About Project Middle Ground
Built for the questions no institution can answer alone.
Project Middle Ground is a Chicago-based strategic convening and institutional learning practice that helps institutions, industries, and civic leaders navigate technological, market, and civic change. Our work brings together strategic convening, trusted facilitation, editorial synthesis, operational capacity, and field-specific expertise to help organizations build shared understanding and move complex work forward.
The middle ground is shared ground.
It is not the midpoint between fixed positions or compromise for its own sake. It is the space where people can examine a challenge together, test assumptions, and build a more credible basis for action.
Why Project Middle Ground exists
Consequential change often develops between institutions.
No single vantage point is enough.
Technology, regulation, education, markets, workforce needs, and public trust increasingly shape one another.
Important perspectives remain separated.
The people who understand a challenge may be disconnected from those responsible for acting on it or affected by the decision.
The work must lead somewhere.
A useful engagement creates clearer understanding, stronger relationships, credible partnerships, and practical movement.
A connected practice
Research, convening, synthesis, and execution belong together.
Issue Intelligence
Understand the question beneath the request.Stakeholder listening, research, and issue framing establish the context leaders need before consequential decisions are made.
Explore what we do →Strategic Rooms
Bring the right knowledge and authority together.Purpose-built executive roundtables, working sessions, and cross-sector conversations create the trust required for candid exchange.
Explore the PMG method →Durable Follow-Through
Give shared learning a form that can travel.Editorial synthesis, strategic communications, partnership development, and operating support help insight create value beyond the room.
Discuss an engagement →Where our work concentrates
Different fields. A shared institutional challenge.
Responsible AI & Frontier Systems
Institutional AI readiness, responsible adoption, governance, quantum ecosystems, workforce preparation, and public trust.
Explore this focus area →Regulated & Emerging Markets
Cannabis, hemp, plant medicine, policy, market development, capital formation, consumer protection, and responsible growth.
Explore this focus area →Civic & Institutional Leadership
Education, workforce development, economic opportunity, infrastructure, institutional change, and public-private collaboration.
Explore this focus area →Why Chicago
A practical foundation for work with broader reach.
Chicago Based
Rooted in a global city shaped by business, education, research, technology, public policy, and strong civic institutions.
Nationally Connected
Building conversations and partnerships that connect Chicago’s practical institutional perspective with challenges across the United States.
Internationally Relevant
Applying a cross-sector approach to technological, market, and civic questions that extend beyond any single region or country.
Leadership & Expertise
Core leadership, strengthened by trusted expertise.
J. Bradley Spirrison
Co-Founder · Convening & Editorial StrategyBrad brings more than 25 years of experience across journalism, technology, civic networks, and emerging markets. He leads PMG’s relationship development, convening design, facilitation, and editorial synthesis—helping frame the right questions, build trusted rooms, and translate complex dialogue into clear institutional insight.
Anthony J. Vena
Co-Founder · Technology, Operations & Platform StrategyAnthony brings more than 20 years of experience in information technology and technology-focused roles. He leads PMG’s operations, digital strategy, event execution, and platform development—connecting strategic intent to the systems, experiences, and communications required to deliver the work well.
Expertise Through Trusted Partnerships
Longstanding field relationships matched to each engagementAlongside PMG’s core team, each engagement draws on a longstanding network of trusted partners with deep expertise relevant to the work. Depending on the challenge, that may include PhD researchers, doctoral-level practitioners, educators, policy and regulatory specialists, technologists, industry leaders, workforce experts, and other experienced advisers.
These established relationships allow PMG to combine its strengths in convening, synthesis, and execution with the specialized knowledge, credibility, and practical perspective each engagement requires.
Who we work with
Leaders whose decisions cross boundaries.
Institutions & Industry
Corporations, schools, universities, research institutions, investors, entrepreneurs, and market builders.
Public & Civic Leaders
Public agencies, policymakers, foundations, philanthropic institutions, and civic or community organizations.
Cross-Sector Coalitions
Workforce organizations, professional advisers, subject-matter experts, and coalitions spanning multiple institutions.
Build the room the challenge requires.
Bring us the issue, transition, or opportunity you are trying to move. We will help clarify the challenge, determine who needs to be involved, and identify the most useful place to begin.