ChildFocus

What ChildFocus does

ChildFocus Partners is a privately held, for-profit boutique consulting firm founded in 2006 and headquartered in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, with operational presence concentrated in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. The firm provides policy advocacy, philanthropic advising, technical assistance, and research services to foundations, federal, state and local government agencies, and non-profit organizations working on child welfare, foster care, and family services. The co-founders, Mary Bissell and Jennifer Miller, are supported by a partner-level team (Rebecca Robuck, Kathleen King, Tiffany Allen) and a bench of senior consultants, designers, and program associates with prior leadership experience at Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Children's Defense Fund, and other major child welfare institutions.

The firm does not operate a technology platform; its core deliverables are consulting engagements, policy briefs, toolkits, and curated publications. Notable proprietary assets include FosterPort, a curated web database for older youth in foster care, and a library of guides covering kinship care, foster care financing, the Family First Prevention Services Act, and youth credit protection. Revenue is generated through professional services fees, typically structured as grant-funded or contracted projects with foundations and government entities, negotiated on a project-by-project basis. The firm also operates purpose-driven sub-brands: JenMiller Coaching (certified life and career coaching for nonprofit leaders) and Opportunity Blossoms (a for-purpose floral design social enterprise that donates one-third of profits to youth-facing causes). The go-to-market motion is relationship-driven, with client acquisition occurring through the team's professional networks, referral channels, and the firm's leadership positions in major coalitions and funder collaboratives.

Name

ChildFocus

Legal name

ChildFocus Partners

Website

https://childfocuspartners.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ChildFocus Partners is a boutique U.S. consulting firm that provides policy advocacy, philanthropic advising, technical assistance, and research to foundations, government agencies, and non-profits working on child welfare, foster care, and family services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

East Greenwich

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

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: ChildFocus generates revenue through consulting engagements with foundations, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. Services include policy advocacy consulting, philanthropic advising, technical assistance, and research services. Projects are typically grant-funded or contracted by foundations and government entities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ChildFocus is a policy and consulting firm that provides professional services to foundations, government agencies, and non-profit organizations working on behalf of children, youth, and families. Its core offerings include Policy Advocacy (translating federal policy for state/local implementation and engaging community voices), Philanthropic Advising (advising funders on investment strategies and curating resources for grantees), Technical Assistance (helping agencies innovate, create tools, and implement best practices), and Research (surveys, evaluations, literature reviews, and process mapping). The firm supplements these with purpose-driven projects such as JenMiller Coaching and Opportunity Blossoms, plus a catalogue of Tools & Publications.

Product overview

ChildFocus is a consulting firm offering a portfolio of professional services including Policy Advocacy, Philanthropic Advising, Technical Assistance, and Research. The core offerings are complemented by purpose-driven projects such as JenMiller Coaching (certified coaching for nonprofit leaders), Opportunity Blossoms (a social enterprise floral design firm supporting youth), and FosterPort (a searchable web database of resources for older youth in foster care). ChildFocus also produces Tools & Publications including policy briefs, guides, and reports on child welfare topics. The firm is not a technology product company but rather a policy and consulting organization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• JenMiller Coaching: A certified coaching service specializing in helping individuals approach life transitions with a mindset that sustains energy and excitement about change, with particular focus on non-profit leaders.
• Opportunity Blossoms

Products and services

• Policy Advocacy Services Translating complex federal policy developments for state and local programs and promoting community innovations to federal and state policymakers. Includes helping organizations align policy priorities with mission, building advocacy capacity, and bringing youth and parent voices to policy discussions. Service is for foundations, government agencies, and non-profits working on child welfare, foster care, and family services policy.
• Philanthropic Advising Advising foundations on investment strategies to create opportunities for children and families. Includes facilitating learning opportunities, documenting lessons learned, and curating resources for grantees. Service is for local, state, and national foundations and philanthropic collaboratives.
• Technical Assistance Working with government agencies and non-profits to innovate and articulate priorities, create tools, and help children and families succeed. Includes best practice implementation support, such as ongoing technical assistance to New York counties through the Redlich Horwitz Foundation partnership.
• Research Services Designing and assisting with research and program improvement activities including surveys, literature reviews, process mapping, interviews, focus groups, and other tools to help organizations make data-informed decisions. Service is for foundations, government agencies, and non-profits across child welfare, juvenile justice, and family services.
• Tools & Publications A collection of policy briefs, guides, reports, and resources developed by ChildFocus on topics including child welfare financing, foster care reform, kinship care, youth credit protection, the Family First Prevention Services Act, COVID-19 impacts on families, and state-specific financing primers. Resources are produced for child welfare agencies, advocates, and funders.
• FosterPort A searchable web database containing curated research, publications, policy issues, and expert resources focused on the needs of older youth in and transitioning from foster care. Created for youth service providers, advocates, and funders.
• JenMiller Coaching Certified life and career coaching services for non-profit leaders and individuals facing life transitions. Uses an energy-based approach to help clients stay aligned with mission and values.
• Opportunity Blossoms A for-purpose floral design firm that creates elegant and affordable arrangements for events in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area. One-third of profits are donated to support youth experiencing foster care, homelessness, or involvement with the criminal justice system.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over the past decade, ChildFocus has provided consulting support to more than 100 clients and their partners in 32 states
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 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

