How KIPP Atlanta is Using Elate to Drive Strategic Alignment
– Ben Cabeza, Chief Strategy Officer, KIPP Atlanta
KIPP Atlanta Schools is part of the nationally recognized KIPP network, serving over 5,500 students across multiple schools in the region. As a charter management organization focused on equity and academic excellence, KIPP Atlanta continually works to align its educational mission with effective operational execution.
Leading that charge is Ben Cabeza, Chief Strategy Officer. His role spans strategic planning, cross-functional alignment, and performance monitoring—all critical functions for a complex educational organization that relies on clarity to drive results.
“We’ve been doing strategic planning for years, but the biggest gap we had was regular progress monitoring as a group.”
Before Elate, strategic priorities lived in spreadsheets, slide decks, and siloed tools, creating friction instead of momentum.
Ben’s team offered templates, but adherence varied. Strategic planning was inconsistent, and achieving true organizational alignment proved difficult.
“If people didn’t save their plan in the right folder, I had to ask them to send it. There was no way to hold people accountable or know who even had a goal.”
Additionally, non-technical teams struggled to access or engage with the data. Reporting felt like a burden, and leadership lacked real-time visibility into progress or risks.
The result? Time spent chasing updates—not driving execution.
Ben discovered Elate while researching Cascade, a more complex enterprise planning tool. The contrast was immediate.
“Cascade felt like they were selling me. With Elate, it felt like a partnership from day one.”
Elate partnered with KIPP on a two-year contract that provided the flexibility and support needed to build adoption and test workflows before a full rollout. Even more importantly, Elate was built for strategy, not task management or static reporting.
“They treated us like partners from the beginning. Honestly, probably my favorite vendor I’ve ever worked with.”
KIPP began with a grassroots adoption model, embedding Elate in team conversations and leadership meetings without forcing top-down compliance. As usage spread, they shifted to a more structured model of ownership and accountability.
A dedicated Director of Strategic Projects supported teams with hands-on implementation and goal-setting, while Ben focused on higher-level projects, including annual strategic planning and creating a “CEO dashboard” with critical business metrics for the executive team.
Crucially, Elate also empowered non-technical users to participate in strategic work independently:
“Elate has allowed me to show my peers how they can do this work without needing me or the data team to do it for them.”
It integrated smoothly with KIPP’s existing systems—Google, Microsoft, and Tableau—ensuring continuity and reducing technical friction.
Since adopting Elate, KIPP Atlanta has transformed its strategic operations:
“Not having to spend as much time gathering data just to have a conversation about the data lets us focus on what matters.”
And it’s not just about efficiency—it’s about culture. Elate helped KIPP move from disconnected updates to a shared rhythm of execution.
“Before, only a few of us could ‘see’ the plan. Now, everyone can.”
Elate didn’t just replace a tool—it redefined how KIPP Atlanta executes strategy.
From improved visibility and accountability to better time utilization and stronger team engagement, the platform is helping transform strategy from a static document into a living, actionable system.
“It’s been one of the easiest I’ve led and has the potential to be one of the most impactful.”
As Ben looks to scale these gains across the organization, one thing is clear: strategy doesn’t have to be hard. With the right tools and partners, it can be visible, collaborative, and built to deliver results.
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