What We Offered

EBAC turned to Heartwise for help making sense of many moving parts. Kendra brought a deep understanding of the organization’s complexity and offered steady, strategic support to guide the process. Together, she and Sandra ensured the work stayed rooted in EBAC’s mission and ownership, so that the project would strengthen the agency rather than sit on a shelf. Heartwise helped staff clarify their programs and align them within a clear framework that reflected EBAC’s impact and values.

So she and I worked together as a team to split our responsibilities... Heartwise helped people think through their own programs and organized them in a way that would fit our logic models. 

I don't know where we would be now if we weren't able to bring her in because none of the other consultants we spoke to were able to offer this big picture thinking.” 

I really wanted to put our entire agency into a framework that would make sense for everybody, and that would help us to articulate our impact in a higher level way. Heartwise was the only consultancy that really grasped that idea and was able to deliver..

Working Together

Heartwise partnered closely with Sandra and her team to create tools and processes that made sense for EBAC’s real world needs. Rather than taking over, Kendra worked side by side with staff to organize existing models, build shared language, and engage senior directors in reflective, practical planning. Her approach brought clarity and buy in across the organization, turning what could have felt like a heavy lift into an energizing opportunity for collaboration

Kendra was able to understand the complexities and the different forces that we had trying to move us in different directions and she was able to pace it out and offer her support in areas that really helped move the project forward. 

She’s also been good at helping me make sure we’re not totally delegating the project to the consultant because it's your project, it's your agency, right? So you want to make sure that when the consultant is gone, that everything doesn't fall apart. 

The Impact

EBAC now has a clear agencywide theory of change that connects eight programs across three divisions under one unifying vision, the EBAC way. The work helped staff articulate how their programs create impact and gave leadership tools to communicate that story to the board and funders. Beyond the framework itself, the process sparked new energy and alignment. Staff feel ownership of the work, and EBAC’s leaders are confident the impact they have always created is now more visible and measurable.

I would definitely recommend working with Heartwise….. [Kendra]’s really flexible, she’s never rigid, as the project changes, she rolls with the punches. I think that's actually made the process feel light. You know, nobody felt like, oh, man, this theory of change thing that I have to work on is so tough. Instead, people felt, this is my moment to reflect and think about all those things that have been in my brain but fragmented for many years. They actually want to do this. They’re pleased to have a place to put their knowledge. And she facilitated that process.

Our CEO was skeptical at the beginning of this process. But by the end of the year, they were so excited about our theory of change.

I really wanted to put our entire agency into a framework that would make sense for everybody, and that would help us to articulate our impact in a higher level way. Heartwise was the only consultancy that really grasped that idea and was able to deliver.