We are
WE VALUE AND APPLY THEORY AND SCIENCE.
WE CREATE EXPERIENCES THAT DRIVE RESULTS.
WE DELIVER WITH PRECISION, CREATIVITY, AND A LOT OF HEART,
BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT DRIVES MEANINGFUL CHANGE AND PROFITABLE GROWTH.
Emily Frieze-Kemeny
FOUNDER & CEO, AROSE GROUP
Emily is the Founder of AROSE Group. Formerly, she was the Head of Organizational Development and Learning at Scholastic. Prior to Scholastic, Emily led Talent and Leadership Development teams at Morgan Stanley, IBM, and Avon. She launched AROSE Group to help even more organizations bridge humanity and profitability for a new era of work, one she calls “The Human Era.” Her experience working within organizations gives her a unique perspective on what works in practice, and a deep commitment to designing and delivering solutions that are tailor-made with high impact for her clients. Emily wears many hats, from leadership and talent strategist, to OD consultant, to coach and advisor to senior executives, to all-around problem-solver. Emily’s favorite hat to wear is helping her clients take performance to the next level with the right solutions and right AROSE practitioners. Emily is also a multi-modality wellness practitioner, which informs her work and her way of being in the world. Emily is also a prominent thought leader, podcast host, and Forbes Councils contributor. When Emily is not working, she is spending time with her family and friends, reading, writing, meditating, traveling the world, and relearning how to play tennis, ski, and watercolor.
Dickens Aubourg
CONSULTANT
Dickens is a business and talent strategist. He was the VP of Product Management at Paycom Software, a fast-growing online payroll and HR technology provider, where he drove strategy and UX design for commercial payroll and HR, learning, and talent SaaS portfolio, and has over two decades of global consulting leadership and digital innovation through engagements as a leader for Ernst & Young, IBM Global Business Services, PwC, and AT&T. He specializes in simplifying talent management to accelerate business outcomes through data and technology. Dickens holds a BS and M.Ed. from the University of South Florida.
Steph Auping
CONSULTANT
Steph has spent her career developing leaders across all major industries and in 25 countries. She was the Director of Leadership Academies for CEB (now Gartner) and was their lead facilitator. Prior to CEB, Steph was an HR leader for a manufacturing company and a consultant for Aon Hewitt and a non-profit employers association, AAIM. She has facilitated transformative outcomes for clients in a range of business topics from strategy to new product design and development to leadership development. Steph loves to facilitate and clients love her impact. Steph holds a Master’s degree in HR Management and is a doctoral candidate in Organization and Management/Leadership. She has been honored as a 2022 Fellow by the Learning Performance Institute (LPI), and she serves on the Women in Leadership mentoring committee for United Way of Greater St. Louis. Steph and her family live outside St. Louis in Missouri wine country.
Brenda Benaim
CONSULTANT | COACH
Brenda is the former Head of Global Leadership and Talent Development at Bloomberg. Prior to Bloomberg, Brenda held organizational and leadership development and learning leader roles at Morgan Stanley, Wix, Amdocs, and IBM. Having lived and worked in multiple countries from Australia to Israel to the U.S., Brenda brings a global mindset and cultural adaptability to her work. She is a passionate leadership development consultant and coach. She believes in the power of leadership to unlock teams and create thriving cultures and business results. Brenda holds a BA from Bond University, as well as a Master’s degree from University of Sydney.
Michele Blackwell
COACH
Michele has partnered with creative entrepreneurs, business leaders, and companies of all sizes to help them craft brand strategies and define business goals. She applies her breadth of expertise as a journalist, visual designer, multimedia producer, and marketing executive. Michele has worked with clients including Disney, Mattel, Target, ABC Cable Network Group, Starz, DIRECTV, and Dolby Laboratories. As an entrepreneur, her clients have included companies and nonprofits such as Lionsgate Entertainment, Revlon, Overbrook Entertainment, The Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith Foundation, and Women In Film. Previously, she was the VP of Marketing for The Picture People. She has also partnered with globally-recognized brands such as LeapFrog, Teleflora, Muzak, and Universal Studios. Based out of Los Angeles, California, Michele is a certified Life Coach through the Life Coaching Training Institute. She has earned her Mindfulness X Practitioner training through Positive Psychology and holds an MBA from Pepperdine University.
