Tag Archives: visioning and futuring

Randal Joy Thompson

Randal ThompsonFor over thiry years, Randal Joy Thompson has expressed her passion for helping people around the world achieve their dreams through a career in international development.  She has advised senior government officials on key policy changes, assisted local non-governmental organizations establish themselves, organized interest group coalitions, and worked in small rural villages and large urban centers on a variety of development challenges in India, Cameroon, Morocco, Nicaragua, Mongolia, Romania, Ukraine, Kenya, Albania, Bulgaria, and Bolivia.

For the last two years, she has helped staff at the Ministry of Planning and Development Cooperation in Baghdad, Iraq enhance their management skills and understanding of the global economy.  She facilitated an Appreciative Inquiry with ministry staff during which the group drafted a preposterous proposition which expressed their dream for collaborative teamwork and a democratic, flat organizational structure.  The group made serious individual and group commitments to achieving their proposition.  Randal also taught course in cross-cultural communication and protocol for ten ministries in Iraq.  She is now serving as Chief of Party on another project in Baghdad, responsible for monitoring and evaluating the US government project portfolio and conducting sector studies to support their future strategy.

Randal has been a keynote speaker at several conferences, including the first and second International Women’s Conferences held in Romania in 1998 and 1999.  She delights in inspiring her audiences to see their potential to achieve their dreams and work together on common opportunities to change their personal and social worlds.  She combines humor with serious calls to action. She is particularly interested in helping organizations change creatively through the application of appreciative approaches.   She is President and CEO of an organizational development consulting company in Reno, Nevada, “Getting to Excellence.”

Randal works with government, private sector, and non-profit organizations as well a common interest groups.  She especially enjoys working with women’s groups and organizations.   She also delivers training in international development and how to effectively work in a globalized economy and cross-cultural communication.

Randal has her BA in Philosophy from the University of California at Berkeley; her MA in Philosophy and MBA from the University of Chicago; and her MA in Biblical Exposition from Capital Bible Seminary.  She also has a Certificate in Organizational Development Consulting from Georgetown University and a Certificate in French Civilization from the Sorbonne.  She has been certified by Company of Experts as an Appreciative Inquiry Facilitator.

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Specialties:

  • Appreciative Inquiry
  • Change Management
  • Collaborative Decision-making
  • Facilitation
  • Keynote Speaker
  • Organizational Assessment and Development
  • Program/Project Development & Management
  • Program/Project Evaluation
  • Strategic Planning
  • Team Building
  • Visioning and Futuring

Christopher Szecsey

Christopher Szecsey

Christopher Szecsey (pronounced “say-chay”) has over 38 years of worldwide experience across more than 48 countries in capacity-building of individuals, teams, community groups, organizations, & projects. For the past 15 years, he has worked as consultant, trainer, & facilitator with international nonprofits & local nonprofits (NGOs) as well as with government & multilateral agencies in the USA & around the world.

His international clients include: the Center for Disease Control in Ethiopia, Carter Center, World Wildlife Fund, American Red Cross, Save the Children, CARE, PACT, PATH, Family Health International, Pathfinder, Counterpart International, The Asia Foundation, FAO/UN, UNDP, & UNICEF as well as international consulting firms, foundations, & government agencies. Prior to consulting, he served nine years as a Country Representative/Field Office Director for Save the Children/US on three international assignments in Asia & the Pacific Islands; two years as a Project Director for UNDP in Nepal; & three years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ecuador.

His USA clients, mostly in the Northern California, include: the Volunteer Center & its Nonprofit Resource Center, Community Action Partnerships, West County Community Services, Santa Rosa Symphony, Habitat for Humanity, RECOURSE, Restorative Resources, Sonoma County Repertory Theater, Next Generation, Lifeschool, Osmosis, Southwest Community Health Center, La Luz, foundations such as Levi Strauss & West County Healthcare, school districts, & local city & county government agencies.

