Our Story
David Phillips, the Founder of Panorama Advisors, has always enjoyed the challenges and rewards of ascending mountains. The payoff for slogging upward? A panoramic view with a perspective of wholeness that’s difficult to envision at the start of the journey.
Panoramic perspectives, and the mountains we climb to reach them, are an apt metaphor for what makes some organizations successful and others less so. To be successful, leaders need to see the landscape around them for opportunities and pitfalls. But while necessary, the view from the top is not sufficient. Leaders must also nurture teams and internal systems to help their vision come to life.
Through working as a strategy consultant and on-the-ground practitioner, David came to understand that teamwork, strategy, and execution form a cohesive whole. And if our goal is social justice, then each of these elements must center equity. David founded Panorama Advisors in 2020 to integrate these perspectives and help social enterprises create the change they seek.
What We Believe
We believe in addressing root causes in society and in our own hearts.
We believe that how we do our work is just as important as what we do, and that every individual can be an “artisan for the common good” simply by treating others with the dignity and respect they deserve.
We believe in our clients’ potential to create the change they seek.
How We Work
YOUR MISSION IS OURS
We listen to your unique vision and context, and take joy in being all-in on your mission.
WE CENTER EQUITY
With clients, we invite exploration of how our identities (race, gender, class, etc.) impact our experiences, perspectives, and relationships.
WE DELIVER HIGH-QUALITY WORK
Our clients expect and deserve high-quality work. We strive for excellence in each client engagement.
WE’RE VERSATILE
As experienced advisors, we share lessons from prior projects. As experienced practitioners, we empathize with taking ownership and working with resource constraints.
WE FORM ALL-STAR TEAMS
We leverage our extensive network in the social impact sector, often partnering with other consultants to add additional perspectives and subject matter expertise.
WE’RE EASY TO WORK WITH
With 10+ years serving clients, we understand when to push and when to stand down. We’ll be your guide rather than extra pack weight.
How We Center Equity
At Panorama Advisors, “centering equity” means that equity must be part of our DNA. We see our role as tilting power toward those who have historically been (and are still) denied it. This includes how we talk (e.g., white perspectives aren’t centered), transact (e.g., funders and grantees work as equal partners working toward a shared goal), dream (e.g., communities’ voices are centered), and more.
We must also be brave enough to hold a mirror to ourselves. As a white man with many privileges, David (Founder of Panorama Advisors) is on a lifelong journey to examine his own identity, biases, and behavior while helping his clients do the same. David’s perspective has been influenced by many teachers, most notably the National Equity Project and myriad generous, courageous colleagues.
With clients, we invite exploration of how our identities (race, gender, class, etc.) impact our experiences, perspectives, and relationships. We have years of experience facilitating inclusive spaces, nurturing equitable team cultures, and designing equity-centered strategies and systems. We have designed and delivered equity trainings (e.g., California Equity Institute for School Boards), facilitated white racial affinity groups, and coached leaders to deepen their equity lenses. Yet, there are many situations where our clients would be better served by a leader of color. We will work with clients to determine when it’s important to have leaders of color support (or lead) our client projects.
David Phillips
Founder and Managing Director
David is driven to make the world a more just place, especially for those furthest from power. He is learner, listener, strategist, and doer. He thrives at the intersection of strategy and implementation, building teams, and taking action together.
At Panorama Advisors, David supports nonprofits, schools, philanthropies, businesses, and multi-stakeholder collaboratives. He has worked first-hand in each of these sectors and therefore brings multiple perspectives and an understanding of the complexities of social change.
His areas of expertise include strategic planning, equity-centered group facilitation, board governance, leadership coaching, and team development. David prides himself on exceptional results for clients and forming authentic partnerships.
Prior to founding Panorama Advisors, David was the Chief of Staff at Educate78, a nonprofit focused on improving Oakland’s public education system so that student success is not predicted by race and class. At Educate78, David led the organization’s strategic planning, organizational development, organizational learning, finance and budgeting, grantmaking execution, and impact tracking.
Prior to joining Educate78, David served as an Associate Director at FSG, a premier nonprofit strategy consulting firm. Based in FSG’s San Francisco office, David helped clients create social impact across many different sectors (e.g., philanthropy, nonprofit, government, business) and issues (e.g., K-12 education, post-secondary education, workforce development, public health).
Earlier in his career, David worked as an Education Pioneer Fellow at the San Francisco Unified School District (where his son later attended school), and as an Associate Director of Data Analysis and Tools at CEB (now Gartner), a business process consulting firm in Washington, D.C. David holds an MBA from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University with concentrations in Social Entrepreneurship and Leadership & Ethics, and a BA in International Studies from Rhodes College.
David was raised in Birmingham, AL and currently lives near Berkeley, CA with his wife, two children, and two cats. In the community, he serves on the Board of Francophone Charter School of Oakland. He is a cancer survivor, two-time Outward Bound alumnus, traveler off the beaten path, and irregular Peloton user. His top five StrengthsFinder strengths are Context, Learner, Input, Includer, and Harmony.