Justin Scott Campbell
COACH
Justin is a coach and DEI expert. As a coach and facilitator, he creates spaces for growth and personal development for his clients as people and as leaders. His work is grounded in belonging and navigating bias and prejudice in the workplace. Justin has worked with clients across organizations and industries which include health/wellness, digital marketing, fine arts, entertainment, and technology. Justin is a Professor of English Writing & Literature, and worked as the Director of Learning and Human Development at Allied Path Consulting. Justin holds a Master's Degree in English Language and Literature from Loyola Marymount University, a Bachelor's from Biola University, and is an Associated Certified Coach.
Abigail Charlu
PRODUCT DESIGNER
Abigail is a product designer, learning strategist, and organizational development consultant with over nine years of experience designing and scaling leadership and talent development solutions. She specializes in translating organizational research and consulting insights into practical tools, learning experiences, assessments, and scalable products that drive individual and organizational performance. Abigail brings strong expertise in research methods, learning design, product development, program management, and cross-functional collaboration. She partners closely with consultants and clients to develop high-impact workshops, diagnostic tools, and leadership programs that enable growth, behavior change, and measurable results. She holds a master’s degree in industrial and organizational psychology and has supported global teams across corporate, nonprofit, small business, and education sectors. Abigail is driven by curiosity, rigor, and impact, and is passionate about equipping individuals, teams, and organizations with the capabilities they need to thrive in a rapidly evolving world of work.
Kari Coffey
PROGRAM MANAGER & EXECUTIVE COACH
Kari Coffey is a strategic program leader and executive coach with over a decade of experience driving complex, cross-functional initiatives across corporate and consulting environments. At AROSE, Kari serves as Program Manager, reporting to the Head of Innovation & Product Development. She operates at the intersection of client delivery, product development, assessment strategy, and go-to-market execution. As Lead Project Manager for AROSE’s proprietary talent insights platform, she drives roadmap execution, cross-functional coordination, and scalable systems designed to support product growth. Kari is also the primary internal project manager for client engagements, partnering closely with consultants and “sidecarring” with the CEO to ensure seamless execution and high-quality delivery. She leads assessment administration and other diagnostics, maintaining data integrity while strengthening operational workflows that enable AROSE to scale with seamless execution. Prior to AROSE, Kari spent more than 10 years at IBM leading global talent and workforce programs. As IBM’s first Recruiting Scrum Master, she introduced Agile Recruiting practices across geographies and trained the global Talent Acquisition leadership team. She delivered over 2,500 hires globally in 10 months and led enterprise initiatives impacting thousands of employees annually. As an executive coach, Kari supports working mothers in navigating pivotal career transitions with clarity and intention. Kari holds an M.S. in Human Resource Development from Texas A&M University and a B.S. in Agricultural Leadership & Development. She is a certified career coach and lives in Texas with her husband and children.
