Built for You, With You

There are no off-the-shelf approaches or prepackaged workplans here. Every engagement is designed around the unique needs, context, and goals of our clients, with objectives, strategies, and approaches developed collaboratively from the start.

We work with our clients, not simply for them by providing research, engagement, and strategic expertise while recognizing that our partners bring the knowledge of their communities, organizations, and systems. The result is a tailored approach that is practical, responsive, and built for the work at hand.

We provide a range of services.

  • You may be asking:

    • We know where we want to go, but how do we get there?

    • How do we align our people, priorities, and resources around a shared direction?

    Our approach might include:

    • Collaborative strategic planning

    • Organizational change management

    • Implementation planning

    • Staff training and facilitation

  • You may be asking:

    • What does the evidence tell us about the problem and where to focus?

    • What do our communities, partners, or participants actually need?

    Our approach might include:

    • Needs and systems assessments

    • Mixed-methods research

    • Community-informed research

    • Data synthesis and actionable recommendations

  • You may be asking:

    • Is our program working, and how do we know?

    • How can we use data to improve what we're doing?

    Our approach might include:

    • Program evaluation

    • Performance measurement

    • Qualitative and quantitative analysis

    • Quality and continuous improvement

  • You may be asking:

    • How do we meaningfully engage the people most affected by this work?

    • How do we move diverse partners toward shared priorities and action?

    Our approach might include:

    • Community and stakeholder engagement

    • Coalition and partnership building

    • Consensus building and facilitation

    • Cross-sector convening

  • You may be asking:

    • The problem is bigger than one program—how do we change the system around it?

    • How do we move from a promising idea to sustainable change?

    Our approach might include:

    • Systems analysis and redesign

    • Cross-sector systems integration

    • Barrier identification and solution design

    • Systems change and implementation strategy

We start with the question, challenge, or opportunity and collaboratively build the research, strategy, and approach needed to move it forward. No two challenges require the same expertise. Our bench of subject matter experts allows us to assemble the right team for each engagement, bringing specialized knowledge where and when our clients need it.

Training & Technical Assistance

Build the knowledge, tools, and capacity to do the work well.

Smith Research and Strategy offers customized training and technical assistance for public agencies, community-based organizations, coalitions, and cross-sector partnerships. Offerings can be delivered as individual workshops, facilitated learning series, or ongoing technical assistance tailored to an organization’s goals and context.

  • Strengthen ethical and equitable practices across the data lifecycle—from deciding what information to collect to how findings are interpreted, shared, and used.

    Topics may include: research and evaluation ethics • informed consent • community and lived-experience engagement • data privacy and responsible data use • data equity • ethical dissemination • balancing privacy, utility, and transparency • organizational protocol development

  • Build practical systems for understanding what is working, learning along the way, and using evidence to improve programs and strategy.

    Topics may include: theories of change and logic models • monitoring and performance measurement • evaluation planning • indicator development • learning agendas • data-to-action practices • continuous learning and improvement

  • Help organizations move from fragmented data and reporting processes toward data systems that better support decision-making, collaboration, and improvement.

    Topics may include: data strategy • data governance • indicator inventories • data-sharing readiness • data workflows • performance dashboards • responsible use of emerging technologies • building a culture of data use

Ethics = how we do the work responsibly

MERL = how we know, learn, and improve

Data Modernization = how we build the infrastructure to do it better

  • “Emily is a collaborative and strategic thinker who brings vision, integrity, and a data-driven lens to complex systems work. She has a rare ability to listen, identify strengths, navigate conflict, and build consensus, keeping partners focused on meaningful improvement even in challenging environments.”

    -Client

  • “Emily brings far more than evaluation expertise. She combines rigorous, data-driven thinking with an ability to navigate complex systems, engage diverse partners, and translate ideas into action—making her an invaluable partner in both program improvement and large-scale systems change.”

    -Partner