SCANNER FREEMONT / Data Analyst
Freemont is responsible for the digital conversion of survey responses while adhering to strict quality standards set forth by its managers. Freemont began its career at TruScore in 1996 as a Data Analyst and quickly became pivotal to TruScore's success. As the years passed, Freemont has slowly matured into part-time Data Analyst while also holding many positions in the work environment including On The Floor, On The Empty Desk, and Hold The Door (AKA Hodor).
RON SACCHI / Master Coach
A former Operations Manager in the High Tech Industry, Ron Sacchi brings decades of leadership and management experience to the organizational development and the executive coaching arena. An energetic thought-leader with a track record of success in all areas of Human Capital development, he has consulted and coached managers in start-ups, joint-ventures, high tech, pharmaceuticals, and media. Because of his business acumen and creative approaches to behavioral change, he is respected in the HR community specifically for the ability to direct, motivate, influence and inspire leaders to improve performance.
Holding an MBA from Saint Mary’s College, Mr. Sacchi is also licensed in various management, leadership and psychological profiling tools.
CARLANN FERGUSSON / Master Coach
Carlann inspires leaders to reconnect to their individual purpose and lead with contagious energy. She ensures leaders gain deep self-awareness and eliminate self-sabotaging behaviors. Her guidance is based on coaching, training and selecting hundreds of executives across diverse companies as well as her own journey into the executive ranks.
Carlann is the author of the highly acclaimed book The Insightful Leader: Find Your Superpowers, Crush Limiting Beliefs and Abolish Self-Sabotaging Behaviors (Praeger, June 2018). She holds a master’s degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. Her thirty years of experience include leadership roles in Fortune 500s, the private sector, and the U.S. Government. Carlann has been a featured guest on ABC News Radio, Wharton Business Radio and has been cited in CBS MoneyWatch, International Business Times, Newsday and Workday.
DR CHUCH MELTZER / Master Coach
Dr. Chuck Meltzer is a Master Coach and President of the SynTECGroup, an organizational development consulting firm. As an executive coach, he draws on his training at a doctoral level in psychology, direct senior management experience and management consulting with a wide cross section of industries. He has developed an extensive series of strategies to assist leaders in creating organizational wide and personal change. Dr. Meltzer has a decade of direct senior management experience and 20 years’ experience functioning within his consulting and coaching practice. His coaching approach is solution focused and time framed. Based on determined goals, a personally customized approach to the process has enabled his clients to realize sustainable change in a manner that allows them to enhance their effectiveness and success as leaders within their organization.
Dr. Meltzer is certified and a master trainer in several coaching assessment tools that he employs within his practice.
ERIN HIRSCHLAND / Master Coach
Erin is an organization development expert with nearly two decades experience serving organizations of all sizes across industries on a broad range of issues. Working with leadership teams, she helps articulate an actionable vision and corresponding values, connecting these to organizational strategy, execution and results. Her tools of choice include senior team retreats, one-on-one executive coaching and proven survey and related instruments.
Erin’s additional expertise includes designing employee selection systems, developing performance management tools that increase performance across the organization over time and employee and customer experience metrics. An effective facilitator and coach, Erin works with leaders and their teams to build trust, commitment and results.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara and a Master of Arts degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Colorado.
SONYA D HAMILTON / Senior Assessment Consultant
Sonya is a Senior Assessment Consultant at TruScore with over 24 years of experience designing and delivering 360 feedback solutions and providing 360-based coaching, training and interpretation.
Sonya has extensive experience working with Managers and Leaders, guiding them through the feedback and development journey and providing insights and direction to help maximize their impact within the organization. Sonya’s areas of expertise include 360-based coaching, 360 data analysis and interpretation, Train-the-Trainer certifications, facilitation, survey & questionnaire design, and the design and delivery of assessment programs.
Sonya has a Bachelor’s degree in psychology and a Master’s of Science degree in Industrial & Organization Psychology from Springfield College with a specialty in Counseling and Psychological Services. She is a Master Trainer for TruScore and the Clark Wilson Task Cycle surveys receiving a Certificate of Achievement in “How to Train a Trainer”. In addition, Sonya is certified to administer a variety of other psychometric instruments including employee engagement and organizational instruments as well as the line of Hogan Personality Assessments.
KAYLEY MOTZ / Assessment Advisor
Kayley draws on her extensive customer service background to provide clients with prompt, quality support. In her role as Assessment Advisor, Kayley works to ensure clients’ needs are being met. She assists in project set up and management, as well as processing and quality checking feedback reports. Kayley also aids in the execution of the day-to-day responsibilities of the production team, such as coaching session scheduling and tech support.
