VQ Volunteer Strategies

What VQ Volunteer Strategies does

VQ Volunteer Strategies is a Denver, Colorado-based professional services consulting firm founded in 2003 (originally as JFFixler Group, rebranded to its current name around 2014) that helps nonprofit organizations, government agencies, foundations, and for-profit healthcare institutions build strategic volunteer engagement capacity. The firm is led by President Beth Steinhorn, a Certified Volunteer Administrator and Harvard-educated anthropologist, and operates with a core team of approximately three professionals supplemented by project-based consultants. VQ has served hundreds of organizations across the US, Canada, and beyond since founding.

The company's core product portfolio is built around the proprietary Volunteer Quotient (VQ) framework, an eight-dimension assessment covering strategic volunteer roles, recruitment and cultivation, screening and placement, onboarding and training, support and accountability, recognition and impact measurement, policies and infrastructure, and organizational commitment. Service offerings include Volunteer Engagement Assessment (customized document review, site visits, surveys, and interviews), Strategic Planning for Volunteer Engagement (facilitated retreats and implementation coaching), Service Enterprise Accreditation (a nationally recognized program licensed by AL!VE that places certified organizations in the top 11% of US nonprofits), Capacity-building Initiatives (Volunteer Accelerators and High Impact Volunteer Engagement cohorts), Training (workshops and keynotes delivered onsite or online, ranging from 20 minutes to multi-day engagements), and one-on-one Coaching. The firm also operates an extensive Virtual Resource Center with over 100 tools, checklists, webinars, and guides, and has co-edited the book "Transforming Disruption to Impact: Rethinking Volunteer Engagement for a Rapidly Changing World."

VQ generates revenue through quote-based, project-priced professional services engagements across all five service streams. Pricing is custom per organizational need and is not publicly disclosed; some engagements operate on multi-year contracts. The go-to-market motion is hybrid: sales-led direct consulting through website inquiries and referrals, event-led demand generation through 25+ annual conference presentations (Meals on Wheels, Points of Light, Colorado Conference on Volunteerism, Rotary, Habitat for Humanity International), and community-led cohort partnerships such as the ServeOhio Volunteer Engagement Fundamentals course. Distribution is direct with no resellers; a free Service Enterprise Diagnostic and Debrief option serves as a lower-friction entry point for organizations not ready for full accreditation.

Name

VQ Volunteer Strategies

Legal name

VQ Volunteer Strategies LLC

Website

https://vqstrategies.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

VQ Volunteer Strategies is a Denver-based boutique consulting firm that helps nonprofit, government, foundation, and healthcare organizations build strategic volunteer engagement capacity through its proprietary Volunteer Quotient framework, licensed Service Enterprise accreditation, assessments, training, and coaching services across North America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Consulting and Assessment Services: Customized volunteer engagement assessments including document review, site visits, surveys, interviews, and reports with recommendations. These engagements are tailored to each organization's needs and typically involve one-on-one consulting.
2. Strategic Planning Services: Comprehensive strategic planning for volunteer engagement including facilitation of planning retreats, support for task forces, coaching during implementation. Offered as project-based engagements.
3. Service Enterprise Training and Accreditation: Training and accreditation program licensed by AL!VE. Includes orientation, training sessions, individualized team coaching, and accreditation. Offered on a scheduled cohort basis with specific orientation and training dates.
4. Training and Workshops: Customized training for staff and volunteer leaders, delivered onsite or online. Keynotes and workshops range from 20 minutes to multiple days. Also includes partnership courses like the Volunteer Engagement Fundamentals with ServeOhio.
5. Coaching Services: One-on-one coaching support for professionals and volunteer leaders. Provides expertise, resources, and personal support for strategy development, project implementation, quality improvement, problem solving, and management of staff and volunteers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

VQ Volunteer Strategies is a professional consulting firm that provides customized volunteer engagement solutions to nonprofits, government agencies, foundations, and healthcare institutions. Its core offerings include Volunteer Engagement Assessment, Strategic Planning for Volunteer Engagement, Service Enterprise Accreditation (licensed by AL!VE), Capacity-building Initiatives, Training workshops and keynotes, and one-on-one Coaching, all built on a proprietary Volunteer Quotient (VQ) framework.

