ABOUT

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Bridget Timmeney is the managing director of Align AZO LLC, a consulting firm based out of Kalamazoo, Michigan. Align AZO was founded in July 2019 and was inspired by Bridget’s lifelong career based in Kalamazoo, which later led to working with communities nationwide.

Bridget Timmeney spent over 40 years at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research in roles spanning both research and operations:

  • Program evaluation, labor market analysis, and community indicators research

  • Fiscal oversight, contract administration, and program compliance monitoring

  • Portfolio management for multi-year, multi-stakeholder initiatives

Now consulting through Align AZO, Bridget focuses on projects where she can contribute meaningfully — helping organizations design effective programs, evaluate impact, align stakeholders around shared goals, and secure the resources needed to do transformative work.

Bridget holds a Master of Social Work (Policy, Planning and Administration) from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and a B.A. in Sociology (Minor: Mathematics) from Kalamazoo College. She also studied at Université de Caen, France, and maintains conversational proficiency in French. Her current Spanish studies hope to soon rival her French skills.

Recognition & Impact

Bridget's research and project work has been published in numerous reports, working papers, and policy briefs through the Upjohn Institute, as well as in books addressing community economic development and place-based policy. Her evaluation research has informed program design and policy decisions for communities across the United States.

She has served on multiple nonprofit boards (currently active on several), founded a community-wide tax assistance program that has helped thousands of low-income families access tax credits, and helped establish regional networks focused on college access and workforce development.

Beyond her primary field, Bridget has provided grant strategy and development support to initiatives ranging from Arctic research expeditions to environmental conservation and remote sustainable farming projects, bringing the same evidence-based, impact-driven approach to understanding fundable priorities and building compelling cases for support.