CRYSTAL HUGHES / Assessment Advisor
Crystal leverages her extensive background in Industrial-Organizational (I-O) psychology as she manages the day-to-day operational and tactical aspects of multiple and large scale projects for TruScore.
Crystal assists clients with setting up and managing feedback projects, and serves as the point of contact throughout the entire process. She quality checks feedback reports, and provides tech support when needed.
ELLIE SOLOMON / Assessment Advisor
Ellie manages project implementation for the entire 360 assessment feedback process and ensures that each client’s unique needs are met on time and in an efficient manner. Ellie consults with clients who use TruScore’s off-the-shelf Task Cycle® instruments as well as providing hosting solutions for clients using their own survey content, including custom processes and reports. She helps clients navigate through the TruScore® survey hosting software, having literally written the handbook that several clients are using.
She coordinates and implements all translation efforts, including soliciting bids, managing timelines, providing files to the translation companies, implementing translations for the web pages, and testing.
ULLA WESTERMANN / Software Engineer
Ulla uses her years of experience as a software engineer to maintain and add new features to TruScore's applications. She also helps with customizing feedback reports based on client needs.
HANK CURTIS / Business Development Manager
Hank manages and assists in the analyzing, planning, research, and development of TruScore’s objectives and strategic plans in order to achieve business opportunities, growth, and financial profitability.
Hank drives the expansion of TruScore’s direct sales, establishes relationships with TruScore’s clients, identifies clients, and keeps up-to-date on industry trends and client developments.
TAYLOR BRANTON / Bookkeeper
Taylor is responsible for managing payroll and employee fringe benefits programs, in addition to organizing company gatherings and outings. Taylor oversees day to day accounting needs as it relates to client invoicing, accounts payable, and general compliance requirements. She also has a hand in month, quarter, and year end reports and works closely with the CEO and CTO to furnish details necessary to make accurate business projections and decisions.
KURT BLAZEK / Design Director
Kurt uses a unique blend of strategic thinking with dynamic executions to create TruScore’s visual and interactive design. He is responsible for creating, evolving, and sustaining the company’s brand to internal and external stakeholders through multiple mediums. He oversees all of TruScore’s digital strategies, along with the implementation of social media tools and techniques.
Kurt leverages TruScore’s marketing and messaging information to identify, evaluate, and apply methods to maximize the effectiveness of the search campaigns across all of the major search engines. He tracks and measures the ROI of search engine rankings, direct print, and marketing websites.
JOSH SHEETS / Chief Operations Officer
Josh is responsible for all day-to-day aspects of managing the operations and various functional areas including business development, sales and marketing, client delivery, vendor relations, human resources, and IT.
Josh helps to ensure outstanding customer service, and the administration of long-term and day-to-day business processes that complement the delivery of high quality, innovative customer-focused survey tools, assessments and hosted survey offerings.
TOM KUHNE / Managing Partner and CTO
Tom joined TruScore in 1995 and has served in a number of roles, including Data Analyst, IS Manager, and VP & CIO. In his current role as Managing Partner and CTO, Tom is the driving force behind TruScore's technology vision for the present and the future. He manages all aspects of TruScore’s information systems, ensuring all systems meet the highest functionality and security standards.
Tom enjoys working hand in hand with clients and partners to make sure TruScore® delivers the technology and advancement that has become expected of it as a leader in the online assessment marketplace.
DEREK MURPHY / Chief Executive Officer
Derek joined TruScore in 1996 and has served in a number of roles, including Data Analyst, Operations Manager, and President & COO. In his current role as CEO, he is responsible for planning and implementing the strategic direction of the company. In addition, Derek is involved in product development and overseeing the day-to-day business operations for TruScore.
TruScore founder Dr. Daniel Booth, a pioneer in the field of assessment of leadership and management skills, served as a mentor to Derek for more than a decade. During this time, Derek became certified on TruScore’s full line of management and leadership assessments. He currently uses these skills to lead content debriefings with customers and partners on a regular basis.
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Coaching has hit the mainstream. It’s showing up in Dilbert cartoons, sitcoms, and well, even the Kardashians are using coaches. Being mainstream simply means that there are a lot more choices one has when considering coaching. It is no longer the secret weapon for C level executives. And it’s not about correcting performance. It’s about motivation, behavior change and ultimately ensuring that people are having the conversations that matter most. I’m a business coach. Fully trained and certified, and hard at work helping leaders develop and grow for the last 15 years. I have seen coaching at work in organizations, making a profound difference in how leaders lead, and how individual contributors put their best effort forward.
