ABOUT

Who We Are

INTRODUCTION

Zadie & Co. is your premier partner

We are the problem solvers you can trust to craft tools and solutions that will evolve with you in a changing world.

We will listen, push, guide, and energize you and your team. When our work together is done, our goal is for you to feel focused, capable, and ready to act.

THE ZADIE WAY

Best in class, rooted in our values

When you work with us, you get a team of individuals with deep social impact expertise, committed to achieving best-in-class results on your behalf. We combine excellence and rigor with a genuine regard for our clients as people. Everything we do is deeply rooted in our cornerstone values: courage, curiosity, collaboration, and care for self and others. 

Our Team

FOUNDER & CEO

  • Rosie is a trusted partner to nonprofit leaders, boards of directors, and philanthropists, helping them navigate complex challenges so that they can rise to their greatest potential.

    As the founder and CEO of Zadie & Co., Rosie has led the firm’s evolution from a single-consultant practice to a nationally-competitive company, securing strategic planning and philanthropy engagements against some of the sector’s most established players. Since launching in 2020, Zadie & Co. has worked with more than 50 clients, empowering social impact leaders to build capacity, solve persistent problems, and achieve transformative impact in their fields.

    Rosie is known for her ability to simplify complexity and bring order to scattered ideas. As a consultant, she is sought out for her unique and engaging facilitation style and her expertise in guiding diverse executive audiences to shared decisions while building consensus and trust. Her candor and warmth allow her to connect deeply with clients, from first-time executive directors to seasoned CEOs. She ensures each person feels respected and supported throughout the process (especially those jaded by past experiences with consultants).

    Whether facilitating tough conversations or helping clients tackle ambitious challenges, Rosie’s disciplined approach, incisive questions, and unwavering commitment to integrity deliver clarity, accountability, and results. She fosters trust and confidence in even the most uncertain stakeholders.

    Rosie’s perspective is shaped by her work on both sides of the funding equation. Prior to founding Zadie & Co., she led innovative initiatives at the world’s largest United Way in St. Louis, managing a $17 million family foundation, designing a three-state corporate citizenship strategy for a Fortune 500 company, and building a $2 million earned revenue portfolio for the nonprofit.

    Rosie received her bachelor degree from Auburn University and her Master of Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis. Outside of work, you can find Rosie doing the NYT puzzle section with a strong latte, joining a friend for a workout class, or coaxing her children to enjoy the great outdoors.

CONSULTANT

  • Allison is a former nonprofit executive director with deep expertise in driving change, from establishing new organizations to guiding existing teams through challenging transitions. With a legal background and over two decades of experience across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, Allison brings a unique perspective to her work. She excels at engaging with individuals with diverse viewpoints and helping leaders align with their teams to achieve shared goals.

    Prior to joining Zadie & Co., Allison founded an organization that shifted community agencies from siloed operations to a multi-disciplinary, collaborative approach. Her ability to ask thoughtful questions enables her to bring clarity to complex situations and quickly establish trust. Allison is passionate about facilitating difficult conversations that lead to consensus and fostering safe, hope-centered work cultures that unite diverse populations.

    Allison currently serves on the Advisory Board for The Threshold Center and is completing a certification in Spiritual Direction. She enjoys spending time with her two sons, international travel, and exploring the outdoors with her Goldendoodle, Duke.

RESEARCHER

  • Maureen is a professional researcher with fifteen years of experience dedicated to advancing excellence and equity in education. Her experience includes teaching, grant writing, program management, strategic planning, academic research, and policy analysis. After earning her B.A. from Harvard University, Maureen started her career as a family literacy tutor in Philadelphia, joining AmeriCorps during its inaugural year. She went on to direct Hillsborough Reads, an early childhood literacy initiative serving over 200 elementary school students annually in Tampa, Florida.

    Following a move to Birmingham and a break to raise her three children, Maureen returned to the field as a Research Specialist for the Birmingham Education Foundation’s Policy and Advocacy Project. Her passion for education extends beyond research; she also serves as a Better Basics Reading Intervention Teacher in Birmingham City Schools, working directly with students to improve literacy outcomes.

