03/20/2026
(reprinted from Eastern Door, Eve Cable)
PlanIt Consulting & Communications has been executive director Charleen Schurmanâs baby since she founded the company in 2016, and when she decided it was time to take a step back and slow down, she knew she couldnât hand over the reins to just anybody.
Luckily, Schurman knows her successor better than anyone: her daughter, Maris Jacobs.
âI knew Maris was ready,â said Schurman, who has been working closely with Jacobs while building PlanItâs identity over the past decade. âShe very, very much grew into the job.â
Jacobs, who is already the co-owner of the business, has been involved with PlanIt since its founding, and has most recently served as the companyâs lead consultant, working on projects in Kahnawake and beyond.
Now, as Schurman prepares to step into an advisory role with the organization, Jacobs will be taking on the title of executive director.
She plans to build upon the strong foundation that she and her mother have built for the organization over the past decade.
âTo get here weâve relied on being creative with our approaches and forming a good relationship with the people we work with,â Jacobs said. âThatâs whatâs helped keep PlanIt going for so many years.â
She said that sheâs most excited about growing her skills in the consulting field.
âIâm going to grow my confidence in areas that Iâm already familiar with after so many years of having boots on the ground. Iâm really looking forward to being a fresh leader, and I donât feel like I have to come into the business already knowing everything,â she said.
âIâm excited to see what kind of learning opportunities there will be as people transfer information to me, Iâm going to keep my eyes and ears open for everything,â said Jacobs.
Schurman is confident PlanIt will be in safe hands with Jacobs â and that her daughter will bring a new leadership style to the organization that will help it thrive.
âSheâs very humble, and she speaks when itâs important, which is unlike me because every thought in my head comes out of my mouth,â said Schurman, who said she initially didnât realize how much of the business her daughter was quietly taking in.
âShe started taking things on and didnât require help from me. Iâd find little surprises that sheâd gone and done, little tasks or business moves that I wasnât even aware of.â
While Jacobs said sheâs built the skills to lead as an executive director on her own, sheâs still happy to have her mother on board as an advisor while she gets to grips with her new role.
âThis is something weâve been working towards for a while, it didnât happen overnight and I slowly took on more leadership as we went,â Jacobs said. âWorking with her (mom closely on the mechanics of our projects gave me that confidence to put at least one hand on the steering wheel of the business.â
Jacobsâ appointment comes at a pivotal time for PlanIt, as the organization prepares to move into a new office in Kahnawake and implement its three-year strategic plan.
âWe have a lot of work to do on that front, and our growth over the last couple of years has shown us that we have something sustainable, and we have a good team of people,â Jacobs said. âMoving is something to look forward to in the next year, weâre not sure of the details and itâs in the works, but we want to make sure itâs a priority for us.â
As for Schurman, sheâs looking forward to seeing her daughter realize her potential. She plans to be fully disengaged from executive director duties by the end of the month, and to step away from the company full time by the end of the year.
âSheâs smart, sheâs intuitive, and sheâs got great work ethic,â Schurman said. âItâs looking more and more like she wonât need me, sheâs building her own team, and I can already see her making small changes to do things that are her own and are better.â
[email protected]
