Question 1

What does people3 do?

Accepted Answer

people3 is a research and consulting firm that helps organizations understand their people — and lead change based on what's actually true, not what leadership assumes. The research uncovers what's really happening — surveys, focus groups, discovery interviews. The consulting turns it into action — practical guidance through whatever the change is — new technology, shifting culture, restructuring, growth.

Question 2

Where does the name people3 come from?

Accepted Answer

Honestly? Three is our founder's favorite number. She thinks in threes, builds in threes, and liked how it sounded after "people." But the 3 also holds the idea the firm was founded on — a chain with three links. Create a great culture. People do their best work when they feel valued. And their best work drives better business results. Nearly a decade later, that's still the whole thesis — it's about how change actually happens. People, culture, results.

Question 3

Are there only three people at people3?

Accepted Answer

The 3 in our name isn't a headcount. people3 is a founder-led firm — every engagement is led personally by Dr. Candace Warner, supported by a trusted network of researchers and consultants brought in as projects require. You get senior expertise on every project, with a team scaled to fit the work.

Question 4

Who is Dr. Candace Warner?

Accepted Answer

Dr. Candace Warner is a sociologist and the founder of people3, which she launched in 2017. Before founding the firm, she completed her Ph.D. — with a dissertation examining equitable service delivery across municipalities — and spent years consulting on inclusion, compliance, and business development. She has spent nearly a decade helping organizations, from Fortune 500 companies to government agencies to nonprofits, understand their people through rigorous research.

Question 5

Where is people3 based?

Accepted Answer

people3 is based in Nashville, Tennessee, and works with organizations absolutely everywhere — across town in Nashville, across the United States, and globally. We've worked with clients in the smallest towns in the U.S. to clients whose work stretches to India, the UK, and Australia. Most engagements run virtually, with on-site work available when the project calls for it.

Question 6

How is people3 different from a traditional consulting firm?

Accepted Answer

Three ways. First, evidence before advice — most consulting firms arrive with a framework and opinions; we arrive with research methods, and our recommendations come from what your people actually told us. Second, you get the Ph.D. — every people3 engagement is led personally by our founder, an organizational sociologist, from first conversation to final presentation. Third, truth over comfort — we report what we actually found, not what's easiest to hear.

Question 7

What is sociological consulting?

Accepted Answer

Sociological consulting applies the research methods of sociology — surveys, interviews, focus groups, observation — to questions inside organizations. Instead of relying on leadership intuition or generic best practices, a sociological consultant studies how your organization actually works — what people believe, how groups behave, where the formal structure and the real culture diverge. The result is advice grounded in evidence about your specific organization, not someone else's.

Question 8

How does people3 conduct research?

Accepted Answer

We use mixed methods, matched to the question. Quantitative tools — surveys and assessments — tell us what's happening and how widely. Qualitative tools — discovery interviews and focus groups — tell us why. Every instrument is customized to your organization, and every finding is analyzed by a trained researcher, not run through a template.

Question 9

What does a people3 engagement look like?

Accepted Answer

Three phases. First, we listen — research designed around your question, whether that's surveys, interviews, focus groups, or a combination. Second, we make sense of it — honest analysis of what we found and what it means, delivered in language a board or a skeptic can act on. Third, we guide — hands-on consulting and practical recommendations while you act on what we found.

Question 10

What happens after people3 delivers its findings?

Accepted Answer

The findings are the beginning, not the end. Most clients continue into a consulting phase — we help leadership prioritize what the research surfaced, plan the response, and communicate findings to employees, because people who were asked what they think deserve to hear what happens next. We stay long enough to help you act, not just admire the report.

Question 11

How does people3 help with AI adoption?

Accepted Answer

We handle the human part — which is the part where AI adoption usually fails. New tools don't transform organizations — people using them do. We research how your employees actually feel about the change, where resistance really lives and why, and what your teams need to adopt new technology well. Then we help leadership act on it.

Question 12

Does people3 still offer training or DEI programs?

Accepted Answer

people3 built its reputation over nearly a decade of culture and inclusion work, and that expertise informs everything we do. What's changed is the format, not the commitment — we no longer deliver standalone training programs. If inclusion is the people question your organization is facing, we research it and consult on it the same way we approach any question about your people — with evidence first.

Question 13

What kinds of organizations does people3 work with?

Accepted Answer

Organizations of every kind — and we mean it. We've worked with engineering and construction firms, healthcare organizations and law firms, music agencies and children's nonprofits, government agencies, sustainability organizations, and Fortune 500 corporations. The common thread isn't industry or size — it's a leadership team facing a people question and wanting a real answer.

Question 14

Does people3 work with organizations outside the U.S.?

Accepted Answer

Yes. people3 works globally. Because most of our research runs virtually, geography rarely limits an engagement — we've designed studies and advised leaders across time zones since our founding. When in-person work matters, we travel.

Question 15

How long does a people3 engagement typically take?

Accepted Answer

A focused discovery project — interviews or focus groups around a specific question — typically runs four to six weeks. A full research engagement, like an organization-wide survey with analysis and recommendations, usually runs eight to twelve weeks. Advisory relationships continue as long as they're useful.

Question 16

How much does a people3 engagement cost?

Accepted Answer

Every engagement is priced one of three ways — a flat project fee agreed before work begins, an hourly rate for advisory work, or a monthly retainer at a reduced rate for a defined scope. Smaller people projects typically begin around $3,900, with organization-wide research studies representing a larger investment. Starting rates are shared in our first conversation, and you'll always have a clear number before work begins.

Question 17

What results can organizations expect?

Accepted Answer

Clarity, first — an honest, evidence-based picture of what's happening in your organization, often including things leadership suspected but couldn't prove and things no one saw coming. Then better decisions — leaders who act on real data instead of assumptions. And because employees were genuinely heard, the changes that follow land with more trust and less resistance.

Question 18

How do I start working with people3?

Accepted Answer

One conversation. Tell us the people question you're facing — a change your team isn't adopting, a culture you can't quite read, a decision you need real input on. We'll tell you honestly whether research can answer it, what that would look like, and what it would cost.