Common Good Solutions

What Common Good Solutions does

Common Good Solutions is a Halifax, Nova Scotia-based social impact consulting and training organization founded in 2012 that supports governments, nonprofits, social enterprises, and individual entrepreneurs in addressing complex economic and social problems — including housing, food security, community economic development, transit, literacy, education, and social services. Its service portfolio spans social impact consulting, structured training programs, social finance planning and investment readiness advisory, career coaching, and ecosystem development, all anchored by a proprietary methodology called the Common Good Way that combines community engagement with sustainable business model design.

Productized assets include the 8-week Community Development for Good (CD4G) certification program (priced at C$549 per participant or C$999 for two or more), the Business Basics Library year-long license serving up to 250 entrepreneurs with 50 instructional videos and coaching notes, the Building Back Better curriculum for nonprofit boards, and the Common Good Online platform hosted on Teachable with searchable resources across Market, Model, Money, Mission, Manage, and Measure. Sub-brands include Project 561 (African Nova Scotian youth entrepreneurship) and the Atlantic Social Impact Ecosystem Project (pan-provincial network across NL, NS, NB, and PEI). CGS additionally produced the award-winning Social Shift documentary (Screen Nova Scotia Best Documentary, 2019) in partnership with Mirror Image Media.

Revenue is generated through professional services consulting fees, course enrollment tuition, annual license subscriptions, and individual coaching engagements, with payments processed through Stripe. Distribution is hybrid: sales-led consulting engagements paired with self-serve online course delivery, an event-driven layer anchored by the annual Atlantic Social Impact Exchange Summit, and thought leadership placement in The Hill Times and Future of Good. The company is a certified B Corporation, privately held with no external equity funding, and operates with approximately six to seven core team members supplemented by contractors; clients are predominantly small and mid-sized nonprofits, social purpose organizations, and public-sector bodies in Atlantic Canada with select national engagements.

Name

Common Good Solutions

Legal name

Common Good Solutions

Website

https://commongoodsolutions.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Common Good Solutions is a Halifax-based social impact consulting firm that helps governments, nonprofits, social enterprises, and entrepreneurs develop sustainable business models addressing complex community challenges through its proprietary Common Good Way methodology, training programs, and ecosystem convening.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social Impact Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainability & ESG Consulting (BPAHACAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Affordable Housing & Community Development (Housing, Community Land Trusts) (BPAGALAC), Community Engagement & Service-Learning Partnerships (EDALAOAI)

Keywords

• Social impact consulting
• Community development services
• Social enterprise training
• Nonprofit capacity building
• Social finance advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Halifax

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: Expertise, capacity, and implementation support for clients addressing complex social challenges. Includes strategic development, feasibility studies, capacity building, and project management services.
2. Training Programs: Cohort-based online courses including the CD4G 8-week program and specialized training for nonprofits and business development professionals. Revenue generated through course enrollment fees at $549 per course or $999 for two or more participants.
3. Career Coaching: Personalized one-on-one coaching and mentorship services for individuals pursuing social enterprise success, with both short-term guidance and long-term mentorship programs.
4. Social Finance Planning: Advisory services guiding purpose-led organizations through investment readiness, operational capacity building, capital raising, and funding/grant opportunities.
5. License Subscriptions: Business Basics Library provides year-long license access for up to 250 entrepreneurs, including 50 instructional videos, worksheets, and coaching notes for business development professionals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Common Good Solutions is a social impact consulting firm that provides expertise, capacity, and implementation support to governments, nonprofits, and social enterprises working to address complex social challenges. It delivers consulting engagements, structured training programs (including the 8-week CD4G certification), career coaching, social finance planning, and ecosystem development — all guided by its proprietary "Common Good Way" methodology that connects community engagement with sustainable business model development.

Product overview

Common Good Solutions operates as a social impact organization offering a portfolio of consulting, training, and community development services. The core offering includes consulting services for social enterprise development and strategic planning, alongside structured training programs. The product line spans individual programs (Community Development for Good, Career Coaching), resource libraries (Business Basics Library, Building Back Better), an online learning platform (Common Good Online hosted on Teachable), and ecosystem-building initiatives (Atlantic Social Impact Ecosystem Project, Canadian Postsecondary Social Enterprise Map, Project 561). The company follows its proprietary Common Good Way methodology, a tested approach that connects community engagement with building sustainable business models.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Common Good Online: An online learning platform providing searchable resources with short videos and worksheets for entrepreneurs and coaches, covering topics such as Market, Model, Money, Mission, Manage, and Measure.
• Project 561
• Atlantic Social Impact Ecosystem Project

