What are the most important things the group learned in the customized leadership program for a non-profit?

•	I learned other people’s view of certain positions or roles; I can apply options for organizational development in my department to my job
•	Understanding the bigger picture and what it would take for us to grow
•	Leadership, work with people
•	Opening minds! Keep momentum going
•	It was wonderful that everyone participated actively and positively
•	Brainstormed about what we need to take the Agency to the next level
•	The questions for the team exercises were well thought out and drove the correct conversations

What are the most important things the group learned in the EmPOWER program?

•	The Empower Leadership class taught me to realize that leadership starts with me and that and once I understand myself and learn how to use the knowledge I already have, I am able to gain insight and become more aware of what is needed to be an effective, powerful leader.
•	The Empower Leadership classes provided me an opportunity to improve my leadership skills by reinforcing the power of effective communication and to become more aware of my team members as individuals with different perspectives on accomplishing the same goal!
•	I loved the team and the instructors. I learned that leadership starts with getting to know you, to do the best you can to lead others, and help develop them to reach their highest potential.
•	When you know yourself, you can empower yourself; when you empower yourself, you can empower others.
•	The seminar "empowered" me with knowledge from all assessments that helped me understand myself, how I function and how to relate to my group. Great class and fabulous presenters!
•	The Empower Leadership Class will truly open you up to the idea that "leadership starts with me". We usually are not aware of their lives and what past experiences have impacted a person that has shaped them into the person they are today. In order to lead, we must start with ourselves and truly communicate with others in a way that they understand what you are attempting to get accomplished and help you along the way.

"Kathi and I had the opportunity to work together integrating multiple support services within the healthcare industry with ARAMARK Healthcare. This integration resulted in multiple leadership/personnel challenges which Kathi was instrumental in helping resolve in a manner that moved our organization forward. Kathi's knowledge, work ethic and interpersonal skills were utilized in many facets of this business."
Bill Hackett, Vice President Operations, ARAMARK Healthcare worked with Kathi at ARAMARK

“Kathi provided the highest level of support to the business. She always had a very positive can do attitude and even in the most stressful situations kept cool and focused. She enabled others around her to do a better job. She was very committed in helping people improve their skills. She was able to push back on senior managers in a respectful way and have the desired impact.”
Kevin Gaugush, VP, Human Resources, was a peer with Kathi

“Kathi was a great business partner during her time at with the company. She is action oriented, a great communicator and driven to achieve results. She has an unbelievable work ethic, sets clear expectations and is exceptional at holding people accountable. I would recommend Kathi highly.”
Dan Begin, Regional Vice President, worked directly with Kathi

“Kathi is a natural at enlightening and motivating an audience. She presented "Top Five Strategies to Get THE Meeting" to a group of job seekers as part of a community outreach program I volunteer with. Her presentation skills are excellent. She offered well-organized material along with anecdotes that brought examples to life in a memorable way. Kathi's interactive communication style worked very well with a diverse audience, and far exceeded expectations for the session. The audience came away with some strong, actionable strategies.”
Susan Burnell, APR, President, Imagination Ink Business Writing & Public Relations, invited Kathi to speak

“Kathi replaced another adjunct faculty member in the middle of a design program for a new leadership course. She masterfully got up to speed and became a contributing member of the team in very little time. I value her consistency, professionalism and her deep expertise. She is the first person I call when a corporate client wants to talk about leadership. Top qualities: Great Results, On Time, High Integrity.”
Guy Felder, Program Director, The University of Houston Continuing Education, hired Kathi as a Business Consultant

“I have had the pleasure of working with Kathi in the development and delivery of the leadership program, EmPOWER, for University of Houston's Continuing Education division. Kathi is an astute business woman, well versed in her areas of expertise. Friendly and sociable, she is the epitome of leadership in professional as well as charitable causes that she is involved with. Without reservation, I highly recommend Kathi as a trusted expert in individual and organizational development.”
Melinda Stallings, Owner, Impact Leadership, LLC, worked directly with Kathi at University of Houston Continuing Education

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Case Studies

Designed and delivered leadership training for this non-profit organization to convey the concepts of workforce planning and the employee life cycle. Facilitated in-class exercises designed to obtain buy in and commitment to ready the workforce for creating a foundation for growth of the agency.

Instructional Designer and Facilitator for the following courses developed for the University of Houston “EmPOWER” leadership program. This is a certificate program for emerging supervisors and managers offered through Continuing Education. It can be customized as an internal program for companies upon request.

1.	“The Power of You” uses The Birkman® Method assessment feedback as a way for Students to learn about their strength behaviors, underlying needs and motivations, and stress behaviors affecting performance. They become familiar with patterns of behavior and how to adapt their behaviors for mutual benefit.
2.	“The Power of People” focuses on ways to increase workplace productivity by giving leaders the tools to make a difference in their organization to attract, select, develop and retain employees. The course identifies the current workplace challenges in the employee life cycle and challenges Students to be the leader others want to follow.
3.	“The Power of People in Action” ties together key concepts from the EmPOWER program and provides a discovery process for further career development. Students develop a 90 day action plan for improving a selected leadership competency or behavior. They return within 90 days for a group coaching session to share the impact of executing their action plan on their team and organization.

Certified as DDI (Development Dimensions Incorporated) “Targeted Selection” training facilitator. Delivered program to hiring managers to teach behavioral interviewing techniques with application through on site interviews. Received SHRM recognition for the development of a Recruitment Tool Kit for front line managers.

Delivered the “Building Leadership Skills” training program to over 400 front line managers across the organization over a three year period. This program was developed by this Fortune 500 food and facility services company to improve the effectiveness of its front line managers. The program focuses students on learning their specific behavioral style and why it is important to adapt our behaviors as we identify the difference in the styles of others. This concept is applied throughout the three-day training program to areas such as conflict resolution, understanding diversity, and coaching for performance.

Results:

•	Gave leaders the understanding of how their own and others behavioral styles impacted each other and how they needed to adapt their behaviors accordingly.
•	Helped leaders develop relationships with other leaders across the business thereby creating a network for best practice sharing and opportunities for advancement.
•	Supported the company’s achievement of the Fortune 500 Most Admired Companies Award. This program, as the first on the Leadership Development Series, is a critical step to developing its leaders.

Facilitator for an action learning project assigned as part of an Advanced Leadership Development Program. Ensured cohesiveness and productivity of the project team using facilitation techniques, one-on-one and group coaching. As a result, the project team delivered a proposal to senior leadership for successive acquisitions focused on initial and long term employee and client communications, including tools for delivery of messages throughout the transition process.

Delivered “Change Management” training to customer service managers and employees to prepare them for the implementation of hand held computers. The tool provided “real-time” access to customer product usage data thereby improving inventory management. Key business processes needed to be re-engineered to standardize and streamline operations prior to implementing the tool. Managers and employees were more prepared to accept the changes the new tool would bring and were able to meet in a safe environment to discuss benefits and concerns. Managers learned ways to support employees through the change process.

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