Firetail

We’re pleased to announce two key promotions. Ben Randall has been promoted to Director, and Nicola Doyle to Senior Consultant. Ben and Nicola exemplify our core values of collaboration, curiosity, and impact. Please join us in congratulating them both. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eauBrBsK  

As my American friends and colleagues get ready to celebrate Thanksgiving this week across the pond, my team at Firetail is heading into our annual Team Away Day. It is fitting, then, to take stock on my first 6 months at this brilliant organisation, and share what I am most thankful for this year: 1. First and foremost, my Firetail team. The old African proverb “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together" has never held more true. Thank you, Andy Martin, Henry Lane, Ben Randall, Nicola Doyle, Madeleine M., Josh R., Anttoni Huiskonen, Lucy Hollingworth, Elisabeth Weis, and Tiffany Horan for giving it your all, every day. 🧡 2. High mission and values alignment. We are a strategy consultancy for social progress. Our clients are purpose-driven organisations. We help a wide range of really cool, socially-minded folks tackle really hard challenges. And that resonates with me 100%. 3. Hope. It's a hard time for a lot of people right now. There's a lot of injustice and suffering in the world. Through our work with Firetail clients, I feel like I've won a secret backstage pass to where the magic happens, where committed, hard-working people across the social impact sector keep doing good work to make things better. And this gives me tremendous hope. 4. Community. It's you. Friends and former colleagues, old and new clients, thinkers, explorers, doers and visionaries. I've had the privilege to cross paths and connect with so many of you over the past 6 months. You have offered sage words of advice, shared exciting news, and brainstormed solutions. You listened. You stepped in and stepped up. I am so grateful for you all. Thank you. Happy Thanksgiving and talk soon! #gratitude #teamwork #socialimpact #purpose #values #strategy #consulting #thanksgiving #community

"Futures Philanthropy: Anticipation for the Common Good" brings together two critical disciplines in one publication: futures and foresight, championed by the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies; and philanthropy: https://lnkd.in/ejH7VuZX

Where to start with strategy? In this blog post from Roger Martin, he tackles the question of where to start with strategy: https://lnkd.in/ezncNw5v #Strategy

This article from Foreign Affairs explores the impending era of global depopulation and its far-reaching consequences. The piece examines how family structures are changing globally, the geopolitical implications of population decline: https://lnkd.in/gMkFxFUF

“This system is rigged”: A social media listening exploration revealing how people are talking about poverty online: https://lnkd.in/euSeBQ38

For some reason I can't put my finger on, it seems like there's an influx of people on bluesky. If you're dipping your toe and not sure where to start, here's a non-exhaustive starter pack of people and orgs we reckon are doing interesting work / have interesting stuff to say: https://lnkd.in/ebHFwTWK (I would also welcome your starter packs)

How to Make AI Equitable in the Global South: Because equity is not the status quo, international development practitioners must adopt intentional best practices. https://lnkd.in/eA5yB3Nx

UNDP's Monitoring and Evaluation Sandbox is exploring ways to balance accountability and flexibility in development programmes. At a recent session, experts discussed the tension between predictable outcomes and emergent results in complex systems: https://lnkd.in/gmQfvtXZ

📈 We've been delighted with the feedback to our article about disconfirming evidence in philanthropy, recently published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review. The article highlighted a critical gap: while many foundations pursue ambitious systemic change, they often lack structured methods for integrating feedback that challenges their assumptions. This isn't just a theoretical problem—it affects impact. 💡 We've turned these insights into action with our tailored tool for foundations and philanthropies. Our approach helps organisations embed a culture of disconfirming evidence, enhancing strategic decision-making and building stronger learning systems. Why does this matter? Systemic change demands not only bold ideas but the courage to adapt and evolve. Engaging with disconfirming evidence is key to improving decision-making, building trust with partners, and achieving lasting impact. Curious about how this could strengthen your foundation's strategic approach? We'd love to talk. 🤝 Reach out to Henry Lane or Andy Martin here on Linkedin or email henry@firetail.co.uk for an initial conversation. #Philanthropy #StrategicImpact #Consulting #LearningCulture https://lnkd.in/ef3Zcq2j (links in comments)