How We Work

Every engagement is different — and so is every starting point.

We partner with leaders navigating complex change — bringing strategic guidance and hands-on support across project consulting, facilitated engagements, and research and analysis. Our focus is the human, organizational, and process side of that work.

Some clients come to us at the very beginning, ready to explore whether we're the right partner for a new initiative. Others are already mid-stream, navigating a stalled pilot, a strategy that needs refinement, or a project that has lost its footing. Wherever you are in your journey, our process is designed to meet you there.

The steps below outline how we move from first conversation to meaningful impact. Regardless of where you are in your own journey, every engagement begins with Steps 1 and 2 — giving us both the opportunity to determine if we're the right fit before any work begins.

Not sure where you fit? Start with Step 1 — a no-pressure conversation that will help us figure that out together.

Step 1

Introductory Conversation • 30 minutes

This focused 30-minute call is a structured conversation designed to surface your context, objectives, and success criteria — and to give us both an honest read on whether working together makes sense.

You get a feel for how we think and work. We get a clear picture of what you're navigating.

No sales pitch. No commitment. Just an honest conversation.

  • Outcome: Mutual clarity on fit and a clear sense of next steps.

Upon mutual agreement to move forward, qualified clients are invited to schedule the complimentary Discovery Session.

Step 2

Discovery Session • 1 hour · Complimentary

This complimentary one-hour session is where we go beneath the surface.

We come to you — in person whenever possible, or remotely when it makes sense — to observe, listen, and ask the right questions. Our goal is to define scope, deliverables, timeline, and investment, and to connect with the key decision makers who will shape the work ahead.

What comes out of this session sets the foundation for everything that follows.

  • Deliverable: Formal proposal and project roadmap tailored to your specific situation.

Step 3

Your Path Forward

Following the Discovery Session, our work together takes shape based on what you need most. Every path begins with a formal contract — ensuring clarity, protecting both parties, and setting the stage for focused, productive engagement. Every engagement is unique, and scope, deliverables, and timeline are always tailored to your specific situation. What follows reflects how we typically work within each path.

Facilitated Engagements move directly into a focused, contracted scope of work. Engagements typically include one or more facilitated sessions — designed to unlock clarity, align stakeholders, and create immediate momentum. Depending on the complexity of your situation, we may follow up with additional questions before finalizing — then we get to work.

  • Deliverable: Session Summary & Action Plan

Research & Analysis engagements are scoped and contracted to address a specific question, decision, or knowledge gap. We conduct targeted investigation and synthesis — turning data into actionable insights by distilling complex information, integrating multiple perspectives, and surfacing patterns and implications so you can choose a transformation path that is both strategic and feasible.

  • Deliverable: Findings Report & Strategic Recommendations

Targeted Project Consulting — for organizations navigating a specific challenge, decision, or transition — is scoped and contracted directly, without the need for a full project commitment. Engagements typically include one or more focused strategy sessions tailored to your specific challenge.

  • Deliverable: Strategy Session Report & Action Plan

Strategic Discovery & Analysis — a diagnostic engagement for organizations ready to commit to a deeper investigation — is a contracted engagement that takes us beneath the surface of your initiative. We work with your leadership to produce a clear diagnosis, prioritized next steps, and a concrete roadmap built around your specific situation. This diagnostic engagement can stand alone as a complete engagement, empowering your team to move forward independently — or it can serve as the launching pad for Full Project Consulting.

Either way, we scope it to what you actually need.

Deliverables: Findings Report; Strategic Roadmap & Prioritized Action Plan

For clients ready to go further, the journey continues with Full Project Consulting.

Full Project Consulting • Contracted Engagement · 4–12 months

For clients ready to move from diagnosis into full implementation.

Every Full Project Consulting engagement builds on the foundation of Strategic Discovery & Analysis — a diagnostic engagement that produces a clear roadmap and prioritized next steps. Following the diagnostic, Full Project Consulting is extended to clients where there is a strong mutual fit and a clear path to meaningful impact.

This is an end-to-end partnership — from initial strategy and scoping through full implementation. We work alongside your leadership team across every phase, providing structured guidance, clarifying decisions, anticipating risks, and keeping initiatives on track as your organization navigates real, lasting change. Depending on the nature of your project, this engagement may also incorporate Facilitated Engagements or Research & Analysis — woven into the fabric of the larger effort.

Our focus is on the human, organizational, and process side of change. We don't provide IT guidance — we partner with the people leading it.

Depending on the nature of your project, deliverables may include Findings Reports & Strategic Recommendations, Workflow Maps, Frameworks, Employee Pulse Surveys & Change Readiness Reports, Session Summaries & Action Plans, Program Handoff Documentation, and other project-specific outputs tailored to your engagement.

"What set Dr. Lary apart was her ability to bring partner agencies along through a significant program transformation — reframing a challenging fiscal realignment as an opportunity for capacity building, and delivering results that were both financially sound and relationally intact." 

— Dr. César Morales, County Superintendent of Schools, Ventura County Office of Education

"Laurie helped us articulate a clear picture of what we hoped to achieve and the importance of doing it, helped us get the right capable partners engaged, and led effective two-way communication throughout that helped keep us all informed of the latest activities.  Through it all, Laurie was positive, highly professional, and extremely effective." 

— Jaime Fall, Workforce and Economic Strategies Director, Economic Development Collaborative