Our Team
Iris Ioffreda, MA, PCC
Principal
“Be brave enough to start a conversation that matters.” – Margaret Wheatley
Iris focuses on leadership development, executive coaching, building high performance teams, facilitation, and strategic planning. She works with senior leaders on creating organizational vision and alignment, cultivating emotional intelligence, developing inclusive work environments, ensuring good communication, and improving leadership effectiveness. Iris has over twenty years of management experience in corporate, non-profit, government and educational settings. Her business experience ranges from managing a small company focused on health care needs in developing countries, to sales and marketing at IBM. She has extensive experience in adult learning, gained through her work directing conference and training programs for George Mason University’s Center for Health Policy, Research, and Ethics and the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric, and Neonatal Nurses, a national association.
Iris is an ICF certified executive coach, has a post-graduate certificate in Organization Development and Leadership Coaching from Georgetown University, and an MA in Political Science from the University of Michigan. Iris is fluent in Spanish and has lived and worked extensively overseas.
Angelo Ioffreda, MBA, MA, PCC
Principal
“Wisdom, compassion, and courage are the three universally recognized moral qualities of men.” – Confucius
Angelo brings expertise in communications strategy, change leadership and employee engagement. Angelo has held leadership roles with NII Holdings, Inc., The World Bank Group; Sodexo; AOL & AOL-Time Warner; Robinson, Lerer, and Montgomery Strategic Communications; and the U.S. Department of State. Angelo is adept at designing, developing, and implementing effective, innovative communication and marketing strategies to engage people and drive business performance. Areas of expertise include strategy development, strategic, global and cross-cultural communications, change leadership and transformation, employee and brand engagement, metrics and measurement, visual communication, storytelling, collaboration, and digital media. Angelo has presented widely at conferences by The Conference Board, Melcrum, The International Association of Business Communicators, and Marcus Evans on a variety of communication topics.
Angelo has an MBA from the Wharton School, and an MA in International Affairs from the University of Chicago. Angelo was both a Presidential Management Fellow and a Thomas J. Watson Fellow. He is a past president of IABC DC Metro, the largest IABC chapter in the U.S.
Carol Cadby, MA
Coach
“Everyone has the ability to reach their potential, they just need encouragement.”
Carol is a leadership coach specializing in voice, speech, and leadership presence. She helps leaders find their voice, overcome stage fright, and develop their unique personal presentation style. She also works with leaders to develop leadership presence through body awareness, movement, and voice quality, and helps them to use storytelling and narrative for higher impact communication.
Carol brings her training as a professional actor and acting teacher to her coaching. She has taught acting and theatre for more than 25 years at the college and high school level. She currently teaches at George Mason University, Signature Theatre, Synetic Theatre and Arlington Public Schools. She also lectures, coaches, and directs across the country and serves as an Arts Commissioner for Arlington County.
She has received numerous directing and teaching awards, and has been nominated for a Tony Award in Theatre Education. In 2017, she received the F. Loren Winship Secondary School Theatre Award from the American Association of Theatre Educators, nationally recognizing her long-term contribution as a pioneer in secondary education. Prior to becoming a teacher, she was a professional stage and film actor for ten years based in Miami, Florida, and is trained in various acting techniques.
Carol has a BA from Grinnell College and a MA in Self-development through Arts Education from George Mason University. She is fluent in Spanish.
Caryn Anthony MA, ACC
Consultant and Coach
“It is our choices…that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” – J.K. Rowling
Caryn is a nonprofit consultant and executive coach dedicated to empowering mission-driven organizations and leaders to achieve their highest goals fueled by their deepest values. Caryn has extensive experience providing expert guidance to nonprofits in the areas of strategic planning, board governance, organizational assessments, and leadership development. Her work has included volunteer-run organizations of all sizes as well as city and county government agencies in areas such as human services, public health, environmental advocacy, animal welfare, community development, and social justice.
As an executive coach, Caryn works with individual clients to explore and identify their goals, and to strengthen their professional skills. As a consultant, she has developed leadership programs on a variety of topics.
Caryn is an ICF certified coach and is a licensed consultant with the Standards for Excellence® Institute. She holds a MA in Not-for-Profit Management from the University of Maryland University College (UMUC), and a BA in Developmental and Child Psychology from Tufts University.
