Services – Geller Consulting

Organizations today are navigating profound complexity and rapid change. Whether responding to shifting funding environments, growing community needs, or internal transitions, many organizations require support across multiple areas at once.

I am excited to bring my 25+ years of experience working with non-profits, philanthropic organizations, cooperatives, credit unions, and social impact initiatives to support you to achieve the outcomes you're looking for.

Fractional Leadership

For smaller or emerging organizations, foundations, collaborations, and movements, it can be difficult to hire full-time or permanent staff with the senior experience you need. Fractional leadership offers a solution that is both cost-effective and flexible, allowing organizations to scale leadership up or down based on their needs.

With my experience in senior positions, I am a seasoned professional providing strategic thinking, organizational planning, operations management, policy development, hiring, and program development at a fraction of the cost.

Leadership Roles:

Executive Director
Managing / Program Director
Innovation / Transformation Director
Research / Reporting Director

Suited for organizations:

Needing specific leadership expertise
Experiencing change or restructuring
Growing quickly
Wanting to improve processes or shift culture

Strategic Thinking & Planning

We are living in a time of profound and complex challenges such as unprecedented income gaps, rising authoritarianism, an existential climate crisis, precarious employment and housing, among others. On top of these issues, non-profits and philanthropic organizations are experiencing additional changes specific to us such as shrinking budgets, unstable funding sources, increased demand for services, workforce shifts, among others.

As organizations respond and navigate these challenges, finding a partner who can support you is critical.

If your organization is looking for help with any of the following, please reach out:

Strategic Thinking

Environmental scans, community & stakeholder research, systems & asset maps, design thinking, theory of change.

Strategic Planning

Identifying goals, objectives, role(s), multi-year and annual plans, impact metrics.

Program Development

Building sustainable business models, grant making strategies, and plans, policies & processes.

Organizational Change

Supporting leadership succession, mergers, collaborations, partnerships.

Community Philanthropic Strategies & Programs

For businesses, foundations, B corporations, labour unions, cooperatives, credit unions, trade associations and others seeking to have an impact in their communities, putting their values front and centre to contribute to a better world, knowing where to start or how to grow strategically can be challenging.

It's one thing to know you want to be part of the solution, it's quite another to know what part to play and how to operationalize those pieces.

If you're creating or growing any of the following, let's talk:

Grants, donations and sponsorships
Community and stakeholder engagement
Employee community engagement and volunteering

Grant Writing, Research & Reporting

As funding budgets tighten and demands for dollars increase, organizations are experiencing a growing need for expertise in seeking, applying for, coordinating, and reporting on grants to funders and other stakeholders.

A strategic and focused plan provides grant-seeking organizations with efficient and effective systems resulting in more successful grant applications.

I have the proven expertise to support you with:

Systems for tracking grant opportunities, applications, awards, reporting compliance etc.
Customized grant writing
Impact metrics & reporting systems
Research & analysis

"I worked closely with Elisabeth for many years and learned so much from her. She is strategic and also pragmatic. She understands the mechanics of creating and running a large-scale granting program while understanding what it feels like to be a grant applicant. She works hard to ensure that her programs are easy to both administer and access. I think any organization would benefit from Elisabeth's deep experience and knowledge."

William Azaroff

CEO, Brightside Community Homes

"I had the pleasure of working closely with Elisabeth during our time together at the Vancouver Foundation, where she was part of my team. Elisabeth is one of those rare colleagues who can step into almost any challenge and make it better — a true "Swiss Army knife." She brings strong project management and execution skills, along with a deep understanding of strategy, grantmaking, research, and people management.

Elisabeth combines a results-oriented mindset with a thoughtful grasp of how social change actually happens. She also brings a high level of self-awareness, humility, and deep reflection to her work, which makes her an exceptional collaborator and leader. And she has a wonderful sense of humor that makes working through complex challenges together a joy. Elisabeth is the person you hire first when you have the opportunity!"

Dara Parker

CEO, Toniic

"Elisabeth brings a thoughtful and relational approach to her work. Her deep commitment to equity and justice, along with her ability to listen carefully and connect with people, helps to foster meaningful collaboration. She also brings a genuine, decades-long commitment to the health and strength of the nonprofit sector, grassroots movements, and the many people working and volunteering in communities. I have trusted Elisabeth with overseeing Indigenous-led projects and work and she has demonstrated active allyship to Indigenous peoples and communities."

Jeska Slater

Director, Grant Stewardship, Vancouver Foundation

"Elisabeth Geller is a rare strategist who turns complex ideas into meaningful action. I worked closely with her at Vancity on initiatives related to innovative homeownership, living wage, financial inclusion, DEI, and innovative granting across grassroots and established nonprofits. She is deeply attuned to the realities facing equity-deserving communities and consistently drives practical, well-designed solutions that deliver real impact."

Njeri Kontulahti

Director, Strategic Initiatives, Vancity Community Foundation

"Elisabeth Geller stands out for the breadth of her professional experience and her deep commitment to social and economic justice. I've been consistently impressed by how Elisabeth perceptively navigates complex systems, power dynamics, and challenges that often feel stuck or unsolvable. She works brilliantly with grassroots and institutional leaders, bringing a rare mix of knowledge, insight, and pragmatism to everything she does. For organizations, foundations, collaborations and movements ready to stretch their thinking and operationalize their values for real impact, Elisabeth is an ideal partner."

Pat Thompson

Executive Officer for Strategy & Learning, Atkinson Foundation

"Working with Elisabeth has been a genuinely rewarding experience. She brings a forward-thinking mindset, consistently exploring the broader impact and multiple dimensions of strategic directions. Her thoughtful and curious approach creates space for deeper insight and stronger outcomes. Elisabeth excels at connecting big-picture planning with practical execution, making her an invaluable partner in areas like strategic thinking, grantmaking, and research. She approaches challenges with clarity and intention, and her ability to navigate complexity makes collaboration both effective and inspiring."

Tracey Vavrek

(Director, Learning & Network Engagement, Community Foundations Canada)

Ready to talk about what's next?

Every organization’s situation is different, and many challenges span more than one area of support. If you’re exploring options, navigating change, or simply thinking through what comes next, I would be happy to connect.

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