Michael Abrashoff - Miami, FL
Mike Abrashoff is at the center of one of the most celebrated success stories in turnaround leadership.
At the age of 36, the Navy selected Mike to become Commander of USS Benfold - at the time, the most junior commanding officer in the Pacific Fleet. The immediate challenges that faced him were staggering: Exceptionally low morale with unacceptably high turnover. Few thought that this ship could improve. In many ways, the USS Benfold was actually an extreme example of the same problems facing many organizations today.
The solution was to establish a system of management techniques that Mike calls The Leadership Roadmap. At the core of his leadership approach on Benfold was a process of replacing command and control with commitment and cohesion, and by engaging the hearts, minds, and loyalties of workers - with conviction and humility. "The most important thing that a captain can do is to see the ship through the eyes of the crew." According to Mike, The Leadership Roadmap is a practice that empowers every individual to share the responsibility of achieving excellence. "It's your ship," he was known to say. His former sailors to this day still remind him of it.
By every measure, these principles were able to achieve breakthrough results. Personnel turnover decreased to an unprecedented 1 percent. The rate of military promotions tripled, and the crew slashed operating expenses by 25 percent. Regarded as the finest ship in the Pacific Fleet, Benfold won the prestigious Spokane Trophy for having the highest degree of combat readiness.
Mike recounted the leadership lessons from his turnaround of USS Benfold in It's Your Ship, a New York Times and Wall Street Journal Best Seller, with over 800,000 copies sold to date.
Prior to commanding USS Benfold, Mike served as the Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense, the Honorable Dr. William J. Perry. He also helped draft the air defense plan for naval forces in the Persian Gulf in 1990, coinciding with Iraq's invasion of Kuwait; and served as the Executive Officer of the Cruiser Shiloh, where he deployed to the Persian Gulf in support of United Nations sanctions against Iraq.
George A. Metanias - Denver, CO
George has over 23 years of consulting and coaching experience working with organizations in the areas of leadership and talent strategies.
George specializes in several areas including leadership, management, business development, change, strategic planning and talent assessments. He is certified to administer and interpret Behavioral, Motivational and Thinking Style assessment tools.
Prior to consulting and coaching, in addition to various management roles, George was involved in a number of start-ups and turnarounds with diverse leadership positions ranging from Director of Operations to President. The experienced gained during those years has allowed George to understand the many issues and challenges leaders face within organizations. This understanding coupled with his ability to quickly build trust with his clients has made him a sought after adviser among many organizations. Some of the clients George has worked with include General Mills, Genworth Financial, Red Robin Restaurants, Apex Systems, TransUnion, The TriZetto Group, The Mosaic Company, Toyota and Dell.
Currently, George is CEO of GLS Worldwide, a leadership and talent-consulting firm founded with Mike Abrashoff, author of the book It's Your Ship, a business best seller. The message of
GLS is a simple one - the greatest opportunity for every organization to improve performance is to create a culture and way of doing business where people are engaged and act as owners and empowered contributors. This focus is captured in The Leadership Roadmap, a leadership philosophy that provides 4 key milestones to becoming an effective leader and guides our coaching and consulting client engagements.
George received his undergraduate degree from DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois and his Juris Doctor from the University of Miami – School of Law in Coral Gables, Florida. He is an avid mountain biker and skier. He has two sons, and a daughter and currently lives with his wife and children in Roxborough Park, Colorado.
Stacey C. Cunningham - Vice President, Performance Solutions - Philadelphia, PA
With over 20 years of experience exclusively in the leadership and talent development space, Stacey know what makes people rise—she knows what makes people fall.
She has been there herself, managing diverse teams both onsite and geographically dispersed. Also, her experiences internally in both the professional consulting, healthcare and financial services industries, as well as her vast coaching/consulting experiences at prestigious Fortune 500 companies have paved the way for her to help talented people build a climate where they can contribute their best everyday.
For more information Click here >
Stacey has been described as an inspirational leader who can bring out the best in individuals and teams by uniting their diverse perspectives with a plan for the future. Colleagues and clients alike have stated that she isa keen strategist that can see simplicity in a complex situation, put a plan in place, and get things done. Utilizing her candor, insight, and passion, she has consulted, coached and trained senior executives and their leaders on how to increase their organizational effectiveness and subsequent profitability through their strategic talent management and leadership practices. Stacey has dedicated her career to providing her teams and clients with an individualized approach that ensures they realize their potential, no matter where they are in their career life cycle.
