About Fresh Energy
Fresh Energy is a Minnesota-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to shape and drive bold policy solutions to achieve equitable carbon-neutral economies. Together, we are working toward a vision of a just, prosperous, and resilient future powered by a shared commitment to a carbon-neutral economy. Fresh Energy is working to accelerate Minnesota’s transition to a clean energy future that ensures good health, economic opportunity, and thriving communities today and for generations to come.
Our organizational culture is grounded in four core values: Courage, Optimism, Responsibility, and Equity. We strive to take on difficult challenges with clarity and conviction. We believe equitable carbon-neutral futures are achievable through collaborative, innovative, and inclusive work. We act with urgency and accountability to both our communities and the natural world. And we are committed to ensuring that the benefits of a decarbonized economy are broadly shared across all communities.
Fresh Energy also maintains a formal Commitment to Equity, recognizing that achieving our mission requires centering equity in both external policy work and internal practices. We aspire to include, elevate, and empower voices that have historically been marginalized, and to create an organizational culture in which all staff can thrive.
With 30 full-time employees, Fresh Energy operates in a hybrid work environment, and our coaching structure reflects our values — emphasizing collaboration, shared accountability, and continuous learning.
Our Coaching Commitment
Fresh Energy has adopted coaching as our foundational approach to supervision and staff development. Coaching is embedded in how we support staff growth and align individual contributions with organizational goals.
Our coaching philosophy prioritizes development and inquiry over directive problem-solving, encourages active listening and curiosity, and centers individuals’ capacity to discover their own solutions. In practice, this means coaches balance growth-focused coaching with accountability for performance, guided by our values of equity and respect for diverse experiences.
Over the past several years, Fresh Energy has established systems to support this coaching model, including structured one-on-one check-ins, biannual reflections, cross-coaching, and peer coaching circles. New employees are also required to take the Gallup Clifton StrengthsFinder Assessment which are shared with the employee’s coach to enhance their coaching capacity. We have completed the foundational phase of building this coaching culture and are now seeking a consultant to help deepen, strengthen, and sustain it across the organization.
Purpose of the Engagement
Fresh Energy seeks a consultant to conduct a thorough assessment of our current coaching culture, share recommendations for next steps and facilitate one all-organization training session. This engagement will lay the groundwork for enhancing Fresh Energy’s coaching practice and guide development opportunities for 2027-28.
The all-organization session should deepen staff’s ability to navigate performance concerns within a coaching framework, facilitate conversations across differences in identity and power, and reinforce structures that support psychologically safe and inclusive supervisory relationships. Enhancing feedback loops — recognizing coaching is a reciprocal relationship — is a critical component of this work.
This engagement is not introductory in nature; rather, it builds on Fresh Energy’s existing coaching framework and advances practice in context.
Scope of Work
This scope outlines the goals, priority areas and suggested format. However, we welcome the consultant’s expertise in refining the approach and identifying additional strategies to guide Fresh Energy in achieving a strong coaching culture.
The selected consultant will begin with a thorough assessment of Fresh Energy’s current coaching culture. The assessment should examine how the coaching model is operating in practice and where there are opportunities for development. Methods may include staff interviews, surveys, focus groups or other approaches recommended by the consultant, and should reflect an equity lens with a strong understanding of power awareness throughout.
Based on the assessment, the consultant will deliver a report on findings and recommendations with actionable next steps aligned with Fresh Energy’s existing coaching framework and organizational values and principals. The report will close the assessment phase and guide coaching culture development for the year ahead.
The consultant will also develop and facilitate one half-day all-organization training/workshop session on November 12, 2026, informed by the assessment findings. We are anticipating a skill building experience, however, we welcome the consultant’s recommendation on the format that will best serve Fresh Energy staff at this stage. The session should be grounded in Fresh Energy’s coaching philosophy and accessible to both coaches and coachees.
Consultant Qualifications
We seek a consultant with demonstrated experience in coaching practice and organizational systems — someone who has strengthened coaching cultures in nonprofit or mission-driven settings. The ideal partner will integrate equity and power-awareness meaningfully into coaching practices and demonstrate comfort working with coaches at all levels of the organization.
We value humility, practical application, confidentiality, and evidence-informed approaches that lead to observable behavior change. Experience supporting hybrid teams and reinforcing psychologically safe feedback practices is strongly preferred.
Timeline and Budget
Proposals are due by June 30, 2026, with selection anticipated by July 31, 2026. We anticipate a four to five month engagement period.
Fresh Energy has allocated $6,000 for this engagement. We are intentionally seeking a focused, high-impact scope within this investment and welcome proposals that prioritize depth, rigor in assessment, equity-infused practice, and sustainability over volume of sessions.
Proposal Submission Requirements
Proposals should include:
- A description of the consultant’s coaching philosophy and approach
- Relevant experience in strengthening coaching cultures (especially in nonprofit settings)
- How equity and power-awareness are integrated into supervisory coaching practice
- Proposed approach to this engagement, including methodology and how findings will guide recommendations
- Two to three references
- A detailed fee breakdown reflecting the budget constraint
Proposals should be submitted electronically to:
Kate Hudak
Senior Associate, HR
Hudak@Fresh-Energy.org
Evaluation Criteria
We will invite consultants to join us for an interview as part of our evaluation. Proposals will be evaluated based on alignment with Fresh Energy’s mission and values, demonstrated coaching depth and expertise, integration of equity and power-awareness into supervisory practice, ability to strengthen an existing coaching model, practicality and behavior change focus, and fit within the $6,000 budget.