Meno Crompton
CLIENT ENGAGEMENT OPS LEAD
Meno plays the pivotal role of stewarding client engagements, ensuring that the right expertise is aligned to the client's goals. Partnering closely with leadership, Meno helps frame and structure bespoke client engagement proposals and contracts that establish a strong foundation for successful outcomes. Throughout the engagement lifecycle, she maintains a focus on consultant effectiveness and delivery excellence, reinforcing accountability to client commitments. Her work is unified by a singular mandate: ensuring every engagement delivers on its intended impact. Meno joined AROSE in its early days to help establish the foundation of client and operational excellence, which has contributed to the firm’s accelerated growth and strong culture. Prior to AROSE, Meno managed multi-million-dollar client portfolios at The Trium Group and has worked with organizations ranging from early-stage, venture-backed startups to Fortune 100 companies, across industries including technology, beauty, retail, healthcare, nonprofit, and VC and PE—often at the executive and board levels. Meno’s global perspective and commitment to equity and inclusion were shaped early in life, growing up in refugee camps after her family fled post-war Vietnam. She holds a Master’s degree in Organizational Development from the University of San Francisco and is deeply committed to GLIDE Memorial Church which has supported and advocated for San Francisco’s underserved communities since 1929.
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Carolyn Doud
HEAD OF EXECUTIVE SEARCH
Carolyn leads Executive Search for AROSE, bringing over two decades of experience in executive search and in HR senior leadership roles. Her foundation in executive search was built during her 10+ years with Korn Ferry and Russell Reynolds, where she served clients in the consumer, retail, and board practices. Carolyn went on to lead talent acquisition and human resources at ConAgra, Avon Products, and Omnicom's Rapp Digital Agency. Her time in operating companies gives her a hands-on approach, offering real-world insights that drive tangible results. With a specialized focus on the C-Suite, Carolyn has led executive searches for Business Unit Presidents, Chief Executives, and top-tier leaders in Marketing, Commercial & Revenue Growth, Finance, and HR. She also advises clients on Executive Team Succession Planning and Top Team Effectiveness, ensuring leadership continuity and optimal team performance. Carolyn’s clients include private equity firms, their portfolio companies, Global 1000 and Fortune 500 companies, as well as venture-backed start-ups in the consumer sectors. Her expertise spans industries such as packaged goods, luxury and lifestyle brands, travel and hospitality, and consumer services. She is known for her strategic guidance and the practical, actionable programs she develops for her clients.
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Lauren Fernandez
CONSULTANT
Lauren is a leadership and organizational development consultant and coach with over a decade of experience working in fast-growing startup unicorns, to well-established global enterprise companies in the tech sector. She worked for SAP as a Leadership Development Consultant, Chief of Staff, and as Head of People for SAP’s Engineering Academy. In 2018, Lauren co-founded Silicon Valley Apprenticeship Consortium, whose focus is to shift the narrative around employment where employees from diverse backgrounds and stories can become apprentices and will ultimately accelerate into career positions. She then went on to become the Director of Learning and Development at Klaviyo, and most recently, she was the Head of Learning and Development at Flexport. Her expertise spans large scale change transformations, learning and development, individual coaching, team building, employer branding, and the establishment of in-house company academies and universities. Lauren holds a Master’s Degree in Org Development from the University of San Francisco, and a Bachelor’s Degree from UC Santa Cruz. Outside of her professional life, she enjoys reading, traveling the world, and immersing herself in different cultures.
Anika Gakovic, Ph.D.
CONSULTANT | COACH
Anika is an organizational psychologist who has spent her career helping leading organizations develop the skills of their leaders and employees, build incredible cultures, and drive transformational change. Anika was Executive Director for Leadership Edge, JP Morgan Chase’s industry-leading leadership academy. She was also the head of org effectiveness for OppenheimerFunds, a talent executive at New York Life Insurance Company, and the Director of Learning at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Earlier in her career, Anika was a talent program manager at HSBC Private Bank and UBS Wealth Management. Anika's clients have included Hess Oil and the Chicago Police Department. Anika completed her PhD at the University of Houston, where she also held an adjunct faculty position.
John Galvin
COACH
John is a lifelong problem-solver. He sees solutions where others see insurmountable challenges. This, combined with his passion for driving change, led to a career developing high-performing teams to deliver significant and meaningful strategic projects. He spent 22 years at Intel, where he developed and delivered on multiple enduring strategic plans, including redefining the partner marketing strategy with a $1 billion in annual spending budget. He also led the formation of Education Group, which provides tech solutions for education and grew to over $1 billion in annual revenue. As a strategist, advisor, and coach, John works with senior leaders and teams to identify strategic, interpersonal, and team challenges, while designing lasting solutions to improve performance and results. John blends his leadership and executive coaching experience in order to bring a tremendous amount of empathy and skills to unlock significant change.
