Social Insights Research, LLC

What Social Insights Research, LLC does

Social Insights Research, LLC is a privately held, women of color-led research and evaluation firm founded in 2018 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The firm delivers program evaluation, qualitative research, strategic planning, and survey research services to US-based foundations, nonprofits, universities, movement organizations, and grassroots formations working in public health, philanthropy, economic security, leadership, criminal justice, and other social impact areas. It positions itself against "counting hours, people, or dollars" by using participatory, mixed-methods, and "liberatory" frameworks that explicitly consider intersections of identity and power, and by centering community voice and storytelling in evaluation design. Methodology depth includes case studies, focus groups, photovoice, in-depth interviews, evaluation advisory boards, multi-site national studies, and analytic tooling in Nvivo and MAXQDA.

The firm operates a distributed footprint with offices in Atlanta, Durham, Chicago, New Orleans, and New York, and a PhD-heavy team led by Founder & CEO Dr. Zuri Tau and COO Dannielle Thomas. Customer relationships are dominated by major philanthropies (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, Borealis Philanthropy) and high-trust movement organizations (BEAM, Magnolia Mother's Trust, Center for Third World Organizing, Women's Democracy Lab, PolicyLink, Compass Point, VISION CHANGE WIN, Giving Gap, The Embodiment Institute). Revenue is generated through custom, project-based professional services contracts on multi-year cadences; pricing is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is reputation-led, driven by direct engagement, recurring webinars (including the "More Than a Phase" series), conference presentations at the American Evaluation Association and SCRA, an active publications and podcast media footprint, and a Liberatory Research community of practice that doubles as an educational IP and talent funnel. No external funding rounds, M&A activity, regulatory actions, or third-party AI/ML dependencies are disclosed.

Name

Social Insights Research, LLC

Legal name

Social Insights Research, LLC

Website

https://socinsights.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Social Insights Research is a women of color-led research and evaluation firm founded in 2018 that provides participatory, mixed-methods program evaluation, qualitative research, strategic planning, and survey services to US foundations, nonprofits, and movement organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Research and Evaluation Services

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Policy, Regulatory & Public Affairs Research (BPAHALAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO), Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE)

Keywords

• Social research services
• Program evaluation
• Qualitative research
• Strategic planning
• Survey research

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Research and Evaluation Services: Lead research and evaluation projects for international foundations, universities, movement organizations, and grassroots formations. Services include program evaluation, qualitative research, strategic planning, and survey research.
2. Strategy and Theory Building: Participatory grantmaking strategy, implementation, and design; comprehensive theory of change development; historical data analysis; organizational strategic planning support.
3. Multi-site and National Studies: Design and implement multi-site, national projects requiring nimble execution. Includes survey administration (online, text, and in-person), advanced statistical modeling, and evaluation services for large-scale studies.
4. Speaking and Co-Learning Engagements: Founder and senior research staff lead webinars, serve as guests on panels, and provide teams with resources and tools to bring equity to research and evaluation practices.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Social Insights Research, LLC is a research and evaluation firm that delivers program evaluation, qualitative research, strategic planning, and survey research services to nonprofits, foundations, and movement organizations. The firm employs mixed-methods, participatory, and liberatory methodologies—incorporating case studies, focus groups, photovoice, and interviews analyzed with tools like Nvivo and MAXQDA—to help clients measure social innovation and equity outcomes beyond traditional counting metrics.

Product overview

Social Insights Research, LLC is a research and evaluation firm offering a portfolio of interconnected services focused on social innovation measurement. The core offerings include Program Evaluation, Qualitative Research, Strategic Planning, and Survey Research, supported by specialized services in Strategy & Theory Building, Multi-site and National Studies, Presentations, Education, and Speaking & Co-Learning. The firm employs mixed-methods approaches including storytelling, participatory evaluation, and community-centered methodologies to help organizations measure social impact beyond traditional metrics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Program Evaluation Trusted evaluation services helping large and small organizations understand the outcomes and implications of their funding and programming, while considering intersections of identity (racial, gender, class) and power within institutions and communities. Targets philanthropic and nonprofit clients.
• Qualitative Research Research services employing diverse methodologies including case studies, focus groups, photovoice, and interviews, analyzed with tools such as Nvivo and MAXQDA. Targets organizations seeking nuanced, valid insights into complex social questions.
• Strategic Planning Partnership services supporting organizations in designing new approaches to complex social challenges, including theory of change development, mapping, learning and evaluation plans, needs assessments, and retrospective analyses of institutional mishaps. Targets nonprofits at organizational turning points.
• Survey Research Survey design and administration with diverse populations across the country using the latest technology to increase response rates and maintain confidentiality. Reporting is accessible, dynamic, and designed for external and internal audiences. Targets foundations and movement organizations needing rigorous national data collection.
• Multi-site and National Studies Design and implementation of multi-site, national projects requiring nimble execution, including survey administration (online, text, and in-person), advanced statistical modeling, and evaluation services for large-scale studies. Targets foundations and national organizations.
• Strategy and Theory Building Services including participatory grantmaking strategy, implementation, and design; comprehensive theory of change development; historical data analysis; and organizational strategic planning support. Targets foundations and movement organizations.
• Speaking and Co-Learning Engagements Webinars, panel discussions, and team resources designed to bring equity to research and evaluation practices, led by the founder and senior research staff. Targets organizational leaders, fellows, and program teams.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1,000 Philadelphians surveyed on community safety and government spending
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Leadership Learning CommunitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership through webinar collaboration. Leadership Learning Community co-executive directors Ericka Stallings and Nikki Dinh participated in a 'More Than a Phase' webinar hosted by Social Insights Research discussing leadership, care, and innovation in challenging times.
• Within CollaborativeminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCoaching organization recommended by Leadership Learning Community guests during webinar discussion on leadership practices.
• Healing Justice LiberationminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCoaching organization recommended by Leadership Learning Community guests during webinar discussion as a resource for leadership development.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Harder+Company Community Research: Research and evaluation firm specializing in work with foundations, nonprofits, and communities on health, equity, and social justice issues. Directly comparable in mixed-methods approach and client segments.
• Equal Measure: Research and evaluation consultancy serving philanthropy and the social sector with tailored assessments and learning services. Comparable in focus on foundation clients and equity-centered evaluation.
• ORS Impact: Evaluation and strategy consulting firm focused on social impact, serving foundations and nonprofits with outcomes measurement and strategy services. Highly comparable to Social Insights Research in target market and service mix.
• Innovation Network: Research and evaluation firm supporting nonprofits and foundations with logic models, evaluation capacity building, and outcomes measurement. Comparable in service portfolio and nonprofit/foundation client base.
• Center for Evaluation Innovation: Evaluation-focused organization working with foundations on evaluation strategy and learning. Comparable in foundation-focused evaluation practice.
• Spark Policy Institute: Evaluation and strategy firm working with foundations and communities on social change initiatives. Closely comparable in scale, methodology emphasis, and foundation client base.

Broad incumbents

• Urban Institute: Major policy research organization conducting social and economic research, including program evaluation for foundations and government. Comparable in research services for social programs.
• MDRC: Nonprofit social and education policy research organization known for rigorous program evaluation. Comparable in evaluation methodology and foundation/government client mix.
• TCC Group: Consulting firm serving nonprofits and foundations with strategy, evaluation, and capacity building services. Broader portfolio but directly overlapping in foundation evaluation services.
• Mathematica: Large research and evaluation firm with deep public policy, social program, and foundation research practice. Comparable research methodology but vastly larger scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/social-insights-research-llc
• Instagraminstagram.com/socialinsightsresearch

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 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 Social Insights Research, LLC