Stacey is an organizational development specialist, executive coach and a strategic planner with a strong ability to interface with all levels in a wide variety of organizations. Her diverse and broad range expertise also includes; devising and designing innovative leadership and talent management solutions, managing multiple-large scale projects, strategizing with key executives to ensure impactful results, coaching and developing executives and managers to improve their effectiveness and delivering speeches and keynotes on the leadership trends impacting today's business environment.
As a result of her extensive experience, Stacey's work has impacted the lives and careers of many professionals in leading organizations. A number of her clients have acknowledged Stacey as a major contributor to improving the levels of two-way communication, employee engagement/retention efforts and leadership effectiveness within their organizations, including Merck & Company, AstraZeneca, Center for Creative Leadership, The Marriott Corporation, Kraft Foods, Lockheed Martin, to name a few.
Stacey holds a B.S. from Albright College and a M.Ed. from West Chester University. She is also A Board Certified Executive Coach through the Center for Credentialing and Education as is a member of the Adjunct Faculty for the Center for Creative Leadership. Stacey currently resides in Kennett Square, PA with her husband and two children.
Tracy Cruz - Client Services Director - Los Angeles, CA
Tracy has over 20 years of Human Resources experience specializing in talent development and selection for several large national organizations.
Previously, Tracy was the Director of Recruiting for Restaurants Unlimited, Inc. and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers where she developed and led the company's Recruitment and Selection strategies.
For more information Click here >
She led a large team of recruiters who supported the growth of restaurants both nationally and internationally for Yum! Brands Inc., the largest restaurant company in the world.
Tracy started her career as a General Manager, operating restaurants for RUI, KC Masterpiece Restaurants, Gordon Biersch, and Landry's Restaurants.
Tracy is certified to administer and interpret the DISC, Motivators and Hartman assessment tools and is also PHR Certified.
Tracy attended Cal Poly, Pomona. She is a certified group fitness instructor and lives in Southern California with her husband and two children.
Stacey Secora - Controller - Denver, CO
Stacey is currently the Controller of GLS Worldwide and has been with the company since 2007.
Stacey has gained considerable practical accounting experience working in a variety of industries over the last 15 years.
For more information Click here >
She has held management accounting positions at several privately held companies including The Stone Company Contractors, Reconstruction Experts, Total Longterm Care, Saulsbury Hill Financial and Krause & Co. PC.
Stacey holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Art History from Occidental College in Los Angeles, CA. She is currently working toward a dual Masters Degree in Accounting and MBA at the University of Colorado.
Andrew Fate - Lead Project Coordinator - Denver, CO
Often described as a man who wears many hats, Andrew is currently a Project Coordinator at GLS Worldwide. Andrew specializes in event coordination, document design and editing, website support, graphic and video design.
Prior to working with GLS, Andrew was a marketing representative for a premium finance broker. Andrew was responsible for the successful launch of company efforts in Colorado and improved profit margins by streamlining marketing efforts and establishing long-lasting client relationships.
For more information Click here >
The experience gained during this time has allowed Andrew to hold an exceptionally high standard for great customer service at GLS Worldwide.
Andrew studied at the University of Oklahoma prior to moving to Colorado in 2006. After relocating to Colorado, Andrew continued his education and received a degree in Bachelors of Science in Business Management from University of Phoenix. He is currently married and enjoys spending time outdoors and snowboarding in the winter.
Fernando Caramazana - Facilitator - Boston, MA
Fernando is a consultant, trainer, and executive coach specializing in organizational and individual development.
He has considerable management consulting and group facilitation experience. His areas of expertise include leadership development, customer contact and interpersonal skills, process improvement, sales effectiveness, and team development. He is also experienced in the design and delivery of standard and custom seminars, focus groups, diagnostics, and presentations.
For more information Click here >
Fernando has served on the leadership and management development faculties of ExxonMobil, Merck, DuPont, Deloitte, EDS, State Street Bank, Pratt & Whitney, SC Johnson, UPS and The Messer Group.
For the past 25 years he has worked with various clients including The Forum Corporation of North America and Europe, The Crossland Group, The Mind Gym, Change Masters International, The Beacon Consulting Group, Results By Design and Leapfrog Innovations, Genzyme, Biogen Idec, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Sara Lee Industries, Fast Food Merchandisers, Pegasystems, Inroads, and the Boston Public Schools. The World Bank, AT&T, IBM, Pfizer, The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, GE Capital, Kaiser Permanente, FDIC, Duke Energy, Citibank, Delta Airlines, Fidelity Investments, Occidental Petroleum, Prudential, Delphi Automotive Systems, EMC, Vanguard, and Texas Instruments.