Eileen Inglis
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT
Eileen spent over 39 years at IBM in various administrative and HR roles before retiring in June 2023. During her tenure she supported multiple global and local projects with her exceptional organization and technical skills giving her a broad view into HR and establishing a strong peer network. She thrives on doing what needs to be done to make those around her successful — and therefore play a key role to the AROSE team and clients. When not working, Eileen loves to read, cook and spend time with family.
Marielle Kaar
HEAD OF CREATIVE AND MARKETING OPS
Marielle Kaar is an award-winning creative leader, honored by TV Week’s 40 Under 40 and Cynopsis Media’s Best of the Best Rising Stars. She’s known for building iconic brands that connect, inspire, and drive meaningful impact. Before joining AROSE, Marielle spent more than a decade at Nickelodeon | Paramount Global, where she served as Director of Production & Development, leading global creative production teams across multibillion-dollar franchise series including the NAMIC Award-winning Dora, and the Emmy Award–winning Blue’s Clues & You!, as well as the Emmy and Annie Award–winning Bubble Guppies, and the Emmy nominated Super Duper Bunny League. Driven by a passion for creative excellence, Marielle unites strategy and storytelling to bring ideas to life, transforming complex concepts into powerful brand experiences that have been proven to engage audiences and drive business impact worldwide. Marielle graduated summa cum laude from Ramapo College with a Bachelor of Arts degree, double concentrating in Visual Communication Design and Digital Filmmaking. She currently resides in New Jersey and enjoys adventures with her best furry friend, Milkshake.
Anya Kandel
CONSULTANT | COACH
Anya is a strategy and leadership consultant and coach, who has dedicated the past 15 years to working with leaders across a breadth of industries: VC, growth-stage startups, Fortune 500 companies, foundations, and nonprofits. Anya has worked at some of the most prestigious boutique leadership and design firms, including SYPartners and The Trium Group. Anya works with leaders to unlock their genius and establish balance across all dimensions of their life. As a leadership consultant and coach, she draws on her background of business strategy, experience design, and facilitation, and uses collaborative problem-solving techniques and hands-on experiences to build leadership alignment and clarity, thriving cultures, and sustainable ways of working. She strives to foster spaces for equity and belonging, including developing a DE&I Community of Practice, employee resource groups, and dialogues for civic engagement. Anya is a certified Integral Coach, a graduate of University of California, Berkeley, and holds a Masters degree from NYU. When she’s not working, you’ll likely find her somewhere in the world trekking up a mountain, or watching the birds in her backyard.
Corrine Krumenacker
COACH
Corrine spent 20+ years as a human resource leader at IBM coaching and developing global executives and managers. She specializes in elevating leaders and teams to improve their personal and collective impact and effectiveness. Her strengths in coaching, talent management and development, succession planning, strategic business partnership, and organizational design have resulted in true business impact. Corrine’s additional passion for business process improvement led to her receiving three US patents. Corrine is a certified executive coach helping leaders build on their strengths, break through any internal barriers, and develop strategies that help them thrive both personally and professionally. Corrine received her MBA, from the Martin J. Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University with a concentration in Human Resources and Organizational Design, and her Bachelor of Business Administration, from the University of Notre Dame with a concentration in Marketing. In her free time, Corrine enjoys swimming, watching college sporting events, and spending time with her husband, daughter and friends.
