Consulting and Project Support

Tailored support for impact-driven organizations.


Our process for accepting project proposals for Winter 2025 will open in November.

Dedicated, driven talent.
Your team will be paired with a team of 4 Propel Impact Consulting Fellows, who will commit 400 hours over 10 weeks. Fellows have been hand-selected and bring an array of diverse experiences to the table.
Focused, practical support.
Projects will support one of four specific needs: market research, feasibility assessment, financial modeling, or impact measurement. The project is designed to help build your capacity towards developing your social enterprise.
Social finance education.
Your team will be provided with resources to learn about accessing social finance for your organization. If you're based in one of our local fund cities and are raising capital, you may be added to the pipeline for potential investment.

In the past four years, we've helped 200+ impact-first organizations overcome a wide variety of challenges.

Western Arctic Youth Collective
Takachar
Yukonstruct
Food Stash Foundation

We get into the weeds of helping you build your social enterprise, one project at a time.

What makes an ideal
Propel Impact project?

Overview

Projects that will help your organization work towards developing your social enterprise and generating revenue.

Duration: 400 hours of project support over 10 weeks.
Team Structure: 4 Propel Impact Consulting Fellows.
Focus Areas: Market Research, Feasibility Assessment, Financial Modeling, or Impact Measurement
Cost: $2,500 per project.
Financial Assistance: Organizations facing significant financial barriers can contact Propel to negotiate a different rate or provide in-kind support to our organization.  

Eligibility

• Your organization has a social, environmental, and/or cultural mandate.
• You are registered as for-profit business, non-profit, charity, or co-operative.
• You are headquartered in Canada or you have a significant amount of operations in Canada.
• You are interested in establishing or diversifying revenue-generating activities and/or have plans to fundraise capital (debt, community bonds, venture capital, impact investing etc.) in the next 1-2 years.
• The scope of your project can be completed over 400 hours. Your organization is able to commit 15 hours over 10 weeks to meeting with the Fellows, answering communications, providing access to internal documentation, and providing feedback on deliverables.
Applications open in November

Organizations we’ve worked with

Client testimonials

“Working with the Propel Team was an incredible experience, and throughout the interaction, we were impressed with the quality of work, the depth of insight, and the calibre of people. We came out of the experience with a tangible plan, and hope to work with Propel in the future."
- FES (Finance Engage Sustain) (Toronto, Ontario)
- Moving Forward Cooperative (Dorchester, New Brunswick)
“The Fellows helped us to conduct the market research and assess the viability of several key strategies related to the development of an innovative Community Food Hub. Their work had a significant impact on our being able to determine the best approaches in moving our project forward and demonstrated that we were on the right tack. This has increased our confidence and given us a roadmap for development. We highly recommend this program to other social impact organizations!”
- Muskoka Community Land Trust (Muskoka, Ontario)
“The program took our organization from having a collection of intentions and goals to having a functional, evidence-based, and community-informed statement of desired impact, which will be immediately put to use in our business planning, funding conversations and community engagement activities. The Fellows created a ready-to-use tool that we can use to execute on those intentions and measure the results. I absolutely recommend this program to any impact-first organization.”

FAQ

Who will we be working with?
Your impact-first organization will be matched with a team of 4 Fellows who come from different backgrounds. Fellows have completed foundational training led by expert practitioners across the country through a series of Zoom workshops, asynchronous assignments, covering a range of topics including EDI, systems thinking, market research, theory of change, and impact measurement. They will come with a range of technical skills ranging from due diligence to sectoral research, and all will be familiar with the Canadian social innovation & social finance sector. Each team will be supported by a Project Advisor - either an experienced Alum or a Propel Impact team member, as well as a Kearney Mentor.
What criteria do you use to select projects?
Project requests are assessed on three criteria: whether they address specific social, environmental, and cultural issues that are aligned with Propel Impact’s priorities, whether the Fellows have the requisite skills to complete the project successfully, and whether your organization demonstrates a commitment to developing a social enterprise or establishing/diversifying revenue-generating activities.
What additional value will Propel Impact provide?
As your project comes to an end, we will provide you with resources to learn about accessing social finance for your organization. Once your impact-first organization is ready to seek funding, we will also consider you for investment through one of our seven local Propel Impact funds, if eligible.
What type of projects can be issued? How should we go about scoping the work?
With a strong focus on helping you develop a social enterprise, projects must be focused on market research, feasibility assessment, financial modeling, or impact measurement. A strong project proposal will only cover one of these areas. Once the projects begin, the Fellows and Project Advisor will help you determine the scope of work to ensure project success. Read some case studies showcasing previous projects for inspiration.
Why does my organization have to pay?
As a small nonprofit, Propel Impact incurs direct costs to operate these projects. These costs include: recruiting and training Fellows, paying Managers for the time that they contribute to consulting engagements, and curating educational resources for participating impact-first organizations.

Note: Organizations facing significant financial barriers can contact Propel to negotiate a different rate or provide in-kind support to our organization.

Get in
touch

We thrive on feedback. We want to learn how we can best support you. We love connecting. So, get in touch.
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