Mission
MISSION
Blue Swallow Consulting works in community with those who seek to upend systems of privilege and oppression. I provide social justice organizations and consultants with the research, hiring, and HR support they need to move work forward and impact change.
VALUES
Blue Swallow Consulting believes in the transformative potential of organizational effectiveness to provide clarity, purpose, and direction, even in the face of tremendous uncertainty. I believe that behind-the-scenes is a scene. (Lots of neat stuff happens there!) I believe that values-aligned work starts with ourselves, how I approach my projects, and how we all engage our teams, partners, and collaborators.
Blue Swallow Consulting is guided by the following values:
Reliability - I aim to follow through on what I say I will do within the time I commit to
Integrity - I aim to be honest, authentic, and bring an ethical and justice-centered approach to all I do
Simplicity - I aim to keep things accessible, approachable, and seek to resist the perils of perfectionism
Balance - I aim to be effective and efficient while also allowing for a grounded, spacious, and intentional pace for change
Heart - I aim to bring joy, empathy, and a heart-centeredness to my work with others
About Megan (“MR”)
Principal
Having spent 15 years supporting nonprofits and small businesses focused on making the world a better place, equipping the teams that most need capacity for their vital work holds a special place in my heart.
Over time, I’ve found myself repeatedly drawn to serving as an implementer, project manager, researcher, writer/editor, hire-er (it’ll catch on!), go-to get-it-done-er, and organization stabilizer for small groups working towards social justice aims. I love planning ahead, making to-do lists, devising new processes, and coming up with succinct and digestible ways to report back information that allows folks to make decisions and move forward.
My dependable strengths include: organizing, synthesizing, and assessing information for what matters most; executing and implementing creative visions with an achievable and sustainable path; setting up intentional spaces for others’ excellence and joy; and writing, especially about practical, accessible ways to help ensure everyone has what they need to thrive.
I seek to embrace simplicity and celebrate enoughness; to be playful, yet principled, hardworking, and proactive; and, as a white person, I strive to do my work (continually, forever) to dismantle the white supremacy that lives in me and my people.
I believe in afternoon tea, American craft beer, and the healing powers of chocolate cake and ice cream.
ISFJ; Responsibility/Developer/Connectedness/Empathy/Discipline; Hufflepuff (of course!)
Pronouns: They or She
Rates
Rates are set on a sliding scale by organizational budget size:
<$1 mil — $125/hr
$1 - $2.9 mil — $150/hr
$3 - $4.9 mil — $175/hr
$5 mil+ — $200/hr
I value rate transparency so there are no surprises and you can make informed decisions about costs. It is important to me to set rates in a way that:
Covers the operational expenses of independent work (including taxes, insurance, licensing, and all that good stuff);
Accounts for the race and class privilege that allows me to have far more flexibility, access, and choices than many others doing the same work;
Helps provide some continuity across the peaks and valleys of the consulting biz (sometimes there are more opportunities and sometimes there are fewer); and
Allows me to support as many groups I can while maintaining a reasonable workload so I can be present for and properly focus on each project.
It’s a constant practice, but I strive to balance resourcing myself with being accessible to smaller groups that often have the least capacity for people operations.
About the Name
At first glance, there is nothing particularly special about barn swallows. Cobalt in color with a distinctive forked tail, they are a common bird with an abundant population. More than 500 years go, they made their homes in caves and cliffs, but they’ve long since adapted to building their mud, grass, and feather nests in human-made structures.
Swallows have been so common for so long that they show up in Shakespeare. Folklore about their nests and migration patterns abound, from symbolizing spring and new beginnings, to the approach of autumn and endings, to long journeys and a safe return home. Their mutualistic relationship with people goes way back. Perhaps one of the oldest legends about the swallow is that its forked tail is a result of being singed by flame thrown by angry gods as it stole fire to share with humans.
The ordinariness of a blue barn swallow is part of what makes them so reassuring. They have been consistently present and helpful for a long time.
Blue Swallow Consulting cherishes the ordinary and often unseen work that is the backbone of a project, team, or organizational effort. I can be the boost you need to get started and to see it through to completion.
What People Say
“I worked with Megan on a compensation research and bench-marking project. Megan took the lead on research and data organizing. She’s accurate, quick, and collaborative — and came to each meeting with suggestions for how to further the project. Megan brings an equity and best-practices lens to her work. She’s a terrific and dependable thought partner who will exceed all expectations!”
“Megan is excellent at data analysis and can provide at different levels of themes/detail as needed. She is reliable with turnaround time, great at estimating costs in advance to allow for staying in project budget, and brings a shared passion for justice and a kind and lighthearted attitude”
“Megan puts the ‘gem’ in ‘project management.’ She forged order out of chaos and turned our policies and procedures into actual things that we actually use — all with side-splitting humor and bottomless patience.”