From Consulting to Social Impact: A Career Path Where Strategy Meets Purpose

By TechnoServe

Wondering what a social impact career looks like for former strategy consultants? Learn how TechnoServe's Strategic Initiatives team bridges corporate strategy with on-the-ground implementation, applying consulting skills to build market-based solutions that create lasting change for smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs.

For consultants, strategists, and analysts who want to make a tangible difference, social impact jobs offer a career path where business skills meet mission-driven work. Through TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives team, former consultants from McKinsey, Bain, and other leading firms are applying their expertise to end poverty by building sustainable, market-based solutions that transform lives.

Learn how Ginny Maceda, Myriam Sainz, and Ben Smith made the leap from strategy consulting to global social impact.

Ginny Maceda is currently the senior manager of nature on Danone North America’s Mission & Sustainability team, driving the rollout of initiatives in decarbonization, sustainable packaging, and nutrition access. She is based in New York. Before joining Danone, Ginny worked at Bain & Company and TechnoServe, leading corporate strategy and shared value projects that strengthened market linkages and improved livelihoods for smallholder farmers across sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America.

Myriam Sainz is a senior director on TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives team, based in Madrid, Spain. After five years at McKinsey in the U.S., Myriam joined TechnoServe, where she has been developing partnerships with corporate partners for the past 12 years, including important strategic partners such as Nespresso and Unilever. Myriam was also a TechnoServe Fellow in Guatemala in 2006 and 2007.

Ben Smith is an inclusive business manager at TechnoServe working under the CASA Kenya program. He is based in Nairobi, Kenya. Ben started his career at L.E.K. Consulting and was a Fellow with TechnoServe in 2021. In 2022, he joined TechnoServe full-time and has led several projects with corporate partners and African agribusinesses.

Why TechnoServe’s Social Impact Jobs Stand Out

For nearly 60 years, TechnoServe has developed a distinctive approach to poverty alleviation: business solutions that create lasting change. We work with enterprises across Africa, Latin America, and Asia to strengthen market systems, build inclusive supply chains, and unlock economic opportunities with smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs.

The Strategic Initiatives team plays a critical role in this mission. It partners with multinational corporations, donors, and other stakeholders to design and launch programs that increase incomes for smallholder farmers in agricultural value chains, delivering both business value and measurable social impact.

What It’s Like to Work on TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives Team

The Strategic Initiatives team operates at an unusual intersection. It bridges corporate strategy and grassroots implementation. Team members work across geographies and value chains, designing programs that must satisfy both business objectives and impact goals. There are currently 32 full-time team members split across the Americas, Europe, and Africa. 

“Much of my week on the SI team would feel familiar to anyone who’s worked in consulting,” explained Ginny Maceda, who worked on the team for 3 years before moving to Danone North America. “What made the SI work distinct were two things. First, the range of teams we engaged to inform the strategy—not just the client, but also local TechnoServe implementation teams, government counterparts, donors, and other actors in the relevant ecosystem. Second, the work often went ‘beyond the desk’.”

Ben Smith added, “We use the skills we learned at our consulting firms every day when we communicate with corporate teams or investors. We have an emphasis on getting things done and ensuring we have impact.”

Learn more about the Strategic Initiatives team. 

How Former Consultants Found Purpose at TechnoServe

Myriam, Ben, and Ginny share what drew them to TechnoServe and how the experience has shaped their careers.

Myriam Sainz: Leading Social Impact Across Regions

After five years at McKinsey & Company advising agribusiness and consumer goods corporations across the Americas and sub-Saharan Africa, Myriam joined TechnoServe to pursue her dream of building inclusive supply chains.

“I was totally bought into TechnoServe’s vision to take 500 million people out of poverty by embedding their small businesses into corporate supply chains, whether as suppliers or end consumers. It was exactly what I had left McKinsey to pursue.”

Her favorite project was the Nespresso Zimbabwe Reviving Origins Program. 

“I do have a special bond with the Nespresso Zimbabwe Reviving Origins Program, partly because I’ve seen it grow from a concept on PowerPoint  slides into real, physical upgrades on people’s houses and farms [as a result of income improvements].”

She led the diagnostic that validated the opportunity to save a coffee origin on the verge of disappearing. 

“I was extremely touched when I was welcomed back with singing and dancing two years later, and people remembered me by name. A woman named Anna held my hand and took me to see how she had cemented the floor of her kitchen and installed a toilet, thanks to her coffee earnings.”

When asked about what she finds most fulfilling, Myriam said, “If I had to choose one thing, I’d say the chance to build something from scratch (e.g., a concept on paper) and be part of its growth, witnessing the real impact on the ground, on people with names and faces that I can recognize. Anna in Zimbabwe, Jose in Puerto Rico, Bilha in Kenya, Hundatu in Ethiopia, Rejina in South Sudan, and many more.”