Product overview

VQ Volunteer Strategies offers a comprehensive suite of professional services focused on strategic volunteer engagement. The core portfolio includes Volunteer Engagement Assessment (customized evaluation of current practices), Strategic Planning for Volunteer Engagement (facilitative roadmap development), Service Enterprise Accreditation (national certification program licensed by AL!VE), Capacity-building Initiatives (Volunteer Accelerators and High Impact models), Training (customized workshops and keynotes), and Coaching (personal support for professionals). Additionally, the Virtual Resource Center provides digital tools, checklists, webinars, articles, and toolkits. These services work together to help organizations transform volunteer engagement from a program into an organizational strategy for capacity building and mission fulfillment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Volunteer Engagement Assessment Customized assessment service including document review, site visits, online surveys, interviews, and reports to help organizations understand their current volunteer engagement strengths and opportunities; intended for nonprofit leaders, government agencies, and healthcare institutions.
• Strategic Planning for Volunteer Engagement Comprehensive strategic planning process that helps organizations create a roadmap for maximizing volunteer resources and delivering high-quality services through facilitative engagement of staff and volunteers; intended for organizations undertaking a formal volunteer engagement strategy effort.
• Service Enterprise Accreditation Nationally recognized accreditation program licensed by AL!VE that certifies organizations operating in the top 11% of US nonprofits for volunteer engagement and organizational performance; includes training, individualized team coaching, peer network membership, and accreditation; offered as scheduled cohorts.
• Capacity-building Initiatives Field-tested models such as Volunteer Accelerators and High Impact Volunteer Engagement that provide advanced training, tools, and community of practice to increase organizational capacity; intended for nonprofits and government partners seeking scalable capacity-building programs.
• Training Customized workshops and keynotes for staff and volunteer leaders covering volunteer engagement strategy, program planning, recruitment, and recognition; delivered onsite or online; intended for organizations and professional cohorts seeking training on volunteer engagement best practices.
• Coaching One-on-one coaching providing professionals and volunteer leaders with expertise, resources, and personal support for strategy development, project implementation, quality improvement, problem solving, and management of staff and volunteers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Organizations measurably improve use of engagement best practices and significantly increase number of volunteers
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ServeOhiocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021ServeOhio, Ohio's Commission on Service and Volunteerism, partners with VQ to deliver the Volunteer Engagement Fundamentals course twice yearly. This partnership addresses the loss of Ohio's volunteer center network by providing foundational training to nonprofit and public sector professionals. The course has reached over 500 participants across six cohorts.
• Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement (AL!VE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVQ Volunteer Strategies is a national partner licensed by AL!VE to deliver Service Enterprise training and accreditation independently or in partnership with volunteer centers, state commissions, and foundations. This is a flagship partnership enabling VQ to offer the nationally recognized Service Enterprise accreditation program.
• Spark the Change ColoradominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVQ partnered with Spark the Change Colorado to provide training and coaching that helped the City of Fort Collins achieve Service Enterprise certification and effectively respond to COVID-19 pandemic needs.
• Sterling VolunteersminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVQ partnered with Sterling Volunteers to present webinars including 'Transforming Disruption to Impact' and 'Top to Bottom Volunteer Program Planning'. Sterling Volunteers provides volunteer screening services.
• UJA Federation of New YorkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVQ designed the Volunteer Accelerator program in partnership with UJA, providing volunteer engagement training, coaching, and a community of practice. This partnership helped food pantries respond to COVID-19, scaling from no volunteers to dozens and increasing meals served from 4,500 to nearly 40,000.
• Points of LightminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVQ presents at Points of Light Social Impact Conference and other events. VQ resources are referenced in Points of Light National Volunteer Strategy Progress Report.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• TCC Group: TCC Group developed the Service Enterprise accreditation program (with Deloitte) that VQ is licensed to deliver. They are the most directly comparable peer: a research-informed nonprofit consulting firm offering capacity-building, evaluation, and strategic planning services to nonprofits and foundations, overlapping directly with VQ's assessment and strategic planning practice.
• BoardSource: BoardSource is a national nonprofit focused on nonprofit governance and leadership consulting, training, and certification. They serve the same nonprofit and public-sector buyer as VQ, with a comparable boutique consulting plus cohort-based training model, though they specialize in board governance rather than volunteer engagement.
• La Piana Consulting: La Piana Consulting is a national nonprofit strategy consulting firm offering strategic planning, executive transition, mergers, and capacity-building services. They compete for the same nonprofit executive buyer VQ serves and overlap with VQ's strategic planning and capacity-building initiatives.

Broad incumbents

• The Bridgespan Group: Bridgespan is a large, established nonprofit and philanthropic consulting firm offering strategy, organization design, and capacity-building services. They serve similar nonprofit and foundation clients but at much larger scale and across broader strategic topics, making them a broad incumbent in the same sector.

Others

• Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement (AL!VE): AL!VE is the membership association that licenses VQ to deliver the Service Enterprise accreditation program. They sit in VQ's ecosystem as the program owner and credentialing body, and they convene the volunteer engagement professional community that VQ serves.
• Points of Light: Points of Light is a major nonprofit infrastructure organization running the Social Impact Conference where VQ presents and publishing national volunteer research that references VQ resources. They are an ecosystem participant in the volunteer engagement space VQ addresses.
• Better Impact: Better Impact provides volunteer management software (Get Connected / Galaxy Digital platform). Beth Steinhorn is a Better Impact Certified Consultant, and VQ helps Better Impact users optimize the platform through strategy work, positioning Better Impact as a technology partner rather than direct competitor.
• Bloomerang: Bloomerang provides donor management and engagement software for nonprofits and is referenced in VQ's partner directory. They serve overlapping nonprofit buyers with a software platform, complementing VQ's consulting rather than competing directly.

Emerging players

• VolunteerMatch: VolunteerMatch is a national volunteer-matching platform serving nonprofits and volunteers. They appear on VQ's customer/partner list and serve an overlapping audience, but their product is a self-serve matching tool rather than the strategic consulting VQ provides, making them an adjacent emerging player.
• Idealist: Idealist is a nonprofit/volunteer/career matching platform serving individuals and organizations. They overlap with VQ's audience (nonprofits seeking volunteer capacity) but operate as a marketplace platform rather than a strategy consulting firm.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/VQVolunteerStrategies

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 VQ Volunteer Strategies