Designing the conditions under which capital can move at scale.
LION Strategies works with foundations and institutions to translate intent into governed, deployable capital—by addressing the structural, cultural, and fiduciary constraints that limit execution.
The Work
Most institutions don’t struggle with intent.
They struggle with translating intent into capital that can move—across mandates, partners, and time.
LION Strategies works at the intersection of governance, structure, and decision-making—designing the conditions that allow capital to be pooled, governed, and deployed responsibly inside real institutional constraints.
Our work is organized around three core areas:
Capital Architecture
We design capital structures that align philanthropic, concessional, and market-rate tools within coherent governance frameworks—so institutions can act across the capital spectrum without fragmenting oversight or increasing risk.
This includes designing pathways for capital to move beyond one-off grants and into repeatable, recyclable deployment.
Governance & Fiduciary
We help institutions establish decision-making systems that meet fiduciary obligations while enabling collaboration, experimentation, and shared accountability.
This work centers governance as an enabling function—not a brake—so institutions can move together without ceding control or trust, ensuring collaboration scales without eroding fiduciary responsibility or institutional autonomy.
Institutional Readiness
We work with leadership teams to surface and resolve the structural, cultural, and operational constraints that prevent capital from moving—even when resources are available.
This includes clarifying roles, decision rights, pacing, and risk tolerance so capital strategies can actually be executed.
Frameworks for Institutional Change
Our work is grounded in a set of repeatable frameworks that help institutions move from intent to execution—without bypassing governance, fragmenting oversight, or concentrating risk in individuals. These frameworks are not theoretical models; they are applied systems used to help institutions move capital collaboratively, responsibly, and at scale.
THE LIONS PATH™ | A SEQUENCING FRAMEWORK FOR INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE
LIONS PATH™ is a proprietary framework that defines how institutions move from intent to governed, deployable capital over time.
Rather than treating strategy, governance, and deployment as parallel or ad hoc efforts, PATH establishes a clear progression—ensuring that capital only moves once authority, readiness, and accountability are aligned.
PATH is designed for institutions operating under real-world constraints: boards, committees, fiduciary obligations, reputational risk, and legacy structures. It provides a disciplined way to move forward without forcing premature decisions or bypassing trust.
LIONS PATH™ answers a simple question: What must be true at each stage before capital can responsibly move?
LISTEN
Context and
constraints surfaced
INFORM
Insight translated
into decision context
ORGANIZE
Authority and
accountability aligned
NORMALIZE
Ways of working
institutionalized
SEED
Capital deployed under
clear governance
The Capital Architecture Framework
Structures grants, PRIs, MRIs, and market-rate capital into coherent systems.
Institutions often deploy multiple forms of capital—but govern them in isolation. The Capital Architecture Framework aligns different instruments within a single oversight logic, enabling capital to recycle, compound, and adapt over time rather than fragmenting across silos or settling for singe-use capital distributions.
Capital advances only when governance, structure, and institutional readiness are aligned.
The Governance Design Framework
Enables collaboration across institutions without diluting fiduciary responsibility.
This framework designs decision-making systems that allow multiple institutions to act together—while preserving legal autonomy, board authority, and fiduciary clarity. It replaces informal collaboration with explicit governance: defined roles, escalation paths, and shared accountability.
The Capital Readiness Framework
Aligns governance, decision rights, and risk tolerance before capital is deployed.
Most capital failures are not financial—they are institutional. The Capital Readiness Framework helps leadership teams surface misalignments among mandate, authority, pacing, and accountability before capital is committed. This prevents stalled pilots, internal resistance, and post-approval paralysis.
LION Strategies is led with a commitment to disciplined judgment, institutional integrity, and long-term stewardship. Our work is designed to operate inside real governance environments—where authority is shared, accountability matters, and decisions must hold under scrutiny.
We approach leadership as a systems function, not a personality trait. That means designing processes that clarify who decides, how risk is held, and when capital is ready to move—so institutions can act together without ceding control or compromising fiduciary responsibility.
How Leadership Shows Up in the Work
Governance before momentum
We prioritize clarity of authority, decision rights, and accountability before capital is deployed. Speed without governance creates fragility; durable impact requires alignment first.
Judgment over templates
Every institution operates within unique legal, cultural, and political constraints. Leadership means applying discernment—not forcing generic solutions—so strategies are executable in practice, not just elegant in theory.
Stewardship across time
We design for continuity beyond individuals. Our work supports institutions in building repeatable systems that endure leadership transitions, committee turnover, and shifting priorities.
Founder
LION Strategies was founded by Kasem Rodriguez Mohsen, a social entrepreneur and capital systems architect with over two decades of experience working across philanthropy, venture capital, academia, and public funding.
Experienced leadership grounded in institutional reality.
Representative Institutional Partners
Examples of institutions we have advised, partnered with, or supported across capital design, governance, and deployment.
Begin a disciplined conversation.
We work with foundations, donors, and institutions exploring governance-first approaches to pooled and mission-aligned capital.
If you’re navigating questions of readiness, authority, collaboration, or deployment—and want to determine whether a structured conversation would be useful—we welcome an introduction.