Washington has a talent for making simple problems complicated. Legislation gets stuck in committee, policy debates spiral into technical arguments, and the people who need help keep waiting. Caroline DeBerry watched this happen for over 20 years while working across the executive branch, Congress, nonprofits, and think tanks. She got tired of watching good ideas die in bureaucratic quicksand, so she started Tenagrity Solutions to help cut through the mess.
Start With Outcomes, Targeted People, And Constraints
Often policy work begins with the wrong focus. People dive into legislative language and amendments without focusing on what they’re needing to try to accomplish. DeBerry saw this pattern repeat itself everywhere. The solution? Flip it around.
“Before debating legislative text, define your success in one sentence,” she says. Three questions need answers first: “Who are we helping? Who has to be involved? What does success look like, or what truly addresses the problem?” Everything else comes after. Once you nail down those basics, you can tackle the thorny stuff about money and politics. “It’s easy to get lost in the politics and policy implications, but you just have to stay focused on why you’re pursuing this to help others and what the actual problem is so you can find a genuine solution.”
Develop Talking Points Using Everyday Language
Here’s what kills most policy initiatives: nobody outside Washington can understand them. “Complexity kills momentum,” DeBerry points out. You can have the best solution in the world, but if regular people can’t explain it to their neighbors, it’s going nowhere. The fix requires ditching the policy speak. “In order for any solution to succeed, you have to engage the very people you’re trying to help.” That means talking points that actually make sense. “Break things down into talking points that will catch on. And they won’t catch on if you’re using jargon or terms that only people in the deep policy and government weeds know.” She swaps the fancy terms for simple verbs: fund, train, deploy, measure. Her former boss, Congressman John J. Duncan Jr., had a good test for this. He’d ask her to “tell it to me in a way I can share on the Hallerin Hill Show,” a local radio program his constituents actually listened to.
Think About The People
Getting the message right is just the opening move. DeBerry’s third step focuses on something a lot of strategists miss: the actual humans involved in making policy happen. “Good strategy anticipates people, not just process.” This means figuring out who’s going to support you, who doesn’t care, and who’s going to fight you. Congressional staffers, members, administration officials. They all need different approaches. “Develop talking points uniquely for each of these government audiences, communicating your outcome, the mission, and the public benefit. Prepare crisp answers to the top three objections before they are even voiced.” Knowing what pushback is coming makes it easier to handle.
Never Giving Up
The last step is where things get hard. Most people quit when the going gets tough. DeBerry doesn’t, and she’s built her reputation on it. “I’m known for my tenacity and my integrity. That’s why I came up with the word Tenagrity—tenacity plus integrity.” That word became her company name for a reason. Congressman Duncan used to call her his “little bulldog because I wouldn’t let go of a task he gave me until I finished it and got it done right.” But persistence alone isn’t enough. “If you’ve proceeded this far with integrity and an honest desire to really help people and pursuing facts to build on, then all you need is tenacity, an endless determination to keep going until the job is done.”
DeBerry’s approach isn’t complicated. Figure out what success looks like and who it helps. Write talking points real people can use. Map out your allies and opponents. Then stick with it. At Tenagrity Solutions, this framework guides every project. The mission stays the same: navigate complex policy to find practical solutions to real-life problems with the goal of helping others. After 20 years in government and nonprofit work, she knows the secret isn’t perfect legislation. It’s finding answers that actually work for the people waiting on them.
Connect with Caroline DeBerry on LinkedIn to learn how she helps organizations cut through bureaucracy and turn smart policy ideas into action.
