Photo courtesy of Lakeshore Foundation
Lakeshore Foundation is expanding its reach beyond sports and recreation with the creation of Lakeshore Consulting Services, a new advisory division focused on accessibility and organizational development.
The Birmingham-based nonprofit, long known for its leadership in adapted sports and inclusive programming, will now offer consulting support to businesses, nonprofits and sports organizations seeking to improve inclusion efforts and operational effectiveness.
The consulting team will work with clients through a structured four-step model they call their 4D Process — Discover, Design, Develop and Deliver — to evaluate existing systems and recommend tailored strategies. The emphasis, officials say, is on practical implementation rather than simply meeting minimum compliance standards.
“We believe organizations want to do meaningful work, but they often need experienced guidance to navigate a complex system,” said Allison Tubbs of Lakeshore Consulting Services. “We focus on practical solutions and build a custom proposal based on our decades of thought leadership in the disability community. We believe a stronger focus on inclusion will improve customer satisfaction and enhance brand reputation for our clients.”
In addition to advising businesses, the new service will assist nonprofits with governance, planning, marketing and long-term sustainability initiatives.
Lakeshore leaders point to the broader impact of accessibility work, noting that one in four U.S. adults lives with a disability and that the global disability market represents significant economic influence.
The consulting effort builds on Lakeshore Foundation’s more-than-100-year history, including its role in the early development of wheelchair basketball and its designation as the nation’s first Olympic and Paralympic Training Site. Today, Lakeshore serves thousands of members and hosts multiple Paralympic teams.
"Lakeshore Consulting Services draws directly from decades of real-world expertise at the Lakeshore Foundation, where we've built our brand on creating inclusive spaces and programs," said John D. Kemp, CEO of Lakeshore Foundation. "We’ve been asked many times about replicating what we do here at Lakeshore. Our consulting service gives us a solid platform to share this knowledge and teach businesses how to attract and retain customers and talent with disabilities, while assisting nonprofits in strengthening their own platforms."
More information about the new initiative is available at lakeshoreservices.org.
