What I do

Carol Hamilton helps your organization have greater mission impact.

I work with nonprofit organizations and associations that want to become more strategic, effective and innovative for greater mission impact. My passion is helping organizations cultivate cultures that express their values, fostering learning, creativity and results. 

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Aligning mission, values and culture

Carol Hamilton helps your organization become more effective.

Throughout my career I have worked for nonprofit organizations that had inspiring and important missions and visions for societal change.

Too often there was a  gap between the organization’s expressed values and internal culture.  The organization's vision and mission clearly described the positive change they wanted to see in the world. Yet the internal workings of the organization were not as well managed as well as they deserved to be.

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Carol Hamilton helps your board and staff bring your vision to life.

Often times staff did not have the opportunity to thrive while doing their important work. The gap between these external aspirations and the internal realities was disappointing.

​This experience prompted me to investigate why this gap exists, what causes it and how it might be different. I am committed to helping organizations live out their values and mission both internally and externally.

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Working with me

Carol Hamilton, Photo by Kea Dupree Photography

​I partner with organizations using a collaborative approach to help you focus on your most critical issues, to support you in identifying your strengths and to facilitate you imagining new options and choosing a way forward.  ​​

I enjoy helping people tap into their creativity to solve the challenges that face them. Some of my favorite sentences start with, “what if we were to…?”  And I want to have some fun along the way. I believe that the best teams and organizations laugh together as they work together. Fun for me includes questioning conventional wisdom and imagining new possibilities.

I am known for my  candor. People describe me as someone  who speaks my truth and is a down-to-earth. People appreciate my perspective and seek out my advice.

I love to learn and this helps me get to know your organization and its strengths and challenges quickly.

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Background

I grew up overseas and learned at an early age that cultures vary and there are few absolutes.  Living in the world between my home American culture and European culture, I became a student of history, culture and language. I continue to be fascinated with ways to better understand human organizing systems and the cultures that emerge within these systems. 

I also grew up the younger sister of a brother with special needs. Observing how the world treated him, interacted with his difference and how in many cases systems were not set up with him in mind helped me appreciate the challenges of those that our society marginalizes.

Both of these experiences drew me to the nonprofit sector. Nonprofits are an expression of how our democracy works – self organizing groups promoting their vision of a social good. At the same time, nonprofits are often hampered down by a lack of resources, having to answer to and manage the politics of multiple stakeholders and bottom lines. I believe that nonprofits represent our best solution for working on social problems as they exist for a greater good and can be incubators of social experimentation. 

I have worked in the association and nonprofit sector for over 20 years working with education and social change organizations. I graduated from Swarthmore College and have a Masters in Organization Development from American University. I have completed BoardSource's Certificate of Nonprofit Board Consulting. I am licensed consultant with the Standards for Excellence Institute, an accrediting organization for nonprofits. I also have a certificate in design thinking from University of Virginia's Darden School of Business. 

I have expertise in innovation, the design and facilitation of learning programs, both in person and online, as well as organization and leadership development. I speak frequently on nonprofit and associations strategy and innovation topics.

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Coaching Session

Want to learn more? Inquire about a half hour complementary coaching session.