    Outside of work, Maureen enjoys cooking, traveling, hiking, and fostering dogs with her family.

PROJECT MANAGER

  • Mary Beth is a dynamic project manager with a unique work history spanning corporate operations and nonprofit marketing. A liberal arts graduate, she unexpectedly began her career at a multinational investment bank before returning to the South as a communications manager and director for mission-driven organizations.

    Mary Beth likes bringing order to chaos. She excels at understanding the big picture, asking hard questions, identifying the end goal, and mapping out the nitty gritty steps required to get there. She is also a sharp writer and editor with an eye for design and user experience.

    Raised both in Alabama and overseas, Mary Beth finds meaning in exploring familiar and unfamiliar places. She has two young children and enjoys cooking, eating good food, and spending as much time outside as she can.

EXECUTIVE COORDINATOR

  • Jessica excels at caring for our team and clients. Prior to joining Zadie & Co., Jessica earned master’s degrees in both special education and therapeutic recreation. As a special education teacher and recreational therapist, she developed and implemented individualized education plans and collaborated with families and educators to create inclusive learning environments. 

    Jessica is committed to ensuring that all voices at the table are heard.

    In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, studying the Enneagram, reading, cooking, and sewing. She and her wife are very involved in their church community and have two young boys who keep them on their toes all day.

Our Values

  • We believe the best work happens when we have the courage to ask hard questions and face challenges head on. 

    This may mean we give voice to difficult realities, state honestly what others are thinking but won’t say, challenge how you’ve thought about something for a long time, or propose ideas that push you out of your comfort zone.

  • We are committed to staying curious and evolving our approaches as we learn new things.

    We live in an ever-changing world and we want our work to endure and evolve long after we finish working with a client. With this in mind, we continuously research, try new things, and encourage clients to consider emerging evidence or promising practices that may strengthen their work.

  • We prioritize listening and co-creating solutions with our clients and their stakeholders. 

    Consultants get a bad rap for delivering solutions that look good on paper but don’t work in practice. We’re committed to bringing our expertise to the table and helping you and your teams carve out time and space to unleash your best ideas.

  • No one can pour from an empty cup. We prioritize taking care of ourselves and treating our colleagues, clients, and partners like the multifaceted human beings that they are.

OUR STORY

Stafford Smith Group to Zadie & Co.

2020

The beginning

Rosie Stafford Smith founded Stafford Smith Group in February 2020, not knowing that the world was about to change forever. The company’s first clients were located across the United States, including United Way Worldwide in Washington D.C. Local clients based in Alabama soon followed, including One Place Family Justice Center and Protective Life.

Over the next two years, Stafford Smith Group grew and began offering strategic planning services for organizations of all sizes. The company also began advising clients who had questions like: How can I be more strategic with my giving? How do I know if my dollars are actually making a difference?

2023

Growth & evolution

Stafford Smith Group expanded its bench of consultants and support team to meet the growing demand for their services. Rosie began to envision a company that was bigger than her name and that captured the elemental, fire-sparking essence that the company sought to bring to each project and the wider social sector.

The company continued leading strategic plans for organizations across the country. They began managing grantmaking programs for philanthropic organizations. They also expanded their coaching and stakeholder engagement services, responding to the clear demand in the nonprofit field.

2025

Reclaiming a name

After a year of dreaming and scheming, Stafford Smith Group is now Zadie & Co., a premier consulting firm that turns ideas into action. It is our desire to be the kindling and spark for reinvention – for ourselves, for you, for your organization, and for the entire social sector.

Zadie & Co. is a tribute to Rosie’s grandmother, Zadie Frances Jernigan Golden. At an early age, she stopped using the name Zadie because she felt like it was “too much” and instead opted to go by her more common middle name, Frances. Zadie & Co. reclaims Frances’ given name with the intention of carrying it forward in the fullness of its agency and power.

Learn more about Zadie & Co.’s namesake.

TESTIMONIAL

“Zadie & Co. helped us turn a big idea into an actionable plan. And they did so with wisdom, discernment, and joy.”

Rebecca Stivender
Friends of Birmingham Botanical Gardens

CONTACT

Ready to build something great together?