People Spark Consulting

What People Spark Consulting does

People Spark Consulting, LLC is a Minneapolis-Saint Paul-based human resources and leadership development consultancy founded in July 2018 by co-founders Kristen Ireland and Erin Mies. The firm partners with U.S. agribusinesses — including grain elevators, feed mills, equipment dealerships, cooperatives, and farm supply retailers — to align people strategy with business goals, drawing on the founders' combined 35+ years of food and agriculture industry experience and senior HR certifications (SPHR, SHRM-SCP, PROSCI Change Practitioner).

The core methodology is the People + Strategy Roadmap, a research-backed assessment and planning process anchored in frameworks such as Jay R. Galbraith's Star Model. Its flagship delivery vehicle is the 12-month People Spark Leadership Transformation Program, which combines an 8-week virtual cohort (Ignite to Transform for Team Leaders) with a 10-month reinforcement phase (Fan the Flame), supported by the BIT (Behavior. Impact. Tomorrow.) feedback framework. Adjacent offerings include 1.5-day coaching training, strategic incentive plan design, the Leadership Style Quiz self-assessment, and the co-founders' published book 'The People Spark: From Theory to Action.'

The business is a privately held LLC with no external institutional funding and a headcount band of 11-50 employees. Revenue is generated primarily through professional services engagements sold via direct sales — free discovery calls, email outreach, and industry conference interactions (NGFA, GEAPS, AFIA) — supplemented by one-time book sales on Amazon. Marketing is content-led, combining the Field Insights blog, the Ag Leaders Edge podcast, LinkedIn and Facebook presence, and case studies used as social proof. Customers are SMB agribusinesses, with no disclosed enterprise contracts or revenue concentration.

Name

People Spark Consulting

Legal name

People Spark Consulting, LLC

Website

https://peoplesparkconsulting.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

People Spark Consulting is a Minneapolis-based HR and leadership development consultancy serving U.S. agribusinesses. It aligns people strategy with business goals through its People + Strategy Roadmap, the 12-month Leadership Transformation Program, coaching training, and published book.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Management Consulting (HR and Leadership Development)

NAICS

Human Resources Consulting Services (541612)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Human Capital & Workforce Transformation Consulting (BPAHACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Leadership Development & Executive Coaching (BPAHAGAD), Organization Design & Operating Model Consulting (BPAHAGAB), Talent Management & Leadership Advisory (Succession, Performance, Culture) (BPACAJAH)

Keywords

• HR consulting services
• Leadership development programs
• Agribusiness consulting
• People strategy advisory
• Organizational culture consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Minnesota City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. HR & Business Strategy Consulting: Custom consulting engagements structured around the People + Strategy Roadmap process. Clients engage People Spark to assess organizational alignment, identify risk factors, and implement HR strategies and practices tailored to business goals. Engagement includes discovery sessions, roadmap development, and implementation support.
2. Leadership Development Programs: The Ignite to Transform for Team Leaders™ is a structured, cohort-based leadership transformation program delivered in two phases: an 8-week intensive virtual learning phase followed by a 10-month reinforcement phase (Fan the Flame™). Programs are sold to individual businesses or as cohort registrations.
3. The People Spark Book Sales: The company authored and publishes 'The People Spark: From Theory to Action' — a practical, step-by-step guide to defining culture and building it through repeatable actions for small and mid-sized companies. The book is sold via Amazon.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

People Spark Consulting provides HR and business strategy consulting alongside structured leadership development programs tailored to agribusinesses. The core engagements include the People + Strategy Roadmap (organizational assessment, misalignment diagnosis, and custom HR roadmap design) and the 12-month Leadership Transformation Program, which combines the 8-week Ignite to Transform for Team Leaders virtual cohort with the 10-month Fan the Flame reinforcement phase.

Product overview

People Spark Consulting is a consulting firm offering a unified suite of human resources and leadership development services primarily for agricultural businesses. The core offering combines the People + Strategy Roadmap (HR and business strategy consulting) with comprehensive leadership development programs. The flagship Leadership Transformation Program spans 12 months and comprises two sub-programs: Ignite to Transform for Team Leaders (an 8-week intensive virtual cohort) and Fan the Flame (a 10-month reinforcement phase). Additional offerings include coaching training, strategic incentive planning, a published book titled The People Spark, and assessment tools like the Leadership Style Quiz. The portfolio is designed to address the complete employee lifecycle from hiring through development and retention.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• People + Strategy Roadmap: A comprehensive HR strategy planning process that identifies areas of misalignment, assesses current business state, and develops a roadmap with specific action steps to reduce risk and increase effectiveness
• Ignite to Transform for Team Leaders™
• Fan the Flame™
• People Spark® Leadership Transformation Program
• The People Spark®