Internationally, Fernando has delivered training and provided consulting services to Serono Laboratories, Starwood Hotels' Europe and Middle East/Africa Divisions, The Messer Group (Germany), Philip Morris Latin America, DuPont Mexico, The National Bank of Mexico, SOCMA of Argentina, Irving Oil Canada, and ICI Paints Asia. He has worked with organizations in such diverse areas of the world as The People's Republic of China, Latin America, India, the Middle East, Europe, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
Fernando's training career began during college when he delivered science lectures at Boston's Museum of Science. He also worked as a liaison with community groups in their production of local cable video programs; and co-produced instructional public affairs programs at WBZ-TV in Boston. He has also worked with the Boston Leadership Academy as a facilitator for the public schools systems, coaching and consulting with parents, teachers and administrators.
Fernando holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication and Speech from Emerson College. He is a graduate of The Boston Latin School.
Curt Engelmann - Facilitator - Tampa, FL
Curt has over 25 years of corporate and consulting human resources management experience, having been both a consulting principal and a Human Resources executive in several large national organizations.
Curt has extensive experience in the use of assessments for the selection and development of employees and is certified in the use of the Behavioral, Motivational and Thinking Style assessment tools, including the Myers Briggs Type Indicator.
For more information Click here >
Previously, Curt was a Vice President with Onward Healthcare, where he led the Advisory Services Practice in providing staffing cost management services to healthcare clients specifically dealing with the nursing shortage. Mr. Engelmann is considered an industry expert and has been recognized in publications of the Washington, D.C. based Advisory Board Company as a significant contributor to their leading practice research.
Prior to joining Onward Healthcare, Mr. Engelmann served as a Principal in the Atlanta office of Ernst & Young LLP, where he developed and led the firm's Recruitment and Retention Consulting Practice. During his tenure with E&Y, Curt also served as a local and national leader for the People Advantage Practice. While at Ernst & Young, Curt served as interim Vice President of Human Resources for two healthcare systems, where he managed Human Resources department turnarounds.
Before joining Ernst & Young, Mr. Engelmann was a Principal in the Tampa office of Mercer Human Resources Consulting, where he developed the firm's first Compensation and Performance Management Practice in the Florida marketplace. While at Mercer, Curt served on the National Compensation Practice Group, which was responsible for leading the development of the practice.
Curt's corporate experience includes fifteen years with the General Mills Restaurant Group (currently Darden Restaurants, Inc.), where he was instrumental in developing the Compensation and Benefits functions during a period when the company grew from 3,000 to 42,000 employees. In his last position, Vice President of Compensation and Benefits, Curt was responsible for Compensation, Benefits, HRIS, Payroll, Employee Relocations and Personnel Records.
Mr. Engelmann holds a Masters of Science degree in Management from Rollins College, a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of Denver, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Lake Forest College.
Steve Garrett - Facilitator - Chicago, IL
Steve brings a broad range of leadership development consulting, Facilitation & executive coaching experience from a variety of organizations and professional service firms for over 25 years.
Previously, Steve served as Recruiting Coordinator for the Amoco Corporation Human Resources Department. He also held positions as Career Counselor with Indiana University's Business Placement Office and as Financial Auditor and Executive Search Consultant with Ernst & Young.
For more information Click here >
In addition to his consulting and training activities, Steve is actively involved as Program Co-Chair for the Internal Consulting subgroup of the Chicago Organizational Development Network. He has also served as a past president of the Chicago Chapter of the Association of Career Professionals International, and as a past vice president of the Board of The Career Transitions Center of Chicago.
Some of the corporate clients Steve has worked with include Baxter Healthcare Corporation, Motorola, Arthur Andersen, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Northern Illinois Gas, WW Grainger, Pharmacia, The Kellogg Company, AC Nielsen and The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
Steve earned his Masters in Business Administration Degree, with a concentration in Human Resources Management, from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. He received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He has also completed the Dale Carnegie Program in Public Speaking and Human Relations, and is qualified to administer the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Kolbe Index, two widely used assessment instruments. Steve is certified as a Career Management Practitioner by the Institute for Career Certification International.
