WEST Workshop Leaders

WEST is very fortunate to work with great speakers who lead workshops for our community.  If you are interested in finding a speaker or coach, please review the details below. 

Gwen Acton - Vivo Group

Gwen Acton, PhD, is an expert on strategic leadership at the intersection of science and business. She is CEO of Vivo Group, a firm that improves the leadership skills of technical experts so they can be more productive and innovative in industry. Prior to this, she served as Director of Scientific Development at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, where she ran the operations of the Functional Genomics Program, a $40 million, 50-person academic-industry collaborative research program. Dr. Acton has a doctorate in biology from M.I.T., and served as a faculty member at Harvard University in the department of Molecular and Cellular Biology. She is the author of the book "The Bluffer’s Guide to Genetics," a humorous guide to DNA published by Oval Books, and the former president of Women Entrepreneurs in Science & Technology (WEST). Dr. Acton is a popular speaker, workshop presenter, and facilitator.

Rita Balian Allen - Rita B. Allen Associates

Rita Balian Allen is the president of Rita B. Allen Associates, an international career management firm specializing in executive coaching, leadership, development, management training and career development. Rita has worked with leaders across all industries and disciplines to empower themselves to take charge of their careers, and maximize their potential. She is a lecturer at Northeastern University, sought-after speaker, author of numerous articles, blogs and the book, "Personal Branding and Marketing Yourself." She is a regular contributor for the Association for Talent Development, Chief Learning Officer, Huffington Post and other publications. Rita was voted one of the top ten executive coaches by the Boston Women's Business Journal. She holds an MS in Leadership and a BS in Business Administration; is an Advanced Certified Personal and Executive Coach and Professional Certified Coach (PCC). Rita currently serves as a member of the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers of the Supreme Judicial Court as well as the Board of Directors of Seeding Labs.

 Kathy Ball-Toncic - The 262 Group

Kathy Ball-Toncic is a corporate and leadership coach, specializing in women’s leadership development. In 2006, she founded the two.six.two group, a leadership coaching and consulting firm. Kathy leverages her own experience in the corporate world to motivate and inspire other leaders. She has collaborated with CEO’s, managers, directors, and individual contributors, both men and women, from many diverse companies including corporations such as Omgeo (a Thomson Financial/DTCC company), NYFIX, Novartis, Raytheon, ING, and Babson University. Kathy is the former director and current faculty member of the Graduate Program in Executive Coaching at Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology in Boston (www.mspp.edu). Kathy is an adjunct faculty member at the Swiss School of Management in Rome where she teaches leadership to MBA students from around the world.  

Laurie Bohn - TalentVivo

I am a passionate facilitator and coach devoted to helping people unlock their talents. My approach to helping people grasp and apply new knowledge is grounded in my relatable, down-to-earth, and adaptable style. Throughout my journey, I’ve consistently been recognized for: An inquisitive nature, Creating a well-organized and productive learning environment, Fostering active engagement with a positive and authentic attitude, Adapting seamlessly to evolving client needs with strategic insight, Infusing my sessions with energy and passion, drawing from diverse field experiences. I thrive on collaborating with clients from nimble startups to Fortune 100 organizations by understanding their needs and designing interactive programs and coaching experiences that spur behavioral transformation.

Mary Cheyne - Magnetic Podium, LLC

Mary Cheyne, MBA, is a Transformational Public Speaking Trainer & Coach, and the 2009 World Champion of Public Speaking first runner-up, out of 25,000 contestants from 14 countries. Mary is a TEDx Speaker & has trained over 15,000 people in 30 cities world-wide, including those in Australia, Europe, Asia, Canada & the US. She’s the best-selling author of the book “Present” Yourself in Public Speaking – Tell Your Inner Critic to SHUT UP! And the Real You to SPEAK UP! This vast experience has led Mary to one important, unvarnished conclusion: “To communicate and persuade effectively, the first person you need to convince is YOURSELF.”

Beata Dragovics - Freedom Trail Financial, LLC

Beata Dragovics, founder of Freedom Trail Financial, LLC., was born in a small suburban town near Budapest, Hungary. Her mother set a powerful entrepreneurial example by opening her own CPA firm and encouraging Beata to study English and travel. She relocated to Boston close to two decades ago, earned her CFP® certification and, after working at a major brokerage firm in Boston for over 10 years, established Freedom Trail Financial. Beata believes in the effectiveness of comprehensive, holistic, financial planning that aligns your values with your long term financial goals. Beata earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from the Budapest Business School and in 2016 earned her Master’s Degree in Financial Planning from the College of Financial Planning. She holds the FINRA Series 7 and 66 registrations through Commonwealth Financial Network®. 

