The FOCUS Group

What The FOCUS Group does

The FOCUS Group is a privately-held professional services firm headquartered in St. Augustine, Florida that provides fundraising and strategic planning consulting exclusively to Christian nonprofits, K–12 schools, colleges and universities, and mission agencies. Founded approximately four decades ago and operating as The FOCUS Group LLC, the firm delivers five core services: feasibility studies, end-to-end capital campaign counsel, the Taking Donors Seriously® (TDS) fundraising training program, the DISCERN© Spirit-led strategic planning process, and custom advisory engagements. Its intellectual property is concentrated in two registered methodologies—TDS, a relational donor-development framework, and DISCERN, a discernment-based planning process—which are taught in cohorts and embedded in client engagements. The firm reports 400+ capital campaigns completed, with client raises ranging from $2 million to more than $275 million, and currently serves 100–150 organizations across more than 20 countries in North America, the UK, and continental Europe.

The go-to-market is enterprise, relationship-driven, and content-supported. Engagements are initiated through a website contact form, direct phone outreach, or referrals from partners such as the Europe Collaboration; the firm compounds inbound demand through a blog, the Taking Donors Seriously podcast, webinars, an annual Symposium (now in its tenth year), and the FOCUS Group Institute. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is structured as bespoke, quote-based professional services engagements scoped to campaign or planning complexity. Distribution outside the US is largely partnership-led, with coalitions referring international church planters and ministries into TDS cohorts across European cities. Operating geographies span the United States and parts of Europe; no subsidiaries, funding events, acquisitions, or parent entities are reported, and ownership commentary indicates an independent LLC with no external PE or VC backing.

Revenue is undisclosed; the firm shows no productized software, no app, no public API, and no documented AI or ML capabilities, meaning all billable value is generated through senior consultants such as CEO Brad Layland, Chief Strategy Officer Scott Rodin, and COO Vince Burens. Customer concentration risk is reduced by the firm's stated base of more than 100–150 active organizations across at least three primary verticals (nonprofits, K–12, higher education) and 20+ countries, though no single-customer revenue share is disclosed. The dominant forward-looking signals are geographic expansion into Europe, the Oxford Symposium extension, and the DISCERN-driven broadening of the strategic-planning product surface.

Name

The FOCUS Group

Legal name

The FOCUS Group LLC

Website

https://thefocusgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The FOCUS Group is a St. Augustine, Florida–based professional services firm providing fundraising consulting, feasibility studies, capital campaign counsel, and strategic planning exclusively to Christian nonprofits, schools, and mission agencies worldwide, anchored by its proprietary Taking Donors Seriously® and DISCERN© methodologies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Augustine

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Fundraising Consulting Services: The company generates revenue through consulting engagements with Christian nonprofits, schools, and ministries. Services include capital campaign counsel, feasibility studies, strategic planning, and ongoing fundraising advisory. Engagements appear to be project-based or retainer contracts for defined periods.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The FOCUS Group is a professional consulting firm that helps Christian nonprofits, ministries, K-12 Christian schools, and Christian colleges raise money and plan strategically. Its core services are Feasibility Studies, Capital Campaigns, Fundraising Training based on the proprietary Taking Donors Seriously® methodology, Spirit-led Strategic Planning via the DISCERN© process, and Custom Solutions such as annual giving and advancement assessments. Engagements are scoped and delivered by senior consultants under project- or retainer-based contracts.