Products and services

• Consulting Services Social impact consulting providing expertise, capacity, and implementation support for governments, nonprofits, and social enterprises addressing complex social challenges including housing, food security, community economic development, transit, literacy, education, and social services.
• Training Programs Training offerings for individuals and teams, empowering nonprofits and government teams with skills for sustainable models and impact measurement. Includes the CD4G program, Business Basics Library, and Building Back Better.
• Social Finance Planning Advisory services guiding purpose-led organizations through investment readiness, from building operational capacity to raising external capital and seeking funding or grant opportunities.
• Career Coaching Personalized one-on-one coaching and mentorship for individuals pursuing social enterprise success, with options for short-term guidance or long-term mentor relationships.
• Community Development for Good (CD4G) An 8-week certification program teaching the Common Good Way methodology to business development professionals, including practical tools, peer collaboration, readings, virtual classes, and an optional practicum certification track.
• Business Basics Library Year-long organizational license providing access for up to 250 entrepreneurs, including 50 instructional videos, customized worksheets, and coaching notes for business development professionals.
• Building Back Better for Not for Profit Boards Self-directed library of videos and curated resources for not-for-profit boards addressing board culture, diversity, accountability, trust, risk management, and succession. Includes two private coaching sessions over one year.
• Common Good Online Platform Searchable online learning platform on Teachable offering short videos with accompanying worksheets and coach guides. Organized by Market, Model, Money, Mission, Manage, and Measure categories for entrepreneurs and coaches.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully supported organizations to secure over $1.2 million in fundraising
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Bullfrog PowerminorOthers · 1 September 2020Bullfrog Power is featured as a partner providing renewable energy options. Their logo appears on the Common Good Solutions website indicating a sustainability-focused partnership.
• Mirror Image MediacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Co-created The Social Shift documentary with twin sisters Meaghan and Marie Wright, co-founders of Mirror Image Media. The documentary traveled 8,500 kilometers across Canada interviewing social enterprise practitioners.
• Sault Ste. Marie Innovation CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRAIN (Rural Agri-Innovation Network) became part of the Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre, representing an organizational integration that enabled expanded social impact services.
• Atlantic Social Impact Ecosystem NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPan-provincial ecosystem network uniting all four Atlantic Canadian provinces (Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island). Includes advisory committee members from various organizations including PEI COOP COUNCIL, Ulnooweg, iMOVS, All in Agency, SmartICE, Memorial University, Community Foundation of NL, Choices for Youth, Indigrow, Kaleidoscope Impact, Pond-Deshpande Centre UNB, and Impact Organizations of Nova Scotia.
• Government of CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2017, the Canadian Government engaged Common Good Solutions to develop recommendations for a nation-wide Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy, producing the National Social Innovation & Social Finance Strategy.
• Acadia UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity Development Specialist position works part time from Acadia University in Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, directly supporting social impact work in the region.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• The Bridgespan Group: Global nonprofit and social sector consulting firm — comparable in serving social purpose organizations with strategy consulting, but at much larger scale and broader geographic footprint than CGS.
• Community Foundations of Canada: Large Canadian national network supporting community development, philanthropy, and social innovation — broader scope than CGS but serves overlapping nonprofit and community-sector audiences across Canada.
• MaRS Discovery District: Large Canadian innovation hub supporting social impact ventures, including advisory, programs, and capital — broader portfolio than CGS but with overlapping social enterprise advisory and training offerings.

Direct peers

• Centre for Social Innovation (Toronto): Canadian social innovation hub providing workspace, programs, and consulting for social purpose organizations — comparable as both deliver training, ecosystem support, and consulting to social enterprises and nonprofits.
• SiMPACT Strategy Group: Canadian social impact consulting firm providing strategy, evaluation, and capacity-building services to nonprofits, social enterprises, and governments — closely aligned offering and client base to CGS.
• Buy Social Canada: Canadian organization supporting social enterprise development through certification, training, and ecosystem building — comparable as both serve the Canadian social enterprise development market with training and capacity building.
• Tamarack Institute: Canadian institute focused on community development, collective impact, and reducing poverty — directly comparable as both operate in the Canadian social impact consulting and capacity-building space, serving similar nonprofit/government clients.
• Purpose Capital: Canadian impact advisory firm supporting social enterprises, investors, and governments on social finance strategy and investment readiness — overlaps directly with CGS's social finance planning and IRP work.
• MDB Insight: Canadian consulting firm specializing in social enterprise strategy, feasibility studies, and impact measurement — directly competes for similar consulting engagements with nonprofits and governments.

Regional players

• REDF: U.S.-based nonprofit providing consulting, capital, and advisory to social enterprises and workforce organizations — comparable methodology and client profile but operates in a different geography than CGS.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/commongood4all
• Facebookfacebook.com/commongoodsolutions
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/common-good-solutions-inc.

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Common Good Solutions