What EMD Consulting does

EMD Consulting is a privately-held nonprofit management consulting firm founded in 2002 in St. Louis, Missouri. The firm provides executive search, strategic planning, organizational development, fundraising, and leadership development services exclusively to nonprofit organizations across the United States. Its service lines include Executive Search and Talent Search, Strategic Planning and Stakeholder Engagement, Development Plans and Capital Campaigns, Feasibility Studies, and Interim Senior Leadership placement, supported by use of the Predictive Index talent optimization tool.

The firm operates a partnership model with eight current partners, three emeritus partners, and approximately twenty senior consultants and collaborators, many of whom are former CEOs, executive directors, and senior development officers of major nonprofit institutions such as United Way of Greater St. Louis, Missouri Botanical Garden, Washington University in St. Louis, the American Red Cross, and St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. This insider experience is positioned as the firm's primary differentiator. Services are delivered through direct consulting engagements sold via a referral-driven, relationship-based go-to-market motion centered on the firm's reputation within the St. Louis nonprofit community and broader national network.

Revenue is generated through customized, quote-based professional services engagements rather than packaged products or technology sales. The firm reports 500+ clients served across more than 20 years, with no disclosed financials, no external funding, and no public listing. Recent strategic activity includes a 2026 geographic expansion into Houston and the addition of three new senior consultants, while operating geographies have spanned the Midwest, Southeast, Northeast, Southwest, and West Coast regions of the United States.

Name

EMD Consulting

Legal name

EMD Consulting

Website

https://emdconsulting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

EMD Consulting is a St. Louis-based nonprofit management consulting firm providing executive search, strategic planning, fundraising, and leadership development services to over 500 nonprofit organizations across the United States since 2002.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Management Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Executive Search Services (561312), Human Resources Consulting Services (541612), Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (541611)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) & Belonging Consulting (BPAHAGAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Executive Search (BPACAAAL)

Keywords

• Nonprofit consulting
• Executive search
• Fundraising advisory
• Strategic planning
• Leadership development

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

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

Revenue model

1. Consulting Services: EMD Consulting generates revenue through providing consulting services to nonprofit organizations in areas of Leadership (talent search, staff and board development, coaching), Strategy (strategive planning, organizational assessment, mergers), and Fundraising (development plans, capital campaigns, major gift programs).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

EMD Consulting provides executive search, organizational development, strategic planning, fundraising consulting, and leadership development services to nonprofit organizations. Engagements are delivered by senior partners and consultants who hold decades of prior leadership experience as nonprofit executives, board members, and funders. Services are typically bundled into customized advisory engagements rather than sold as discrete product modules.

Product overview

EMD Consulting is a nonprofit executive search and organizational consulting firm offering a portfolio of advisory services. The core offerings include Executive Search (talent acquisition for nonprofit leadership positions), Organizational Development, Strategic Planning, Fundraising Consulting, and Leadership Development services. These service lines are delivered through experienced consultants who provide personalized, relationship-based advisory engagements rather than software products. The firm operates as a single unified consulting practice with services typically bundled in client engagements rather than sold as discrete software modules or platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Executive Search / Talent Search Executive search and talent acquisition services for nonprofit organizations, including identifying, vetting, and placing executive leaders in roles such as CEOs, Executive Directors, and other senior leadership positions.
• Organizational Development Organizational assessment and development services to help nonprofits evaluate their current state, identify gaps, and build internal capacity for growth and impact.
• Strategic Planning Strategic planning services including mission/vision/values discovery, stakeholder engagement, environmental scanning, peer benchmarking, and board retreat facilitation to help nonprofits define their strategic direction.
• Fundraising Consulting Comprehensive fundraising consulting including development plans, annual fund programs, major gift strategies, planned giving, feasibility studies, capital campaigns, and fundraising coaching and training.
• Leadership Development Leadership development services including staff and board leadership development, executive coaching, interim senior leadership placement, and utilization of the Predictive Index talent optimization tool.

Named customers12 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Russell Reynolds Associates: Global executive search firm with a dedicated nonprofit and social impact practice. Comparable to EMD on executive search for nonprofit CEOs and senior leaders, with a much broader cross-industry footprint.
• BDO USA Nonprofit Practice: Top-tier accounting and advisory firm with a dedicated nonprofit practice providing governance, strategic planning, and financial advisory services. Comparable to EMD on nonprofit advisory work, though delivered as part of a much larger professional services platform.
• Spencer Stuart: Global executive search firm with a dedicated nonprofit, education, and social enterprise practice. Comparable to EMD on executive search work for nonprofits, though operates globally across all sectors at much larger scale.
• Huron Consulting Group: Large management consulting firm with a higher education and nonprofit practice that provides strategy, operations, and fundraising advisory. Overlaps with EMD on nonprofit strategic planning and organizational consulting, but operates as a publicly-traded firm with much broader service lines.

Direct peers

• Campbell & Company: Consulting firm specializing in fundraising, campaign planning, and executive search for the nonprofit sector. Direct overlap with EMD's fundraising consulting and executive search service lines, with comparable nonprofit-only focus.
• The Tipp Group: Nonprofit management consulting firm providing executive search, strategic planning, and fundraising counsel to nonprofits. Closely comparable to EMD on service mix, sector focus, and mid-sized partnership-driven delivery model.
• Grenzebach Glier and Associates (GG+A): Philanthropic consulting and executive search firm serving nonprofits, foundations, and higher education. Directly comparable to EMD on fundraising strategy, development planning, and executive search, with a stronger higher education and national institutional focus.
• La Piana Consulting: Nonprofit management consulting firm focused exclusively on the social sector, providing strategy, mergers, executive transitions, and organizational development services. Closely comparable to EMD in mission alignment, service mix, and mid-sized firm profile.
• Bridgespan Group: A leading nonprofit and social sector consulting firm offering strategy, organizational development, and executive search services. Most comparable to EMD on mission focus (nonprofit-only) and service mix (strategy + leadership + fundraising-adjacent advising), though operating at significantly larger national scale.
• TCC Group: Consulting firm exclusively serving nonprofit and philanthropic organizations with strategy, evaluation, and capacity-building services. Comparable to EMD on nonprofit-only focus and advisory service model, with broader national footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/emd-consulting

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 EMD Consulting