As part of a long-standing program, the October Purpose Hour was the first event CiviCO hosted as part of Omni, and it proved to be a truly inspiring conversation.
Since then, I have been reflecting on Mayor Yemi’s advice to the private sector audience in the room that evening:
What struck me most is how closely this advice aligns with Omni’s approach as an organization and why it resonates so deeply with us in this moment.
As part of a long-standing program, the October Purpose Hour was the first event CiviCO hosted as part of Omni, and it proved to be a truly inspiring conversation.
Since then, I have been reflecting on Mayor Yemi’s advice to the private sector audience in the room that evening:
What struck me most is how closely this advice aligns with Omni’s approach as an organization and why it resonates so deeply with us in this moment.
Take a Human-First Approach
This principle is at the heart of our work. Our model blends rigorous research methods with human-centered approaches. Our rebrand this year elevated this message clearly: “rigorous, human-centered solutions.” In a time of rapid advances in AI and deep national polarization, we believe that engaging together as humans in shared community is the best path to creating lasting positive change.
Know Your Values
At a time when many of our values are under pressure at the federal level and in public discourse, we have not wavered. Our commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion, especially through equitable evaluation, remains central to our work. These values guide both our client engagements and our internal culture. They provide stability for our staff, clarity in decision-making, and a strong foundation for why and how we do this work.
Think at a Systems Level
Real change does not happen in isolation. It requires shifting systems. Our recent work on the Boulder Guaranteed Income Project illustrates this truth. Individual-level solutions can translate to meaningful progress, but lasting social change often requires structural transformation. That is why we continue to help clients understand their broader context, address multiple levels of impact, and pursue solutions that strengthen systems as well as people.
Connecting Back to Our Merger with CiviCO
It is no coincidence that these three themes (human-first engagement, values clarity, and systems thinking) are what led us to merge with CiviCO. Our values as organizations align deeply. CiviCO’s mission complements ours, and their human-to-human leadership development work expands Omni’s capacity to deliver people-centered solutions. Equally important, CiviCO’s focus on building Colorado’s civic fabric broadens the ways we can advance systems-level change and strengthen our collective impact in Colorado and beyond.
To the future,
Aaron
