Founding Members |
To those who helped lift up and re-imagine our Bay Area regional community of Organization Development practitioners
Your energy, time, support, and financial contributions made it possible for us to attain an official nonprofit status
and convene learning spaces, together.
Founding Member: Em Bowen
Since settling in Oakland in 2010, Em Bowen has been on the lookout for a professional community that resonates with their passion for organization change and leadership. They sought conversations with like-minded individuals, opportunities for collaboration, and a pulse on the evolving field. The re-imagined Bay Area Organization Development Network (BAODN) offered precisely that platform, and Em highlights the significance of fostering meaningful connections, especially during the early days of the pandemic, where regular engagement with fellow founders was invaluable.
In Em’s words, “From the beginning we had a diverse group of people showing up and enriching each others’ lives. That representation looked like the Bay Area, and gave me confidence that we could serve our community, and made me excited to step into shared leadership on our board.”
**Valuable Moments with BAODN**
Reflecting on their journey with BAODN, Em recalls cherished moments of camaraderie and growth. One standout memory involves a face-to-face meeting with Fruc, the board president, over lunch. After years of virtual interaction, the opportunity to bond over their shared passion for OD proved rewarding. Additionally, the excitement surrounding BAODN's inaugural in-person social event left a lasting impression, underscoring the spirit of such a vibrant community.
**Staying Connected**
As the current treasurer, Em plays a pivotal role in maintaining financial transparency and enhancing organizational systems. Their involvement extends to collaborating in board meetings and actively participating in events, ensuring continued engagement and support within the BAODN community.
**Current Roles and Work**
Em provides services as an entrepreneur under the title ‘the Peace Nerd,’ offering services as a Holistic Leadership Coach and Educator. They thrive on collaborative ventures, often contributing to consulting projects as a curriculum design and facilitation expert. Currently, Em is focused on developing conflict resolution training programs for startup incubators and aspires to impart conflict management skills to fellow OD professionals.
Em's career trajectory took a unique turn from massage therapy to organization development. Motivated by clients' workplace frustrations, they embarked on a journey to enhance workplace environments and cultivate compassionate leadership.
**Grounding Their Work**
Angeles Arrien's approach to Honorable Closure resonates deeply with Em, influencing their work in ending trainings and supporting organizational transitions. Em draws additional inspiration from this quote, as a guiding principle of their work:
“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.” ~ Noam Chomsky
**Connect with Em**
For those interested in reaching out to Em Bowen, they can be contacted via LinkedIn or through email at peacenerd@emilybowen.com.
Founding Member: Cindy Christison
An aspiring Organization Development (OD) professional, Cindy Christison finds her inspiration from working with colleagues with a passion for serving people and teams. Originally introduced to the Oregon ODN by her mentor, she found immense value in being part of the organization.
Her newfound passion for the ODN culture led her to seek out the Bay Area ODN, aspiring to be part of its legacy. She believes that OD professionals are vital in this rapidly changing world, and being a member of the Bay Area ODN allows her to grow together with a community, bringing the best of each practitioner’s skills to the table.
**Valuable Moments with BAODN:**
The 10-minute universities (now retired) were especially useful for Cindy, particularly those centered around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. She was introduced to many new concepts and biases, but moreover, drawn in by the deep connection experienced through the willingness of participants to be vulnerable. The open, judgement-free space for conversations on how to improve within the DEI space was inspiring to her.
**Staying Connected:**
Playing the important role of webmaster, Christison is actively involved in the BAODN community. She is happy to volunteer her time to ensure that events are posted timely and is also extremely excited about the upcoming Immersive Technology Learning Expo (ITLE).
Embracing how technology can enhance their craft is something she truly appreciates. [Join us at ITLE!]
**Current Roles and Work:**
As a change management lead for several initiatives and providing supply chain leadership, Cindy has recently embarked on a new consulting venture:Team Spark Consulting.
Team Spark Consulting helps teams rapidly transform their ideas into impact and offers a host of services like Team Building, Program Development, Digitalization, and Change Management support. Her first clients include the Kiwanis Clubs of Fairfield, Vacaville, and Benicia, building and implementing an innovative summer tutoring program.
Cindy holds a degree in Integrative Biology and has a fondness for philosophy. Further enhancing her educational portfolio, she pursued a master's degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology in 2019. While managing her role as a mother to two young children, she managed to complete her degree by taking one class at a time, demonstrating her commitment and passion for the field.
**Grounding Her Work:**
In her professional practices, Christison frequently turns to Prosci’s ADKAR model as a general framework for managing change.
She also firmly believes in the power of service, drawing inspiration from Martin Luther King, Jr.'s quote:
“Everyone can be great, because everyone can serve.”
**Connect with Cindy**
Those wishing to reach Cindy can do so through her email (cy.christison@gmail.com) or connect with her on LinkedIn at http://linkedin.com/in/cindychristison.Founding Member: Dr. Nan Cowardin-Lee.jpg)
Nan was driven to become a founding member of the re-imagined Bay Area Organization Development Network (BAODN) due to her deep connection to the organization, which began in 2003 during her graduate school years. The enriching knowledge she gained from other members sharing their unique OD journeys inspired her to keep this tradition of learning and sharing alive.
**Valuable Moments with BAODN:**
Nan treasures the sense of unity that was and continues to be tangible when the BAODN community reconnected in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. This moment was particularly significant because of the revitalizing energy and shared mission of improving the workplace environment, characteristics that she believes best define the BAODN community.
**Staying Connected:**
Throughout the shifts and evolution within the BAODN, Nan remains actively involved. Her current service to the community is as a Board Member and Educational programming.
**Current Roles and Work:**
For the past seven years, