Heather Fitzpatrick Email & Phone Number

Edmonds, Washington, United States

I am taking an intentional break from full-time work to recharge, reflect, and prioritize personal well-being. During this time, I'm taking on consulting projects that interest me. I'm open to strategic consulting projects that leverage my business experience, creativity, and passion for helping make organizations stronger, more efficient, and more impactful.

Greater Seattle Area

Since 1892, Wellspring Family Services has served families in crisis in the Puget Sound region. Over a century later, Wellspring delivers support to families experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, homelessness through five programs: an Early Learning Center, a free Family Store, a Housing Services division, and Employee Assistance Program, and an Employee Stability Program. As CEO, with the help of the exceptional leadership team at Wellspring, I guided the organization through a financial turnaround and reorganization, closed and restructured divisions, facilitated the development of a new strategic plan for the organization, crafted and led execution on biannual operations plans, improved our Employee Net Promoter Score from the teens to the high 60s, overhauled our board governance structure, more than tripled the number of households served, and grew services into Pierce and Snohomish Counties. During my tenure, the operating budget grew from $12 million to $32 million during the pandemic and fell back to historic highs in 2023 and 2024.As CEO, I grappled with the inherent instability of this critical sector. With a team of peers, I identified the root cause of our instability: the failure of government contracts to cover the full cost of delivering services. Together we organized and pursued a campaign to change government contracting processes called the Campaign for 20%. Our work is ongoing.In order to address the deficit in government contracts and provide more stability to Wellspring, I led our team in developing a new service, the Wellspring Employee Stability Program. This innovative program is designed to address homelessness where it most often begins: with employees who experience unexpected expenses. Financial anxiety costs employers in the US over $500 billion every year. This program, structured as a benefit for employees, addresses both of these issues.

Greater Seattle Area

At the request of the board of directors, stepped in as interim CEO. Led the team of 100 employees through operational planning and internal reorganization to support the organization's core purpose: ending the cycle of family homelessness. Facilitated development of a new strategic plan. Previously served as a part-time, interim CFO/COO from July through December 2017.

Collaborated with clients to diagnose and overcome previously unidentified barriers to success and develop strategies that clear the path for exceptional performance. For example, I: ◦ Served as Interim CEO/CFO/COO for a nonprofit human services agency on the brink of financial failure. Led budgeting process to address financial instability and improve accountability. Facilitated development of operations plan and to provide direction for next two years. Led strategic planning process to chart a new course for the organization. ◦ Defined new competitive position for large construction-industry client that facilitated an increase in pricing and expansion of lucrative business niches. ◦ Restructured the award-winning communications team for one of Washington State’s larger healthcare systems. Reduced costs by 40% while maintaining exceptional performance. ◦ Discovered, through market research, the previously unidentified key to increasing new customer acquisition and increasing repeat purchasing behavior among patrons of a performing arts organization. Collaborated with them to develop programs which grew the patron base by 10.8%, increased repeat purchase behavior by 31.6% and boosted revenues by 13.5% per annum. ◦ Developed financial models and facilitated a board retreat to help an organization overcome its struggle to develop effective fund development plans. ◦ Persuaded a professional service firm to abandon a costly promotions campaign in favor of a targeted program that generated 2,700% ROI. ◦ Evaluated potential financial returns on a proposed development campaign through market testing. Adjusted expectations and modified approach.Developed the company’s research-based Alignment Map methodology that optimizes returns on go-to-market investments. Authored "Marketing Management for Non-Marketing Managers: Improving Returns on Marketing Investments," requested and published by American Institute of CPAs in 2013.

Seattle Office

• Recognized for creating innovative approaches to meeting the firm’s regional business objectives.• Collaborated with national marketing team to develop similar programs in other offices.• Taught effective marketing management practices as a guest speaker at the firm’s national marketing conference.

A licensed CPA, Heather's practice focused on benefit plans, not-for-profit organizations, and other tax-exempt entities. Heather also worked on individual tax returns, and was a member of the international tax group.

Mba, Hr & Marketing

Activities and Societies: Gamma Sigma (Business Honor Society); William Randall Leadership Award.Created a service project program.

Marseilles, France

Ba, French, Economics, Cum Laude

Activities and Societies: Phi Beta Kappa; Stimet Award (leadership/academics); George Cobb Fellowship (leadership;1985,1987).

High School