Mike Markovits
CONSULTANT | COACH
Mike is the former head of leadership development, succession, and executive search for IBM and prior to that for GE's Crotonville Leadership Institute, creating industry-leading strategies and programs. Following his corporate career, Mike moved into the non-profit sector as a Partner at Achieve Mission, working with nonprofit organizations and foundations. Mike has been a board member at Literacy Volunteers, Temple Sinai, Metropolitan Lighthouse Charter School, and Moving Traditions, and was President of a small foundation focused on peer counseling skills globally. Mike has also been active in leading anti-racism education programs in his local community of Stamford, CT. Mike has a BA from Oberlin College, a Master’s in Education from Harvard, and an MBA from the Sloan School of Management, MIT.
Meghann McNiff
COACH
Meghann has led a fascinating career. She was a Captain in the U.S. Air Force and a management consultant in global health—working for years in the Middle East—before finding her passion in coaching and leadership development. She is a highly experienced coach with thousands of client-facing hours dedicated to helping clients align their actions, values, and aspirations. As an Organizational Development specialist in various nonprofit organizations focused on health in Afghanistan, she partnered with leadership teams and stakeholders to establish the Organization of Afghan Midwives (OAM) which continues as an independent association representing over 3,000 midwives. As the Senior Program Officer at Management Sciences for Health, she managed a $2M portfolio to design and deploy a Leadership Development Program (LDP) with rural healthcare workers in Malawi, where within six months a district increased family planning coverage per couple from 247 to 2,169. Whenever and wherever possible, you will find Meghann writing!
Valérie Morel
CONSULTANT
Valérie was the head of employee & capability development for Prudential Financial, where she led the transformation of the company’s leadership development strategy. Prior to Prudential, Valérie was the head of Business Transformation & Change Center of Expertise and Divestiture Planning for Bayer North America. Valérie also worked for Capgemini as a consultant in the People & Performance Practice, where she worked with global clients including Warner Bros, Pfizer, and National Grid. Her expertise spans culture transformation, OD, operating models, leadership capability, and team and executive coaching. With experience across industries, countries, for-profit and nonprofit organizations, and an understanding of the diverse cultural norms of engagement, she is a catalyst for senior leaders and their teams to succeed in today’s complex markets. Valérie holds BS and MS degrees from the Lyon Graduate School of Business, and an MA in Social-Organizational Psychology at Columbia. She is fluent in French, German and English.
Darus Ng
CONSULTANT
Darus is an organizational effectiveness consultant who has dedicated 16+ years to transforming individuals, teams, and organizations across mid-size to Fortune 500 companies, with domestic and global teams. Darus was a Senior Principal in Organizational Effectiveness at Slalom Consulting for 6 years. Prior to that, she was a Managing Consultant at IBM in their Strategy & Change practice. And earlier in her career, she was an HR business partner at Citi, and a training and development program manager at Korn Ferry. Darus holds a Master’s Degree in Social Organizational Psychology from Columbia University, and a BA from Northeastern. She currently resides in New York City with her family of five.
Amee Olson
CONSULTANT | COACH
Amee has worked with organizations ranging from Fortune 500s, to founder-led firms, to national nonprofits across technology, healthcare, pharmaceutical, financial services, CPG, and manufacturing industries. She has extensive experience working across cultures having lived and worked outside of the US. She held leadership roles at The Hershey Company, IBM, and West Pharmaceuticals where she was responsible for building and scaling a global talent management function, leading a team of 50 HR professionals, and overseeing the employee experience for 10,000 employees during a period of hypergrowth. She understands firsthand the immense responsibility and privilege that comes with leading teams and the breadth of challenges, opportunities, and complexity that managers face every day. As a coach and advisor to the C-suite, Amee works with individual executives and leadership teams to fuel profitable growth by aligning strategy and goals, shaping organizational culture, and building the leadership capabilities needed for business transformation. Amee is an ACC accredited coach and certified in multiple assessment tools including the Hogan Personality Inventory, The Leadership Architect Suite, Hay Group Leadership Styles and Climate, MBTI, Disc, Polarity Thinking, the Leadership Circle, and Vertical Development. She earned her MBA from the Yale School of Management and a bachelor's degree from Bucknell University.