Key areas of Christopher’s consulting experience include building the capacity of the nonprofit sector around the world including in the USA; providing technical assistance, training & facilitation in collaboration/partnerships; organizational assessment & development, leadership & team strengthening;  program assessment, design, planning, & management; & board & staff development as well as work with local government agencies.

Christopher has significant experience & skills in training & facilitation with boards, senior staff, & diverse stakeholder groups, using learner center participatory, interactive, & collaborative learning processes to ensure client & stakeholder involvement, engagement & ownership for positive change efforts.

He has served on the board of three nonprofits as well as the chair of one, and as a nonprofit executive director. He graduated from the University of the Pacific/Callison College, and successfully completed the Executive Certificate Program in Global Change & Social Innovation/Appreciative Inquiry, Global Excellence in Management (GEM) Initiative, Case Western Reserve University. His three languages are: English, Spanish, and Indonesian.

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Specialties:

  • Appreciative Inquiry
  • Board Training & Development
  • Community Development/ Mobilization & Community Partnerships
  • Consulting
  • Facilitating
  • Facilitator Training
  • High-Impact Strategic Planning
  • Leadership Training & Development
  • Management Training & Development
  • Organizational Assessment
  • Organizational Development
  • Participatory Learning
  • Participatory Management
  • Partnership Building & Strengthening
  • Program/Project Development & Management
  • Staff Training & Development
  • Team Building
  • Visioning & Futuring

Jim Pulliam

Contact Information:

Address:
5920 S. Rainbow Blvd, Ste 4,
Las Vegas, Nevada 89118

Email:
Jim@Fintelo.net

Phone:
Work: (702) 228-4699
Mobile: (760) 333-4993

Skype: jim_pulliam

Website(s):
Center for Appreciative Inquiry
Company of Experts, Inc.
Department Chair Institute

Working Portfolio:
Download Resume

Pulliam.2013

My “walk” is no different from others nor the opportunities or achievements any greater. Spending time in the financial markets, teaching from the primary grades to graduate school, serving as a founding College President, Vice President of the Company of Experts and CEO of a software Company are professional experiences. Volunteer organizations range from holding professional statewide office, foundation boards, regional economic development board and serving as an appointee of a Governor on a BRAC Commission.

What have I learned? I have learned that our similarities are greater than our differences. Differences of people can be measured in millimeters not miles. It all depends on ones perspective.

I have also learned that destiny is up to us. One once said, “ it isn’t a journey but a quest”. A journey happens, a quest is something we thirst for.

What have I observed? I have observed that those making the greatest contribution for others are living lives of significance not necessarily one for their personal success.

What do I believe? I believe it is up to you, and you and me.

  • Appreciative Inquiry Consulting & Training
  • Board Training & Retreats
  • Business Consulting
  • Coaching
  • Content Development
  • Large-Scale Summit Design
  • Leadership Development & Training
  • Organizational Development
  • Strategic Development
  • Succession Planning
  • Workshop Facilitation

Macon Miracle:

  • Creating the Macon Miracle (Part 1) – “Creating the Macon” – Bibb County School District, with the help of the Center for Appreciative Inquiry, conducted a Strategic Planning session using Appreciative Inquiry. With 4500 people in attendance, this is the largest Appreciative Inquiry (AI) Summit known to date. In this video, Dr. Romain Dallemand opens the session with a powerful speech.
  • Creating the Macon Miracle (Part 2) – Day 2 of the Macon Miracle, Dr. Romain Dallemand shares his gratitude and excitement about the possibilities & opportunities that emerged through the inquiries conducted on Day 1.

