Compassionate & Collaborative
With years of experience in education and leadership, I offer services to support growing leaders.
My belief in people runs deep. I’m passionate about helping organizations perform their best while ensuring an equitable and inclusive approach. I can help improve systems, streamline processes and bring confidence and clarity to every situation.
Whether you’re new to management or an experienced leader, I’ll help you refine your bold ideas and put your plan into action.
What I Do
Leadership Development
- Coaching for leaders in non-profits or the public sector to develop productive, positive working relationships, enhance and build management skills and the essential aspects of leadership and how to manage people and help them grow in their positions.
- Coaching for school board leaders to succeed in school improvement, enhance political acumen, develop productive relationships where people improve their practice and manage complex portfolios while ensuring accountability.
- Advice and planning for leaders in tricky or complex situations.
Strategic Execution
- Creation of comprehensive plans to execute the mission, vision and values of an organization and to achieve measurable results.
- Organizational and program reviews to assess effectiveness and make recommendations on next steps.
- Detail oriented and collaborative approach to ensure the heart and minds of individuals are respected, valued and included.
Project Management
- Quick grasp of complex issues and desired outcomes to complete the work in a timely way.
- A step-by-step approach which includes interested parties’ perspectives and experiences.
- A collaborative approach with the leadership team.
Consulting services are offered in person or virtually.
Who I Am
I’m a thoughtful and reflective leader who gets what motivates people. My extensive experience as an executive working in the public sector means I understand the complex issues in public service. I love to have conversations with people who are passionate about making the world better and improving their work.
Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. They deepen and widen and expand our sense of life: they feed the soul.
Anne Lamott
I started writing when I was a kid. Back then, it was endless stories I modelled on the books and novels I devoured. In 2012, after teaching writing to a generation of young people, I took the plunge and started my blog, The Reflection Pool. Throughout the next 8 years I thought out loud and tried to make sense of my everyday experiences as both a leader and a person in the world. Read the archive of over 150 posts to follow my journey.
My more recent posts show what I’m up to 11 years later. Read, comment, share – it’s another way to have a conversation.
Latest Post
How I Work
I acknowledge that we live and work on the traditional territories of the Haudensaunee and Anishinaabe peoples. This land and territory are protected by the Dish with One Spoon Wampum, a promise and agreement to share the lands and resources forever with care and respect, a promise which is even more important in the current climate crisis. This land is also covered by the Between the Lakes Purchase, 1792, between the Crown and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. Further, I honour the spirit of the Two Row Wampum, a covenant that we are all treaty people and can live, work and journey together on the same river with eternal peace, friendship and respect.
I believe in the principles of equity, equality and non-discrimination in upholding universal human rights and dignity of all people. I recognize and embrace the rich diversity of Hamilton and surrounding regions. I acknowledge and commit to identifying and addressing impacts of historical discrimination and systemic racism and oppression, including ableism, ageism. antisemitism, biphobia, classism, homophobia, islamophobia, anti-Black and anti-Asian and anti-Indigenous and all other types of racism, sexism, transphobia and other forms of oppression. I commit to ongoing learning and action in my journey as an anti-racist and advancing these values and approaches into organizations, systems and structures.
The United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous People (UNDRIP) affirms that Indigenous peoples have the inherent and collective right to sovereignty, self-determination and self-government.