Celeste Garcia, MPA
Consultant
“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” – Wayne Dyer
Celeste is a seasoned organization development practitioner with more than 25 years of management consulting experience. She has worked across the public, nonprofit, and private sectors. Her areas of expertise include strategic planning, organizational assessments, team building, and business process improvement.
She has led organizational development projects for federal agencies, such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). She also has supported transformation efforts for municipal organizations, such as the District of Columbia Office of Contracting and Procurement and the Washington Convention Center Authority.
Celeste holds a MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a BA in Economics from Harvard College. She is trained in DiSC and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). She has studied organizational development at NTL, attended facilitation training, and completed the leadership development program at the University of Maryland.
Clarissa Cullers MBA, PCC, BCC, SPHR
Coach
“In the end we are our choices. Build yourself a great story.” – Jeff Bezos
Clarissa is an experienced coach and human capital consultant with more than 25 years of client management and professional service delivery in areas of Leadership Development, Executive Coaching, and Human Capital Strategy. She enjoys working with organizational leaders and senior leadership teams as they uncover new information about themselves and develop their leadership journey.
Adept at analyzing business requirements and creating strategic solutions to improve performance, Clarissa works with individuals and teams to help them maximize their potential. Clarissa has coached executives, managers and teams in the federal government, large multinationals, telecommunications, financial services, education and non-profit organizations. She also has designed and led 360 assessment and coaching programs for multiple organizations. Clarissa serves as Adjunct Faculty and Executive Coach with the Center for Creative Leadership.
Clarissa holds an MBA from the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, and is an International Coach Federation Professional Certified Coach (PCC), Board Certified Coach (BCC), Senior Professional of Human Resources (SPHR), and Certified Leadership System Practitioner. She is certified in the Center for Creative Leadership Benchmarks 360 Assessment Suite, Leadership Circle Profile, OPM Leadership Effectiveness Inventory 360, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Step I & II, FIRO-B and FIRO Business, Workplace Big 5, and DISC Assessment. She is also experienced with Hogan Assessment Suite, StrengthsFinder 2.0, TKI Conflict Mode Assessment and NEO-PI-R Personality Inventory.
Daphne Miller, PCC
Coach and Facilitator
“True power is an integrated mind-body state in which energy flows unrestricted towards a purpose.” – Thomas Crum
Daphne is a highly experienced executive coach with more than 3,000 hours of direct one-on-one coaching. She is skilled at identifying core issues and partnering with her clients to help them discover new paths to meet challenges and see opportunities. Her approach is rooted in the lens of language, emotional intelligence, and somatics. An engaging trainer and facilitator, Daphne brings creative approaches to the design and delivery of leadership development programs.
She has worked across sectors including non-profits, companies, and with multiple federal and local government agencies. These include the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), FEMA, the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences, GSA, USDA, the Architect of the Capitol, and Arlington County Government, among others.
Daphne is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) as well as a Coach Fellow and adjunct faculty in George Mason University’s Coaching to Well-Being and Leadership Coach Certification Program. She trained in ontological coaching at the Newfield Network and completed the Advanced Coaching Program at George Mason University. A Texas native, Daphne has a B.S in Communications and Business from the University of St. Thomas in Texas. She is certified in multiple assessments, including the Center for Creative Leadership Benchmarks 360° Assessment, the Lominger 360° Assessment, the Leadership Circle Profile 360, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument, SOAR (Success through Observer, Action, Results), and DiSC.
Laura Mendelow, MA, PCC
Coach
“A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader; a great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
Laura focuses on developing dynamic leaders who are self-aware, connected and inspired to achieve great results in both organizations and at home as a parent. Her approach, rooted in psychology, management theories, and organizational development, focuses on the core psychological needs of people. She believes “when you ‘get’ people, you get results.” Her experience as both an external and internal consultant gives her a unique perspective in working with clients to create innovative yet sustainable results.
Laura has coached leaders at a wide range of organizations including FEMA, CMS, DOE, SEC, DOD, the Judiciary, Goodwill, USA Today, Kimely-Horn, and Booz Allen, where she previously managed the internal coaching and organization development program for senior leaders. In addition to her coaching, Laura is an experienced facilitator and was an Adjunct Instructor at Marymount University teaching a graduate level Facilitation Skills course as well as a guest instructor at George Mason University teaching the Leadership Coaching for Organizational Performance certificate program. Laura also facilitates an industry-recognized Organization Development Book Club to discuss latest developments in the learning and organization development field.
