About Wylie Advisory
Most consultants advise. I build — and stay involved.
Wylie Advisory is a governance and operations partner for private foundations, public charities, and the governments building them. I do the practical work that doesn't require a JD but absolutely needs to get done.
A decade+
In mission-driven work
8-figure
Foundation assets advised
3 markets
Foundations, charities, government
51 states
Compliance coverage
The Story
I'm not just a consultant who advises — I'm someone who builds the infrastructure and stays involved as long as you need me. That's the whole idea behind Wylie Advisory. Strategy decks are easy to produce and easy to ignore. The operations that actually keep a foundation compliant and a nonprofit running are harder, less glamorous, and where I spend my time.
For more than a decade I've worked across the sector — serving as an AmeriCorps member with Gardeneers, founding City Farmers, an urban agriculture program fiscally sponsored by the Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago, and advising a private foundation with 8-figure assets on program and nonprofit creation. The strawberry you'll spot around this site is a nod to that farming chapter — and to the belief that good things grow from the ground up.
That range taught me what separates organizations that thrive from those that struggle. It almost always comes down to operational infrastructure — the governance, the systems, the unglamorous follow-through. Wylie Advisory exists to build that for you, whether you're a foundation steward navigating a transition, a nonprofit founder taking the first steps, or a government standing up a new entity.
Background: Founded Wylie Advisory (2024) and City Farmers (2022); AmeriCorps service with Gardeneers (2019). Studied architecture at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago — at the time, one of the top two art and design schools in the United States.
Ian Wylie Hedrick, Founder
Experience & Credentials
A decade of hands-on work across foundations, nonprofits, and the programs that connect them.
Private Foundation Operations
Ongoing operational management, governance frameworks, and transition support for foundations — including retainer engagements and advising a foundation with 8-figure assets on program and nonprofit creation.
Governance & Compliance
Deep expertise in board development, self-dealing and distribution rules, annual filings, and the day-to-day compliance work that keeps a foundation or nonprofit in good standing.
Nonprofit Formation & Strategy
Guided organizations through every step of 501(c)(3) formation — from articles of incorporation to IRS determination letters — and stayed on to build the governance behind them.
Fiscal Sponsorship & Program Building
Founded City Farmers, an urban agriculture program fiscally sponsored by the Public Health Institute of Metropolitan Chicago, and served as an AmeriCorps member with Gardeneers — building charitable programs from the ground up.
On the record
Speaking on building durable institutions
Ian joined the Builders, Innovators and Job Creators panel at the Coinbase Update the System Summit in Washington, DC — part of an ongoing conversation about the operational and governance structures that let mission-driven organizations last.
Update the System Summit · Washington, DC · 2024
My Approach
There's an accessible middle ground between hiring a law firm for everything and figuring it out alone. Attorneys draft the documents that require a license; I handle the operational and governance work that surrounds them — the setup, the systems, the ongoing management — at a fraction of the cost and with a lot more continuity.
The depth of my involvement scales with your needs. Some clients need help once. Others keep me on a retainer to run operations month to month. Either way, I build capacity rather than dependency — leaving you with the knowledge, systems, and confidence to operate on your own — while staying available as long as you need me.
Whether you're just starting out or strengthening what you've already built, I meet you where you are and help you get where you need to go.
Who I Work With
Three markets, one throughline: the operational and governance work that keeps mission-driven organizations running.
Private Foundations
Stewards navigating a foundation they didn't create
Inheritors and family members who need operational management, a governance framework, and transition support for a foundation that landed in their hands — often mid-generational change.
Foundation servicesPublic Charities
Founders and organizations building for the long term
Nonprofit founders and existing organizations that need hands-on support — from formation and governance setup through board development and ongoing advisory guidance.
Charity servicesMunicipal Government
Public agencies standing up new entities
Local governments that need governance, operations, and entity-formation support — including the hybrid work of spinning up nonprofit or foundation vehicles alongside public programs.
Start a conversationLet's build your operational foundation.
Whether you steward a foundation, are launching a nonprofit, or need to stand up a new entity, let's talk about the right support for your organization.