Tammy Gooler Loeb- Tammy Gooler Loeb Coaching & Consulting

Tammy Gooler Loeb, MBA, CPCC, is the award-winning author of Work from the Inside Out: Break Through Nine Common Obstacles and Design a Career That Fulfills You. As a speaker, career and executive coach she inspires people to build careers that are fulfilling and meaningful. Over two decades, Tammy has shared her expertise with audiences and clients, focusing on career transitions, networking, leadership strategies and team development. Tammy enjoys working with clients and organizations across a wide variety of sectors and industries. Since 2018, Tammy hosts a weekly podcast, Work from the Inside Out, showcasing inspiring stories and practical lessons of people who made transitions to more satisfying work. Her expertise appears in publications, such as Harvard Business Review Ascend, Forbes, Fast Company, Newsweek, and The Boston Globe. Tammy holds a B.A. in Psychology from Hampshire College, Amherst, MA, and an MBA from Boston University, Boston, MA. She is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach from the Co-Active Training Institute, San Rafael, CA.

Amanda Hemm & Sarah Douglas - Soutiens

Amanda Hemm and Sarah Douglas co-founded Soutiens, their most recent venture to support new parents, in 2018. As perinatal professionals, moms, and veterans of the corporate world, they have seen the pitfalls that trip up so many working parents. They have also seen how—with the right resources—working can improve parenting satisfaction, and parenting can improve job performance. At Soutiens, we are on a mission to help companies support, retain, and attract confident working parents. We specialize in developing comprehensive programming to help expectant and new parents navigate the realities of preparing for leave, returning to work, and juggling the priorities of career and parenthood. Our flexible resources are designed to fit the needs of a wide range of workplaces. Through online courses, onsite workshops, and practical tools, we help companies meaningfully support expectant and working parents. 

Etta Jacobs- Power In the Middle

Etta Jacobs is the Founder and Principal of Power in the Middle, an executive coaching and training organization with the mission of empowering mid-level managers and their teams. Prior to becoming an executive coach, Etta worked in the corporate world, at two Fortune 500 companies, where she supported her teams through continuous change and disruption. Etta coaches individuals and teams at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Business School’s Executive Education Program, Inari, Microsoft, Seattle Children’s, and Takeda Pharmaceuticals. She holds a Master of Organizational Psychology and is a past President of the Board of WEST.

Sherri Malouf - Situation Management Systems, Inc

Entrepreneurial and seasoned professional trainer and consultant with over fifteen years experience. Highly effective working with different levels of people in a variety of industries. Expertise includes training & consulting, design & development, marketing & sales, and business management & leadership. Firm grasp of organizational dynamics enables clients to be more successful.  

Kim Meninger - Executive Career Success

As a certified executive and leadership development coach, Kim Meninger empowers individuals and organizations to reach their full leadership potential. Kim has coached hundreds of clients and has presented on career advancement and leadership topics to corporate, non-profit and academic audiences. She is especially passionate about helping women leaders to develop their confidence, visibility and influence in order to maximize their impact and advance to higher levels of leadership. Kim has a BA in psychology and an MBA from Boston College. She is an ICF Associate Certified Coach and CCE Board Certified Coach with certifications in career, executive and leadership development coaching. Kim also holds a certificate in Executive Leadership from Cornell University. She lives in Groton, MA with her husband and two young boys.

Kimberly Napier - DAREChangeTM

Kimberly Napier, MBA, CPCC, PCC, is a certified life & business coach, and best-selling author of Know What You Want Next: Break Free of the ‘I Don’t Know’ Trap and Love Your Life Again. Kimberly helps successful, professional women create a life and work they love with meaning and fulfillment. Kimberly found her path as a life coach after a tragic wake-up call that propelled her to design a new life for herself and her girls. Prior to coaching Kimberly led a successful corporate twenty-two-year career in marketing and market research consulting where she helped shape the “purpose” behind some of the most iconic consumer brands. Now she leverages her expertise to guide women to unleash their purpose in the world. Through her celebrated DARE Process for Change Kimberly has helped hundreds of women cultivate the clarity and courage to live personally and professionally empowered on their terms. Kimberly has an MBA from Babson College, is certified in positive psychologyand is a PCC, Professional Certified Coach with The International Coaching Federation.

Claudette Rowley - Cultural Brilliance, Inc

Claudette Rowley, Cultural Brilliance CEO, is a culture design consultant with 20 years of experience in organizational development. With her 5-Step Cultural Brilliance methodology, she helps executive leaders retain and increase the value of their business as they merge, transform and scale. Claudette is an experienced strategist with a knack for building collaborative executive leadership teams to boost business performance and increase employee engagement. For the last fifteen years, Claudette has consulted, trained and coached executive leaders and management teams at Fortune 1000 companies, small businesses and start-ups around how to create a workplace culture that delivers effective business results. She is the author of Embrace Your Brilliance: How to align yourself with your unique potential and lives in the Boston area with her husband and three teenagers. Claudette holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Michigan, a certification from the Coaches Training Institute, and the Professional Certified Coach credential through the International Coach Federation. She has completed additional training in organizational development, conflict resolution, mediation, the Predictable Success business life cycle model, and relationship systems coaching.