World Appreciative Inquiry Conference (WAIC) 2012:

  • Anne Gathumbi WAIC Interview – Anne Gathumbi is a program manager with OSIEA and the Open Society Law and Health Initiative. She is responsible for the organization’s work to promote legal initiatives to advance the human rights of East Africans living with and affected by HIV/AIDS
  • Kathy Becker WAIC Interview – President of the Company of Experts talks about her experiences with Appreciative Inquiry
  • Bibb County School District
  • Disability Rights Nebraska
  • State University of New York (SUNY)
“Just a note to say how much I appreciate what you’re doing in the world and to let you know that AI continues to inform many aspects of all that I do.
~ Susan Sanford, Certified AI Facilitator

Chuck McIntyre

Chuck McIntyreChuck McIntyre of northern California, has consulted and worked in higher education planning, research, evaluation, finance and management since 1971. Until 1999, he worked as Director of Research and Analysis in a state office of higher education and has consulted with colleges across the U.S., in the United Kingdom and Canada since the early 1999s. His recent engagements have been in the areas of strategic and facilities planning, emphasizing enrollment forecasting, planning, and management – using computer simulation models, recently-released 2000 Census data, and other sources and tools.

ENROLLMENT FORECASTING, SIMULATION, AND MANAGEMENT

Since the early 1990s, Chuck’s work has emphasized enrollment planning and management. In 1993, he developed an econometric model that is currently used in long-range enrollment forecasting for the capital planning at local districts in a state system. He conducted a study for the Maricopa Community Colleges in 1995 on the enrollment-impact of tuition and fees; results have been used by the district for long-range policymaking. Chuck then worked, in 1996, with Lincoln University on a computer model to simulate a variety of enrollment management initiatives in marketing, admissions, registration, and student retention, all designed to tie into budgeting models. Chuck also completed a 1997 study of Pima Community College’s past and future enrollment patterns for its use in planning.

In Spring 1997, he was published in Jossey-Bass’ New Directions for Institutional Research, and has spoken on enrollment management at national conferences like the American Association for Community Colleges (SCUP), Association for Institutional Research (AIR), Society for Needs assessmentCollege and University Planning (SCUP), and the Consortium for Community College Development (CCCD).

In Fall 1998, Chuck spoke at the European AIR in Spain about use of computer models to forecast enrollments and plan budgets. Also in 1998, he conducted an enrollment simulation and planning (ESP) study at Lansing Community College and, in 1999, he conducted ESP studies at Portland, Mt. Hood and Lane Community Colleges in Oregon and for the State Office of Michigan Community Colleges.

In Fall 1999, AACC published Chuck’s book on Enrollment Simulation and Planning. Since then, Chuck has worked on ESP projects at colleges in Oregon, Michigan, Massachusetts, California, Washington, and Texas.

STRATEGIC PLANNING

Recent engagements by Chuck with Palm Desert and San Mateo (California) and Austin (Texas) Community Colleges have involved a form of strategic planning – learning-centered strategic planning – that emphasizes efforts by these institutions to concentrate in a variety of ways on student learning. Chuck spoke about this technique at a SCUP regional conference in 2002.

Chuck’s work in college planning and evaluation spans nearly three decades, beginning in 1974 with an Exxon Education Foundation grant for research on the book Planning Colleges for the Community, published by Jossey-Bass. In 1978, he directed work, supported by a Vocational Education Act grant, on assessments of community educational needs; and in 1981, he was awarded a four-year Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education grant to develop new ways to tie college planning and evaluation to accreditation.

Since then, Chuck helped develop several long-range plans for a state Board of Governors, has written a number of articles and monographs on college planning, and has directed numerous workshops and symposia on the topic using techniques such as Charrette, Delphi, Nominal Group Technique, and Total Quality Improvement. He has spoken frequently on planning at national and regional conferences like AACC, SCUP, AIR, Pacific Northwest Association for Institutional Research and Planning, Western and Southwestern Regional SCUP, Southeastern Association for Community College Research, California Community College Board of Governors, California AIR, Community College League of California, California Community College Trustees, and California Research and Planning Group, and at many local colleges.

As Director of Research and Analysis, he was responsible for numerous state-level planning and evaluation projects, including environmental scanning and futures research projects, one of which was honored in 1996 with a Research White Paper grant from AACC and the Sloan Foundation, and published in Core Issues in Community Colleges (AACC, 1997).

