Kiana Scott Strategies offers strategy and communication consulting at the intersection of philanthropy, government relations, and public policy. 

Kiana Scott is a strategist and storyteller who brings her experience working across politics, advocacy, development, nonprofit leadership and civic engagement to help mission-driven organizations increase their impact and drive investment and action.

Services

Kiana partners with mission-driven organizations to craft winning messages, drive investment, and inspire action. She works collaboratively to customize the right approach for the organization and unique set of issues at hand. She excels at bringing clarity to complex processes, and is an organized and efficient project manager.

  • Supporting alignment of mission, vision, action, and narrative to advance goals and impact, and to communicate effectively with internal and external audiences

  • Partnering with clients who know what they want to say but need support in finding the most powerful way to communicate their work

  • Crafting compelling narratives--and building strong relationships--to reach key decision makers and influencers, and in turn activate, persuade, mobilize, and transform target audiences

  • Leading and facilitating masterclasses in strategic communication for groups, fellowship programs, and teams

About

Kiana Scott is a strategy and communication leader with more than a decade of experience working across government relations, philanthropy, and public policy; she founded Kiana Scott Strategies to bring these elements together in service of mission-driven organizations. In addition to working with organizations to support their work, she teaches Strategic Communication for the Executive MPA program at the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Washington. 

Before launching Kiana Scott Strategies, she built and led development and communication programs for nonprofit organizations, and helped launch a nonprofit focused on economic stability, bringing together unexpected partners and funders to build a new approach to growing America’s middle class. She previously led external relationships for the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Washington, and while a doctoral student was appointed the student member of the UW Board of Regents by Governor Jay Inslee. 

She earned her Ph.D. and MA in political communication from UW, studying contemporary American campaign discourse and gender, and wrote her dissertation about the 2016 presidential election. She earned her MPA from the Evans School at UW with a focus in legislative processes. Prior to graduate school, Kiana worked on political campaigns for the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate, and President Obama’s 2008 campaign, both in Washington and around the country. 

Kiana is President of the Board and former Leadership Fellow of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, President of the National Women’s Political Caucus of Washington, a frequent speaker at Town Hall Seattle, and an elected Precinct Committee Officer. She graduated from Williams College, where she majored in medieval history and art history (her favorite painter is Sargent). Kiana grew up on San Juan Island and spends as much time as possible on or near the water with her family. 

What people are saying

  • “I truly appreciated Kiana’s interactions with our team. She was always thoughtful in her recommendations for us and brought her expertise to the table with confidence. Her suggestions for speaking points and messaging were always strong. She was a big part of our effort to connect with legislators which ultimately resulted in a significant investment in our mission-based work. Honestly, I wish we had more opportunities to interact with her.”

    Paul Chiocco, Vice President, Development, Pacific Science Center

  • “Kiana is a high-level strategist and thought partner who will add value to any organization.  She is a strong writer, a creative tactician, and a navigator of complex challenges.   Her leadership, expertise, and relationship-building skills made her a critical part of our team.”

    David Rolf, Founder & President Emeritus, SEIU 775; Author, The Fight for Fifteen (New Press 2016) and A Roadmap to Rebuilding Worker Power (The Century Foundation, 2018)

  • “In addition to her functional expertise in fundraising, communications, local policy and nonprofit connections, and organizational development, Kiana elevated the structure, rigor, aspiration, and professionalism of our organization. She sees the big picture and grasps new concepts easily: she is an excellent thought partner, capable of dissecting an issue from multiple sides both with seasoned intellect and grass-roots realities. Kiana came ready to work, and made the organization better in every possible way.”

    Sherry Cromett, former President, CareerWork$

  • “Any team would be lucky to work with Kiana.  She is great at quickly understanding the context she is working in, putting together a plan, and keeping things moving. She is also a masterful communicator and a smart writer.  Most of all, Kiana gets things done, is easy to work with, and is a lot of fun.”

    Catalan Conlon, Catalan Conlon Consulting