Written by Patricia Overland – Senior Coach – Ken Blanchard Companies
Coaching has hit the mainstream. It’s showing up in Dilbert cartoons, sitcoms, and well, even the Kardashians are using coaches. Being mainstream simply means that there are a lot more choices one has when considering coaching. It is no longer the secret weapon for C level executives. And it’s not about correcting performance. It’s about motivation, behavior change and ultimately ensuring that people are having the conversations that matter most. I’m a business coach. Fully trained and certified, and hard at work helping leaders develop and grow for the last 15 years. I have seen coaching at work in organizations, making a profound difference in how leaders lead, and how individual contributors put their best effort forward.
In recent years the debate has raged about when to use internal coaches and when to use external coaches. Everyone has weighed in, from the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology to the International Coach Federation. Companies are increasingly exploring how to design coaching programs that work for their organizations.
Here are three reasons why an organization should consider using internal coaches:
Financial constraints – Coaching can be expensive. A typical coaching relationship can cost anywhere from $10,000 to $100,000. When a CEO gets the results she wants, it’s an expense well worth the cost. However, democratizing coaching in organizations at that price point may not be feasible. Having an internal staff of coaches (individuals within different business units who do coaching a percentage of their time) can increase access to coaching for everyone in the organization.
Organizational integration – Understanding the internal culture and the political landscape can be critical. The Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology suggest that internal coaches have faster access to information about the strengths and values of an organization. Internal coaches can potentially integrate and influence system level interventions more efficiently.
Consistency in process and methodology – Let’s face it. Coaching is not a fully regulated profession. Although the International Coach Federation has a rigorous certification process, and there are many coach training schools, there is no guarantee that a business card that reads “coach” attests to the needed skills. Added to that, hiring external coaches from many different boutique organizations increases the diversity of methodologies.
It sounds reasonable right? Keep it in house and you can save money, improve access, and ensure consistency. But there is a definite downside to using an internal coach approach.
Consider these three reasons for hiring external coaches:
Confidentiality and the client’s agenda – Successful coaching is grounded in these concepts. A slip up in one of these areas can tank a coaching program. There is, worst case, a fear by those being coached that an internal coach might discuss with others the content of a coaching session. Even when it is absolutely, never, ever going to happen, the perception of the possibility reduces the ability of the person being coached to be honest and open. That decreases the efficacy of coaching. Using an external coach increases the likelihood that the people being coached trust and believe that the content of the conversations is confidential and that the coach holds their best interests at heart.
Overcoming cultural blindness – An external coach, by definition, is not part of the organization. Social psychology theory shows that people who work or live together are influenced by each other towards conformity. An external coach sees things through a different lens, not a lens of conformity. An external coach can more readily identify obstacles and blind spots that arise as result of organizational conformation. An external coach can facilitate a change in perspective, beyond cultural norms, that can lead to innovative, creative behavior change.
Avoiding accountability and role clarification Issues – An external coach’s role can be clearly defined. Typically coaching is provided as a development methodology that helps people learn and grow. Coaching focuses on purposeful action designed to help the client achieve personal goals. Ideally these goals are linked to organizational strategy, after all getting a return on investment is important. External coaches do not replace the manager or leader in directing and measuring performance. An internal coach often fulfills other business unit or Human Resource functions, including performance management. Role clarification and boundaries around information management become more challenging with internal coaching. Since the external coach has one role, that of supporting and guiding the person being coached, accountability and role clarification are not at issue.
Ultimately organizations must choose the right strategy for themselves. There is no one right answer.
Here are four additional things to consider:
Readiness for coaching – What is the internal organizational readiness for coaching? Do people believe that coaching is a performance management tool? That only those in “trouble” will be coached? If so, this needs to be shifted to coaching with a focus on development and career goals. How open are people about learning? What causes people to seek out and trust the coaching process?
Ability to structure, manage and measure – Who will manage and measure the effectiveness of coaching? What return does the organization want and need to justify coaching? What tracking methods will be put in place? How many internal or external coaches does the organization need? What measures of success are necessary to influence the implementation and continuation of coaching in the organization?
The coach and coach methodology – How will the organization select the coach or coaches? What criteria are important to the organization? What coaching methodology fits best with the culture and the individual? What role will the manager of the person being coached play? How can the organization ensure quality and consistency, while making room for a variety of methods to meet individual needs?
Executive needs – How realistic is it to expect an executive to bare his soul, admit to imperfection, acknowledge the desire to continue developing or expose his deepest feelings to someone who is part of his organization? Can it be done?
Regardless of the decision an organization makes regarding internal or external coaching, or both, the method works. People are fundamentally changed by engaging in meaningful conversations with a coach who creates an environment of trust and learning. Making the decision to work with a coach or coaching organization, or to build internal coaching capacity, is as individual as buying a prom dress or a tuxedo. No one style fits every organization.
Patricia Overland
Patricia Overland is a Senior Coach for the Ken Blanchard Companies. She consults with organizations and manages large scale global coaching initiatives.
