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Behind great achievements
are great strategies.

Our mission is to help audacious leaders lead by providing you with research-based, interdisciplinary insights and human-centered strategies.

Our philosophy

Our name has its roots in music because music is a metaphor that speaks to the rhythms of life. Each note, in and of itself, has a beauty and presence of its own. The challenge is to arrange the notes in our organizations, our communities, and in our lives in ways that inspire and move us toward higher levels of performance and impact.

ABOUT
US

Since our founding in 2004, Symphonic Strategies has been a trusted partner for leaders in the public and private sectors.

We have worked with government agencies, small businesses, foundations, and non-profit organizations around the world.

Areas of Expertise

Designing Strategy
Developing Leaders
Shaping Culture
Mobilizing Groups
Changing Systems

What We Do

Strategy

End-to-end strategic planning and one-off strategy sessions that feature design labs, mapping of systems, environmental scans, and operational road maps.

Training

Virtual and in-person seminars and workshops; design and run customized leadership development programs on a wide variety of topics.

Development

Culture audits, functional assessments, and infrastructure building to improve the operations and strengthen the performance of teams, divisions, and entire organizations.

Research

Interdisciplinary, mixed-method research that includes in-depth interviews, surveys, focus groups, and data analytics that span a wide variety of topics and issue areas.

Facilitation

Small- and large-group facilitation that include team building, conflict resolution, community dialogues, event moderators, and more.

Coaching

Individual and group coaching sessions that focus on goal-setting, relationship building, and conflict resolution; hire strategy coaches on retainer.

CLIENTS & PARTNERS

Serving
Internal Change Agents

We specialize in working with CEOs, Executive Directors, Deputy Directors, Branch Chiefs, Division Presidents, and Boards of Directors.

Some of our clients

“Our company embarked on a significant organizational restructuring to support the goals of a new ten-year strategy, and Symphonic Strategies turned out to be the perfect partner to help us plot and implement the path forward.  Dr. AJ Robinson and his colleagues were thoughtful, and brought terrific listening and analytical skills — affirming our instincts when we were right, but challenging, nudging, or provoking me and my team when we needed it.  And we needed it.”

Dr. Robert K. Ross

President & CEO, The California Endowment

Federal Government Contracting

Symphonic Strategies is an SBA 8(a) certified small business. We are listed on the GSA’s Federal Supply Schedule (MAS) under contract GS-02F-0027Y.

INTRODUCING TEAM SYMPHONIC

Our People

Alonford James (A.J.) Robinson Jr., Ph.D.

Founder and CEO

Symphonic Strategies was founded in 2004 by Alonford James (AJ) Robinson Jr. who over the years has built a unique team of seasoned and experienced consultants who together work, collaboratively, on meaningful projects. 

As a consulting firm, we practice what we believe in. Just like our name, our team members blend and bring the most of their experiences and talent to unlock higher levels of performance and impact for our clients.

Megan Arendall

Project Manager

Bio

Aadila Bhabha

Engagement Manager

Bio

Lynn Gresham

Senior Consultant

Bio

Darrell Harvey

Senior Instructor

Bio

Itzbeth Menjivar

Senior Consultant

Bio

Trang Nguyễn

Senior Consultant

Bio

Rodolfo Olenchuk

Finance Director

Bio

Cheryl Pruce

Senior Research Manager

Bio

Rosie Robinson

Operations Manager

Bio

Natalia Victoria

Engagement Manager

Bio

Camile Williams

Senior Consultant

Bio
INSIGHTS

Essays and Articles

Repairing breaches of trust

Trust, it turns out, is fragile, and once broken, it can be very hard to repair. If you’ve broken the trust that someone has placed in you, and you want to repair the damage, ask yourself this: Do they blame you or do they blame the situation? The answer (and your response to it) will determine the path back from the breach.

The reasons why people trust you

“To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved.” ― George MacDonald George MacDonald, a 19th Century Scottish novelist, once wrote: “To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved.” That’s a pretty bold statement, even by 19th Century standards....

What it means to trust

“The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them.” Ernest Hemingway Ernest Hemingway is attributed with these words: “The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them.” I can imagine your response. Easier said than done,...

Please don’t pick me last

I’d like to share a story about what can happen to us when we are thrust into uncomfortable situations. Whenever I lead a course, part of my responsibility as the instructor is to create a safe space where people can learn and grow. Sometimes growth comes from...

Since our founding in 2004, Symphonic Strategies has been a trusted partner for leaders in the public and private sectors. We have worked with government agencies, small businesses, foundations, and non-profit organizations around the world.

We started out with a focus on building the capacity of non-profit leaders, particularly leaders of color. We then branched out into training and development programs for the Federal Government, where we built and delivered programs for the USDA, Department of Defense, Customs and Border Protection, Health and Human Services, and more.

As our reputation grew, we were asked to lead full scale strategic planning projects for organizations and sometimes for entire networks.

Today, we’ve evolved into a comprehensive professional services firm with a deep and diverse bench of talent at our finger tips.

We have a proven track record of accomplishment in a variety of fields and with a diverse array of clients. Our goal is, and has always been, to help you make decisions today that will position you to do extraordinary things tomorrow.

 

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