How We Price Our Work
Fixed-fee pricing built around the expertise, capacity, and timeline your project needs, not an hourly clock.
Our Pricing Philosophy
We don’t charge by the hour or the day.
Every LAC engagement is priced as a fixed fee, based on the expertise required, the capacity it takes to deliver the work well, and the timeline you need. This is a deliberate choice. When pricing is hourly, every phone call, every extra question, every “can we talk this through” becomes a cost your team has to weigh before reaching out. That’s the opposite of what a good consulting partnership should feel like.
Fixed-fee pricing means your executive director and your team don’t need to seek permission every time they want support. It means your board isn’t making a new financial decision every time your staff needs help. You know your investment before we begin, and you can use us as much as the engagement calls for, without watching a meter run.
Why We Price in Tiers
Not every organization can afford the same rate, and we don’t think they should have to.
Organizations with more resources pay our standard rate. That rate helps make it possible to offer real discounts to smaller nonprofits, the ones operating on tighter budgets who still deserve high-quality strategic support. This isn’t a stripped-down version of our work for smaller organizations. It’s the same expertise, the same process, the same care, priced in a way that reflects what different organizations can actually sustain.
If your organization has an annual operating budget under $250,000, ask about our small nonprofit rate on any service below.
What Shapes Your Investment
A few things determine where your project lands within a given range:
Scope. How many stakeholders need a voice in the process, and how much data gathering is involved.
Timeline. A faster turnaround takes more concentrated capacity than a process spread across several months.
Format. Virtual delivery is typically priced lower than in-person, which carries travel and hosting considerations.
Organization size. Our small nonprofit rate applies to organizations with annual operating budgets under $250,000.
Compare Services by Cost Level
Strategic Planning
Packages: Sprint (Lean), Sprint Retreat, Essentials, Deep Dive
Time Commitment: 1-7 months
Deliverables: Vary by package
Cost: $3,750-$18,000 standard rate, $2,750-$15,500 small nonprofit rate.
Board Governance Training
Delivery Options: In-person or Virtual
Time Commitment: 1-3-hour sessions
Deliverables: Vary by training module and session length
Cost: $1,875-$3750 standard rate, $1,600-$3,185 small nonprofit rate.
Multi-session discounts: 10% off for 3 sessions, 15% off for 5 or more.
Plan Forward: Simulation Lab Strategy Retreat
Delivery Options: In-person or Virtual
Time Commitment: Half-Day Retreat up to 3.5 hours
Deliverables: Pre-Retreat Discovery, Post-Retreat Summary
Cost: $4,750-$5,500 standard rate, $3,250-$4,000 small nonprofit rate.
Coaching
Executive Director Coaching (General Leadership Coaching)
Three Package Tiers: Foundations, Building Momentum, Full Stride
Time Commitment: 3 months - 1 year depending on package
Pricing: $5,000 - $16,000 (standard rate), $3,750 - $12,000 (small nonprofit rate)
Strategic Plan Implementation Coaching (Coaching Anchored on Implementation of Your Strategic Plan)
Three Package Tiers: Stabilization, Re-Anchoring, Sustained Momentum
Time Commitment: 3 months - 1 year depending on package
Pricing: $5,000 - $16,000 (standard rate), $3,750 - $12,000 (small nonprofit rate)
Capacity Building and Nonprofit Startup Consulting: pricing not yet finalized; contact us for a custom quote.
Ask about discounts for returning customers
Add-On Services ($350-$6,000)
Available with a full Strategic Planning engagement: a written Action Plan ($$$), Action Plan and Prioritization Matrix templates ($), and additional focus groups or listening sessions ($$). Board Governance Training add-ons such as policy templates, assessment tools, action planning worksheets, role clarity matrices, committee charters, executive director evaluation tools ($-$$)
Frequently Asked Questions
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Hourly pricing puts your team in the position of rationing their questions and calls to keep costs down, which works against the kind of open, ongoing partnership that makes consulting engagements succeed. A fixed fee, set upfront based on the scope, timeline, and expertise your project needs, means you can lean on us as much as the work requires.
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We believe high-quality strategic support shouldn’t be out of reach for smaller nonprofits. Organizations with more resources pay our standard rate. Smaller organizations, pay a rate that aligns more with their capability to pay without lowering the quality or depth of the work they receive.
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Every engagement starts with a free consultation. We’ll talk through where your organization is, what you’re trying to accomplish, and your timeline, then recommend the option that actually fits, rather than the most expensive one available.
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Yes. Every package is broken into a deposit and staged payments tied to project milestones, detailed on each service’s page. No engagement requires payment in full upfront. The final payment is due when the project deliverables have been completed.