Ivy + Dean Consulting | Equity-first Guidance for Prairie & Northern Non-Profits

Chief Operations Officer & Principal Consultant, Risa Payant (left), Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Jacq Brasseur (right) photos by Tandem X Visuals

If you've spent any time hangin' around at HQ lately, you've likely seen a small but mighty crew coming and going from one of our anchor team offices. Meet the incredible team behind Ivy + Dean Consulting - a queer-owned, equity-first consulting firm supporting non-profit organizations across the Prairies and Northern Canada with inclusive strategy, policy, governance, and more. We sat down with Principal Consultant Risa Payant and the team to learn more, educate ourselves about the big work they're doing and find out what brought them to Path!

For those who don’t know Ivy & Dean Consulting, can you tell us a bit about what your consulting practice is all about?

Founded by Chief Operations Officer & Principal Consultant Jacq Brasseur in 2021, Ivy + Dean Consulting (i+d) is a bilingual jacq-of-all-trades consulting firm designed to empower non-profit leadership to solve the unique problems faced by organizations on the Prairies and in Northern Canada.

Our team values the unique perspectives of those living and working in small urban centres and rural areas, knowing they deserve support from a firm that truly understands their needs. We consider ourselves generalists - there isn’t a non-profit challenge we can’t help our clients solve! This includes everything from leadership development, strategic planning, governance support, policy development, research and evaluation, healthy workplace practices, community engagement, and facilitation (whew!).

"We’re passionate about contributing to a kinder, safer, and more progressive non-profit sector - which is why we weave equity and social justice into all aspects of our business and every project we do."

The i+d core team, which also includes myself (Risa), has over 100 combined years of work in the non-profit sector and have a vast diversity of lived experiences. Each one of us brings a unique perspective to our work, and we don’t shy away from challenging each other and our clients. We’re passionate about contributing to a kinder, safer, and more progressive non-profit sector - which is why we weave equity and social justice into all aspects of our business and every project we do. Our values of approachability, consent, compassion, locality, equity, service, and reliability in actions help us build meaningful relationships with clients and advocate for the sector at large.

Risa & Jacq hangin' out at i+d's homebase, Path HQ - photo by Tandem x Visuals

Ivy & Dean Consulting focuses on supporting communities and organizations across the Prairies and Northern Canada. What’s meaningful about doing work specifically in these regions?

These regions are our homes. I grew up in rural Saskatchewan and Jacq grew up in the Northwest Territories, with deep family roots in the prairies. Over the course of our non-profit careers, we felt frustrated when working with firms from metropolitan Canada or even the US, who offered solutions without any tangible understanding of our local realities. We thought local folks deserved better. Our locality value statement says it best: “Traveling far from home to get what you need is never ideal. We believe that local non-profit organizations deserve high-quality services right here at home. I+d is local on purpose, and should be a place where non-profit organizations on the Prairies and in Northern Canada can find support from consultants who are as invested in their local communities as they are.”

"Too often, non-metropolitan Canada is overlooked or it’s assumed everyone is just building in order to eventually move to Toronto. We don’t feel that way."

We truly love the communities we serve and, more than that, we believe the work being done on the Prairies and in Northern Canada is vibrant and exciting. Too often, non-metropolitan Canada is overlooked or it’s assumed everyone is just building in order to eventually move to Toronto. We don’t feel that way.

As a queer-owned business, what does it mean to bring that identity into consulting and facilitation work - especially in sectors like non-profits or public service?

I+d is unapologetically queer. Our business is 100% queer and trans owned and we’re proud to be recognized by the CGLCC: Canada's LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce as a Certified LGBT-Owned Business. In fact, we’re the first Certified LGBT Business Enterprise in Saskatchewan!

"Queerness is tied to a disruption of the status quo, which feels more important now than ever. Fluidity, intentionality, and responsiveness aren’t just buzzwords for us, they’re intimately tied to who we are and how we serve our clients."

