About The Waddle Collective
The Waddle Collective Story
It started with a familiar frustration.
Amber and Olivia didn’t meet in a boardroom. They met in the trenches—two nonprofit leaders watching passionate organizations exhaust themselves doing more with less.
Executive directors answering emails at midnight. Teams managing outdated spreadsheets. Staff piecing together systems just to keep things moving.
And the refrain was always the same:
“We just don’t have the resources.”
But what they saw was different.
These organizations weren’t lacking resources—they were losing time.
Time spent on manual work that could be streamlined.
Time spent reacting instead of planning.
Time spent keeping things afloat instead of moving forward.
The turning point came in small, everyday moments.
A simple automation that saved a team ten hours a week.
A redesigned proposal that turned a strong program into a funded one.
The pattern was clear:
Nonprofits weren’t struggling because they lacked passion or talent.
They were struggling because they lacked the systems and infrastructure to support their work.
So, they asked a simple question:
What if we could build that support?
The Waddle Collective was created to answer it.
Efficiency that feels effortless.
Meet The Team
Amber Nelson
Founder
Olivia Zapata
Co-Founder
Amber brings two decades of nonprofit experience to The Waddle Collective, fueled by a driving question: Why are we struggling when we could be thriving? After 20 years of watching organizations spin their wheels on manual processes instead of advancing their missions, she decided to do something about it.
A self-taught automation specialist who enhanced her expertise through AI certifications and strategic planning credentials, Amber combines practical nonprofit knowledge with cutting-edge solutions. When she's not building systems that give nonprofits their time back, you'll find her in her garden with her trusty dog Mikey, tending to her five chickens and four ducks—a daily reminder that the best systems are the ones that let things grow naturally.
Follow Amber on LinkedIn or connect via email at amber@thewaddlecollective.com
Olivia joins The Waddle Collective with a decade of nonprofit leadership experience and a passion for making organizations look as good as the work they do. As a book connoisseur, mother, wife, and devoted caretaker of five cats, she understands the art of managing multiple priorities with grace and creativity.
Her extensive background in design, marketing, and automations means she sees the full picture—how a compelling visual identity connects to donor engagement, how smart systems free up time for relationship-building, and how the right message at the right moment can transform an organization's trajectory. Olivia's work ensures that nonprofits don't just run efficiently—they shine while doing it.
Follow Olivia on LinkedIn or connect via email at olivia@thewaddlecollective.com
Why “Waddle”?
The name is intentional.
Ducks move with steady, consistent momentum.
What looks effortless on the surface is supported by strong movement underneath.
That’s how sustainable systems work.
Who We Are
Amber brings 20 years of nonprofit operations experience and a focus on automation and efficiency.
Olivia brings a decade of experience in design, marketing, and systems implementation.
Together, they’ve built a company that doesn’t just consult—it builds systems that last.
What We Do
Today, The Waddle Collective helps nonprofits and small organizations build the structure behind their mission.
We create systems that:
Bring clarity to daily operations
Reduce manual work through automation
Support teams in working smarter, not harder
So, organizations can focus less on the chaos—and more on their impact.
Why It Matters
We’ve seen what happens when great work is held back by broken systems.
And we’ve seen what happens when those systems finally work.
More clarity.
More momentum.
More impact.
Because when you give organizations the right support, they don’t just keep up.
They move forward.
Ready to get started with Amber and Olivia?
Let’s build the systems that support your work—so your team can move forward with clarity and confidence.
