Enhance the quality of the M&A experience and outcomes by leading a dynamic team and capability with a purpose to enable leader success, partner effectiveness, and the employee experience. We conduct action-oriented activities including facilitated conversations with senior leaders, intentional listening strategies, and understanding of the cultural landscape. We provide focused, action-based reporting to drive meaningful insights and action related to employee sentiment and experience, and operational reporting for the People M&A capability.

Shape, plan, and execute a cohesive strategy to enable the best possible cultural integration and employee experience for acquired entities, driving toward key outcomes in the acquisition experience, focused on leader success, employee experience, and COE/People Business Partner effectiveness.Lead approaches consisting of:* Facilitating activities to identify and discuss cultural harmony and dissonance, identifying what's most important, and action planning; participant favorability at over 80%* Conducting surveys throughout the integration process to ensure the employee voice shapes the way forward; driving action and follow-through across the experience - increased participation by 400bps leading to better understanding of favorability and a baseline to measure progress; also increased adoption of survey usage across entities, and greater action planning* Consulting with leaders and partners on unique needs that require different interventions* Partnering with internal partners to ensure alignment on cultural needs and helping leaders and employees feel connected and supported

Side-hacks are inspiring, empowering, and just plain fun. For me, I enjoy bringing my years of coaching, mainly based on NeuroLeadership Institute's brain-based coaching model, and my diverse professional experience to help people solve what's most important to them. (contract-basis only)

Build confidence and skill for high school students participating in Speech and One Act Play competitions, by providing adjudication services: ranking and feedback to help students improve their performance and understand the ranking. Critical to understand and apply rules fairly, and create a welcoming and safe environment for students to do their best, learn, and grow.

In this critical work, continuing from my Organizational Effectiveness role, I led efforts to lay the foundation for the future, influence thinking and ways of working to create experiences that delight employees and pave the way for an enduring relationship with them, even after employment. It was about creating a place of belonging, support, and growth. Three simple ideas with a universe of meaning under each of them. This work allowed me to leverage all the experience and skills developed over two decades with Best Buy.Highlights:* Reinforced strengths and opportunities as an employer and pressed new ways of thinking about employees across their journey.* Inspired possibilities through co-led human centered design approach to create a vision, strategy, and execution plan for moments that matter.* Architected an enterprise people strategy, and People Strategy & Planning capability, using the employee value proposition as the anchor for all the organization does for employees.

Change is the catalyst – or, in some cases, the crucible – for growth. In this gig-like role, I had a unique opportunity to aim my diverse skills and experience to tackle complex needs, influence ways of working, and map out new capabilities. This was an excellent challenge to apply skill to new problems and, as a result, build upon those skills. I validated my ability to be an HR “Swiss Army knife.Highlights:* Opened opportunity to increase HR’s strategic value by designing a strategic workforce planning capability: philosophy, required skills, functions and rhythms, and scenarios to test the model.* Addressed bias and need for more robust data by creating and managing skills-based assessments for organizational change, through co-created skills model.* Increased team effectiveness through coaching and listening sessions for Workday implementation team.

One of the most powerful things a company can do is to design experiences that create a sense of belonging, enable personalized support, and help employees envision a future for themselves – and in all this, foster a more meaningful relationship between an employee and their leader. I had the privilege of leading a team who re-imagined the anxiety-laden performance review experience and an engagement strategy that had grown stale. And, we laid the groundwork for more effective talent reviews and succession planning.Highlights:* Created space for more individualized, progress-focused performance conversations emphasizing growth and what’s next, removing arbitrary ratings, and decoupling ratings from annual pay review.* Increased viability of employee engagement program by resetting the philosophy, redesigning the survey and action-taking, and partnering with a market leading vendor for a more modern, dynamic experience.* Invigorated new thinking and excitement around a company rallying cry and guiding behaviors to create greater unity around our customers and our purpose.* Stretch assignment: Created a safe space to discuss mental health topics and experiences, and help normalize mental health needs, by facilitating monthly mental health discussions.

