Professional Background:  William P. (Will) Irwin retired in 1990, closing his own company, Wm. P. Irwin and Co., a small, specialized management consulting firm, organized in 1977.  In earlier years he had held academic positions at Heidelberg College in Ohio, Colorado State University in Fort Collins, and Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, and has lectured at the New York University School of Law, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Rice University.  He holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley and is an Honorary Alumnus of the Ohio State University School of Natural Resources.

Will has held several public service appointments in Houston and elsewhere, including membership on the Regional Planning Commission of Cuyahoga County (Greater Cleveland, Ohio), two Governors’ Commissions in Wisconsin, and served as Organizing Director of the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (the area Council of Governments).  He is currently a board member of two nonprofit agencies in Houston and is a long-time member of the Service Corps of Retired Executives, a business start-up consulting organization.

ESCH Experience:  Will joined ESCH in 1999 and has served on several of its committees.  He has consulted with twenty-five or more nonprofits in Greater Houston, including, currently and very intensely, a foundation-supported Organizational Development Program for ten Zip Code Assistance Ministries located throughout the metropolitan area.  Other diverse nonprofits with which he has worked include The Guild Shop, Memorial Assistance Ministries, the Fort Bend County Women’s Center, CAMEO, Volunteer Interfaith Caregivers, LIFE Houston, the Homeless Youth Network, Katy Christian Ministries, the Nature Discovery Center, Sean Ashley House and Magnificat Houses.  He particularly enjoys consulting on matters of the governance of nonprofits (the roles, powers and sometimes squabbles among boards, chief executives, paid staffers and volunteers) and the organization and operation of profit centers, such as thrift/resale shops, that have been established to generate income for nonprofit charitable agencies.

Will believes ESCH is incomparable for two reasons:  the great depth of business and professional experience among its seventy-five or so active consultants and, because its consulting services are free, its consultants can take as much time as may be necessary to complete a job without draining the client’s treasury.