Funston Advisory Services

What Funston Advisory Services does

Funston Advisory Services LLC is a privately held boutique advisory firm founded in 2010 by Rick Funston, the former National Practice Leader for Governance and Risk Oversight Services at Deloitte & Touche LLP. The firm provides governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) advisory services to institutional investors — primarily U.S. public retirement systems (state, county, and municipal), investment boards, sovereign wealth funds, and Taft-Hartley multi-employer plans. The company operates a direct, relationship-based sales motion, with client acquisition driven by thought leadership (published books, blogs, FASt Insights), referrals, and direct outreach to fiduciaries and trustees.

The firm's core technology is a suite of proprietary governance frameworks and benchmarking tools developed from 60+ governance reviews covering nearly $3 trillion in client AUM. These include InGov (Governance Benchmarking), GEM (Governance Effectiveness Management), N3PR (National Public Pension Policy Repository), MGPM (Model Governance Policy Manual), Exception-Based Reporting, Program Capability Maturity Assessment, and the Risk Intelligence Portal. Service lines encompass Governance, Risk & Compliance Reviews; Peer Benchmarking; Enterprise Risk Management; Leadership Development & Coaching (delivered in part through the Board Smart online learning platform launched in 2020); and Expert Facilitation (board retreats, self-evaluations, strategic planning).

Funston monetizes primarily through professional services fees billed on a project or retainer basis, with bespoke, quote-based engagement rather than standardized pricing. The firm complements consulting with two ecosystem extensions: Board Smart LLC, a co-founded online governance learning platform with 150+ educational "Talks," and FASNET, an expert network that scales delivery capacity via external specialists. Headcount sits in the 11–50 range, ownership is concentrated with the founder, and the firm is headquartered in Naples, Florida, with no disclosed venture capital, private equity backing, M&A activity, or leadership transitions since inception.

Name

Funston Advisory Services

Legal name

Funston Advisory Services LLC

Website

https://funstonadv.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Funston Advisory Services is a boutique governance, risk, and compliance advisory firm serving U.S. public retirement systems, investment boards, sovereign wealth funds, and Taft-Hartley plans with proprietary benchmarking tools, consulting services, and the Board Smart online learning platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Governance, Risk & Compliance Advisory Services

NAICS

Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Compliance Technology, GRC Platforms & Controls Automation Advisory (BPAHAFAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Risk, Controls & Governance (GRC) Platforms (FSAFAOAG), Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) Platforms (BPAEAPAA)

Keywords

• Governance risk compliance advisory
• Institutional investor consulting
• Public pension governance
• Fiduciary performance audits
• Board effectiveness advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Bloomfield Hills

HQ country

United States

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: Professional consulting fees for governance, risk, and compliance advisory services including governance reviews, assessments, facilitation, and leadership coaching. Services are billed on a project or retainer basis typical of boutique advisory firms serving institutional investors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Funston Advisory Services is a boutique consulting firm that provides governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) advisory services to institutional investors, including public retirement systems, investment boards, sovereign wealth funds, and other pension funds. Core offerings include GRC reviews, peer benchmarking, enterprise risk management, leadership development and coaching, and expert facilitation, supported by proprietary frameworks such as InGov, GEM, N3PR, and MGPM. The firm also operates Board Smart, an online governance learning platform for board members and fiduciaries.

Product overview

Funston Advisory Services is a governance, risk, and compliance advisory firm serving institutional investors. The company offers a portfolio of advisory services including Governance, Risk & Compliance Reviews, Peer Benchmarking (using proprietary tools InGov, GEM, N3PR, and MGPM), Enterprise Risk Management, Leadership Development & Coaching, and Expert Facilitation. The firm also provides Board Smart, an online governance learning platform launched in 2020, and maintains an expert network (FASNET). Educational content is delivered through published books including 'One of a Kind!' (2017), 'Transform the Dialogue: Fiduciary Essentials' (2025), 'Adapt or Fail!' (2025), and 'Surviving and Thriving in Uncertainty' (2010). The firm specializes in serving public retirement systems, investment boards, sovereign wealth funds, and other institutional investors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Board Smart: Online governance training platform for board members of institutional investors
• FASNET

