Systems change consulting for sustainable social impact
The sparkle is already there. We help it last.
Like sunlight on a pond, the sparkle in your organization is already there. KiraKira Systems builds the structures that carry it, for the people doing the work, the communities they serve, and the planet they depend on.
Good intentions need structures that can carry them.
Mission-driven work often rests on a few dedicated people. That isn’t a failure of intention. It’s a design gap, and design can change.
The problem
Why good work loses its shine
The light in mission-driven work is real. When it rests on a few dedicated people, it goes dull. That isn’t a failure of intention. It’s a design gap, and design can change.
“Our team is stretched thin.”
Good people carry more than any role should.
“Our sustainability goals live in the report.”
Targets are published; operations haven’t caught up.
“We’re doing a lot, but is it working?”
Plenty of effort, no clear picture of what pays off.
Built on the evidence
Every part of our method answers what the research shows.
Five findings from social impact, implementation, and sustainability research shape how we work. Each one sets a rule we keep in every engagement.
Each source is linked
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Nothing new without something off the plate
Every pilot names the work that stops, so a new practice can take root.
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10–15%
indirect-cost caps many funders set, below what it costs to run well, so the systems underneath go unfunded.
Bridgespan, The Nonprofit Starvation Cycle, 2009What’s underneath feeds what blooms
We treat operations as part of the mission and map the resources that carry it.
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2 in 3
executive directors expected to leave their role within five years.
CompassPoint, Daring to Lead 2011The departure test
We finish when a leader can step back and the pond stays connected, us included.
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3 of 6
conditions that hold a system in place sit below the surface: relationships, power, and mental models.
FSG, The Water of Systems Change, 2018We look below the waterline
Past the org chart to who people rely on, who decides, and what everyone assumes.
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8
areas of capacity a program needs to last. Programs that last keep adapting to their context.
Luke et al., 2014 · Chambers et al., 2013Rooted, and reopened on schedule
Five anchors hold each change, with a set date to review it and adapt.
- Measured with
- Network analysis
- Job Demands–Resources
- Copenhagen Burnout Inventory
- PSAT
- GHG Protocol
What we do
Two ways we help your mission last.
One method, two practices: one for the people and programs that carry your mission, and one for the operations that carry your sustainability goals.
People and Programs
Keep your people, and the programs they power.
For nonprofits, foundations, and universities.
- Volunteers and members who stay and step up to lead
- Programs that keep running when a key person moves on
- Workloads your team can sustain
Planet and Operations
Turn sustainability goals into how you actually run.
For companies, universities, and institutions.
- Targets built into purchasing, energy, and budgets
- Clarity on which efforts actually move your footprint
- Impact that counts for workers and communities too
Not sure which fits? Start with a conversation →
The KiraKira Approach
We find the light first, then build around it.
Every engagement starts from what already works, is shaped with the people who do the work, and ends when it can run without us.
Proof that it lasts
A youth society built to outlast its founder
The California Society of Emerging Leaders was designed so members lead their own campaigns. It kept growing after its founder stepped back, and its members initiated two California measures.
400+ members, from a handful at launch
- LaunchA handful of student volunteers
- Year threeAbout 100 members
- Hand-offFounder steps back; members lead
- July 2025AB 703 signed into law
- Aug 2026AR 131 adopted, 72–0
- Today400+ members, still growing
A new fund for pediatric cancer research
Created California’s Pediatric Cancer Research Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund, so any taxpayer can give on their state return. The idea came from a young member.
A statewide week for student cancer prevention
Established Student Cancer Education, Detection, and Prevention Week in California.
72 yes, 0 no in the California State Assembly · August 2026
Let’s start with what’s already working.
You sparkle. We help it last. A 30-minute conversation about your organization, with no obligation.