About KRR Consulting

Meet Kate Ryan Reiling

Kate Ryan Reiling is an entrepreneur, educator, and innovation strategist who helps mission-driven leaders turn big ideas into sustainable action. With over 20+ years of experience launching ventures, building institutional programs, and leading growth at scale, Kate brings a rare blend of creative energy and operational know-how.

As founder of KRR Consulting, she partners with higher education institutions and entrepreneurial leaders to design new models, enter new markets, and grow with purpose. Her work is grounded in deep listening, clear strategy, and the belief that innovation should serve both people and possibility.

Kate has served as Chief Experience Officer at the African Leadership University, Director of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Macalester College, and founder of the award-winning Morphology Games. She’s raised millions in funding, built diverse teams, and guided leaders through complexity with clarity and heart.

Kate holds an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and a BA from Macalester College. She lives in Minneapolis with her daughter and believes that joy, rigor, and a good question can change everything.

Our Services

  • College leadership requires balancing tradition with transformation. As a president, you're tasked with honoring your institution's legacy while steering it toward a sustainable future—often with limited resources and competing priorities. You recognize the need for strategic evolution, but the path forward isn't always clear. Where should you focus? How do you honor your core values while adapting to changing educational landscapes? We can help you answer these questions and create a strategy to move into the future.

    Our Approach: 

    • Focused, high-impact consultation sprints designed specifically for higher education leadership

    • Engage with your institution's key visionaries and thought leaders

    • Facilitate meaningful conversations about your college's future

    • Distill actionable insights from those who best understand your unique culture and challenges

    • Explore market opportunities, higher education trends and other potential areas where you may be able to expand

    • Transform abstract possibilities into concrete strategic directions

    We help you address the essential question: "How do we evolve while remaining true to our institutional identity?"

  • Higher education is evolving, and institutions must adapt to meet emerging demands. We help you identify and evaluate new market opportunities, designing programs that are both financially sustainable and mission-aligned. Whether you’re exploring online programs, workforce development initiatives, or new student populations, we provide data-driven insights and strategic recommendations to ensure success.

  • Transformative ideas emerge when leaders have the space to think boldly. Our interactive workshops help institutions generate new program ideas, refine existing initiatives, and tackle pressing challenges with creativity and strategy. We facilitate structured yet dynamic sessions tailored to your institution’s goals, ensuring actionable outcomes.

  • Leading change in higher education requires vision, resilience, and adaptability. We offer one-on-one and group coaching for institutional leaders navigating complex challenges, helping them strengthen their leadership approach, align decisions with institutional goals, and drive meaningful impact.

  • Grow your leadership and clarify your vision as you build something bold. As a founder, your mindset, energy, and decision-making are at the heart of your business. Through one-on-one coaching, we work on both the inner and outer work of entrepreneurship—strengthening your confidence, sharpening your focus, and navigating uncertainty with clarity. Whether you're managing burnout, leading a team, or trying to move forward without burning out, this is where growth starts.

    You’ll walk away with clearer priorities, aligned decision-making, and tools to lead with more ease and intention.

“One of the smartest moves I ever made was bringing in Kate Reiling to build the entrepreneurship program at Macalester. She is close to unique in her ability to understand the culture and speak the language of both innovators and educators. She knows that transformational change in higher education is difficult, but has proven that with the right ideas and the right plan, it is possible.”

— Brian Rosenberg, President Emeritus, Macalester College

"Kate Reiling’s recent work with our graduate program was transformative. With her sharp perspective on the changing education landscape, she illuminated student priorities and shaped our vision for the future. Her strategic guidance has positioned us to adapt and thrive in an ever-evolving field."

— Ryan Armbruster, Senior Fellow and Director of Health Administration Executive Studies, University of Minnesota School of Public Health

“I had the pleasure of working with Kate on a significant learning model project that was important to both of us. While the inherent challenges of the project–exacerbated by already having students in the program–almost overwhelmed my circuits, Kate saw an opportunity to do something really cool. And, thanks to her, we did. Kate demonstrated a rare gift for turning interesting and well-intentioned, but unworkable, ideas into something coherent, even elegant, while still retaining the original intent. Oh, and she did all this with intelligence and a sly sense of humor.”

— Keith Lynip, Chief Product Officer, African Leadership University

"Working with Kate jumpstarted a large project that had many details to figure out. Her structure and questions were invaluable in helping me figure out where to start, how to activate my very small team, and work methodically to create quality work within a short timeframe.”

— Connie Rutledge, Executive Director, FINNovation Institute

“Kate's advice was wildly helpful. She encouraged us to focus on key aspects of our business and gave us the confidence to raise prices. We did so and are in a totally different and better place because of it. While a few former clients fell away, most stayed, and we’ve gotten new ones. We are making more money while doing less overall work than we were a year ago, which is pretty good.”

- Tane Danger, Co-Founder, Danger Boat Productions

“Working with Kate has been a game changer for my business and for myself professionally. As an academic-turned-entrepreneur, I have been learning the ropes of business-building and self-confidence amid uncertainty. Kate's expertise in entrepreneurship, coupled with her authentic caring and clear-headedness, makes her an ideal business coach. She has helped me unlock so many areas of potential and has helped me untangle the inevitable knots in the journey of a new business. Working with Kate has been a smart investment in my business! I am so grateful for her help and recommend her coaching to anyone looking to grow.”

- Tina Kruse, PhD, Founder, Student Well Coaching & Consulting LLC