TESTIMONIALS
“Karen has proven tremendously valuable to me as an advisor and coach. She really helped me to raise my game in presentations and other high-stakes communications.
Since then, I have worked with her in several capacities including when I transitioned in as a new, public company CEO. At two of the companies I have led, she has guided our efforts to develop our company’s Purpose, Vision and Values statements.
Both times, this work was enormously powerful in creating strong community and alignment around a clear direction.
She is simply the most effective executive coach and leadership consultant I have ever worked with and will be a tremendous asset to any senior leader and leadership team.”
— John A. Orwin, President and CEO, Atreca, Inc.
I appreciated and enjoyed working with Karen!
She brings a great balance to her coaching work and supports meaningful progress with focus on both "being" and "doing."
- Miriam Brown, Head, Transformation at Genentech
The virtual Executive Presence workshop was such a great professional development experience.
The way this course is structured inspires immediate action and the beginnings of long-term growth. The 3 virtual sessions were engaging and interactive, and we left each session with a manageable plan for how to work on our individual focus areas.
I know I will benefit from revisiting the materials over time as my development needs change."
- Sophia Maund, Ph.D.
Sr. Scientific Manager, Oncology Biomarker Development, Genentech
“Karen, thank you for facilitating another great executive team meeting for Bellicum. I appreciate the ways in which you foster discussions that result in more clarity, alignment and shared commitment.
I also appreciate the ways you constructively coach us individually and as a collective to improve and become better teammates. We have a greater sense of "team" than ever before.”
- Rick Fair President & CEO Bellicum
“I never hesitate to get Karen involved in even the trickiest of leadership situations. She is an incredible thought partner and coach.
Over the years, she's worked 1:1 with me and with several of my leaders, she's facilitated strategic meetings and she's led powerful large-audience workshops to help us grow the competencies we need to succeed.
I have used Karen's Elements of Executive Presence card deck countless times. It is both a powerful diagnostic and a tremendous coaching tool that enables me to optimize how I show up. This tool, coupled with Karen's incredibly warm, yet firm coaching style have been powerful assets through every step of my evolution as a leader.”
— Dean Alford, Vice President Mid-Atlantic Region, Genentech
As I stepped into a leadership role with greater visibility, I worked with Karen to communicate more effectively with increasingly diverse audiences and situations ranging from important 1:1 interactions to high impact presentations to large external audiences.
With humor, warmth, and seemingly boundless energy, Karen elicited self-awareness painlessly. She provided a framework to help me communicate in clearer and more compelling ways. This framework has enabled me to be more efficient, more persuasive, and more satisfied with my performance at work.
Karen is personable and quick witted. Our sessions together invariably elevated my mood and strengthened my resolve to improve as a leader. I highly recommend her as a coach.
Jonathan Benjamin, Senior Vice President, Clinical Development, Atreca
“Karen is a stellar executive coach with whom I have worked for close to 12 years now. She has a way of connecting with you, both professionally and personally, and pushes you to the next level with a great balance between energy and empathy.
She has supported my 'big stage' presentation skills as a very effective presentation coach. I have also engaged Karen in delivering leadership team workshops and supporting teams to become even higher performing.
Her facilitation skills and ability to make participants feel at ease, even when addressing a challenging topic, is a true expertise. Karen is a pleasure to work with and I highly recommend her.”
Gisela A. Paulsen, General Manager, Precision Oncology
Shortly after advancing to a more senior role within my company, I requested executive coaching to help navigate the leadership and communication responsibilities involved with that position.
Luckily, Karen and I had crossed paths during goal-setting and management training events previously, so I know that the instruction and guidance from her would be well-defined, thoughtful, and strategic, and so it was.
To me, and for me, what struck me as unique is that Karen practices her values-based executive presence approach, modeling it during her sessions, and bringing caring and authenticity along with the objectivity required for decision-making and progress.
What’s also quite amazing is that all but one of our sessions were virtual. That speaks to Karen’s skills as a teacher and communicator. I admire her keen insight and ability to discern the key areas for growth and thoughtfully guide the self-discovery process.
Karen’s helped me to better hone those skills to have more confidence, to communicate effectively with kindness and candor, and more importantly, to determine a leadership style consistent with my values and my company’s.
Amy Manning-Bog
Vice-President, Translational Sciences
Atreca, Inc.
“Great job! I would not change anything. Perfect balance of content presented and interaction.
We were all interested, engaged and learning throughout the day.
Anonymous Survey Comment
Executive Presence Workshop
Genentech Inc.
'Your presentation was great. That story you shared made your point and I am excited to support your initiative,' is one of many similar comments that I received from my colleagues just weeks after our coaching began.
Not only was I more confident and influential in my presentations, I was able to carry my elevated executive presence into all of my communications.
Karen took the time to learn about me and provided a highly-customized coaching experience. The frameworks and suggestions she offered were easy to grasp and use.
Given I'm located in a different state, Karen delivered her coaching through a combination of phone, videoconference and in-person sessions.
I highly recommend Karen and her high-impact coaching!”
