Lindsey Delahunt, MS, AMFT
Lindsey Delahunt is a human-centered operations leader specializing in fundraising consulting, where she focuses on strengthening the systems that support both people and mission-driven work. As Director of Operations and Client Services at The Compass Group, a fully remote firm, she plays a pivotal role in ensuring organizational cohesion across a distributed team. Working closely with executive leadership, Lindsey designs and manages internal systems, including the company’s intranet and collaboration tools, to enhance communication, streamline workflows, and maintain strong connections among consultants. Her work ensures that even in a virtual environment, teams remain aligned, supported, and engaged.
With a background in marriage and family therapy, Lindsey brings a systems-oriented perspective to operations—viewing organizations as interconnected networks where relationships, communication, and structure all influence outcomes. She is known for creating spaces where team members feel heard, supported, and empowered, often serving as a trusted point of contact for consultants to share challenges and insights. By actively listening and translating feedback into actionable improvements, she helps build sustainable systems that prioritize both effectiveness and well-being. Her leadership style centers on identifying individual strengths and passions, then aligning those with client needs to create more meaningful and impactful work.
In addition to her professional role, Lindsey is deeply committed to community engagement and advocacy. As the founder and president of a local chapter of the National Organization for Women, she leads initiatives that promote equity, education, and inclusive leadership. Across all areas of her work, Lindsey is driven by a belief that strong systems should support—not strain—the people within them. Through collaboration, intentional design, and a focus on human connection, she continues to redefine what effective, compassionate operations can look like in today’s evolving workplace.
• Capella University - Marriage and Family Therapy (Graduate degree)
• Western Illinois University
Bachelor's degree, Journalism
• 2026 State of Illinois Comptroller's Women's History Month nominee
• Normal NOW
• National Organization for Women (NOW)
• Founder and President of Normal Now (local chapter of National Organization for Women)
What do you attribute your success to?
I have had an amazing group of supporters this last year that have encouraged me to show up in spaces that I didn't think that there was a place for me. I would say that really learning myself and how I wanted to show up this last year has been key. With everything going on in the world and in even just local community, I really wanted to know myself, and what was I willing to put myself out there for. That self-reflection of where do I want my impact to be heard the most, and how do I do that in a way that is inclusive of myself, the people in my community, the people that I want to advocate for - that's what has been helping me be most successful. It's clarifying my message and really knowing what does success for me look like in my position, and adapting the way that I work in this position to reflect how that would be successful to me, because it's not always my salary. For me, it really is what is the impact that I'm able to make, and making sure that aligns with the work that I'm doing.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Don't be afraid to have my voice be heard. I always thought that to be a leader, I needed to be loud and controlling - I just thought that was what leadership did. But the best advice I got was from one of my supervisors during my practicum, who said, "Silence is sometimes a great form of leadership." But also, don't be afraid to let your voice be heard, even if it isn't the loudest in the room.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say to anybody who's looking at starting a career in operations, and they're not sure how project management goes, or how IT or support or development goes, that's okay, because there's still a space for understanding people and understanding the way that systems impact people. The world of operations, I feel, is very led by men who focus on the IT part, and I think women often find that they have to focus on that as well. But especially with the introduction of AI, operations can focus on your system and how people are connecting, and people are being onboarded and informed. Because of AI, it actually allows us to invest more in our people and focusing in on those skills. That can be a great way to show up now, especially with the introduction of AI - how do you understand relationships, systems, and how those impact people? AI is focused on making your day-to-day tasks easier, so operations can focus on people.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
AI is a huge challenge right now. Everybody is talking about it across the board with that fear-based, oh, it's going to take my job, or oh, it's going to make me obsolete. I think women, and especially those who have primarily served in roles of administration or support, do feel like AI is a threat. I think right now, learning how to use AI responsibly, but also how to continue to show that people are still important - that's one of my biggest challenges right now across the board. As for opportunities, right now I am doing some soft skill training, teaching our consultants how to show up as humans and how to show up as advocates with their clients, so that AI doesn't become something that our clients think is more reliable. Other opportunities right now include the local work that I do with our nonprofit, Normal Now, where we're really introducing community organizations to how to collaborate and using AI to help alleviate some of the work on your volunteers, but it doesn't replace the work that you're going to have to do with one another and other organizations. So just educational opportunities right now to really do the research and put the information out there so that everyone can access it.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
It's definitely collaboration. I think this whole last year has been about learning how to collaborate and create spaces for everyone to contribute. I work with the National Organization for Women, the local group that I have, Normal NOW, and I want to empower women to find a space for their voice. I have women who want to do advocacy, I have women who want to do book clubs that teach about DEI and inclusivity, I have women who want to use art to impact the community. It's just hearing them, and listening to them, and finding the space to say, this is your space. You can do it. What do you need from me to be able to help you to do that? And I do that in my work. So, with my consultants, you know, they say I want to do this type of presentation, I want to learn about this. Okay, great. How can I help you do that, and how do I create the space for you to be successful? Those are the values that have helped me throughout this entire year.