Products and services

• Governance, Risk & Compliance Reviews Comprehensive review of governance structures including charters, policies, procedures, board meeting materials, and compliance, risk, and control frameworks for public retirement systems and institutional investors.
• Peer Benchmarking Proprietary benchmarking service using InGov (Governance Benchmarking), GEM (Governance Effectiveness Management), N3PR (National Public Pension Policy Repository), and MGPM (Model Governance Policy Manual) to enable institutional investors to compare their governance practices against peers and best practices.
• Enterprise Risk Management and Risk Intelligence Enterprise-wide risk management services including Program Capability Maturity Assessment, Exception-Based Reporting, and Governance, Risk and Compliance Surveys to help institutional investors identify, assess, and manage risks through an integrated framework.
• Leadership Development & Coaching In-person and online governance and fiduciary training through Board Smart, onboarding programs, continuing education, and leadership coaching for board members and executives of institutional investors.
• Expert Facilitation Professional facilitation services for board retreats, board self-evaluations, CEO/ED evaluations, strategic planning, and conflict resolution for institutional investor clients.
• Board Smart An online governance learning resource providing podcasts, transcripts, and educational materials (over 150 Talks) covering basic to advanced fiduciary and governance concepts for public retirement system fiduciaries.
• FASNET (Funston Advisory Services Expert Network) An expert network connecting clients with specialized professionals for governance, risk, and compliance consulting engagements.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 60 governance reviews completed for public retirement systems with nearly $3 trillion in AUM
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Board Smart LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoard Smart LLC is a related entity co-founded by Rick Funston providing online governance learning resources for public retirement system fiduciaries. The platform offers over 150 Talks covering fiduciary and governance concepts, providing educational content that complements FAS consulting services. Both entities share leadership and operate in a complementary manner.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Meketa Investment Group: Boutique institutional investment consulting firm serving public pensions, endowments, and foundations with governance, investment, and risk advisory services. Highly comparable in client base, boutique positioning, and public-pension specialization.
• StepStone Group: Specialized institutional investment and pension advisory firm providing consulting, governance, and portfolio monitoring services to public and corporate pensions. Comparable client base and institutional-investor focus.
• Cambridge Associates: Investment advisory firm serving institutional investors including pensions, endowments, and foundations with portfolio and governance advisory. Comparable boutique positioning and institutional client overlap.
• NEPC (New England Pension Consultants): Independent investment consulting firm focused exclusively on institutional investors including public pensions, with services spanning governance reviews, manager research, and risk oversight. Directly comparable in target market and boutique delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• Aon: Global professional services firm offering risk management, actuarial, and pension governance advisory. Overlaps with Funston on institutional investor risk oversight, fiduciary performance audits, and board governance reviews.
• Mercer: Global consulting leader in health, wealth, and career advisory with deep public pension governance and investment advisory practices. Competes with Funston on institutional investor governance and fiduciary advisory mandates.
• PwC (Risk and Regulatory practice): Big Four professional services firm offering governance, risk, compliance, and pension advisory. Competes with Funston for institutional investor GRC and board effectiveness engagements at scale.
• KPMG (Governance, Risk & Compliance Services): Big Four firm providing enterprise governance, risk, compliance, and internal audit services to institutional investors and pension systems. Overlaps with Funston on fiduciary and governance advisory engagements.
• Deloitte (Governance, Risk & Compliance practice): Global Big Four firm offering governance, risk, and compliance advisory including pension and institutional investor governance services. Funston's founder was previously Deloitte's National Practice Leader for Governance and Risk Oversight, making Deloitte both a feeder and a direct competitor.

Others

• CECP (Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose): Advisory and benchmarking organization focused on corporate governance and stakeholder engagement. Adjacent peer given overlapping governance, board effectiveness, and institutional investor education themes.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/funston-advisory-service-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Funston Advisory Services