Strategy, Advisory & Consulting
for Mission-Driven Organizations
We're Criterion, a values-led strategy and advisory firm helping nonprofits and mission-driven organizations nationwide strengthen strategy, fundraising, grant programs, communications, and business practices.
WHAT WE BELIEVE IN
Every mission-driven organization carries the potential for greatness.
Realizing that potential requires more than vision. It requires a strong organization built to sustain the work.
Over nearly 30 years, we’ve developed a clear point of view about the role nonprofits and mission-driven businesses play in society, what it takes to sustain them, and where traditional approaches sometimes fall short.
We’ve built frameworks and ways of working around those beliefs—grounded in experience, evidence, listening, and the understanding that strategy, revenue, communications, and organizational practice are deeply connected.
We believe in people building organizations for good and what becomes possible when mission and strong business practice work together.
WHAT WE SOLVE
Mission-driven organizations rarely struggle because
they lack passion or vision.
More often, the strategies, systems, resources, and ways of working needed to sustain that vision have not kept pace, are no longer working together as they should, or simply don’t exist yet.
organizations often come to Criterion at moments like these
Sound familiar? If so, you're not alone.
"We have a bold vision.
We’re not sure what it will take to make it work."
You know the change you want to create. What is less clear is how to translate that vision into the strategy, revenue, systems, and messaging that will ensure your mission-driven organization works—and thrives.
We help organizations translate bold vision into a practical path forward, aligning strategy, revenue, systems, and messaging around what it will take to make the work sustainable.
“We think we could accomplish more together.”
We need to understand what collaboration could actually look like."
Deeper collaboration may create opportunities to combine strengths, share resources, expand impact, or build greater sustainability. Before deciding on a structure or outcome, organizations need space to understand what they hope to accomplish, what each partner brings, and whether the opportunity makes sense.
We help organizations assess readiness, understand what each partner brings, involve the people closest to the work, and build a practical path for exploring what collaboration could make possible.
“We’re all working hard.
We’re not all working from the same strategy.”
When mission, priorities, audiences, revenue, and decision-making are not aligned, organizations can spend significant energy moving in different directions. Strategic planning can create the shared direction needed to make better choices, focus resources, and strengthen sustainability.
We partner with organizations to build highly tailored strategic plans grounded in research, stakeholder perspectives, and organizational realities, then translate them into operational roadmaps with clear ownership, measurable objectives, aligned resources, and a regular review cadence.
“Our fundraising and communications are working separately.
We need them to reinforce each other."
When fundraising, communications, and digital strategy operate in silos, organizations miss opportunities to build trust, deepen relationships, and turn visibility into sustained support. Strong messaging and authentic storytelling should work across channels, audiences, and fundraising efforts.
We help organizations thoughtfully integrate fundraising and communications across teams, aligning messaging, storytelling, digital strategy, media outreach, and donor engagement in ways that build trust, strengthen relationships, and respect the expertise each function brings.
"We thought we had a fundraising problem.
Now we think the problem may be bigger than fundraising."
Revenue challenges can point to something broader: disconnected fundraising and communications, gaps in organizational strategy, or an incomplete or missing revenue model. The goal is not simply to raise more money, but to build a stronger organization that is better prepared for what comes next.
We help organizations look beyond the fundraising symptoms to identify what is really getting in the way, then strengthen the revenue strategy, systems, communications, and organizational capacity needed to move forward.
"Our messaging doesn’t feel right anymore.
We just don’t know what to replace it with."
It's never been more important to communicate urgency, impact, and the need for support. At the same time, you're becoming increasingly uncomfortable with crisis messaging or language that has the potential to diminish the people and communities at the center of your work. The challenge is finding a stronger approach—one that inspires support while remaining accurate, respectful, and grounded in strengths, dignity, and agency.
We help organizations build clear, strength-based messaging and authentic storytelling that it communicates urgency, value, and impact while protecting dignity, agency, and trust.
Expertise Across the Areas
That Move Organizations Forward
HOW CRITERION CAN HELP
Criterion brings deep practitioner experience and fresh thinking to the places where organizations need to make decisions, strengthen what is already in place, or build a better path forward.
01
Organizational Strategy & Planning
Helping organizations set direction, make strategic choices, and translate priorities into practical plans.
Services may include:
Strategic planning | Organizational strategy | Implementation roadmaps | Business and program planning
02
Revenue Development Strategy
Strengthening the strategies, systems, and revenue approaches that help sustain mission-driven organizations.
Services may include:
Fundraising strategy | Revenue development | Fundraising plans | Case for support | Legacy giving strategy
03
Grant Program Development
Building the strategy, infrastructure, and practices needed to pursue and manage grants effectively.
Services may include:
Grant program design | Funder research and fit | Grant strategy | Systems and workflows | Proposal development
04
Strategic Communications & Messaging
Building communications strategies and messages that strengthen understanding, relationships, revenue, and trust.
Services may include:
Communications strategy | Organizational messaging | Strength-based messaging | Case messaging | Communications audits
