Kelly Brown is CEO of Viewpoint Consulting, which provides program design, research, and strategic advising to nonprofits, philanthropic organizations and individuals investing resources to strengthen underserved communities. Current and recent clients/funders include the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation, the James Irvine Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Annenberg Foundation, The CA Endowment, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the Marguerite Casey Foundation.
She was the Director of the D5 Coalition, a five-year effort to advance philanthropy through diversity, equity, and inclusion. In this role, she led the production of cutting-edge strategic communications and critical data collection tools to strengthen philanthropy’s ability to build inclusive organizations and leadership competencies. She counseled dozens of foundation leaders on issues of inclusion and equity to strengthen concrete competencies that build the ‘muscle,’ for leading authentically inclusive social sector organizations.
Ms. Brown has served as Director of Programs and Evaluation at Marguerite Casey Foundation and as Grants Director at the Vanguard Public Foundation. She was Director of Marketing and Industry Relations at OpNet, a social venture that created digital workforce opportunities for low-income young adults. From 1986 to 1992, she was Administrative Director for TransAfrica/TransAfrica Forum, national foreign policy and research organizations at the forefront of efforts to secure a peaceful transition to a multi-racial democracy in South Africa. She currently serves on the Board of Community Change Action.
Ms. Brown lived and studied in Nairobi, Kenya in 1984-85, where she conducted outreach, due diligence and fundraising to expand Kenya Womens Finance Trust, the continent’s first revolving loan fund for women. She has an M.B.A from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley, a BA in Sociology and African/African American Studies from UC Santa Barbara and was a Sloan Foundation Fellow at Princeton University’s School of International Affairs. Currently, she is completing a PhD at the University of Chicago, researching the intersection between leadership, organizational networks and contemporary social movements.
