From Operational Chaos to Conservation Focus: How We Helped MCD Reclaim 10+ Hours Weekly and Build Scalable Systems for Growth

September 17, 2025•5 min read

Missaukee Conservation District

We helped Missaukee Conservation District turn operational chaos and scattered systems into a streamlined, automated organization—reclaiming 10+ hours weekly so their 5-person team could focus on conservation impact instead of administrative overwhelm while building scalable infrastructure for continued growth.

Challenge

The problem we faced

"When we first connected with Hailey at Echoroot, our small team of 5 was struggling in what I can only describe as operational chaos due to growing immensely in a short period of time.

We have a small staff, and our focus is on education and technical assistance, so marketing, website design, and brand voice were things we were stressing about and spending more time on when we wanted to focus on our powerful conservation programs that had real impact in our community.

As a conservation district, our mission is helping local landowners implement sustainable conservation practices and to engage the community in conservation more broadly. We desperately needed someone to take full ownership of reviewing our operations and marketing - not just give us another platform to learn but actually think strategically about our unique challenges and drive real results." - Dani Hamilton, District Manager

Why Hailey was different

"Hailey's approach was exactly what we needed, but what blew me away was how quickly she got us. From day one, she felt like part of our team.

She didn't try to make us fit into some generic business template - she took time to understand the unique challenges conservation districts face, from seasonal project cycles to diverse stakeholder groups to grant funding requirements.

What set Hailey apart from other consultants we'd talked to was her genuine understanding of our situation. She didn't just have technical expertise - she had lived experience in our world. When we talked about the frustration of being pulled away from workshops to manage admin tasks, she nodded knowingly.

But here's what really impressed me: I fully trust her. I never had to worry about chasing her down, over-explaining our needs, or wondering if something was going to hit the mark. It always did.

Plus, she's genuinely kind, happy, and just nice to work with - which matters more than you'd think when you're doing intensive systems work together for months." - Dani Hamilton, District Manager

Solution

The transformation process

"The Complete Transformation process felt manageable even with our crazy schedules because Hailey handled the heavy lifting while we focused on what we do best.

But honestly, watching her work was incredible. She was like having someone go into our heads and extract every scattered idea we had about how we could do things better, and making it real, with her own strategic suggestions too!

Hailey really helped expand our brand and helped us define our brand voice guidelines and key messaging so we can articulate why our work matters to different stakeholder groups.

The AI content creation training alone was a game-changer for developing materials. AI was not something we had used before and we have been told by so many that if we do not learn AI we will be left behind in technology.

She was patient and helped us understand the benefits and how to use AI as a tool to aid us and make our work more efficient.

When she walked us through our new website and how it connects to the automated pipelines, I felt years of frustration go away. I knew immediately after looking over the new website, that it would save our staff so much time and energy.

This will allow us to keep our focus on the “ground” literally and focus on our conservation projects.

Hailey built us a completely new website with SEO optimization that actually helps locals find our programs when they're searching online. The advanced marketing automations and custom workflow automations can handle everything from initial inquiries to project completion follow-ups without us lifting a finger.

We got unlimited relationship roadmaps for different stakeholders (a total game-changer), a social media strategy with scheduling tools and 30 Canva templates that make us look professional, plus a lead magnet that pre-qualifies interested people.

She gave us a volunteer management system and platform that revolutionized how we coordinate and engage our volunteers - they can finally access everything independently!

She also gave us an event management system that streamlined our workshop registration, and even our reputation management runs on autopilot now.

Plus, the recruitment pipeline automation? It's going to make finding a qualified candidate and hiring staff a lot easier.

She equipped our entire team with confidence through comprehensive video trainings and ongoing email support.

What I loved most was that even our less tech-savvy staff members felt comfortable using the new systems because everything was designed around how we actually work. No more tech overwhelm - just systems that make sense.

But what really impressed me was how she finds creative solutions to our unique needs and constraints, actually explains marketing concepts and why she's recommending something in terms we can understand, and consistently goes above and beyond what we expected." - Dani Hamilton, District Manager

Result

Results we're already seeing

"The biggest win so far is getting our time back. We're not constantly playing catch-up anymore or having to reinvent the wheel every few months. She gave us the strategy, the process, and software systems that'll run in the background while we focus on the conservation work that inspired us to do this in the first place.

The changes we're already seeing are incredible. Even just a few months in, we reclaimed 10+ hours every week that we used to spend on administrative work - time we can now spend focusing on actual conservation work.

Having Hailey as our growth partner means we can focus on conservation while knowing our operations infrastructure is solid and scalable. What's been most valuable is the mental energy she's saved our entire team.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by scattered systems and administrative chaos, I can't recommend Hailey highly enough.

She doesn't just understand the technical side - she takes the time to understand your work and builds systems that amplify your impact instead of hindering it.

She truly goes above and beyond to ensure that you will have the tools needed and in place to grow successfully without the stress!" - Dani Hamilton, District Manager

Social media templates