FACILITIES PLANNING

During 2000, 2001 and 2002, Chuck conducted projects in long-range facilities planning for Mt. San Antonio (CA), Mt. Hood (OR), and Austin (TX) in preparation for capital financing bond elections. These projects involved computer modeling of facility needs, formulation of new space and utilization standards, and new kinds of classroom configurations. He currently is involved in a similar project for College of the Desert (CA) and has an article on the topic forthcoming in the Spring 2003 issue of the Journal of Applied Research in the Community College.

Earlier, in 1990-91, Chuck designed and implemented a computer model to project 15-year facility needs for a state system of community colleges; the resulting Board of Governors’ Long-Range Capital Outlay Plan was used to plan and allocate capital outlays for nearly ten years.

POLICY RESEARCH

Over two decades, Chuck conducted and directed numerous policy research projects for a state office about community college transfer, tuition, fees and financial aid, student services and other topics. His article on transfer performance was published in Research in Higher Education in 1989. Other work includes policy research on such topics as the impact of fees on enrollment (1993), growth funding formulas (1996), and welfare reform (1997), among others. Also in 1997, Chuck completed four technical papers for the 2005 Task Force, a long-range planning effort about future college needs and funding, sponsored by a state Board of Governors and Chancellor. Chuck served on the Research Commission of the AACC between 1997 and 2000.

COMPUTER MODELING

For the past decade, Chuck also has engaged in many computer modeling projects, designing, developing and implementing planning and decision-support tools for colleges and universities. In 1989, he developed a computer model to forecast college faculty replacement, which was used in human resource planning and presented that year at SCUP. Between 1990 and 1995, Chuck directed a consortium of three dozen community colleges in the U.S., United Kingdom, and Canada in developing computer-aided planning (CAP) models. This work-involving model design, development, quarterly workshops with participants, and testing–was to produce robust and systematic computer simulation models to help colleges plan and make policy decisions.

During the CAP project, Chuck held a 1993 planning symposium for staff from community colleges throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Among colleges participating in the CAP project were Bilston in Birmingham (England), Lethbridge in Alberta (Canada), Kapiolani (Honolulu), and three-dozen other colleges from the mainland U.S.

OTHER EXPERIENCE AND ACADEMIC TRAINING

Earlier in his career, as Director of Analytical Studies with a state office of higher education, Chuck directed the design of the office’s first computer-based management information system and was responsible for the design and implementation of two financing systems by which the state office allocated funds to local districts. Chuck also has worked on projects assessing the economic impact of colleges, and in 2001 he helped AACC evaluate a new cost-benefit model for this purpose.

Chuck’s academic training is in economics: PhD from University of California, MA from California State University; and in anthropology: BA from University of Colorado. He has taught undergraduate microeconomics and graduate higher education finance at the California State University. Prior to working in higher education, Chuck played professional baseball for the Milwaukee Braves organization.

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Specialties:

  • Academic Master Planning
  • Budgeting
  • Decision Making
  • Distance Learning
  • Enrollment Analysis and forecasting
  • Enrollment management
  • Environmental Scanning
  • Emotional Intelligence across the curriculum
  • Evaluation
  • Institutional Research
  • Learning Paradigm
  • Management Information Systems (MIS)
  • Self-esteem building
  • Planning
  • Policy Research
  • Program Review
  • Self Studies and accreditation
  • Strategic Planning
  • Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) and Assessments
  • Trustee/CEO relationships
  • Visioning and Futuring

Frank Gornick

Frank Gornick

Frank Gornick is chancellor of a community college district in California serving one of the poorest regions of the nation. Enrollment has increased three fold since 1994 while the total district revenues have been matched with an aggressive federal and state grant program. The district consists of two colleges, as well as centers throughout the 3,000 square mile service area.

In 2002, the district was recognized by the Met Life Foundation “For excellence in promoting education and economic advancement for underserved youth and adults.”

