MEET THE FIRM
Community & economic development
Overview
Kristen Olmi created K.O. Consulting, LLC in 2010 while she was still pursuing her Master’s Degree. Upon graduation in 2012 from the University of Akron with a Masters of Applied Politics she began to grow the LLC in earnest. Kristen is currently the managing member of K.O. Consulting, LLC, while employed full time as the Grant Coordinator for the Mahoning County Sanitary Engineering Department. K.O. Consulting, LLC has recently added equity partners and hired contractors to manage the growth opportunities of the industry.
Meet Our Team
Kristen Olmi
Chief Economic Development Strategist
Kristen served as the Grants Coordinator for the Mahoning County Sanitary Engineering Department for eight years. Her grant writing has secured millions of dollars for our community and local non-profit organizations.
Samantha Yannucci
Community Development
Combining community development with health and wellness is Samantha’s forte. Having lived in Denver, Stockholm, and Amsterdam, she brings a wealth of knowledge and a unique and international perspective to creating more connected and navigable cities and to improving quality of life for residents.
Samantha holds a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the University of Colorado Denver and a bachelor’s degree in geography from Youngstown State University. She comes back to the Youngstown area to share her knowledge, skills, and creativity to advocate for the connection between holistic wellness and urban planning, with a particular focus on urban food systems; active transportation; and recreation.
Samantha is deeply committed to simplifying over-complicated systems to create stronger, more independent, resilient, and wholesome societies. It is her ultimate goal to empower communities with the knowledge they need to succeed in their environments and to demonstrate first hand how residents can be more actively engaged in increasing health and wellness outcomes through active participation and civic engagement.
VICTORIA RUSU-EBERT
Director of Business Development & Operations
Combining a background in business and marketing with experience in non-profit development, Victoria is passionate about finding creative opportunities to drive purpose-driven partnerships.
She started her career more than a decade ago in community development, and has since lent her knowledge and skills to a variety of organizations working in marketing, tech start-ups, entrepreneurial ventures, nonprofit administration, and global community and corporate development. Prior to joining the team, Victoria managed corporate partnerships for a global nonprofit providing life-changing surgery to children in need across 32 countries. Her diverse portfolio consisted of national and global partners, spanning from Fortune 500 companies to small businesses, civic groups, and community organizations. In late 2020, Victoria returned to her roots in the Youngstown, Ohio area, joining the team at KO Consulting, LLC as Director of Business Development & Operations in April 2021. In this capacity, Victoria oversees marketing, communication and fundraising for the firm, lends her diverse experience to help clients identify right-fit opportunities to market and grow their organizations, and oversees the day-to-day operations that keep the KO team running.
She is passionate about communicating the immense growth potential in the Mahoning Valley, and ensuring the businesses that have chosen to make this area their home base have the tools they need to achieve long-term success.
Matthew Longmire
Matthew is a graduate of Kent State University. While at Kent he majored in Business Administration with a focus in Management. While at Kent State he was awarded scholarships to study abroad in both London, England and Dublin, Ireland.