We coach organizations and communities to transform and thrive
We guide human-centered enterprises and social impact networks to persistently learn, adapt and thrive. Our leading edge advice, masterful facilitation and strength-based coaching crystalizes your organization’s purpose, principles and strategic path. We contribute our ideas, talents and time in order to co-create a more equitable, just, joyful and generative world.
MJ Kaplan
Leading, learning and leaning in
Supporting others to succeed is in MJ’s DNA and is her guiding light. She earned her stripes as an internal consultant before founding Kaplan Consulting in 2000. She leads a global consulting network and has earned the trust and confidence of clients, colleagues, entrepreneurs, academics, government leaders and innovators throughout her career.
In 2013 MJ took a sabbatical to be Ian Axford Fulbright Fellow in New Zealand to focus on the social enterprise ecosystem. She’s a leading speaker, writer and teacher in social enterprise and co-chairs the board of directors for Social Enterprise Greenhouse. We were proud to host Vice President Kamala Harris and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in May, 2021. MJ was awarded the Ashoka U’s Cordes Innovation Award for her work at Brown University and honored as Outstanding Mentor for RI Business Women.
Dazzled by one New Zealand venture, in 2014 MJ put consulting on hold to grow Loomio into a global social enterprise. Loomio is a SaaS platform that enables collaborative decision making. MJ joined the Loomio Board of Directors in 2017. She also serves on the Board of Commerce RI.
In 2022 MJ was honored by Providence Business News with a ‘Leader & Achiever Award.’
Global social impact shaper, connector and storyteller
MJ is internationally known for her writing and speaking on systems transformation, the future of work, social innovation and women and leadership. She spent years teaching in an adjunct role at Brown University, creating an award-winning course for student entrepreneurs and a class in adaptive strategy. MJ writes for publications including Stanford Social Innovation Review; Nonprofit Quarterly, OD Practitioner and The RISD Center for Complexity and publishes a blog on Medium. (More writing The Impact Initiative)
MJ has devoted her life to community service, from serving on boards to participating annually in the Cystic Fibrosis walk to support a dear friend and raise money for research (donate here), to supporting the Food Bank and many other social change efforts that reflect her passions. She’s a generous philanthropist and savvy social impact investor.
MJ earned her M.Ed. from Harvard University and B.A. Brown University.
MJ is the proud mother of three adult children with her husband of more than 30 years Dr. Scott Triedman.
Our partner network
Partnership is at the heart of all we do. We build potent teams to deliver value for each client’s unique needs. We’re a mix of practitioners, designers, anthropologists, coaches, technologists, changemakers, researchers and storytellers. Each team member brings deep expertise and powerful humility and humanity in service to you.
Our awesome and eclectic clients are zealously committed to purpose and progress.
Their diversity is astonishing, across sectors, stages of growth, size and geography. Social impact nonprofits and B-certified companies, foundations and corporates, startups and leaders.
We guide leaders to navigate change: focus strategic priorities, create agile operating systems, and support your people to work with mastery and joy.
Consulting
We are strategy advisors and org. transformation consultants — partners who support you to develop a capacity for emergent strategy and to create the conditions for enduring change. We coach teams of teams to achieve breakthroughs one cycle at a time.
Sense • Think • Act • Repeat.
Coaching
We listen, question and encourage you to discover your purpose, hopes, passions and goals — and to face your fears and obstacles — to unlock your potential. Our clients tell us that coaching is a gift, precious, sacred space for self-care, reflection and learning.
Speaking
MJ is a storyteller, thought leader and innovation geek who engages audiences of all sizes on the issues that are rocking our world as a conference keynote, guest lecturer, podcast guest and workshop presenter.
We’re powered by clear purpose and enduring principles
We enable people and teams of teams to master better ways to make progress to achieve success through persistent learning, evolving and thriving.
Our principles are our center.
Partnership
We think of our clients our as partners. We co-create their preferred future together. Our partner circle extends to our global network of talented practitioners. We share ideas, experiences and friendship with these colleagues and serve as dot connectors in the growing ecosystem of org. transformation and social impact innovators.
Interconnection
Organizations and communities are complex systems where all the parts are interconnected and change is emergent. Interconnection is integral to our approach to change as well as our understanding of how we live and work as part of our global world.
Perpetual learning
We are driven by curiosity and openness, persistently challenging the status quo and experimenting with ideas and creative approaches. We are committed to personal reflection and attention to our own biases and blindspots. We seek to understand others’ perspectives, appreciating that there is no single approach that serves complex contexts and diverse human experiences.
Stewardship
We generously share our time and talent to support people and communities, especially those that have been marginalized historically. We are active stewards of and advocates for our precious natural environment.
Integrity
We strive to show up and communicate in ways that foster respect, trust, compassion and transparency. Relationships are the basis of our work, and we give primary attention to develop connections that are authentic and positive.
“MJ’s intelligence and superb facilitation add enormous value across the Gilbane enterprise.”
Paul Gilbane, Former Chairman and CEO, Gilbane, Inc.
“MJ opened a whole new world to us as a purpose-based enterprise. She’s been an invaluable champion of our WikiHouse venture and a force to accelerate the emerging social economy in New Zealand.”
Danny Squires BPD(Arch) B.Arch Director | Space Craft Systems Ltd , & co-founder WikiHouse /NZ Lab