In 2004, the college district was awarded the prestigious California Community College Chancellor’s Diversity Award for Excellence for its work in promoting and hiring a diverse administrative staff.

Campus Compact recently featured this college in its spring publication: One with the Community: Indicators of Engagement at Minority-Serving Institutions.

Dr. Gornick has led an aggressive campaign for child care in his district with a goal of placing a college-operated child care facility in every community the district serves. The district’s intent is to address the whole family’s educational needs and promote access to education through the use of these centers.

He has fostered the aggressive use of technology by forging strategic partnerships with Cisco Systems, Pacific Bell, Federal agencies, local Workforce Investment Boards and others to deliver low cost solutions of access to technology. This effort has led to one of the most advanced on-line educational programs in the state–if not the nation. Retention rates exceed 75 percent. His staff has exploded the myth that poor citizens without access to computers will shun on-line educational opportunities.

His low-key yet high energy approach to leadership encourages people by example and with enthusiasm. He has transformed the college into a district that knows what it is doing and cares about the people it is enabling.

Dr. Gornick joined forces with community college presidents, AACC and business leaders to begin the discussion of the future of education in our country. Dr. Gornick wrote an article for the Community College Journal, December/January 2006 edition titled: A Call to Action: Reclaiming our Competitive Advantage. Dr. Gornick and the other leaders are beginning the dialogue on a national level this year.

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Specialties:

  • Academic Master Plannings
  • Accreditation and Program Assessment
  • Board Training and Development
  • Community Building
  • Community Development and Community Partnerships
  • Creating Learning Organizations
  • Developing Cultural Inclusion in Teaching or Training
  • Distance Education
  • E-Learning
  • Economic Development
  • Enrollment Management
  • Government Relations/ Lobbying
  • Innovation in the Workplace
  • Performance Management
  • Learning Centered Teaching and  Training Workshops
  • Management Consulting
  • On-line Education
  • Planned Change
  • Resource Development
  • Strategic Planning
  • Visioning and Futuring

Barbara Kerr

Barbara Kerr

Barbara A. Kerr has worked in higher education as a faculty member, an administrator, a consultant, and an executive coach. As part of her consulting services, she has assisted three Washington State college boards in hiring their college presidents, and has facilitated the hiring of many other college administrators and faculty. Currently, Barbara is the principal of a Seattle-based consulting firm that provides coaching and consulting services to government, non-profits, higher education, and business organizations.

Barbara has completed a post-graduate training course as a Master Certified Executive Coach and is a certified administrator of the EQ-i, an emotional intelligence inventory, as well as a number of other assessments to assist individuals, teams, and organizations in moving forward. She has developed a unique dual coaching process that provides individual coaching for executives while at the same improves and enhances the work of the executive team as a whole. She has developed expertise in working with individuals and teams to assist them in clarifying their values, creating a vision in alignment with those values, building a plan of action, and supporting the implementation and assessment of the plan. She has also developed an interactive board game to assist clients in better understanding the concepts of emotional intelligence, as well as how to enhance their own competencies. She is the author of several books, including “Read All Your Life” and co-author of “You Can Choose Your Own Life.”

Her clients have included many two and four-year colleges and universities, Center for Information Services, Commission on Colleges and Universities, United States Navy, the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, the Washington Educational Leadership Association, Olympic Mental Health Associates, Washington Mutual Bank, the Charles Moriarty Foundation, and a number of individual executives and administrators. Barbara has a Ph.D and an M.A. in English from Temple University.

Specialties:

  • Accreditation and program assessment
  • Board Training and Development
  • Chief Executive Officer evaluation
  • Coach and Counseling
  • Communication
  • Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace
  • Employee Development
  • Environmental Scanning
  • Executive Coaching
  • Facilitation
  • Interpersonal Relationships
  • Leadership Coaching
  • Leadership Development
  • Life Coaching
  • Meetings
  • Strategic Planning
  • Team Building
  • Team Development
  • Values Clarification
  • Visioning and Futuring

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