Fels Research & Consulting Group

Combining the strengths of Penn faculty, staff, and students with a network of affiliated senior consultants, Fels Research & Consulting Group brings academic depth and practical know-how to the tough strategic and management challenges facing governments and nonprofit organizations today. Fels also builds on a legacy of impact. For more than 70 years Fels Research & Consulting Group has worked with hundreds of state and local governments tackling the ever-tough challenges of delivering results that matter to citizens and stakeholders.

Focus Areas

Fels Research & Consulting Group works with its partners in government and the nonprofit sector on a variety of issues related to public policy and management. Although we have expertise in a broad span of issues, we specialize in three policy areas:

1. Urban revitalization and regional competitiveness,
2. K-12 education, and
3. Sustainability issues.

Approaches

Within these policy areas and others, we apply a variety of approaches to help our clients and partners achieve their objectives. These methods fall into three broad categories:

1. Get Better Results by enabling clients to enhance or restructure their current operations through process improvement, performance management, or research and application of Promising Practices;
2. Move Ideas into Action through the creation and implementation of civic campaigns;
3. Pay for Results that Matter by designing fiscal plans and strategies.

Structure

At the core of Fels Research & Consulting Group are graduate students in Fels’ public policy and management program. Fels  staff and affiliated Senior Consultants oversee this team of students, provide overall project leadership and work to identify and secure future project opportunities.  Our projects are funded entirely by contracts and grants with outside organizations.  We welcome inquiries about future research and consulting opportunities.