Product overview

The FOCUS Group is a nonprofit fundraising consulting firm offering a portfolio of consulting services rather than a software product. The core offerings include Feasibility Studies, Capital Campaigns counsel, Fundraising Training (Taking Donors Seriously®), Strategic Planning (DISCERN©), and Custom Solutions. These services are designed to work together—feasibility studies often precede capital campaigns, and strategic planning can be incorporated into the campaign process. The proprietary Taking Donors Seriously® framework provides the foundational methodology across all engagements, while DISCERN© offers a faith-based strategic planning alternative. Custom Solutions allow organizations to address specific needs like annual giving or advancement assessments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Feasibility Studies Tailored analysis and insights to guide nonprofit capital campaigns, helping Christian nonprofit organizations understand donor willingness and financial capacity before launching major fundraising initiatives. Used by ministries, schools, and colleges to inform campaign scope and design.
• Capital Campaigns End-to-end campaign counsel guiding Christian nonprofit organizations through a proven process for raising funds, from planning through execution and celebration of results. Delivered by senior consultants across ministries, schools, and Christian colleges.
• Fundraising Training (Taking Donors Seriously®) A proprietary relational fundraising training framework that equips Christian ministry staff, missionaries, and board members with practical principles for building donor partnerships and deepening relationships, moving donors from passive supporters to active partners through involvement and emotional ownership.
• Strategic Planning (DISCERN©) A Spirit-led strategic planning process designed to help Christian ministries discern God's will and create practical, God-honoring roadmaps for future growth. Includes SOAR assessments, environmental scans, and board/employee evaluations.
• Custom Solutions Specialized consulting services including annual giving programs, advancement assessments, and other tailored counsel addressing specific organizational needs of Christian nonprofits, ministries, and schools.

Quantifiable outcome

• Geneva College exceeded $21M campaign target, raising over $20M in endowment plus $14.7M for capital projects
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Europe CollaborationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEurope Collaboration invests funds and resources into church planters in strategic cities across Europe. They partnered with The FOCUS Group to provide Taking Donors Seriously® fundraising training to church planters in cohorts. The FOCUS Group consultants have trained multiple cohorts of church planters in cities including Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Rome, and other European locations. This partnership represents The FOCUS Group's expansion into international ministry markets.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• BWF: A major fundraising and philanthropic consulting firm serving nonprofits, healthcare, education, and religious organizations with feasibility studies, campaign management, and analytics—directly overlapping with The FOCUS Group's core service portfolio.
• Campbell & Company: A leading fundraising consulting firm providing feasibility studies, capital campaign counsel, and development coaching to nonprofits. Like The FOCUS Group, it serves mission-driven organizations seeking major gift and capital campaign support, though with a broader, non-faith-specific focus.
• Russ Reid: A fundraising and communications agency specializing in faith-based and nonprofit clients. Direct peer with explicit focus on Christian and faith-based organizations, overlapping significantly with The FOCUS Group's vertical specialization.
• Marts & Lundy: A fundraising consulting firm specializing in campaign planning, feasibility studies, and development counsel for educational, healthcare, cultural, and religious institutions. Highly comparable in service mix and client types.
• CCS Fundraising: A global fundraising consulting and managed services firm serving nonprofits with campaign counsel, ongoing development support, and analytics. A direct competitor in the broader fundraising consulting space with overlapping services.
• Grenzebach Glier & Associates: An international fundraising and philanthropy consulting firm offering campaign counsel, feasibility studies, and strategic planning to nonprofits and educational institutions. Comparable in service breadth and client mix.
• Arabella Advisors: A philanthropic advisory firm helping nonprofits, foundations, and donors achieve social impact through strategic advice and operational support. Comparable in providing strategic consulting to mission-driven organizations.

Broad incumbents

• Ketchum: A global communications and public relations firm that also serves nonprofits with cause-related campaigns and fundraising support. A larger, broader incumbent with adjacent capabilities rather than direct niche specialization.

Regional players

• Causeworx: A Canadian fundraising consulting firm providing campaign counsel, feasibility studies, and training to nonprofits. Operates in a similar space but is primarily focused on the Canadian market, making it a regional rather than direct competitor.

Emerging players

• Halftime Institute: A faith-based leadership development organization helping high-capacity individuals pursue Kingdom impact, including through generosity coaching. Overlaps with The FOCUS Group in Christian stewardship but focuses on individual donors rather than institutional fundraising.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-focus-group-llc

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 The FOCUS Group