANAGEMENT
Emerge from Crises Stronger & Seize Unexpected Opportunities.
Consultants
Our Team
Maureen Holla
Managing Partner
Maureen is a creative and strategic problem-solver who relies on qualitative and quantitative data to inform strategy and design. She leads the company’s strategic portfolio focusing on strategic planning, organizational development, strategic alignment & coherence, strategic implementation, and nonprofit expansions and retractions.
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Marcy Mistrett
Partner
Marcy is policy expert, lobbyist, and life-long activist who has worked in juvenile justice and education for more than 20 years. She was a social worker in Chicago, a community organizer in D.C., founding executive director of Posse D.C., director of Amazing Life Games, and most recently the Executive Director of the Campaign for Youth Justice.
Renee Smith
Partner
Renee is a fundraising and development expert committed to helping local and national nonprofits secure the financial resources needed to fulfill their missions. She combines 15+ years of successful fundraising and nonprofit management with a particular focus on research, prospecting, database development & management, content creation, direct mail marketing, events, and social media.
Jenn Fusion
Communications
Jenn is a wordsmith with more than a decade of experience researching, writing and editing copy. She delivers well-researched, timely, search-optimized content including: webpages, blogs, articles, eBooks, press releases, newsletters, social media posts, proposals and case statements, and white papers.
Dominique Jones
Data
Dominique is a native Washingtonian who received her BA in Psychology from St. John’s University, and her MA in Organizational Sciences from George Washington University.
Dominique brings to Onward strong non-profit project and data management experience. She supports Onward with retreat facilitation, project management, and data analysis.
Colleagues in Practice
Occasionally, Onward contracts colleagues of exceptional expertise to join them on contracts. These colleagues include:
Isadora Carreras
Isadora Carreras is a fundraising expert with more than 15 years of experience. Her expertise includes major gifts, institutional giving, capital campaign management, volunteer management, and special events.
Hala Harik Hayes:
Hala brings civic engagement expertise from her groundbreaking work with AmericaSpeaks. Hala has more than 10 years of experience working in the public and nonprofit sectors with a particular focus on designing, facilitating, and managing large-scale interactive meetings.
Our Approach
Onward approaches each engagement with a can-do collaborative spirit and an attitude of customer service. We have a boots-on-the-ground style to help you collect the relevant research, build results-based plans, and implement important work.
We pair you with a proven executive consultant to help you diagnose issues, develop strategic options, manage performance, and finish projects.
We are research-based. We gather relevant facts and frame the most critical issues to help you make your best decisions. Onward tailors each engagement to the unique opportunities and challenges your organization is facing.
Our Promise
We understand the importance of mission-based work. Our commitment is to offer our clients exceptional value for their money, professionalism, and timely delivery of work. We promise to uphold this commitment.
Value: We squeeze quarters out of nickels and bring that same thrift to each client project.
Professionalism: You will never have a missed deadline, an unreturned phone call, or an unfinished product.
Right time: We understand that change takes time and recognize that leaders often need a project executed quickly. We deliver on time and at the right time.
How is Onward different?
Onward consultants approach each engagement with a can-do collaborative spirit and an attitude of customer service. We have a boots-on-the-ground style to help you research, plan, and implement important work. We don’t just tell you what needs to be done, we offer options, create tools, and can work alongside you to get the job done.