Director, E-commerce, Digital Technology, Call Center, 2015 – 2018Leadership Development Coach (Stretch Assignment), 2016 – 2018Senior Manager, HR for HR and Office of the CEO, 2014 – 2015Winning Culture Facilitator (Stretch Assignment), 2012 Manager, E-commerce, Finance, Procurement, Supply Chain, 2008 – 2014Leaders and team members need a trusted, unbiased advisor and coach, and a skilled talent strategist, to enable the best possible employee experience within teams. As an HR Business Partner, I had the opportunity to play this critical role across a variety of teams, increasing my knowledge of how the company operates, how leaders work together, and influencing how HR programs and policies translate when put into practice.Highlights:* Elevated Digital and E-commerce team effectiveness by co-creating and facilitating a hack-a-thon to identify key areas for improvement.* Created meaningful movement and engagement of Finance employees by co-creating and facilitating a rotational program.* Stretch assignment: Increased capacity of high-potential leaders through holistic coaching, using NeuroLeadership Institute’s coaching model.* Stretch assignment: Engaged leaders and their teams in identifying ways in which they can strengthen team culture through Senn Delaney’s culture-shaping process

Manager, Learning Technologies, 2005 – 2008 Manager, Learning Measurement, 2003 – 2005Manager, Tools and Measurement, 2002 – 2003 Senior Instructional Designer, Leadership Development, 2000 – 2002 Instructional Designer, Computing 1999 – 2000 While in the Learning & Development, I realized my passion and ability to transform and build capability. I had the opportunity to increase the portfolio and value of the team through gamification in in-store training, enhanced leadership development and talent pipelining, building new capability in measurement and learning management system (LMS) administration, and re-imagining ways to connect disparate training teams across corporate and countries through a global LMS deployment.Highlights:* Improved efficiency and standardization through global strategy and execution of an LMS; increased LMS administrators from 5 to 280.* Increased value of the Learning & Development portfolio through grassroots development of a new measurement capability and LMS administration function.* Increased understanding and adoption of two strategic initiatives: Microsoft partnership and launch of BestBuy.com.

At KRS, I developed and tested my early capabilities as a leader, and broadened my understanding of the world outside Minnesota and the United States and those coming here to start a new life. KRS was a growing for-profit business and technical school. After a short time as an instructor, I was promoted to lead a team of 16 facilitators (full-time and part-time) focused on general education courses, basic software instruction, and business and office management diploma programs. Many of my students were new to the United States, often making me the student of their experiences.Highlights:* Increased program offerings by designing and implementing a Software Instructor diploma program meeting Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Systems requirements.* Elevated the quality of course delivery by designing, teaching, and coaching other instructors on adult learning methodology.

In my short time at Dassel-Cokato High School, I enjoyed time with excellent colleagues and mentors and met some amazing youth. It proved my love of seeing people have those “a-ha” moments and accomplish things they never thought possible. This was a formative year for me, professionally.Highlights:* Increased confidence and capability in at-risk students, and was awarded Teacher of the Year from those in the FOCUS program.* Developed and sharpened the skills of speech team members through weekly coaching.

Director, Farm, 1997Program Guru, 1996Director, Nature, 1994 - 1995 Unit Leader - 1993Counselor - 1992Camp Courage (part of True Friends) was an early catalyst for valuing people who are different from me. I was immersed in a population I didn’t understand and was expected to perform skills that scared me to the core. I felt wholly inadequate…at first. But with leaders who believed in my potential, and with each amazing human I served, I grew to understand the fuller meaning of vulnerability and courage, empathy to connect to others, and grace for all to learn and grow. Highlights:* Increased confidence and therapeutic benefits from horseback riding and grooming activities.* Expanded people’s understanding and appreciation for nature through natural science activities and camp-outs.