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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One of my favorite things about coaching people on their 360 feedback results is talking to them about their strengths. Invariably, when managers have studied their reports before talking with me, they are very clear about what they see as their weaknesses. They almost never notice or take stock of their strengths, which are just as obvious to me as their weaknesses are to them. So we spend some time identifying their strengths and talking about how these can be leveraged to manage weaker areas that might be impacting their performance and slowing their careers. People are usually grateful for these insights, which they might not have gotten on their own.
I was interested in reading this book because I hoped it would be one I could recommend to people when they receive their feedback reports or who are learning to lead and manage others. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my hopes, even though it has some useful information. Let me address the book's strengths first.
Finding an ideal work-life balance can be tricky. The demands of both can take a toll for those who are not careful. Putting in long hours at the office and then long hours commuting, shuffling kids to activities and maintaining household responsibilities can leave even the most energetic people exhausted and burned out.
This is where balance comes in. The ideal work-life balance allows for both areas of life to co-exist peacefully, with neither spilling over into the other. The ability to be fully present at work, without the distractions of home life seeping in is essential to performing at one's best. By the same token, the ability to leave work at work instead of taking it home is important, and means the difference between a full and happy life and a stressed and overwhelming one.
Extroverts are the new black in business, but don’t write introverts off just yet. There are times when the thoughtful, reflective leadership style is an effective alternative to outgoing, gregarious extroversion. Conversely, there are times when taking the bull by the horns and expressing one's thoughts makes all the difference. Look at the best practices for mitigating the limitations akin to both managing styles.
Surprisingly, according to one Harvard study, which style is best for your business depends largely on your subordinates. When staffers are eager to share new ideas, address problems or suggest new solutions, introverts will foster an innovative, creative company culture.
Don't mistake this Covey with his father, author of the "7 Habits" series. He is his own person, and has written a book that could revolutionize our view of trust in organizations. I highly recommend this book; it is deep and thorough and not to be read in a few evenings. The information and wisdom it possesses should be savored, pondered, and integrated slowly for the greatest impact. When corporate scandals, terrorist threats, and betrayal by our leaders have created low trust on nearly every front, Covey maintains that the ability to establish, grow, extend, and restore trust with all stakeholders is the key leadership competency of the new global economy.
Trust is defined as having confidence. When you trust people, you have confidence in them - in their integrity and their abilities. When you distrust people, you are suspicious of them. Covey cites a study showing that total return to shareholders in high-trust organizations is almost three times higher than the return in low-trust organizations. On a personal level, high-trust individuals are more likely to be promoted, make more money, receive the best opportunities, and have more fulfilling and joyful relationships.
Dr. Goldsmith is one of corporate America's preeminent executive coaches. He charges a lot for his services, and his clients enthusiastically assert that he's worth it. But if you don't have the money to hire him personally, you will get a flavor for his work by reading this fine book. And you might see yourself in its pages.
This book is designed to help successful people become even more successful by identifying an interpersonal problem that they need to stop. Goldsmith discusses the twenty habits that often cause successful people problems. These include: winning too much (the behavior that encompasses many of the other problems), adding too much value, making destructive comments, speaking when angry, withholding information, and not listening.
Goldsmith's solution to these interpersonal career stoppers is to understand what you need to change and then move through his formula for making lasting change. The most daunting step is deciding what needs to change. Goldsmith warns us not to undertake changing more than one item on the list at a time. To help you choose, Goldsmith strongly recommends getting feedback from those who see you regularly.
So, you've discovered that your business needs a change -- and that change is how your employees work. You've decided that they need to be more engaged, more motivated and that your leadership style has to change, but something just isn't working. Your employees are resisting, almost on the urge of revolting, but why? I'll tell you -- they don't know why they have to change. Change without reason, is as good as no change at all. All the tips in the world for how to engage your employees just won't matter if you can't implement them correctly. Here are a few steps that you can utilize to initiate change.
The Booth Company (TBC), a global assessment company with over 4 decades of experience, specializing in 360 degree feedback and survey customization, has 4 surveys featured in the recently published…
It’s no secret - Happy workers have a tremendous impact on productivity and keeping down costs. For many workers, flexibility is a key to maintaining a positive environment. Research shows that employees feel important when management makes it easier for them to work around their personal schedules. Not only does this increase demand for flexibility in scheduling, but it also suggests that companies should reevaluate where and how work is completed and their control over how employees spend their time.
According to a Gallop Poll, over $350 billion are lost each year due to satisfaction problems in the workplace. Changing management techniques and adopting the best practices can help your staff feel their jobs are truly a benefit to their lives.
Too often, managers get stuck acting like parents around a business. They spend more time trying to keep track of employees than focusing on their own work. Some scream commands then slam the doors to their office closed, leaving staff feeling resentful and often confused over the best ways to do their jobs. Others spread themselves too thin trying to do all the work in an attempt to meet company goals without making any enemies. A manager's role is a delicate balance.
If you're like most executives, you probably start your day fresh and energetic and end it tired and stressed but this isn't how it has to be. Despite the challenges, having an executive position is rewarding and praise-worthy, and it is possible to feel highly productive and satisfied when your day comes to an end. The key to achieving this lies in improving your time management. If you're finding it hard to mow through your daily tasks, here are a few steps to follow in order to get started.
Step 1 - Minimize Distractions
Before you get started with any of your daily tasks, minimize your distractions. This means switching off your cell phone, closing your personal emails and letting your voicemail service pick up your calls. Another great way to make sure you won't be disturbed (unless there's an emergency of course) is to make sure your staff knows what they're doing. Having a well-trained staff means fewer distractions for you each day.