Business Consulting

Making development organisations financially viable.

Development organisations face a paradox: they exist to serve public goals, but they need viable business models to survive. IMACON provides business consulting to organisations in the development and media sectors — helping them build revenue strategies, financial systems, and operational models that reduce dependency on any single donor.

This isn't corporate consulting transplanted into the development world. We understand the specific constraints: restricted funding, donor reporting requirements, the tension between mission and market, and the reality that "sustainability" means different things for a journalism school in Kyiv than for a consulting firm in Berlin.

What this looks like in practice

Financial sustainability consulting for journalism education in Ukraine

The School for Universal Editors (SUR) — a practice-oriented journalism training programme — needed to transition from full donor dependence toward a mixed funding model. We worked with SUR on fee structure design, cost recovery analysis, and donor diversification strategy, all while the Ukrainian media market was contracting due to war. The consulting addressed both immediate financial planning and longer-term organisational systems needed to manage multiple revenue streams.

Business model development for local media outlets

Through DW Akademie's broader programme, we supported Ukrainian media organisations in developing revenue strategies adapted to wartime conditions — where advertising markets had collapsed, audiences had shifted online, and traditional business models were no longer viable. The work combined financial analysis with practical training on fundraising, audience development, and cost management.

Strategic positioning for education networks

For adult education provider networks in Kyrgyzstan, we provided consulting on market positioning, member value propositions, and revenue generation — helping associations that had been entirely donor-funded develop strategies for membership fees, service delivery, and advocacy that could attract public funding.

Our approach

We start with financial reality — actual revenue, actual costs, actual donor pipeline — not aspirational projections. We assess market conditions specific to the sector and geography. We design business models that are proportionate to organisational capacity: a five-person media outlet doesn't need an enterprise-grade financial system, but it does need a clear picture of unit economics and a realistic diversification plan. And we stay engaged through implementation, because a strategy document that doesn't get executed is just expensive paper.