What Resource Development Group does

Resource Development Group (RDG) is a privately held professional services firm founded in 1995 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, that provides customized fundraising consulting services exclusively to Chambers of Commerce and Economic Development Organizations (EDOs) across the United States. The firm's service portfolio spans feasibility studies (a 60-day initial assessment), campaign solicitation services delivered over 5–10 months, organizational optimization consulting, investor relations support, and the AcceleRai$e campaign model developed during the COVID-19 pandemic. RDG offers three engagement structures — Traditional (firm-led solicitation), Hybrid (split between firm and client), and Pure Consulting (client-led with RDG oversight) — packaged under multi-year professional services contracts with undisclosed, quote-based pricing.

The firm's core technology asset is its proprietary Campaign Manager platform, completely rebuilt in 2025 to add investor engagement capabilities and expanded investor-relations support for client organizations. RDG's go-to-market is sales-led, relying on industry conference participation (IEDC, ACCE), thought leadership content (white papers, case studies), and referrals from a deep base of named metropolitan clients including JAXUSA Partnership, Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, Detroit Regional Partnership, Greater Portland Inc, Charleston Metro Chamber, Greater Philadelphia Chamber, Greater Wichita Partnership, and Greater Fargo Moorhead EDC. RDG claims more than $2 billion cumulatively raised for client communities over its 30-year history.

In March 2026, RDG merged with Convergent and now operates as "RDG, a Convergent Company," with the combined entity claiming the title of the largest economic development fundraising firm in the United States and the largest dataset on EDO campaigns and donor investors. The merged firm is led by CEO Clint Nessmith and COO Matt Chambers.

Name

Resource Development Group

Legal name

Resource Development Group

Website

https://rdgfundraising.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Resource Development Group provides customized fundraising consulting services exclusively for US Chambers of Commerce and Economic Development Organizations, delivering feasibility studies, multi-year capital campaigns, and a proprietary Campaign Manager platform; the firm merged with Convergent in March 2026.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Statesboro

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. Fundraising Consulting Services: RDG provides consulting services to chambers of commerce and economic development organizations. Services include feasibility studies, capital campaigns, organizational optimization consulting, and investor relations support. They offer multiple engagement models: traditional full-service (RDG leads all solicitation), hybrid models, and pure consulting roles.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Resource Development Group (RDG) provides customized economic development fundraising consulting services exclusively to Chambers of Commerce and Economic Development Organizations. Core service delivery includes 60-day feasibility studies, 5-10 month capital campaign solicitation, organizational optimization consulting, and investor relations support, all underpinned by a proprietary Campaign Manager tracking platform.

Product overview

Resource Development Group (RDG) offers a comprehensive suite of economic development fundraising consulting services focused exclusively on Chambers of Commerce and Economic Development Organizations. The core offering consists of Economic Development Fundraising Consulting, supported by the Campaign Manager platform for campaign tracking and investor engagement. The service delivery process includes Feasibility Studies (60-day initial assessment), Campaign Solicitation Services (5-10 month engagement), and supplementary offerings such as the AcceleRai$e Campaign Model for challenging economic conditions, Organizational Optimization Consulting, and Investor Relations Support. In March 2026, RDG merged with Convergent and now operates as 'RDG, a Convergent Company.' The combined entity claims to command the largest dataset on economic development fundraising campaigns in the United States.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Economic Development Fundraising Consulting
• Campaign Manager Platform
• Feasibility Studies
• Campaign Solicitation Services
• AcceleRai$e Campaign Model
• Organizational Optimization Consulting Consulting services focused on identifying internal organizational changes that drive new revenue. Includes examining organizational structure, funding mechanisms, and developing investor-based engagement infused funding models.
• Investor Relations Support Expanded investor-relations support services for client organizations, including engagement tracking and relationship management to help EDOs and chambers strengthen investor connections.

