We design data systems and insight tools that empower mission-driven organizations to make meaning from complexity and grow their impact.
About Understory
Our Mission
We design data systems and insight tools that empower mission-driven organizations to make meaning from complexity and grow their impact.
Our Values
Clarity – We distill complexity into insight that empowers action.
Learning – We cultivate understanding and capacity through every project.
Impact – We translate learning into movement and ideas into practice.
Sustainability – We create tools and relationships that last beyond the project.
Our Approach
At Understory, we believe that good data systems are living systems — designed to be embedded in your work. Our process begins with listening: getting to know each organization’s people, goals, and rhythms before designing anything new.
We translate complexity into structures that feel intuitive — systems that clarify what matters most, streamline how information flows, and make insight easier to act on. Whether it’s an evaluation framework, a custom database, or a learning dashboard, every tool we build is made to fit the real context of its users.
We’re sector-agnostic by design, drawing on experience across entrepreneurship, STEM innovation, local government, and community development. What unites our projects is a shared goal: to make data not just accurate, but alive — something that strengthens your organization’s capacity, connection, and confidence.
Our Founder
Hi, I’m Olivia Noel — a data strategist, systems builder, and storyteller helping mission-driven organizations make meaning from complexity.
Before founding Understory, I spent 5+ years leading evaluation and data infrastructure work in the nonprofit sector, specializing in entrepreneurship and STEM innovation programs. My background in anthropology informs how I approach data — as something fundamentally human, shaped by stories and context.
Outside of client work, I’m deeply engaged in my rural Vermont community through town planning and local nonprofit initiatives. Understory grew from that same belief in quiet, meaningful change: that powerful systems and stories can take root anywhere.
Work with us
We partner with mission-driven organizations to design data systems and stories that help their work flourish.
Reach out to start a conversation about what we could build together.