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Better Care Network and ReThink OrphanagesminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 February 2022ChildFocus developed a mapping exercise for Better Care Network and ReThink Orphanages in collaboration with ReThink Orphanages US Hub members, with support from GHR Foundation. This was a first attempt at pulling together available data on U.S. support for orphanages abroad.
• National Network for Youth (NN4Y)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 November 2019NN4Y and ChildFocus teamed up to shine light on pathways between foster care and youth homelessness. The partnership produced a paper on how the Family First Prevention Services Act can be leveraged to address homelessness for youth involved in the foster care system.
• UsAgainstAlzheimersminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 January 2018ChildFocus partnered with UsAgainstAlzheimers to summarize results of a comprehensive national online survey of adults employed and caring for a loved one with Alzheimer's or dementia. ChildFocus helped create a summary issue brief sharing survey findings on paid leave and caregiver support.
• American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law and Generations UnitedminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017In collaboration with the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law and Generations United, with support from Annie E. Casey Foundation, ChildFocus created a WikiHow for Kinship Care - an accessible how-to guide of strategies child welfare agencies can use to find and engage more kinship families for children in foster care.
• Redlich Horwitz FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Redlich Horwitz Foundation contracted with ChildFocus to develop a best practice inventory on finding and keeping foster parents. ChildFocus currently partners with the Foundation to provide technical assistance to three New York counties to implement best practice activities contained in the inventory.
• Annie E. Casey Foundation and Credit Builders AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013With support from the Annie E. Casey Foundation and in collaboration with the Credit Builders Alliance, ChildFocus developed a guide on implementing the federal credit check requirement for youth in foster care to address identity theft.
• National Child Abuse CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRebecca Robuck directs the National Child Abuse Coalition, a coalition of 28 national organizations focused on the front-end of the child welfare system. This represents a significant ongoing partnership where ChildFocus provides leadership and staffing.
• Child Welfare Funders CollaborativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRebecca Robuck staffs the Child Welfare Funders Collaborative, a network of 14 foundations investing in innovative approaches to improving child and family well-being. ChildFocus provides staffing support to this foundation network.
• Youth Transition Funders Group (YTFG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRebecca Robuck staffs the Foster Care Workgroup and the newly-launched Policy Action Table within the Youth Transition Funders Group, a philanthropic network focused on young people with experience in foster care, juvenile justice, or homelessness.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Casey Family Programs: The nation's largest operating foundation focused on child welfare, providing direct services, research, and consulting. A more established, well-resourced actor in the same field that both competes for talent and is a frequent partner/former employer of ChildFocus leaders.
• Urban Institute: Large social and economic policy research organization with significant practice areas in child welfare, family support, and program evaluation. Overlaps with ChildFocus's research and policy translation services but at a materially larger scale.
• Annie E. Casey Foundation: Major national philanthropy focused on children and families, particularly through the foster care, juvenile justice, and Kids Count workstreams. Overlaps with ChildFocus on policy advocacy, philanthropic advising, and convening — and serves as both a client and source of former staff.

Direct peers

• Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago: Research and policy center producing data-driven evidence on child and family well-being, child welfare, and youth systems. Highly comparable as a consulting/research partner to foundations, government, and non-profits working on the same populations ChildFocus serves.
• Child Trends: Nonpartisan research organization focused exclusively on improving the lives of children and youth; produces the kind of research, evaluation, and program assessment services that ChildFocus offers, and has historically employed several ChildFocus partners (e.g., Tiffany Allen conducted adoption recruitment evaluations there).
• Cornerstone Consulting Group: Child welfare policy and practice consulting firm where ChildFocus partner Jennifer Miller previously worked; directly comparable boutique consulting model targeting foundations, public systems, and non-profits on foster care and family services.

Emerging players

• 3P Consulting LLC: Child welfare consulting firm focused on permanency, partnerships, and practice for older youth in foster care, where ChildFocus Director of Operations Lisa Butts previously pioneered business operations before its merger with Plummer Youth Promise.
• Child & Family Policy Associates: Child welfare, juvenile justice, and homeless youth policy consulting firm co-founded and directed by ChildFocus portfolio manager Lisa Pilnik; directly comparable boutique consulting offering serving similar non-profit, foundation, and government clients.

Others

• National Network for Youth (NN4Y): National membership and advocacy organization for youth-serving agencies, including those serving homeless and foster youth; an active ChildFocus partner on Family First Prevention Services Act work for youth transitioning from foster care.
• American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law: National ABA center that produces policy analysis, technical assistance, and training on child welfare, foster care, and juvenile justice; long-standing ChildFocus partner on kinship care and child welfare resources, representing the legal/policy adjacent ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ChildFocus
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/childfocuspartners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 ChildFocus