Ben Smith: From Strategy to Impact on the Ground

Ben joined TechnoServe full-time in 2022 after completing a Fellowship with the CASA program. “I really enjoyed the experience and found that I could use my consulting skills immediately to support the business by defining how to scale and resolve some of the challenges they were experiencing. I also felt I was having a tangible impact that I could see on the ground from the work I was doing.”

His recent projects include working for a large coffee retailer, designing a pricing and incentive structure to help farmers transition to regenerative practices. 

“It was very rewarding to hear how supported they felt by the retailer and seeing our work put into implementation.”

When asked about his thoughts on what makes TechnoServe unique, Ben noted,  “I think our experience in the private sector plays a big role in making us different in the social impact space. We have the skills and tools to communicate effectively with corporates and investors, but with the operational and field experience as an on-the-ground implementing organization to back up what we recommend based on our own experience.”

Ginny Maceda: Bringing TechnoServe Insights 

Growing up between the U.S. and the Philippines, Ginny went into consulting to build a toolkit for social impact work. “While at Bain, I had an opportunity to extern in Ethiopia launching an agribusiness accelerator, which opened my eyes to the potential for agriculture to drive impact at scale.”

“TechnoServe’s approach of ‘business solutions to poverty’ strongly resonated with how I think change happens, making the move feel like a natural next step.”

One memorable project involved supporting a first-time corporate partner launching a sustainable coffee sourcing program in Ethiopia. 

“Through time on the ground—speaking with farmers, agronomists, and wet mills—and deep collaboration with the client’s procurement and sustainability teams, and TechnoServe coffee experts, we shaped a program that promoted more sustainable agricultural practices while pushing for meaningful income improvements for farmers.”

When asked about how social impact work shaped her career, Ginny shared, “Working in social impact has really clarified where I want to build my career, but it’s also changed how I think about what actually drives change. Seeing the work up close reinforced the idea that lasting impact doesn’t come from one-off interventions or from just adding more funding. It requires systems-level thinking and solutions that align incentives across markets and actors.”

What You’ll Learn (and Gain) in a Social Impact Career

Working on TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives team develops skills that transfer across sectors. Core consulting capabilities remain essential—the 80/20 mindset, structured problem-solving, and clear communication all apply directly.

Ginny noted: “Through my work on SI, I grew more comfortable making decisions with incomplete information, adapting as on-the-ground realities evolve, and working within tighter resource constraints, which has sharpened my ability to prioritize what matters most.”

Stakeholder management becomes more complex, requiring consensus across corporates, investors, donors, and farmers. And understanding implementation—how strategies actually get executed on the ground—makes you a more effective strategist. 

Bringing farmers’ perspectives is fundamental to our work. For every program design, our teams travel to the field to meet and interview farmers, visit their farms, and understand their challenges and opportunities.

Advice for Aspiring Social Impact Professionals

Considering a move from consulting to social impact? Here’s what these professionals recommend:

Test it out first. Ben suggested, “There are lots of opportunities (not just with TechnoServe) to do a secondment in the social impact space. I’d recommend that someone try it first and see how they enjoy the work.”

Get clear on what you want. Ginny emphasized reflecting on your motivations. “Social impact is a very broad space, so it’s important to get clear on both the what and the how of the impact you want to make. Reflect on whether you’re most motivated by a specific issue area—livelihoods, financial inclusion, education, health—where you want to sit along the strategy-to-execution spectrum and what type of work culture you enjoy.”

“Do you want to be in the boardroom or closer to the field? Do you want to be at a large multinational, a foundation scaling a program, or a startup disrupting the space? Once you have some hypotheses, test them out. Take risks, try different roles, and don’t be afraid to course-correct. The path is rarely linear, and that’s okay!”

Look for organizations that bridge strategy and implementation. Ginny explained what makes TechnoServe distinctive. 

“TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives team sits at a unique intersection in the social impact space. There’s a strong foundation of strategic thinking and market-based approaches, paired with deep on-the-ground knowledge from implementation experience.”

“SI plays a critical role in bridging big-picture strategy with real-world execution—working with leaders in social impact and sustainability in the boardroom, and then translating those ambitions into programs that resonate with farmers and entrepreneurs in the field.”

Ready to Make a Difference? Join TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives Team

TechnoServe’s Strategic Initiatives team combines the rigor of top-tier consulting with the tangible impact of international development. If you’re ready to apply your strategic skills to ending poverty and building sustainable market systems, explore current opportunities at TechnoServe.