Julie Overdorff
COACH
Julie has over 15 years experience leading in management consulting, product management and business development. Most recently Julie worked for Plaid as a strategist and business development leader. Prior to Plaid she was a Managing Director at Charles Schwab. She held a number of roles there from Product Management and Social Selling to Product Marketing and Strategy. Her consulting work spanned marketing, sales, go-to-market strategies, investment due diligence, and nonprofit planning. Her clients ranged from Fortune 100 companies to multibillion-dollar institutions across finance, investment management, private equity, pharma/biotech, and philanthropy. Julie is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC) through the Co-Active Training Institute and an Associate Certified Coach (ACC) through the International Coaching Federation. She received her MBA from The Wharton School and her BA, summa cum laude, from The University of Pennsylvania. She is a mom of two wonderful boys.
Susan Rivers, Ph.D.
COACH
Susan is a trained social psychologist and researcher from Yale University. Her research has been funded by federal agencies, foundations, and philanthropies. She is a renowned expert in emotional intelligence and social-emotional learning and has over two decades of experience co-designing responsive and immersive environments and experiences for deep learning and connection. Susan works with clients to design innovative pathways for integrating social-emotional learning and connection across a range of personal and professional environments. Susan’s most recent work has focused on designing games, including two award-winning games. One of them, iThrive Sim, is a digital role-playing game platform for civics learning and social-emotional skill-building. Susan was a lecturer in the Psychology Department at Skidmore College, and served on the research faculty in Yale's Department of Psychology where she co-founded the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence.
RamonaLisa Robertson
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
As Chief Operating Officer for AROSE Group, RamonaLisa (RL) leverages her extensive professional experience to drive strategy and excellence in operations, maximizing organizational efficiency and elevating the client experience. During her 30 year career at IBM, RL amassed extensive experience across SaaS, Cloud, financial management, and cross-functional business operations. She held roles in software development, portfolio operations, and leadership development in which her collaborative style and ability to unify processes across diverse teams improved transparency, reduced manual effort, and enabled faster, more informed decision making. In addition to her deep roots in operations leadership, RL has experience in deploying leadership development and alignment programs, 360 executive feedback and coaching, talent development initiatives and strategic planning activities for executive succession planning - all of which heighten her understanding of AROSE’s client expectations and needs and inform the lens through which RL leads. RL has a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo. She lives in Chapel Hill, NC but is a California native. Outside of work, you can find RL playing golf, enjoying music and dance, cooking, and traveling with her family.
Owen Rogers
COACH
Owen is a seasoned executive coach with 25 years of experience as an executive and founding partner of IDEO, a global design and innovation company. At IDEO, Owen along with the team transformed the world of work through the application of Human Centered Design, Design Thinking, and Design Led Innovation to solve product and organizational design challenges. During his tenure, he expanded the company’s global presence to Asia and pioneered the introduction of key concepts like Brand Experiences, Business Design, and Design for Change to support the transformation of organizations. Owen has advised and coached senior leaders from HBO, Adidas, Microsoft, GAP, Old Navy, Toronto Airport, Starbucks, Mural, Kohls, AAA, TCL, Prudential, Barclays, Chase, Visa, and Amex. Clients describe Owen as insightful, empathetic, and transformative. Owen holds a BA, MA, and Honorary Doctorate in Design, awarded to him for 20 years of service in the design industry. Owen additionally holds an INSEAD executive coaching certificate in System Psychodynamic Coaching. When he’s not working, he loves to spend time with his wife, two sons and his dog, while dreaming up their next big adventure.