Carol Salloway - Performa Consulting Group

Carol Salloway is an Executive Coach and Leadership Development Consultant. With nearly 20 years of experience, Carol has deeply honed her coaching expertise. She has coached over 100 leaders – smart, high performing individuals who are interested in continuing their leadership growth. Her credentials include an MBA with a concentration in Organizational Behavior as well as being certified as a professional coach. Her toolbox is very rich with certifications in the best-in-class leadership assessment instruments and approaches including several leadership 360 tools, various individual and team Emotional Intelligence instruments and personality instruments. Carol’s earlier career includes serving as the leader of the organizational effectiveness consulting practice at a Boston-area management consultancy. With her extensive management consultant experience, she brings a deep understanding of organizational and business dynamics to her coaching work. Carol serves as a Supervisor Coach for the Executive Coaching Graduate Program at William James College. She also coaches in the executive education programs at Harvard Business School.

Mari Anne Snow - SophiaThink Consulting

Mari Anne Snow is an organizational development and change management professional with over 20 years experience utilizing technology to support non-disruptive change. She is CEO of SophiaThink, a management consulting firm that helps clients develop high performing virtual teams using new technologies. Before SophiaThink, Mari Anne held senior positions as a business technologist and organizational development professional at the State Street Corporation. Mari Anne is an Adjunct Professor at Bentley University; on the Board of Directors of WEST, a non-profit dedicated to the advancement of women in science and technology; and a contributor to Data Guidance, an international privacy publication. She is also the resident social media guru for Patricia Raskin’s radio show – Positive Business on Rhode Island’s WPRV AM790. 

Iris Stammberger - Learning Management Institute

Iris Stammberger, Ph.D. is a business performance improvement consultant who has worked internationally with IT, energy, biotech, pharmaceutical, energy and higher education organizations. She is the founder and CEO of the Learning Management Institute, a consulting firm supporting business performance improvement in organizations through the use of TALBOK™, a framework and methodology for effective decision-making in organizations. Prior to this, she held the Project Management Professional Certification (PMP) and worked internationally in strategy execution and project management as the CEO of a boutique management and engineering consulting firm in Latin America. She holds a Ph.D. from Tufts University (Cognitive Studies) and an MSEE from Universidad Central de Venezuela. 

Kemi Sorinmade - The Growth Studio

Kemi Sorinmade works with science, engineering, and quality professionals to help them become better leaders so that they can become more effective and truly succeed in their different roles. With over 20 years of combined experience in different engineering, Project Management and Quality Management roles, she brings a wealth of knowledge and a unique perspective to her audiences. The Growth Studio provides jargon free and easy to implement solutions to help individuals and teams crush the problems that are keeping them from achieving the results. Kemi is certified as a speaker, trainer, coach and DISC Facilitator by the John Maxwell Team and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering and a Master of Science Degree in Engineering Management from Northeastern University, Boston. The Growth Studio philosophy is to Simply Leadership so you can Maximize Results!

Ank Stuyfzand - SYNC

Ank is a seasoned organizational development consultant, coach and educator with more than 20 years of experience with individual and organizational effectiveness. As a managing partner at SYNC Ank works with organizations to create productive workplace dynamics and high performing teams. She’s a Clinical Professor of Management at Suffolk University, Boston, MA, with expertise in leadership development, change management and managing across cultures. Ank has worked for small to 100.000+ companies in both the US and Europe, across a wide range of industries varying from financial services, healthcare, IT, utilities, marketing, retail, professional services, not for profit and academia. Throughout her career Ank has had a strong interest in women leadership and has helped many women to reshape their perception of themselves, and to step up and lead. Ank earned her Master in Organizational Leadership from Chapman University, Irvine, CA, and her Master in Law from the University of Utrecht, The Netherlands.

Tamsen Webster - The Red Thread®

As a professional "Idea Whisperer," Tamsen helps people find, build, and tell the stories of their ideas. She combined 20 years in brand and message strategy with four years as a TEDx Executive Producer to create The Red Thread®, a simple way to change how people see...and what they do as a result. (Though as she'll tell you, everything she knows about people, speaking, and change, she learned at Weight Watchers.) Today, Tamsen is a globe-hopping keynote speaker who consults with enterprise companies like Verizon, Johnson & Johnson, and State Street Bank on how to get their big ideas to have the impact they deserve.

Sue Williamson - 3D Leadership

Sue is a leadership coach and co-founder of 3D Leadership Group. As a coach, Sue brings her experience as an entrepreneur, a member of senior leadership teams, and a consultant and couples this with her passion for the human element in organizations to support the learning and growth of leaders. She also loves facilitating our leadership workshops with a co-hort learning group. Sue has coached over 100 mid to senior level leaders in a broad range of industries and is also a coach in Executive Education Programs for Harvard, Babson and Bentley University. Sue holds an MBA from Babson’s F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business and a BA in Psychology from Wheaton College. She completed her professional coaching certifications with Coach Training International and Team Coaching International and is a PCC certified coach through the International Coach Federation. She is certified to use a variety of 360 and assessment instruments including the Hogan, MBTI Step II, EQi-2 and the DiSC as well as 360-degree feedback tools including VOICES, The CCL suite of 360’s, The Leadership Versatility Index, The Emotional and Social Competence Inventory, Team EI Survey, and the Team Coaching Diagnostic.