Transformation through relationship, collective wisdom, and coordinated action.

Work with Us

Let’s Build Something Together

The Starling Collective brings together a curated group of consultants with deep expertise in nonprofit strategy, evaluation, fund development, marketing and communications, community engagement, nervous system support, small business development, and theories of change.

We don't operate as a traditional consulting firm. We work with you, listening first, co-designing always, and building solutions that your organization actually owns when we're done. We are the scaffolding. You are the builders.

You have the knowledge. We’re here to support you, not to tell you what you need.

Whether you need a single consultant for a focused project or a full collective team for a major initiative, we will match the right expertise to your work and we will be honest with you when we're not the right fit.

When you work with us, you don't get one consultant. You get the whole formation.

What we do together.

The Starling Collective works across a wide range of engagements.

Beloved Community

Community Engagement & Coalition Building 

Real community engagement begins with a relationship. We support organizations in building authentic connections with the communities they serve, designing coalitions that hold power and create change, and developing the cross-sector partnerships that make collective impact possible. From listening session design to backbone support for complex collaborations, we help organizations show up in community the way community deserves; with humility, reciprocity, and genuine accountability.

Embodied Leadership

Talent, Training, & Development

Leadership that is rooted in equity, cultural intelligence, and genuine care for people is the kind that creates lasting change. We design and facilitate leadership development experiences for Executive Directors, emerging leaders, boards, and teams. We do all of this to build the skills, frameworks, and shared language needed to lead with integrity in complex, high-demand environments. Whether it is a leadership circle, a governance training, or a custom workshop series, we meet your people where they are and build from there.

Liberating Systems

Strategic Planning & Organizational Development

We help organizations stop managing broken systems and start building new ones. Working alongside your team and community, we design multi-year strategies, theories of change, and organizational structures that are grounded in your values, built for your people, and capable of creating the kind of impact that actually lasts. We build a plan with you and we make sure your organization owns it completely when we're done.

Organizational Flourishing

Funding, Evaluation, & Sustainability

A thriving organization needs both the resources to do its work and the systems to know if the work is working. We support organizations in securing funding through compelling grant writing and major gifts strategy, building evaluation frameworks that center community voice and lived experience, and developing the learning systems that help you grow, adapt, and make the case for continued investment. We build the financial and operational foundation that lets your mission breathe.

Whole and Free

Nervous System & Trauma-Informed Practice

The people doing the hardest work in our communities deserve real support. We offer evidence-informed, body-based programming that addresses the actual nervous system toll of working in high-demand, high-stakes environments. From G-TEP group sessions for frontline staff to trauma-informed organizational policy review to somatic DEI practice, we help organizations build cultures where people are genuinely supported to show up whole and where the systems around them are designed to keep them that way.

Who We Work With

Is this a good fit?

The Starling Collective works with organizations that are doing meaningful work and are ready to do it differently. We are especially well-suited for:

  • Nonprofit organizations navigating growth, transition, or a critical funding moment

  • Grassroots and community-led organizations building infrastructure for the first time

  • Foundations seeking evaluation, strategy, or community engagement support

  • Cross-sector collaborations and collective impact initiatives

  • Organizations led by and serving BIPOC, queer, immigrant, or other historically marginalized communities

  • Organizations committed to equity and willing to examine their own systems and practices

  • Small businesses looking to grow and entrench themselves more in their communities

  • Social enterprises and mission-driven organizations seeking sustainable strategy

We are honest about fit. If we are not the right team for your project we will tell you.

Our Process

  1. You reach out: Send us a request for services using the form below or reach out directly to Tera. We will respond within one week to schedule an initial conversation.

  2. We have a discovery conversation: We listen first. We want to understand your organization, your challenge, your community, and what success looks like for you before we propose anything.

  3. We match the right team: Based on what we learn, we identify which collective members are the best fit for your project; bringing in the specific expertise your work requires.

  4. We build a proposal together: We co-develop a scope of work, timeline, and budget that reflects your needs and our honest assessment of what it will take to do this well.

  5. We get to work: We show up fully, work in genuine partnership with your team, and build your capacity along the way so that what we create together lasts beyond our engagement.

Get in Touch

Ready to Start a Conversation?

Reach out to Tera Wozniak Stortz to start an inquiry. Tera leads collective business development and will make sure your request gets to the right people.

Schedule a 30 minute consultation

Request for Services

We review every inquiry with care. Please share as much as you’d like, there are no wrong answers here.