Carrie Sena
MANAGER, OPERATIONS
As Operations Manager at AROSE Group, Carrie applies her expertise to streamline internal operations and enable the AROSE team to operate effectively in service of our clients and our organizational goals. Carrie collaborates with clients and external partners to optimize the firm’s operational infrastructure and workflows that support successful engagement delivery. Prior to joining AROSE, she spent much of her career at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, advancing through progressively senior roles and building the operational infrastructure needed to support the growth and expansion of a complex research enterprise. As a seasoned operations leader, Carrie brings more than 25 years of experience transforming organizational performance across research, nonprofit, and higher education environments. Carrie has delivered measurable results by identifying inefficiencies and designing scalable, technology-enabled solutions that reduce administrative burden and strengthen execution. Carrie holds a Bachelor of Science in Cell Biology with a minor in Pharmacology from Tulane University and an MBA with a concentration in Health Care Administration from Baruch College. In her free time, she enjoys creative projects, listening to audiobooks, and running. Carrie extends her skills beyond the workplace to serve her community as Assistant Race Director for the Harry Chapin Memorial Run Against Hunger and she is an active member of her local Rotary club with whom she volunteers regularly at her local food pantry.
Paankaj Sethi
CONSULTANT
Paankaj is a learning and development leader with over 25 years of global experience designing high-impact learning solutions that drive behavior change, performance improvement, and cultural transformation. He began his leadership development career at Dell where he was responsible for training and development programs across the enterprise. As a talent development specialist at both SAP and NIIT, Paankaj led instructional design and content architecture for strategic leadership and organizational effectiveness programs. Previously, Paankaj served as Head of Design and Delivery – Training Solutions at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL), where he led client delivery and program architecture across India and APAC, designed large-scale leadership development interventions, and led consulting engagements. Paankaj works with global organizations across sectors in reimagining learning through immersive design, psychometric alignment, and coaching-led enablement. He embeds instructional design into culture, leadership, and performance strategies. Paankaj earned his MS in Psychology from Indira Gandhi National Open University, holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Training & Development from the Indian Society for Training & Development (ISTD), Delhi, and a BA from Charan Singh University. He is a certified executive coach and licensed in many psychometric assessments including Hogan, Lumina, Spotlight Mindflick, and FIRO-B. He holds learning and instructional design certifications in ADDIE and 4MAT, and from the Center for Accelerated Learning and Kirkpatrick Partners. He also specializes in competency-based capability building, cultural and organizational transformation, and coaching and facilitation. Beyond his work with organizations, Paankaj works with young adults to help them align their career path with their personality, a purpose-driven endeavour that keeps him connected to the heart of human learning. He is a husband and father of two and resides in India.
Luke Simmering, Ph.D.
CONSULTANT | COACH
Luke holds a Ph.D. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, and has over 15 years of experience leading talent assessment and development programs for global organizations across multiple industries. Luke was a leadership and talent consultant at companies that include SHL, Walmart, OutMatch HCM, and Assess Systems. He also has extensive training and experience working with family-owned organizations, helping leaders navigate often unique and nuanced dynamics. Luke serves as an adjunct MBA professor and has a passion for leveraging data-driven tools and processes to provide precise analytic insights to clients.
Mihaela Smadilo
HEAD OF PRODUCT INNOVATION AND DEVELOPMENT
Mihaela is Head of Product Innovation and Development at AROSE. She leads the Product team in designing bespoke leadership development programs and workshops for clients and our proprietary leadership and organizational development content. Mihaela is also leading the development of what will be AROSE’s largest business unit, a proprietary technology at the intersection of talent acquisition and retention. Prior to joining AROSE, Mihaela held HR leadership roles at IBM, Atlantic Grupa and Croatian Telekom, where she led culture and talent initiatives aimed at creating adaptive, high-performing environments. She also brings firsthand startup experience, having served as Head of Talent & Culture at Oradian and advised leadership teams at several technology companies. Before transitioning into HR, Mihaela spent over a decade in sales and management consulting at IBM, leading major project sales engagements and large‑scale change and transformation initiatives across multiple industries. Mihaela also served as the Change Management and HR Consulting Practice Leader for Central and Eastern Europe. With a background spanning sales, management consulting, and HR leadership, Mihaela brings a rare blend of business acumen and human-centered design to everything she builds. She has worked across a range of industries, including technology, telecommunications, consumer goods, and fintech, supporting organizations as they scale, restructure, and shift strategic direction. Mihaela is an ACC-accredited coach, certified in agile team coaching, and holds a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of Zagreb. Her work is grounded in systems thinking and fueled by a belief in human potential, and she brings both structure and heart to the work of leading with impact and executing meaningful leadership development experiences.