— Bahaa Wanly, COO. Salem Health Hospitals & Clinics
II
“Karen, I wanted you to know that The Presentation Planner (TM) has become my "go to" first step whenever I have a presentation to deliver, whether it's to 500 people, or to a small group of senior executives.
This simple, yet powerful tool helps me to think through my desired outcomes and how best to relate to my audience. I end up with a compelling presentation outline that then guides me on which slides to create.
Since I started using this tool and receiving your expert coaching on how best to deliver my presentations, I have gotten incredibly positive feedback. Thank you!”
— Kate Rowbotham, VP, Customer Engagement, West Region, Genentech.
“Karen was a full-service partner in creating and delivering an outstanding 2-day program of Executive Presence for 90 leaders in my organization.
She worked closely with me and key stakeholders to understand the objectives and then designed and led a workshop that successfully fulfilled those objectives.
Participants very much appreciated Karen's energy, her skillful facilitation, her approach with Executive Presence, the highly interactive workshop content and the Elements of Executive Presence cards.
In a post-workshop survey, 97% of respondents said that they would recommend this program to others who are looking to enhance their strategic influence skills and executive presence.”
— Audrey Malong, Principal Business Manager, Development Sciences, Genentech
Karen was my executive coach over much of this year, and I can only say wonderful things about Karen.
Not only is she REALLY good at what she does but she does and amazing job of balancing objectivity/practicality and empathy/emotion. It was so easy to connect with her and she brings great energy and personality to the table. I also appreciated her focus on growth, measuring impact, and recognition.
I walked out of our sessions with tangible ideas, specific actions, and appreciation for progress, and know I’ve grown in my leadership with her coaching. I highly recommend Karen!
- Gina Noh
Healthcare Executive Director
Seattle/Alaska Market
Genentech
“I worked with Karen for one year and I feel that I have grown tremendously as a leader and as a person. Karen's practical approach to executive presence and to defining one's authentic brand were very impactful to me.
While supportive, Karen also challenged me to see how I could make subtle adjustments that had a large impact on realizing my desired brand. I have also had Karen work with my leadership team,
I've recommended her to others and have shared her Elements of Executive Presence tool and concepts with my mentees.”
— Andi Goddard, Vice President, Quality. Genentech
“Before using the Presentation Planner, preparing for presentations was an agonizing experience.
I would expend an extraordinary amount of effort determining how to best make a point and overthink how to create the impact I envisioned.
Thanks to this beautiful tool, I need no longer worry about such things.
The Presentation Planner provides the prompts and language I require to craft a meaningful and impactful presentation in very short order.”
— Leslie Clark, Executive Coach
I have worked with Karen for almost 10 years and have greatly enjoyed her partnership and support throughout my leadership journey.
During our time together, she has facilitated numerous team conversations, helping us to become a better and stronger leadership team and to lead with clarity and focus aimed at delivering maximum impact.
Personally, I have benefited greatly from her thought partnership on anything from managing complex organizational change to presentation preparation (try her great outline tool!) and enhancing my executive presence while embracing my authentic self.
She delivers with a perfect balance of warmth and compassion while providing direct and productive feedback. I look forward to continuing to partner with Karen for many years to come!
- Claire Scott (MacDonnell), Vice President Access Solutions, Genentech
“Thank you again for a well-presented, on-message workshop.
It was so impressive how quickly you grasped the nuances we wished to cover and how seamlessly you incorporated the overall theme of our offsite.
Preliminary responses to the survey show the group thought your workshop was excellent, practical and provided useful tools to work on the art of influence.
It was a pleasure seeing you and I hope to see you again in the future!”
— Holly Spoonemore, Senior Regulatory Program Director, PTR, Genentech
“Crafting presentations for new audiences is now much easier and I feel confident that listeners will really get what I'm telling them.
The Presentation Planner is a highly effective tool for capturing my best thinking and ensuring that I create an outline that is clear and compelling. The result: A presentation that motivates my audience to act.
Try this tool. I guarantee that you'll be glad you did. ”
— Steve Harrison, CSO (former), Relypsa Inc
“With Karen’s coaching, I developed into a more effective communicator, and sharpened my ability to anticipate and address client needs.
Her laser focus on helping executives drive results in partnership with others provided lasting change. Plus, her insight, enthusiasm and energy made her a joy to work with.
I highly recommend her. ”
— Margot McShane, Managing Director, Russell Reynolds Associates
“I learned so much from my work with Karen. As a new leader entering a new position in a new company, I needed to create alignment among a disparate team.
Through Karen’s coaching, I was able to gain insights into their various realities and build bridges of trust which have enabled the work to move forward successfully.
Her coaching, meeting facilitation, and overall guidance have been very valuable to me and to my team.”
—VP, MD, Kaiser Permanente
“I shall be forever different as a result of our work together.”
—– VP, Professional Services firm
II
“While your presentation tool organizes my thoughts around a precise communication goal, the process, itself, helps refine my thinking as it takes shape.
Each iteration exposes ideas that hadn’t occurred to me before.
The final presentation feels so much smarter, with more logical, elegant transitions, and a more effective result.
This is brilliant.”
— Susan Bierzychudek, Principal
Green Ideals Group