Meet Our Team

Aly Sterling

President & Founder

Looking back on almost 20 years of business growth and reputation, Aly Sterling credits success to her innovative team of seasoned professionals; her refusal to compromise quality; and her ability to adapt, pivot and leverage, over-and-over again.

Today, Aly manages the strategic direction and growth of her firm while advising select clients on the organizational opportunities that impact their mission success, scalability, and sustainability.

In 2015, Aly led her firm to membership in The Giving Institute, an exclusive and highly respected international organization for nonprofit consultants. The Giving Institute is best known for publishing the annual Giving USA report – and today she also serves on the Giving USA Foundation board.

In 2018, Aly was inducted into the Northwest Ohio Entrepreneurial and Business Excellence Hall of Fame. In 2023, the firm was named the inaugural winner of the University of Toledo Family Business Center’s Doing Right for the Future of Humankind award.

Aly’s expertise includes strategic planning, fundraising, grantmaking, and board development for organizations including nonprofits, corporations, and family and community foundations. She is regularly sought for comment by trade and mainstream media, including the Chronicle of Philanthropy and U.S. News & World Report. She has contributed to the publications of BoardSource, The Governance Institute, and The Giving Institute. Aly has been a frequently featured presenter for leading regional and national organizations including NetJets, Owens Corning, Philanthropy Ohio, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and First Tee.

Aly is an alumna of Leadership Toledo, a recipient of the “20 Under 40” award, and a Women in Communications Crystal Award winner. Aly holds a master’s degree from the University of Toledo and is a fellowship graduate of the executive leadership program at Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management. Most recently, she earned certification in the 21/64 approach to working with multigenerational families with funds, foundations, and other family enterprises. Each semester Aly proudly teaches a course on women and entrepreneurship and corporate social responsibility at Bowling Green State University.

Aly serves on boards for The Giving Institute and Giving USA foundations, the University of Toledo Center for Family Business, and the Bowling Green State University Paul J. Hooker Entrepreneur Leadership Center. She is a past president of the boards of St. Ursula Academy in Toledo, Ohio and the Northwest Ohio chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. She is a former board member of Leadership Toledo, the Arts Commission of Greater Toledo, David’s House, and Advocating Opportunity, an organization formed to stop human trafficking.

In 2020, she published a book about her experiences transcending personal and professional barriers to becoming a female entrepreneur titled, “37: The Year I Stopped Making Excuses, Embraced My Power & Launched My Million-Dollar Business.” More about the book and Aly’s work in this space can be found here.