Rose-Anne Uwague
COACH
Rose is a productivity coach who empowers people to achieve sustainable careers and lives. She helps leaders gain clarity and accountability to achieve optimal results. She utilizes proven methods, frameworks and resources that help leaders to thrive, flourish, and reimagine sustainable solutions. Rose was on the management team at the State of New York MTA, training and coaching employees on complex business service issues. Rose holds a Master’s degree in Communications. She loves traveling, learning about new cultures, and spending time with her husband and children. She is an advocate in infant and maternal health.
Maria Billesimo Verrigni
MANAGING PARTNER
Maria has been with AROSE since its inception, partnering closely with the CEO to build and scale the firm. As Managing Partner, she plays a central role in shaping the firm’s point of view and market presence while also partnering with clients bringing deep expertise to help organizations navigate complex leadership and organizational changes. Maria is dedicated to advancing the firm’s strategic vision, while cultivating enduring, high-value relationships. Prior to joining AROSE, Maria spent much of her career at IBM, where she led senior executive assessment and development and architected executive development experiences and C-suite succession planning at both the business unit and global levels. She also designed and led large-scale organizational change initiatives to strengthen strategic and operational alignment across multiple IBM business lines. Today, she coaches and advises senior executives and their teams across the for-profit and nonprofit sectors to elevate their leadership impact and advance their strategy, organization design, performance, and talent practices. Maria holds a Master’s degree in Human Resources and Organizational Behavior. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time outdoors, entertaining on her back porch, HIIT classes, and, most recently, golf. She also volunteers with Unshattered, supporting women recovering from addiction as they build vocational skills and confidence to create sustainable, independent futures.
Andrea Weinfurter
CONSULTANT | COACH
Andrea is a strategic advisor and executive coach who is passionate about helping leaders and teams navigate the intersection between business performance and leadership development to step into their full potential and impact - and to do so with courage and intention. Partnering closely with executives across an array of industries, Andrea uses her passion and skills as a seasoned facilitator to create team experiences tailored to address roadblocks and critical needs while also deepening team connectivity and cohesion. Andrea is certified as a New Ventures West Integral Coach and a Gallup Strengths Coach and has applied her expertise through roles at Trium Group, EY, STS, and Spencer Stuart. Andrea holds a Masters in Learning and Organizational Change from Northwestern University and a BA in Sociology from Hamilton College and lives in Sausalito, California.
Nikki Wohlman
CONSULTANT | COACH
Nikki is an Executive Coach and Organizational Learning Specialist who has partnered with leaders in over 10 countries, holding positions at Connemara Consulting, Johnson & Johnson, Discovery Health, Standard Bank and others and has supported leaders in companies such as Microsoft, Investec and Puma. As an Integral Coach, Nikki’s work is designed to bring the whole person into the coaching process and is committed to facilitating space for people that ignites their freshest thinking and connection to meaning and purpose. Nikki holds an MA and BA from the University of Witwatersrand. She is a faculty member of, and holds several certifications from, the internationally-accredited Centre for Coaching at the University of Cape Town Graduate School of Business, as well as an Associate of Virtual Coaching Partners, Tidal, HeartStyles, IPK, GSI and Boldcom, and a credentialed coach through the International Coaching Federation (ICF).
