A young Mexican-American woman took her first pain-free steps in years on the streets of Genoa, Italy. Kelly Grandmaison, then just 26, had spent her senior year of college on crutches, as the relentless grip of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS)—a rare, excruciating disorder—narrowed her life and doctors warned would likely confine her to a wheelchair.
But now, after a decade of medical dead ends, she walked three miles unassisted and without her cane. For Grandmaison, the Los Angeles Business Journal’s 2025 Women of Influence in Finance, that walk was more than a medical milestone; it was a rebirth.
That moment in Italy did not just give Grandmaison her life back—it gave her a mission. Today, as the co-founder of Impact Ventures International (IVI), she is channeling her hard-won resilience into transforming the business consulting industry. Her story is not just about survival, but about how adversity can fuel a new vision for leadership—holistic, purpose-driven, and ambitious.
From Pain to Purpose: The Making of a Leader
Understanding IVI’s rise starts with Kelly Grandmaison’s journey. Doctors diagnosed her with CRPS at 26, and she endured years of misdiagnoses, failed treatments, and a medical system ill-equipped to help. CRPS, because of its severity and lack of cure, carries a 50/50 prognosis. Grandmaison faced poor odds. Yet, even as doctors’ offices and hospital beds shrank her world, she refused to accept a life defined by pain.
Her turning point came not in a clinic, but on Facebook, where she connected with Mims Gordon, a fellow CRPS patient who had found remission through a little-known treatment in Italy. Inspired by Mrs. Gordon, Grandmaison made the journey herself, sought out Dr. Andrea Giusti and ultimately freed herself with the experimental Neridronate therapy.
More than walking again and living pain-free, Grandmaison shares that the experience gave her more than good health. It gave her a new “why”—a drive to help others who, just like her, felt invisible and unsupported. As a result, Grandmaison resolved to build IVI not just as a career in business consulting but also as a platform for impact.
A New Model in Business Consulting: Building Impact Ventures International
In 2024, Kelly Grandmaison joined forces with Joshua Kirshbaum, a serial entrepreneur with an entertainment and nonprofit strategy background. Their vision: to create a consulting firm that would do for organizations what Grandmaison had done for herself—help them overcome adversity, align with their deepest purpose, and build systems for lasting success.
“The inspiration for IVI came from a shared belief that business consulting can—and should—be a vehicle for creating transformative, meaningful impact,” Grandmaison explains. “We’re not just helping businesses grow; we’re helping people align their work with their values, creating systems that allow them to make a difference on their terms.”
IVI quickly set itself apart with a model that blends the rigor of traditional business strategy with a commitment to social responsibility. The company’s three core principles—GIVING, BUILDING, and IMPACTING—became more than just a catchy slogan; the team highlighted them in every client engagement, internal decision, and profit.
Holistic Consulting: Balancing Conscience with Business Strategy
Kelly Grandmaison understands that purpose-driven strategy is not enough in the cutthroat business consulting industry. They need tools to compete and succeed. That is why IVI took a different slant in a crowded consulting industry.
Its “ecosystem” outlook, inspired by the Rockefeller Method and its flagship program, VentureMax360, looks at the whole picture: personal goals, business operations, family needs, and philanthropic ambitions. It dives deep into each of its client roster of over 200 organizations, from scrappy startups to established nonprofits and high-net-worth individuals.
The team starts with a comprehensive evaluation, assesses the business’ weaknesses, identifies immediate opportunities for improvement, and highlights long-term changes that will maximize the business’ value.
“If someone tries to sell you a financial product or solution without understanding your entire picture, they’re not serving your best interests,” Grandmaison argues. “At IVI, we prioritize building a holistic, integrated plan that truly serves our clients and maximizes every aspect of their ecosystem.”
This method is not just philosophy—it is results-driven. Grandmaison shares that VentureMax360 has helped clients double or triple their valuations within 24 months. The secret? A bespoke, step-by-step roadmap that aligns every business element, from accounting to marketing to succession planning.
Scaling with Heart: The GIVING Project
Perhaps the boldest element of IVI’s model is its commitment to philanthropy. Twenty percent of all company proceeds go directly to nonprofit causes through the IVI Foundation’s GIVING Project. This initiative supports changemakers around the globe, offering fiscal sponsorship, donor management tools, and nonprofit education to more than 60 organizations and access to 3,000 partners.
The numbers tell a story: In its first year, IVI’s foundation housed nearly 60 people whom the LA fires affected, supported over two dozen nonprofits in building sustainable systems, and connected more than 40,000 individuals with resources to start businesses and rebuild their lives—the company’s goal: to donate over $1 million annually to nonprofit causes by year three.
Grandmaison says, “When you align your work with a bigger mission, it motivates your team and creates deeper trust and loyalty with clients.”
A Survivor’s Legacy
As Kelly Grandmaison did not back down when she received a life-changing medical diagnosis, the same is true with IVI. Despite the challenges their clients face with changing economic regulations, scaling its operations, and changing client needs, IVI continuously learns and adapts to meet the demands of effective business consulting.
Ultimately, the founder’s story is not just about beating a diagnosis. It is about rewriting the rules for what business leadership can be. Grandmaison’s journey from pain to purpose has become a blueprint for a new kind of consulting, one that sees organizations as living systems, success as a shared endeavor, and impact as the ultimate bottom line.
“Every step we’ve taken with IVI has been about amplifying what’s possible,” she says. “That makes IVI so much more than just a consulting group—it’s a community and a movement for sustainable, generational impact.”
On that rainy day in Genoa, Kelly Grandmaison learned to walk again. Today, she is helping a generation of leaders do the same—one step, one business, one community at a time.