Laura has a MA in Organization Development from Marymount and a BS in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. She is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and is certified in a variety of assessment including the Leadership Circle Profile 360, the Hogan Inventories, EQ-I Bar-On assessment, DiSC and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). As a way to give back, Laura offers a “Parent as Leader” program where she works with parents in applying leadership principles at home and building stronger family relationships.
Cassie Crosby
Consultant and Coach
“Our presence is the greatest gift we can give in life’s most important moments.”
Cassie Crosby is a certified leadership coach and leader development consultant who empowers leaders to step out of the shadows and bring their unique vision to life. A retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, Cassie brings to bear more than 20 years of success navigating the complexities of gender disparity, leading in ambiguity and uncertainty, and helping senior leaders make strategic decisions to her coaching practice. Cassie has extensive experience spanning coaching and leader development as well as public affairs, logistics and supply chain management, strategic communications, and strategic and operational planning.
As a coach and consultant, Cassie helps leaders and organizations create their own version of success, identify barriers to change, see new possibilities, and develop strategies to leverage opportunities and overcome challenges. Her specialty is working with underrepresented executive leaders seeking the clarity and confidence to make a bigger impact. In addition to coaching, she is an experienced facilitator and speaker who teaches on a number of topics including gender and leadership, intentional leadership, executive presence and decision making, and organizational leadership.
Cassie holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of New Hampshire, a Master of Business Administration in Organizational Leadership from Norwich University, a Master of Military Arts and Science in Operational Planning from the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies, and a graduate certificate in Leadership Coaching from Georgetown University. She co-authored My Green Notebook: “Know Thyself” Before Changing Jobs.
Tatia D. Granger, PhD, PCC
Coach
“Practice makes better.”
Tatia helps her coaching clients achieve personal and professional clarity by strategically and purposefully co-creating their best leadership success. She brings more than 25 years of integrated learning and practice from higher education, non-profit talent development, management consulting and volunteer leadership in community and civic organizations to her role as a leadership coach.
As a leadership coach and strategist, Tatia partners with individuals, teams and organizations to find and commit to paths of intentional leadership. She believes that helping her clients visualize, plan and move toward their “sense of better” launches positive and purposeful development. Tatia has coached clients in higher education, the non-profit sector, and internationally with an emerging leaders program focusing on the next generation of business talent in Africa.
She currently serves as a Clinical Associate Professor in Organizational Behavior at the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at the College of William & Mary for undergraduate and MBA students. She also collaborates on and presents professional leadership seminars on behalf of the Center for Corporate Education. For nine years, Tatia served as the Ombuds at William & Mary where she worked to support more open and effective communication among employees and with the College; and in doing so, helped to create a work environment of greater satisfaction through effective conflict management resources.
Tatia received a PhD in Higher Education Administration with a focus on leadership from the University of Virginia, a MEd in Social Foundations of Education, and a BA in French. She also completed Georgetown University’s Leadership Coaching Program and earned the ICF certification of Professional Certified Coach (PCC). She is certified to administer the Conflict Dynamics Profile CDP-360 and CDP Individual assessments. Tatia is actively involved in the Williamsburg, VA, community.
Vanessa Defournier, MSc, MS, PCC
Coach
“One doesn’t discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.” – Andre Gide
Vanessa works with senior executives and emerging leaders to improve business results, leadership skills, career decisions, and well-being. With more than fifteen years of diverse professional experience in multinational organizations, including the Inter-American Development Bank, her rich career has run a course parallel to the geographical and cultural changes she’s undergone throughout her life.
Born in Panama to a French father and an Ecuadorian mother, Vanessa has lived and worked in France, the UK, Brazil, Peru, Mexico, Argentina, and the United States. Currently based in Luxembourg, Vanessa works with clients across Europe, as well as in the Unites States and Latin America. Vanessa brings insights into the topic of transitions from her own lived experience.
Vanessa has an MSc in Development Management from the London School of Economics and an MS in International Affairs from Sciences Po in Paris, where she also received her BA in Political Science. She is certified in Leadership Coaching by Georgetown University, PCC accredited by the International Coach Federation, and works in French, Spanish, Portuguese, and English. Vanessa is also certified in a number of assessment tools, such as the MBTI, DISC and DISC 363, the Leadership Circle Profile 360, and the Life GPS tool.