Consulting — Governing Water
Governing Water — Consulting

Advisory work
for complex rooms.

Governance strategy, organisational analysis, and advisory that goes beyond the report. We help organisations understand what they are navigating, make better decisions, and build the capacity to keep doing so.

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Governance Strategy· Organisational Analysis· Water Security Advisory· Strategic Planning· Board Advisory· International Development· Governance Strategy· Organisational Analysis· Water Security Advisory· Strategic Planning· Board Advisory· International Development·
Consulting Services

Six consulting
practice areas.

Governance Advisory

Board structure, governance policy, accountability frameworks, and bylaw review. We work with boards that are newly formed, restructuring, or navigating a governance crisis — and we’re honest about what we find.

↑ Boards that govern with confidence
Water Security Consulting

Strategic advisory on water security governance — for governments, NGOs, and development organisations. Water risk assessment, policy analysis, and governance framework design grounded in peer-reviewed research and field experience.

↑ Water strategy that holds up under scrutiny
Strategic Planning Facilitation

Structured strategic planning processes for boards, executive teams, and organisations. We design and facilitate the process, synthesise the thinking, and produce plans that are actually used — not filed and forgotten.

↑ Plans that guide decisions for years
Organisational Reviews

Governance audits, organisational effectiveness reviews, and board performance evaluations. Independent analysis that tells you what is actually happening — not just what looks good on paper.

↑ Clarity before the next big decision
International Development Advisory

Project management, governance support, and advisory for international development organisations operating in Africa, South Asia, the Caribbean, and the Canadian North. PMP-certified and field-tested across 50+ countries.

↑ Development work that respects local context
Impact Assessment & Policy

Environmental and social impact assessment governance, policy development, and regulatory process support. Work with the International Association for Impact Assessment and experience across Canada and internationally.

↑ Policy grounded in evidence and context
Our Approach

Consulting that
stays in the room.

Most consulting produces recommendations that get handed over and quietly ignored. That’s not what we do. We stay in the engagement — working with your leadership and board to make sure the thinking actually lands and the decisions actually get made.

Our consulting is relational, not transactional. We invest time in understanding the organisation, the dynamics, and the history before we recommend anything. And we’re honest when what we find is different from what was expected.

We work with organisations where the stakes are real — where governance failures have consequences for communities, where decisions involve competing interests and genuine uncertainty, and where the easy answer is rarely the right one.

15+
Years of Practice
50+
Countries Worked In
1,200+
Hours Facilitated

“The most important thing a board can do is create the conditions for honest disagreement. Not the conditions for harmony. Harmony is easy. Honest disagreement is where the real governance work happens.”

Palash Sanyal — Governing Water Consulting
Sectors We Work In

Across sectors,
borders, and complexity.

Indigenous & Inuit Governance

Self-governing nations, band councils, and treaty organisations. Our largest and most sustained area of practice.

International Development

World Bank, IAIA, and development bodies operating across Africa, South Asia, the Caribbean, and the North.

Not-for-Profits & NGOs

Mission-driven organisations navigating governance, strategy, and the accountability demands of funders and communities.

Public Sector

Federal, provincial, and territorial bodies — including regulatory bodies, planning commissions, and public institutions.

What You Get

Clear deliverables.
Honest analysis.

Governance Reviews & Audits

Written assessments of board structure, policies, and practices — with specific, prioritised recommendations and an implementation roadmap.

Strategic Plans

Facilitated and synthesised strategic plans that reflect genuine organisational thinking — not a consultant’s template with your name on the cover.

Policy Frameworks

Governance policies, bylaws, HR frameworks, and accountability structures — written in plain language and designed to actually be used.

Advisory Briefings

Concise, evidence-based briefing documents for boards and leadership teams facing significant decisions — without the 80-page filler.