Intelektularo's mission is to help great thinkers and expert practitioners become impactful communicators and great leaders of diverse teams by working at the intersection of the individual and the organization. COACHING: I work with individuals and teams to unblock obstacles, unlock potential, and achieve or exceed personal, professional, and organizational goals. I believe that how we coach is just as important as why we coach, and am an active member of the International Coach Federation dedicated to upholding the highest standards of ethical practice. TRAINING FACILITATION: I design and deliver customized team building programs that incorporate communication skills development elements. This two-pronged approach ensures a meaningful experience for participants and a continuing organizational impact. ASSESSMENTS: As a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® certified practitioner and a certified Everything DiSC® Trainer, I administer and interpret individual and team assessments, and offer training and coaching programs built around these valuable dialogue-opening tools. Intelektularo is also an Authorized Partner for Everything DiSC® and The Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team, which enables us to sell related products and train-the-trainer materials directly to organizations. CONSULTING: Finding it hard to build a cohesive, globally-minded communications team? There is no one-size-fits-all template approach to success. However, having spent the last five years of my career, doing just that I know what questions to ask, what steps to take, and the importance of getting the fundamentals right from the onset.

At CSR Communications I am proud to support rising leaders with developing the self-awareness, mindsets, skills and resiliency to navigate constantly changing environments.

At InnovatorsBox, I help leaders harness the mindset and skills they need to unleash creativity and innovative problem-solving in the face of change and complexity.

At Optify, I coach rising leaders through the intersection of leadership development and technology. Our innovative approach is more targeted, personalized and flexible than the typical training offered to mid-level leaders, and more structured, skill-focused and aligned to organizational priorities than typical executive coaching.

During my sabbatical, I was directly recruited to the SelectUSA program at the U.S. Department of Commerce as a consultant and independent contractor to support the development of a high-performing contractor team and professional communications function for this growing, high profile federal program. I was entrusted as the program's interim communications lead from July 2016 - January 2017 and coached, mentored, and trained a small but agile team. I also coordinated communications and media relations around two SelectUSA Investment Summits. The 2016 Summit featured President Obama, eight Cabinet Members, three governors, and 2,500 participants from 70 foreign markets and 52 U.S. states and territories. The 2017 Summit, hosted by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, was the largest to date, featuring nearly 3,00 participants from around the world.

In 2015 I took a hiatus from the corporate world to travel and reconnect with my creative and entrepreneurial sides. www.weekendcrossroad.com was founded to explore a new definition of budget travel, where the limited commodity is time.Throughout my professional career, my desire to travel and explore was frequently constrained by my work schedule. So I became an expert at “weekend exploration,” exploring the environs of my new temporary homes during my various postings. I also got creative in appending a day or two to business trips.The site has the dual purpose of informing and entertaining -- both in the hope of inspiring other weekend travelers, and providing tips and resources where surprisingly few exist.

In my last role at APCO Worldwide, I worked directly for the company's global CEO to manage operational challenges in changing or volatile markets where the firm has ambitious growth targets. The geographic agnosticism of my core skill set resulted in my being sent to London, Beijing, and Jakarta -- and ultimately an offer to move to the Middle East. My role was to provide strategic direction for the business, cultivate a broad range of talent, and ensure excellence in client service. My operations boasted a zero percent voluntary external turnover rate and new, top notch talent. I also played an active public affairs and communication consulting role, and was responsible for directly leading or providing strategic counsel to key regional clients.

Appointed to head 8 person start-up Jakarta office for 12 months, with mandate to: - Manage operations, network integration, and business strategy;-Hire and train new local staff (including market lead) and grow Indonesia presence;-Coordinate major global / regional accounts; -Provide senior counsel to Indonesia / Southeast Asia clients by linking global best practices in communication and stakeholder engagement with critical local context; and - Manage relationships with leading global media, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, as well as English language local media such as the Jakarta Post.In addition to helping recover a major global account, I helped to grow the firm's Indonesia presence and retain high-performing staff in an extremely high turnover market.

Assigned to Beijing to manage day-to-day operations of a 40 person office andlead transition to new full-time managing director. Responsibilities included:-Strategic planning for Beijing operations in coordination with Greater China offices;-Leading global and regional accounts and business development initiatives;-Serving as senior counsel to global multinationals on China market business strategy, communication, and government relations; and-Developing core team of middle management to engage junior talent and increase team effectiveness and profitability.

Posted to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for six months to support recruitment and training for new office and operations, design a multi-ministry communications training curriculum for the Malaysian civil service, and serve as lead internal and external trainer. Based in Chicago with various day-to-day responsibilities, including:-Managing client relationships and oversaw major accounts and multi-office cross-functional projects;-Leading multi-office competitive pitch and proposal teams;-Supporting marketing and business development strategy for small but growing Chicago presence; -Providing communications counsel, including serving as crisis spokesperson, for global organizations; and-Developing complex customized spokesperson, media relations and crisis training modules.

Led team of 35 consultants in 3 offices and set strategic direction and targets as member of regional management team. Responsibilities included:-Counseling clients on proactive strategies to protect China operations, systematically enhance corporate reputation and build key stakeholder relationships; -Designing corporate responsibility initiatives and community engagement strategies with a focus on sustainable development and HIV/AIDS issues; and-Developing and delivering customized executive communication training modules.

Managed Beijing-based communication consulting team of 20 in office of 50. In this capacity:-Managed revenue targets by ensuring solid stream of new business and quality delivery of project work;-Developed region-wide staff development training modules;-Led major pitches and proposals, developing fee and expense budgets, allocated resources and negotiated contractual terms for major projects; and-Provided counsel on sensitive and controversial communication issues surrounding crisis, litigation, and investment in China.

Led 10 member consulting team, managed medium and large-scale projects, and developed communication strategies through systematic assessment of client objectives and market environment.

Managed 3 reports and developed mentoring program for junior communications staff, while also leading corporate communication and executive positioning campaigns for clients and developing major crisis and litigation management strategy for major U.S. organization.

Managed relations with international media, developed content for speeches, press releases, reports, and corporate materials, and ran small-to-medium sized events.

As assistant and legal researcher:-Provided dedicated support to two attorneys at law firm advising on federal tax matters for insurance and financial companies; -Researched legislative tax history and analyzed positions for inclusion in legal documents and court presentations; andSupported filing of an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court.

A hands-on internship at France Telecom's global training center which sparked my lifelong interest in training. At the Centre, I developed a new curriculum on American business practices as well as a professional English course tailored to the telecommunications industry. I also performed technical translation from French to English.