Windermere, Florida, United States
Words matter. They are the first step in connecting people, inspiring action, and shaping culture. As a Global HR & Communications Executive with 25+ years of experience, I partner with C-suite leaders to shape people strategies that link employee engagement to business priorities. My work has transformed communications, deepened engagement, and strengthened cultures in Fortune 500 companies — improving trust, retention, and organizational performance. My leadership style combines clarity with compassion. I listen carefully, help people find the best path forward, and take decisive action. My approach is simple: observe what’s working and expand it; analyze what’s not working and resolve it. In doing so, I bring people and business closer together. Highlights of impact include: ➡️Drive measurable improvements in engagement, culture, and trust across a $6B technology business — achieving an 86% engagement score ➡️Reimagine communications and culture in a $53B global technology business, contributing to higher employee satisfaction and recognition as a Great Place to Work ➡️Lead listening programs, corporate philanthropy, inclusion, and career growth initiatives — delivering clear ROI for both employees and the brand ➡️Serve as a visible advocate and thought leader on transparency, inclusion, and the future of workplace culture ➡️Define and deliver governance that leads to consistent practices that reduce risk I thrive where culture drives results — and where employees’ voices are valued as highly as business outcomes.
My team’s mission is simple but profound: to care for people and communities. We design programs and experiences that help our business grow while enabling our people to thrive. It’s an awesome responsibility that we take seriously every day. I lead a high-performing global team of 25 and an extended ecosystem of hundreds, shaping the enterprise experience strategy for Red Hat while employed by IBM as part of an evolving operating model. I continue to serve as Vice President, Experience & Engagement for Red Hat, reporting to the Red Hat CHRO. I manage a $6M annual budget. Our work touches every stage of the employee lifecycle, from the first hello to the last goodbye (read: onboarding through exit), and ensures that people are supported, included, and empowered throughout their journey. This includes, but is not limited to: Employee communications and listening, corporate philanthropy, inclusion and belonging, career programs, and AI-enablement. I also partner closely with senior leaders as a trusted advisor on culture, engagement, and communication during periods of growth and change. I speak on panels at HR Leaders summits and webinars, sharing perspectives on employee experience, engagement, communications, and culture transformation. Highlights of impact ➡️Increased employee participation in key programs by 50%+ while reducing budget by 25%, scaling impact while improving efficiency ➡️86% employee engagement: A high engagement score for the technology industry ➡️Lowered organizational risk while improving employee satisfaction by expanding safe channels for employee voice and embedding proactive listening strategies into decision-making ➡️Strengthened Red Hat’s reputation as a culture-driven company, supporting talent attraction, retention, and recognition as a top employer
I joined Red Hat as Senior Director of Well-being, Experience, and Employee Listening, to build foundational strategies that strengthen employee engagement through deeper listening and insight. By embedding employee voice into decision-making, we helped establish a more people-centered operating model that enabled the people and the company. As the work scaled and its impact became clear, the role expanded in January 2024 and I was promoted to Vice President, Experience & Engagement. The scope broadened and my team’s impact increased with an expanded mission to care for people and communities across the full employee lifecycle. This work continues today with the same scope, team, and responsibilities, and has transitioned to IBM as part of an evolving operating model (see Vice President, Human Resources | Engagement @ IBM).
I led a team of ten communicators at the intersection of what leaders need to share and what employees need to know. Our mission was to find the words that move people, the stories that inspire them, and the platforms that connect them. In addition, I led executive communications for our Chief People Officer (CPO) that built trust with employees, enhanced our brand, and reinforced our culture through times of change. I also prepared board presentations that equipped our CPO to provide regular updates on our people strategy, engagement, and culture. Highlights of impact: ➡️Designed and delivered communications strategies that reached 20,000+ employees globally, strengthening engagement and alignment with business priorities ➡️Crafted executive messaging that helped the Chief People Officer and leadership team communicate with candor, clarity, and impact ➡️Built a reputation for storytelling that translated strategy into action and gave employees a voice in shaping our culture ➡️Increased visibility and impact of HR programs — from inclusion and career growth to well-being and community — by aligning content, channels, and timing to employee needs This role marked the intersection of executive communications, employee experience, and people strategy — laying the groundwork for my later VP-level work in experience and engagement.
I transformed a traditional employee communications team into an innovative employee newsroom that delivered results. Leading a team of twelve correspondents, we shifted from distributing updates to telling authentic, newsworthy stories that connected employees to Cisco’s strategy, culture, and innovation. Our newsroom became the trusted source for employees worldwide — decoding complex business priorities, reporting on technology and culture, and giving people the inside track on what mattered most. By spotlighting real employees doing real things, we strengthened connection, pride, and alignment across the company. Highlights of impact: ➡️Increased employee sentiment by 20–30 points on key topics, building trust and alignment with strategy ➡️Drove a 25% increase in unique readers, 59% growth in page views, and a 13% conversation rate year-over-year ➡️Elevated employee voice by replacing one-way communications with interactive storytelling and dialogue ➡️Positioned the newsroom as a model for modern employee communications, recognized for innovation and measurable impact This transformation laid the foundation for my later work leading global culture, communications, and engagement strategies at scale. It also shaped how I approach organizational culture, connected to business priorities.
Enticing 60,000 global partners to choose Cisco was no small task — in a world of endless options, it was like convincing a shopper to pick your jar of marinara sauce off a crowded shelf. My team’s job was to make Cisco the partner of choice, every time. We used content marketing strategies that cut through complexity: creating communications that were simple, distinct, and data-driven. We reinvented how we reached partners, developed fresh channels, and delivered an award-winning program — Marketing Velocity — that taught partners how to reach customers more effectively and drive sales pipeline. We also elevated Cisco’s partner social media presence (@CiscoPartners, @PartnerVelocity, blogs.cisco.com/partner), turning it into a recognized industry voice. Highlights of impact: ➡️Increased partner social media engagement by 210%, impressions by 56%, and targeted followers by 10% ➡️Led the most successful social media campaign for Cisco’s global partner sales meeting and its highest-rated marketing summit ➡️Expanded reach and deepened engagement with Cisco’s 60,000 partners by shifting communications to a data-informed, storytelling-driven model ➡️Positioned Marketing Velocity as an industry-leading program recognized for innovation and measurable business impact This role laid the foundation for my move into employee communications. It was the first time I could apply storytelling and the power of words directly to a business challenge: Driving partner engagement, influencing revenue, and proving that communications can be both creative and commercially impactful.
I love to tell a good story, particularly to a crowd. One day I hope to present a TED talk (topic of inspiration waiting to surface). What better way to polish up my presentation and storytelling skills than to join my local Toastmasters club? I dove right into the Competent Communication (CC) and Competent Leadership (CL) manuals. Both of which I completed in a year. It's not just about personal growth. Being a part of a newly charted Toastmasters club comes with an awesome responsibility. That's why I enthusiastically volunteered to be the vice president of membership. During my time in this role I doubled membership in our club.
This is the job that launched the rest of my awesome career. It started with a hiring manager taking a chance on an early-career candidate (that's me) and blossomed into a long, winding journey when SightPath was acquired by Cisco. Here I managed critical field and customer awareness programs for Content Networking technologies. .