Professional Development

Cathy is a former educator, wellness/employee assistance coordinator, and Kansas City Chiefs NFL Cheerleader. Cathy engages audiences in an experiential way to laugh, explore and engage in content. Through her dynamic and interactive presentations, Cathy helps people take the risk to stretch themselves farther—handling change, performance improvement, wellness, or work/life balance with confidence. Cathy is the author of three books: RISK IT, It Takes Character, and Living in Full Swing.

Sherrin Ross Ingram, CEO of the International Center for Strategic Planning, is a Master Strategic Planning Facilitator and an Independent Corporate Board Director for companies in need of fresh strategies, an updated strategic plan, improved strategy execution, or restructuring to increase competitive advantage. She is a frequent speaker on strategy development, execution and leadership topics at business meetings and conferences around the world.

Jeff Lanza was an FBI Special Agent for over 20 years. He investigated corruption, fraud, organized crime, cyber crime, human trafficking and terrorism. He has appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, Dateline and Larry King Live, among others.

He is passionate about keeping people and organizations safe from risk and has presented to thousands around the globe. His clients include many Fortune 500 companies.

His newest book, “Pistols to Press” is now available.

Jeff loves talking to audiences the world over, but is most comfortable in his home city, where he serves as a certified Kansas City barbecue judge.

Follow Jeff on Twitter @lanzafbi.

Carolyn Kurowski, Senior Vice President of Federal Management Partners, Inc., has over 15 years of experience leading a diverse range of projects and providing analytical and consulting services in the area of human resource management. She currently works with VA’s Learning University (VALU) to design MyCareer@VA, a world-class online resource that offers current and potential employees a “one stop shop” for career planning and development. Ms. Kurowski provides technical guidance, leading the overall integration efforts that help drive this innovative project. With a focus on building cross-functional and cross-organizational teams, she works closely with her team and her clients to navigate information analysis, process engineering, IT integration and solution development challenges. Ms. Kurowski received her M.A. in Developmental Psychology from Clark University and B.A. from Notre Dame University.

Dr. Kevin Snyder is a professional speaker and author who co-founded Inspir-ACTIVE Solutions which is a leadership firm specializing in developing custom-based keynotes and staff development seminars to ignite personal motivation, employee engagement, and breakthrough performance. He has spoken for over 400 audiences in all 50 states with clients including Anheuser-Busch, St. Jude’s Children Research Hospital, the American Marketing Association, the Association of Circuses, and many others. Kevin is a columnist for several magazines, the author of four books, a certified skydiver, scuba diver, sailing enthusiast and former game show winner on ‘The Price Is Right!’ He’s also an adjunct faculty with the Center for Creative Leadership and earned both his Masters and Doctorate degrees in Educational Leadership.

Inga Fong, SPHR, GPHR, is an HR Content Manager for the HR Certification Institute. Inga is responsible for HR content management and directing the development of the GPHR, HRMP and HRBP exams. She has more than 15 years of specialized and generalist human resource experience in across multiple industries including, IT consulting, media, software development and publishing. She holds an B.S. in Management from New York University, a MBA degree with a concentration in International Business from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and both the SPHR and GPHR certifications.

Former U.S. Department of Justice attorney Michael Johnson has trained thousands of people on skills for detecting signs of deception and truthfulness, including presenting at dozens of conferences for human resource professionals and other busines executives.  

He has spoken at numerous conferences around the world for HR, legal, law enforcement, and other professionals.  He has provided numerous client-specific sessions for international organizations such as the United Nations (in New York, Congo, and Sierra Leone) and the World Bank, government agencies such as the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Social Security Administration, and dozens of Fortune 500 companies such as Google and Northrup Grumman.

 As an attorney with the US Department of Justice, Michael was the lead attorney on one of DOJ’s first “pattern or practice” sexual harassment cases.  Michael has served as an expert witness in cases challenging the adequacy of employer’s investigation procedures. 

He is a graduate of Duke University and Harvard Law School.

Kristine is a strategic Human Resources Executive with expertise in providing world-class organizational support from within the entertainment and media industries. Her current role is the VP of Human Resources for Warner Brothers Studio Facilities in Burbank, CA. Prior to this, she was laid off from her role in the Music Industry as former head of North American Human Resources at EMI Music in New York. Kristine’s background includes organizational and change leadership, employee relations, process improvement, succession planning, and talent management. She is known for results-focused partnering with business leaders, creating high-performance teams that not only meet their goals but also value the people who make it all happen. Mrs. Muscara is a graduate of Boston University in Psychology and Special Education. She is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, SHRM, and NHRA – Los Angeles.

Dianna Booher, an expert in executive communications, is the author of 45 books, published in 26 countries and 20 languages, with nearly 4 million copies sold.  Her latest books include Creating Personal Presence: Look, Talk, Think, and Act Like a Leader and Communicate with Confidence, the Revised and Expanded Edition. As CEO of Booher Consultants, an executive communication training firm, Dianna and her staff travel worldwide to help organizations improve the effectiveness of their communication:  oral, written, interpersonal, and cross-functional. National media frequently feature her work and interview her on critical workplace communication issues—Good Morning America, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Bloomberg. Successful Meetings magazine has named her to its list of “21 Top Speakers for the 21st Century.”  

Follow Dianna on Twitter @diannabooher.

Jennifer B. Kahnweiler is a bestselling author and one of the leading speakers on introverts in the workplace. Her pioneering books, The Introverted Leader, Quiet Influence, The Genius of Opposites, and Creating Introvert-Friendly Workplaces have been translated into 18 languages. The Introverted Leader was named one of the top 5 business books by The Shanghai Daily.

Jennifer has partnered with leading organizations like Amazon, Merck, Kimberly Clark, NASA, Bosch, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. She has delivered her signature presentations from Singapore to Spain. She holds the Certified Speaking Professional designation, awarded to a small percentage of speakers, and serves as a mentor to many professional women.

A native New Yorker, Jennifer calls Atlanta, GA home.