Phoenix Mission Based Services

Solving complex challenges for mission-minded organizations.

For organizations that are mission based, addressing operational, financial, managerial, or other complex organizational challenges requires a commitment to the two primary objectives mission based organizations face: delivering essential services to advance the mission and managing finances to achieve long-term stability and sustainability.


With an unwavering focus on the organization’s driving mission, we help governments, not-for-profits, and educational institutions address core economic, structural, and operational issues in order to stabilize their financial position, improve operating efficiency, and revitalize the delivery of their mission.

Phoenix’s experience with mission based organizations dates back more than twenty-five years to our first municipal engagement with Philadelphia Gas Works, the nation’s largest municipally-owned utility. More recently, we played an important role in the City of Detroit’s bankruptcy by serving as the court’s independent expert on feasibility, and our experts have served more than 50 mission-based entities.

With taxpayers, investors, and benefactors demanding more accountability than ever before, Phoenix helps its mission based clients enact the management techniques needed to navigate complex challenges and develop innovative ways to carry out their mission. We do not engage in policy making activities or partisan political agendas. Instead, we use data and analytics to craft solutions that work for all stakeholders.

Some of the mission based organizations we serve include:

  • Municipalities
  • Government organizations
  • Not-for-profits
  • Educational institutions
  • Healthcare or care services providers
  • Churches or religious organizations

Following is a sampling of our mission based engagements.

City of Detroit

In the historic Detroit bankruptcy, Phoenix professionals were engaged by the US Bankruptcy Court to provide expert opinion and supporting analysis regarding the feasibility of the Plan of Adjustment being proffered by the City of Detroit. A team of six Phoenix professionals worked with virtually all of the City’s constituencies in order to understand the plan and provide expert guidance to the Court in its efforts to resolve the bankruptcy. Because no uniform standard previously existed, the Phoenix team developed a standard for establishing Feasibility in the context of Chapter 9; this standard has been adopted by the Court.

City of Philadelphia

Phoenix was appointed by the City of Philadelphia to develop a plan to revitalize for Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW), the nation’s largest municipally-owned natural gas utility. Phoenix placed a team of five full-time professionals on-site at PGW, assuming the positions of CEO, COO, CFO, Head of Customer Affairs, and Head of Strategic Planning. The team immediately tackled the financial and operational crises while also managing the delicate political sensitivities presented by a government environment.

Large Transport Authority

Phoenix was hired by the fourth largest metropolitan transport authority in the United States to provide a proactive and business-oriented approach to evaluating options and pursuing methods to improve upon the quality and effectiveness of the entire organization. Phoenix’s professionals took a pragmatic, business-oriented approach to evaluating all of SEPTA’s operating and administrative activities. Phoenix’s report detailed more than 135 recommendations designed to achieve a high level of efficiency and economic savings throughout SEPTA’s operations.

School District

Phoenix was hired by a school district to conduct an operational assessment of the non-educationally related expenses. Phoenix provided a final report to the district administration, identifying specific items that totaled in $400,000 in immediate savings requiring no governmental policy changes.

City of Wilmington

Phoenix was engaged by the City of Wilmington, Delaware’s largest city, to identify ways in which the City could improve the service it provides to its customers and constituents. The assessment included the following departments: Public Works, Parks and Recreation, Planning, Real Estate and Housing, Finance, and the Mayor’s Office and resulted in specific recommendations to consolidate many disparate functions and to improve coordination with overlapping functions with its surrounding county.

Non-Profit Church

A non-profit church had purchased land adjacent to it to develop a community center on the eve of the Great Recession. As the economy worsened, weekly donations began to drop and eventually weekly donations reached a level that could not support the Church’s ministry or its fixed mortgage payments on a consistent basis. In December 2013 the Church filed Chapter 11. Phoenix was engaged to re-establish monthly budgets, regular accounting and internal controls for the Church. This allowed the church to operate at a break-even level on a week-to-week basis. Phoenix worked with the Pastor, congregation, and counsel to develop a fundraising program to finance a plan of reorganization and return the Church to long term economic stability.

In-Patient Psychiatric Services Provider

Phoenix was engaged by a struggling provider of crises psychiatric in-patient services that was out of liquidity and facing potential closure. Phoenix worked closely with management to identify near-term sources of cash that could provide the time necessary to restructure its operations. By addressing pricing, intake policies, and cost structures, Phoenix was able to assist the organization to long term feasibility. Within months, all significant operating metrics improved including average revenue/patient and increased census as well as improved outcomes including a reduction in Against Medical Advice (AMA) discharges. After stability was reached, Phoenix assisted in refinancing the organization’s bank debt.


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