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Strategic Counsel

For organizations that need a senior communications partner embedded in their work, not a project vendor on the outside looking in.

Format Monthly retainer
Minimum Three months
Delivery All work through Yasmine directly

A partnership built on genuine investment in your outcomes.

Strategic Counsel is the foundational TCC engagement. We work alongside you as an embedded strategic advisor, thinking through your narrative challenges in real time, building the communications architecture that holds up across stakeholders, borders, languages, and shifting environments.

This is not a deliverable-based relationship. There are no project milestones, no handoff at completion. It is a sustained advisory relationship built on genuine investment in your outcomes. We are present for the moments that matter: the strategy pivot, the stakeholder shift, the narrative that needs to land right the first time.

Every engagement runs through Yasmine directly. No account teams. No junior consultants. The senior counsel you discuss in the first conversation is the counsel you receive throughout.

The full range of strategic communications work.

  • Communications and narrative strategy across institutional contexts
  • Stakeholder and donor messaging for complex, multi-audience environments
  • Institutional positioning and reputational advisory
  • Thought leadership development and platform strategy
  • Crisis and issues navigation with high-stakes messaging
  • Editorial and content strategy aligned to institutional objectives
  • Senior leader communications support
  • Cross-cultural and multilingual communications advisory
  • Media strategy and spokesperson preparation
  • Conference, convening, and high-visibility moment preparation

The scope shifts with what you need. The month you are navigating a leadership transition looks different from the month you are preparing a major report launch. That is the nature of embedded advisory work, and that flexibility is its core value.

Organizations operating at the intersection of mission and complexity.

Strategic Counsel is for institutions and organizations that carry real missions in complex environments and need communications counsel that understands both.

The right fit

Development-focused institutions, foundations, regional and multilateral banks, NGOs, governments, policy institutions, and senior leaders operating in the Global South or across complex international environments.

The right moment

Organizations that need sustained senior counsel, not a one-time deliverable. You operate in high-stakes environments where communications mistakes carry real consequences and getting it right matters.

The engagement model

Monthly retainer. Minimum three months. No handoffs, no junior teams. All work runs through Yasmine Djellal directly.

We are direct about fit. If the timing is not right or the engagement is not the right shape for what you need, we say so. The right match matters more than the contract.

Questions about Strategic Counsel

How does a retainer engagement actually work day to day?

We start with a deep onboarding conversation: your mission, your audiences, your current communications landscape, and where you feel the gaps. From there, we establish a regular rhythm, typically a standing call plus availability for ad hoc needs as they arise. The model adapts to the way your organization actually works, not a rigid framework imposed from the outside.

What does the minimum three-month commitment reflect?

Strategic communications work requires context. The first month is significant investment from both parties: learning your organization, your stakeholders, your history, and your language. Months two and three are where the real work accelerates. Three months is the minimum commitment because anything shorter doesn't give the advisory relationship time to produce meaningful results.

Can you work across multiple languages with our international stakeholders?

Yes. Yasmine advises in Arabic, English, French, and Spanish, reflecting the regions and institutions TCC works with most. This is genuine advisory capability, not translation. We can engage directly with stakeholders, review materials, and advise on cross-cultural communication in all four languages.

How is Strategic Counsel different from hiring a communications consultant?

The difference is investment and integration. A consultant delivers defined outputs. An embedded advisor is present for the decisions, the pivots, and the moments that don't fit a project scope. We think with you, not just for you. And the 18+ years of experience Yasmine brings from inside institutions like the World Bank Group, Nathan Associates, and The Cadmus Group means the counsel comes from someone who has operated in these environments, not observed them.

Does TCC work with organizations outside the Global South?

Yes. We work with any institution that operates in, partners with, or cares about international development and complex global environments. That includes multilateral institutions, foundations, research organizations, think tanks, and businesses operating across borders. The Global South is where our deepest expertise lies, and where we focus, but the work extends wherever the mission takes you.

Ready to talk about what sustained advisory support could do for your organization?

We take on a limited number of Strategic Counsel clients at any given time to ensure every engagement receives the level of attention it demands. If the timing is right, we'd like to hear about your work.

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