Digital Government · Policy · State Capacity

Where delivery meets policy.

A boutique advisory firm bringing senior federal practitioner expertise to the hardest problems in government modernization, policy reform, and institutional capacity.

LEONIE CONSULTING DC · Federal Trust Foundation Delivery Capability Structure Accountability THE FOUNDATIONS OF TRANSFORMATION

Solitaire Carroll

Founder & Principal
2025 FedHealthIT 150 Honoree
2024 FORUM Women in Leadership
2023 FORUM IT100 Honoree

Leonie Consulting is a boutique advisory firm founded by Solitaire Carroll, a recognized leader in federal IT modernization, policy research, and government digital transformation. The firm brings senior practitioner expertise directly to bear on its clients' most complex challenges — without the overhead or distance of a large consultancy.

Solitaire's career has been defined by a conviction that government can deliver — with the right leadership, the right structures, and a relentless focus on the people it serves. As Co-Director of the Veterans Experience Services Portfolio and Portfolio Integration Management Lead at VA OIT, she co-directed one of the federal government's largest citizen-facing digital portfolios. She co-authored the 701B Benefits IT Modernization Plan, co-developed OIT's Congressional budget architecture, and built the product strategy and capital planning frameworks for platforms serving millions of veterans.

Today, Leonie Consulting translates that practitioner experience into strategy, policy-relevant research, and Hill engagement — connecting the operational realities of federal delivery to public-sector reform arguments about state capacity, institutional trust, and modern product operating models. Solitaire also contributes to the Niskanen Center's State Capacity team, shaping how policymakers and practitioners think about digital government.

The firm's edge is rare: the credibility of senior federal leadership, the rigor of policy research, and the agility of a firm built for impact over scale.

Working Philosophy

The foundations of
lasting transformation

Enduring government reform is not a technology problem. It is a trust problem, a leadership problem, and a delivery capability problem — in that order.

01

Trust as Infrastructure

No institution can sustain transformation without the trust of its people, its partners, and the public it serves. Every engagement Leonie Consulting takes on begins with a fundamental question: where is trust broken, and what structural conditions would restore it?

02

Delivery Over Declaration

Policy intent means nothing without delivery capability. The firm helps organizations close the gap between what leadership announces and what teams can actually build, operate, and sustain — at scale, over time.

03

Structure Enables Accountability

Fragmented budgets produce fragmented outcomes. Real accountability requires systems — for planning, for investment, for measurement — that connect resources to results in ways policymakers and practitioners can both understand.

"If the people have no trust, the state cannot stand." — Confucius
Analects, 12:7 — a principle that anchors every Leonie Consulting engagement

How the firm works with clients

Leonie Consulting brings senior-level expertise directly to each engagement — no junior handoffs, no templated deliverables. The firm operates at the intersection of federal digital delivery, policy research, and strategic communications, serving agencies, think tanks, and organizations working to modernize the public sector.

Strategy & Advisory

Digital Modernization Strategy

The firm helps agencies build the organizational structures, investment frameworks, and delivery capabilities needed for sustainable technology transformation — from portfolio design to product operating models and enterprise integration strategy.

Policy & Research

Policy Analysis & Research

Rigorous, practitioner-grounded research on federal IT investment, capability-based budgeting, and government digital transformation — produced for Hill audiences, think tanks, and reform-minded institutional leaders.

Communications

Congressional & Hill Engagement

Translating complex technology and operational realities into the language of appropriators and oversight staff — including QFR preparation, testimony support, budget narrative development, and strategic briefing materials.

Facilitation & Training

Executive Facilitation & Advisory

The firm supports senior government leaders in navigating organizational change, building cross-functional delivery teams, and developing the stakeholder communication strategies needed to sustain reform over the long term.

Firm credentials & affiliations

2024 — Present
Niskanen Center
State Capacity Team — Senior Contributor

Leonie Consulting's principal researcher contributes policy analysis on federal digital transformation, capability-based budgeting reform, and government institutional capacity — with VA OIT as a central case study in transformation at scale. Work spans published research, Hill briefings, and public programming for appropriators and practitioners.

Policy Research Hill Engagement Capability-Based Budgeting
2024 — Present
Leonie Consulting / Leonie Innovations LLC
Advisory Practice — Digital Government & Policy

Active client engagements spanning digital modernization strategy, IT investment reform, and policy communications for federal government and public-sector adjacent organizations. Current clients include the Niskanen Center and Wilcore Technologies. The firm draws on a network of senior federal practitioners to bring the right expertise to each engagement.

Strategy IT Investment Public Sector
Prior to 2024
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — OIT
Co-Director, Veterans Experience Services Portfolio & Portfolio Integration Management Lead

Solitaire Carroll co-directed one of the federal government's largest citizen-facing digital portfolios, serving millions of veterans. Led product strategy, capital planning, and the Congressional budget architecture for VA OIT. Co-authored the landmark 701B Benefits IT Modernization Plan. Key platforms included VA Health Connect (60M+ calls/year), Benefits Discovery Service, CX Product Analytics, SQUARES eligibility tool, and the Data Access Services enterprise integration layer spanning 80+ TB of veteran data across 50+ partner systems.

Portfolio Management Product Strategy Capital Planning Veterans Affairs

Work with the firm.

Whether you're a government agency navigating digital transformation, a think tank developing policy research, a Hill office seeking credible technical analysis, or an organization that needs a senior translator between the worlds of technology and policy — Leonie Consulting would welcome the conversation.

solitaire.carroll@leonieconsulting.com

Based in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area
Available for consulting engagements nationwide