Quantifiable outcome

• $2 billion+ raised for clients over 30 years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ConvergentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2026Merger effective March 1, 2026 announced at IEDC Leadership Summit in Atlanta. RDG now operates as 'RDG, a Convergent Company' while maintaining its brand identity. The merged organization claims to be the largest economic development fundraising firm in the United States with the largest dataset on economic development campaigns and donor investors.
• OCO GlobalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership focused on extending proven public-private funding models to economic development agencies in Europe. Collaboration reflects shared belief that communities benefit when financial strategies are both diversified and durable. Conversations began several years ago under leadership of Rob Radcliff, Doug Radcliff, Vincent Raufast, and Gareth Hagan. Partnership moving forward under CEO Joachim Arnold.
• EY Economic Development Advisory ServicesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDG partners with EY for complementary roles on regional economic development issues. Collaborated on ACCE Annual Conference sessions combining strategic planning work with fundraising preparation.
• DCIminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRDG frequently partners with DCI in complementary roles while tackling regional economic development issues. Participated together in ACCE Annual Conference panel sessions.
• Safal PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNicole Bentley, former RDG principal, now at Safal Partners, which serves as a Center of Excellence for Registered Apprenticeship funded by U.S. Department of Labor. Partnered with ACCE to create Registered Apprenticeship guide for chambers. RDG helps spread awareness of apprenticeship programs.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Development Counsellors International (DCI): Economic development marketing and fundraising consultancy that co-presents with RDG at ACCE conferences. Highly comparable in EDO/ED space: helps communities raise private-sector funding, run capital campaigns, and attract investment, overlapping directly with RDG's niche.
• TIP Strategies: Economic development and workforce strategy consultancy that supports EDOs and regions with strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, and implementation. Comparable niche buyer (EDOs/regions) and adjacent services, especially where strategy and funding execution intersect.
• Bentz Whaley Flessner: Major U.S. fundraising consulting firm offering campaign planning, feasibility studies, and analytics services to nonprofits. Comparable core offerings to RDG with deeper scale and a broader nonprofit client base, making it a meaningful direct competitor for larger engagements.
• CCS Fundraising: One of the largest U.S. fundraising consulting firms, providing campaign management, feasibility studies, and development planning to nonprofits. Direct overlap with RDG's core fundraising consulting offering, although CCS serves a broader nonprofit universe (healthcare, education, arts) rather than chambers/EDOs exclusively.
• OCO Global: International economic development consultancy and RDG's strategic partner for extending public-private funding models to European EDAs. Comparable EDO client base and public-private partnership modeling, with international scale RDG is just beginning to access.
• Fourth Economy: Economic development consulting firm providing strategy, planning, and funding support to communities and EDOs. Comparable to RDG in serving the same EDO buyer and in helping clients design funding strategies, though Fourth Economy leans more into strategic plans while RDG owns execution.
• Avalanche Consulting: Economic development strategy and funding-strategy consultancy that helps communities and EDOs plan and execute growth initiatives, including pursuit of federal/regional funding. Adjacent and increasingly overlapping with RDG's organizational optimization and campaign preparation work.
• Alexander Haas: Fundraising consulting firm specializing in capital campaigns, feasibility studies, and development counsel for nonprofits. Same professional services model and service modules as RDG (feasibility study → campaign execution), serving nonprofits seeking private-sector fundraising support.
• Convergent Nonprofit Solutions: Fundraising and management consulting firm for nonprofits that has now merged with RDG. Both serve comparable nonprofit and public-purpose clients with capital campaign and development consulting; functionally they are the same business before the March 2026 combination.

Broad incumbents

• EY Economic Development Advisory Services: Big Four economic development practice that co-presents with RDG at ACCE conferences on regional ED strategy and fundraising preparation. A scaled, generalist incumbent with overlapping capabilities but a much broader portfolio; represents both a partner and a potential competitive threat.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/rdgfundraising
• Facebookfacebook.com/ResourceDevelopmentGroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rdgfundraising
• Instagraminstagram.com/rdgfundraising

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Resource Development Group