An involved, dedicated member of the New Orleans community – and a brilliant consultant – Kevin Wilkins and his team have helped hundreds of local organizations reach their goals and thrive. He recently used these skills to bring together hundreds of people to help support Louisiana children in a major way.
After a career with Procter & Gamble, Wilkins gained a greater understanding of how to run organizations, and he later moved into the financial services industry. In 2010, his wife accepted a job with Tulane University in her hometown of New Orleans, and Wilkins started learning more about the local ecosystem as soon as he arrived. While working with Idea Village, he realized that many nonprofits and entrepreneurial organizations in the city needed support around sustainability to maximize their impact.
In time, Wilkins founded the strategy consulting firm Trepwise. His long career in corporate and private organizations helps inform his work with these local organizations. As Wilkins explains, strategic plans are essential, and this includes clarity around an organization’s impact and messaging as well.
Now a busy firm with many consultants, the Trepwise team remains focused on one goal: driving an equitable vision based on good ideas. In particular, the team excels at strategic planning, which includes mapping out a vision to maximize an organization’s impact, as well as systems work.
Many consulting firms focus on an organization’s financials first. The Trepwise team, meanwhile, is more human centered, focusing instead on organizational charts, stakeholders, board members, and the community they are serving.
Collectively, the team has collaborated with over 550 organizations. Some of their clients include Catholic Charities, Downtown Development District, Greater New Orleans Foundation, Jewish Federation of New Orleans, New Orleans & Company, Team Gleason, Touro Infirmary Foundation, Tulane University, United Way and YouthForce Nola.
Although the team has expanded their work to include clients nationwide, their commitment to New Orleans, Louisiana – and why they started here – remains as strong as ever.
A wide-reaching plan to address the prevalence of childhood trauma throughout the state, the Whole Health Louisiana (WHL) State Plan is an unprecedented undertaking. Designed to help people understand the impact of trauma on the lives of children, this plan also addresses strategies to help prevent and treat such trauma as well. The Trepwise team was chosen to help design and facilitate the plan’s creation.
“This is one of the moments I’m most proud of,” said Wilkins, who added that it was an honor to be chosen for this role.
Drawing on their strong suits of strategic planning and systems work, the Trepwise team pulled together over 100 organizations for an in-depth discovery process. To bring together a comprehensive, actionable plan, they worked with over 700 individuals to learn more about the ways to address childhood adversity. These included scientists who study resilience and childhood trauma, community members, and subject matter experts.
“This is tough. These topics are tough and really heavy,” said Wilkins. “Organizations don’t always want to work with one another. What was beautiful about this process: organizations kept showing up, and they wanted to work together to understand the challenges.”
Making others aware of the available resources, as well as ensuring their accessibility, is another major component of the project. They also want to take care of the workforce responsible for helping these children, as well as put metrics in place to measure success.
The 5-year, $5-million plan begins to take effect in January 2024. Addressing these concerns now is timely, as Louisiana currently ranks 49th in general child well-being, according to America’s Health Rankings. The team has many plans to help address this issue. For instance, they want to ensure that those who work directly with children know how to identify aspects of trauma and respond accordingly.
“The youth of the state will benefit,” said Wilkins. “It’s such a wonderful moment for Louisiana and children who face this type of adversity.” The long-term goal is to prevent this type of trauma from occurring in the first place, with subsequent plans in place to identify, understand, and treat trauma in a healthy way.
Lastly, spreading the word about WHL and helping to raise awareness is crucial. “The beauty of this state is that people do talk to one another,” Wilkins said. “If someone is suffering, let them know there is hope.” Connecting people to these available resources is key.
Get Involved
Join the coalition by emailing WHL@la.gov to learn more about their work and stay connected to Whole Health Louisiana. Visit their website to read about the plans, the involved organizations, and what it means to adopt a trauma-informed approach.
ldh.la.gov/page/WholeHealthLouisiana
info@trepwise.com
trepwise.com