Products and services

• People + Strategy Roadmap A comprehensive consulting engagement that identifies areas of misalignment creating pain points for agribusinesses and aligns strategies, structures, and HR practices with business goals through discovery, assessment, and action planning.
• People Spark Leadership Transformation Program A 12-month comprehensive leadership development program that equips managers, supervisors, and team leads in agribusinesses with skills to engage, retain, and coach employees, focused on creating and implementing new everyday leadership habits.
• Ignite to Transform for Team Leaders An 8-week virtual, interactive cohort program where team leaders learn and apply leadership tools and skills, complete weekly assignments with personalized feedback, and participate in weekly group coaching calls.
• Fan the Flame A 10-month reinforcement and sustainment program following Ignite to Transform that provides access to course modules, monthly group coaching calls, and quarterly workshops to build accountability.
• The People Spark Book A practical, step-by-step guide for small- and mid-sized companies to define desired culture and build it through simple, repeatable actions, balancing Process and People; sold via Amazon.
• Coaching Training A 1.5-day coaching training program focused on simple, practical skills for leaders and managers to reduce turnover and increase employee engagement and productivity.
• Strategic Incentive Plans Customized incentive and compensation structure planning services designed to drive employee behaviors aligned with business goals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Turnover decreased by nearly 25% (from 59% to 35%) over two years at Len Busch Roses following leadership development coaching.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• NGFA (National Grain and Feed Association)minorOthersPeople Spark Consulting is an active participant in the NGFA community, presenting at and attending NGFA conferences (e.g., NGFA Country Elevator Conference). The partnership appears to be community/membership-based rather than formal contractual alliance.
• GEAPS (Grain Elevator and Processing Society)minorOthersPeople Spark Consulting attends and presents at GEAPS events as part of its industry engagement and thought leadership strategy within the agribusiness sector.
• AFIA (American Feed Industry Association)minorOthersAFIA is listed as a partner/affiliation on the People Spark website homepage, indicating membership or community alignment within the feed and agribusiness industry.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• AgHires: Recruiting and HR services firm dedicated to the agriculture industry. Directly comparable to People Spark because both focus on people/talent challenges for agribusiness employers, addressing the same niche buyer with HR and leadership solutions.
• PROSCI: Change management research, training, and advisory firm. Comparable because People Spark's co-founders are PROSCI-certified and deliver change management as part of the People + Strategy Roadmap, making PROSCI a methodology peer with overlapping tooling (e.g., the ADKAR framework) and similar mid-market buyer profiles.
• Pinion (formerly K·Coe Isom): National advisory and accounting firm focused on agriculture and rural businesses. Comparable to People Spark because both serve agribusiness owners with business strategy, leadership, and people-related advisory services — though Pinion operates at a much larger scale across the same vertical.
• Rooted Talent: Talent and HR consulting firm specializing in the agriculture and food sectors. Comparable as a direct ag-vertical HR/talent peer targeting similar mid-market agribusiness employers with recruiting, leadership, and people-strategy services.

Broad incumbents

• The Ken Blanchard Companies: Established leadership development and management training company offering programs such as 'The One Minute Manager'. A broad incumbent peer to People Spark's leadership development offerings, with a similar focus on manager/supervisor training but a much larger, global delivery footprint.
• DDI (Development Dimensions International): Global leadership development and talent management firm serving enterprise and mid-market clients. Directly comparable to People Spark's leadership development and supervisory training programs but at substantially larger scale and broader geography.
• FranklinCovey: Performance and leadership consulting firm best known for 'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People' training. Comparable as a broader-incumbent peer offering leadership and productivity programs targeting managers, similar to People Spark's supervisory cohort offerings.
• Korn Ferry: Global organizational consulting firm with talent acquisition, leadership development, and HR advisory practices. Comparable to People Spark on the HR consulting and executive search dimension, but operating across all industries and at enterprise scale versus People Spark's ag-vertical boutique model.
• Gallup: Workplace research, employee engagement, and leadership consulting firm. A broad-incumbent peer to People Spark's HR strategy and culture work, with overlapping offerings around engagement measurement, manager development, and culture transformation, but operating at national/global scale.

Others

• AgCareers.com: Online job board and HR resource hub dedicated to the agriculture and food industry. Functions as an ecosystem peer — not a direct consultancy competitor, but a destination agribusiness HR audience that overlaps with People Spark's buyer personas.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/peoplesparkconsulting
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/people-spark-consulting-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 People Spark Consulting