Our Team

We know the best science delivers the best solution.

Our research affiliates and practitioners work closely with CEO research scientists and their teams to provide forward-thinking leaders with trusted insights and hands-on learning.

Affiliated Research Scientists

Johanna Anzengruber, Ph.D.

University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria

Strategy, capability management, organization design, human resource management of R&D, innovation management

George Benson, Ph.D.

University of Texas at Arlington

Training and development, human capital management, employee involvement and performance.

Beth G. Chung, Ph.D.

San Diego State University

Diversity and inclusion, organizational behavior, leadership and group process, human resource management, and industrial and organizational psychology

Cathleen Clerkin, Ph.D.

Candid

Diversity and inclusion, women’s leadership, mindful leadership, social cognitive neuroscience, innovation

Alan Colquitt, Ph.D.

Independent Advisor and Consultant

Global assessments, analytics, performance management and organizational effectiveness

Jay A. Conger, Ph.D.

CEO Affiliated Research Scientist

Leadership, talent, and organizational effectiveness

Sharoni Denise Little, Ph.D.

Chief Executive Officer, The Strategist Company, LLC & CEO Affiliated Research Scientist

Organizational leadership, strategic communication, and diversity, equity, and inclusion

Alexis Fink, Ph.D.

Senior Research Scientist, Former VP, People Analytics & Workforce Strategy, Meta

Employee research, research methods, culture and employee value proposition, leadership assessment

Cristina B. Gibson, Ph.D.

Pepperdine University

Communication and interaction in teams, social cognition, knowledge management and organizational learning, the impact of culture and gender on work behavior, leadership in multinational firms, international management

Terri Griffith, Ph.D.

Santa Clara University

Crossing organizational behavior and design, information technology design and use, and change management from industries ranging from engineering to agribusiness

Bald man wearing glasses and a blue shirt against a gray background

Gerald E. Ledford, Jr., Ph.D.

CEO Affiliated Research Scientist

Focus on compensation and total rewards, employee engagement and involvement, talent management, the design of work, and large-scale organizational change

Philip Mirvis, Ph.D.

Private Consultant

Large-scale organizational change, the character of the workforce and workplace, business leadership in society

Jennifer Mueller, Ph.D.

University of San Diego

Evaluating creative opportunity and leadership potential, team creativity, emotional cultures that aid innovation, leading change

Margarita Nyfoudi, Ph.D.

University of Birmingham

Coaching, individual and team performance, employee engagement and citizenship, workplace learning, team knowledge, information sharing, adverse working conditions, and joy at work

William Pasmore, Ph.D.

Columbia University and Center for Creative Leadership

Christine Porath, Ph.D.

Georgetown University

Workplace incivility, the effects of bad behavior, how organizations can create a more positive environment

Maritza Salazar, Ph.D.

UC Irvine

Organizational theory and behavior, cross-cultural psychology, and human resource management

Shreya Sarkar-Barney, Ph.D.

Founder, Human Capital Growth

Leadership assessment, digital leadership, translating business priorities to talent strategies, talent analytics, HR transformation, evidence-based talent management, culture and global issues

Benjamin Schneider, Ph.D.

University of Maryland

Organizational climate and culture, employee engagement, staffing, and the role of manager personality in organizational life

Rami Shani, Ph.D.

California Polytechnic University and Politecnico di Milano

Organization behavior, development, and change; organizational design and learning; knowledge management; collaborative research methods

Maura Stevenson, Ph.D.

Chief Human Resources Officer, MedVet

Employee experience, talent management, compensation and benefits, leadership and employee development, and organizational development

Carl Watson

CEO Affiliated Research Scientist

Transformation and strategic renewal, strategic organization design and innovation, high performance teaming, culture transformation, leadership and talent development

Affiliated USC Faculty

Paul Adler, Ph.D.

Professor, Management & Organization

Strategic management, organization design, human resource management of R&D, engineering, manufacturing operations

Arvind Bhambri, DBA

Professor, Management & Organization

Strategic change, strategy development, implementation

Tom Cummings, Ph.D.

Professor, Management & Organization

Employee involvement, organization change and development, self-managing work teams, organization design

Ann Majchrzak, Ph.D.

Professor, Information & Operations Management

Design and management of technology change

Nandini Rajagopalan, Ph.D.

Professor, Management & Organization

CEO succession, compensation, top management teams, strategic change and decision making processes, corporate governance in emerging economies

Affiliated Practitioners

Liz Vales Damron

Senior Affiliate Practitioner

Strategic organization design, change management, team performance, organizational transformation, employee engagement, organization effectiveness, global operating models, culture change, learning and development

Beth Gunderson

Senior Affiliate Practitioner

Strategic organization design, change management, leadership & team development, global assessment, leadership coaching, enterprise learning and development, and culture initiatives

Sarah Sonnenfeld

Affiliate Practitioner

Strategic organization design, change management, leadership & team development, global assessment, leadership coaching, organizational investments, enterprise learning and development

Becky Spears

Oracle Corporation

Organization strategy, assessment, and design, talent management, cross organization collaboration, scenario planning, succession planning, lateral integration, change leadership, community development, leadership coach, team development, workforce planning, HR team leadership, and line business leadership

Rebekah Whisler

Affiliate Practitioner

Talent management, leader development, transformation, organization Design, change management, team effectiveness, and coaching

Stu Winby

Spring Network

Strategy innovation, organization design and innovation, healthcare and technology

Ian Ziskin

EXec EXcel Group

Human capital coaching and strategy, leadership & talent development, and organizational transformation