While it’s important that we show up as our authentic selves at work, our queerness is about more than identity. It means that we incorporate queer ways of knowing and working into every project, with every client. Queerness is tied to a disruption of the status quo, which feels more important now than ever. Fluidity, intentionality, and responsiveness aren’t just buzzwords for us, they’re intimately tied to who we are and how we serve our clients.

When people tell us why they love to work with our team they name our flexibility, nuanced approaches, and the ways we encourage them to think about things differently as highlights. These ways of working are intimately connected to our queerness. We’re always questioning non-profit norms asking, “why are you doing it like that?”. We encourage our clients to build strategic futures based on their values and the type of sector they want to be a part of, rather than defaulting to the way things have always been done. To learn more about our approaches to queerness in our business practices, check out this article by Interac Business Blog 'In The Know'!

Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Jacq Brasseur (left), Chief Operations Officer & Principal Consultant, Risa Payant (right) photo by Tandem X Visuals

What drew Ivy & Dean Consulting to Path as a home base?

Our team grew exponentially in 2024 and by early-2025, it was clear to us that working from home exclusively wasn’t a fit for everyone. Some Regina-based team members, including Jacq, were eager to find a space with a little more action where they could co-work, and be in a space that fostered connection and collaboration. Plus, we knew we needed a central location for our files, collateral, and swag (mainly, for the sanity of our families!).

"It was clear that Sara and Jenn (the 'Path Team') are working hard to build an inclusive and welcoming environment, and having a workspace that met our logistical needs was important to us."

We love our pals at Adeptus Marketing and the Saskatchewan Queer Mental Health Collective and knew they were happy working at Path, so we took a chance and came in for a tour. It was clear that Sara and Jenn (the 'Path Team') are working hard to build an inclusive and welcoming environment, and having a workspace that met our logistical needs was important to us. Honestly, we were on the fence before meeting the Path Team, but the vibe they bring to the space is really what clinched it for us. Being able to have a private office space with lots of additional flexibility to utilize the common areas and meeting rooms all included in one monthly price was exactly what our small business needed!

Path is built on community. Has coworking here sparked any new connections, conversations, or ideas for Ivy & Dean Consulting?

We’re still fairly new to Path (we moved into our office in February), so we are meeting new “neighbours” every day! While we build these networks, we’ve also found opportunities to connect with a lot of existing contacts - it’s wild how many great people work at Path! For Jacq, working at Path after having spent years working at home during and following the pandemic has reminded them about the importance and joy of sharing food with others. There’s always someone to chat with in the HQ Kitchen and everyone’s been incredibly friendly!

Tell us about a project or client collaboration your team is especially proud of right now. What made it special?

Right now, Jacq is working with the Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan to assess their evaluation practices and help them develop new strategies to better meet the needs of their communities. Evaluation is hard. Period. Many non-profit organizations don’t have the capacity to do this well, and we get it! We love working with teams who want to get better at evaluation, but don’t know where to start. Seeing folks feel empowered to execute evaluative work after their time with us is always inspiring.

"We always love working with clients who are as committed to small communities as we are, because the tangible impact is exponential."

We’ve also been lucky to dig into an ongoing relationship with Small Economy Works, an organization passionate about entrepreneurial leadership training and social enterprise in small Northern communities. It’s all about supporting young (mostly Indigenous) entrepreneurs and they have recently started work to expand into Northern Saskatchewan, so it’s exciting to be a part of that! We always love working with clients who are as committed to small communities as we are, because the tangible impact is exponential.

Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Jacq Brasseur (left), Chief Operations Officer & Principal Consultant, Risa Payant (right) photo by Tandem X Visuals

Amazing, thanks Risa! Where can folks follow along or learn more about the Ivy & Dean Consulting team?

Earlier this year, we worked with Arcana Creative to refresh our brand identity. We’re working hard to launch the revitalized brand this summer, but in the meantime our website and social media accounts are in need of some attention. You can follow along by visiting our website or finding us as @ivydeanworks on Instagram and LinkedIn. Additionally, we’re always keen to connect with new colleagues and clients, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to us via info@ivydeanconsulting.ca.

We’d love to get to know you!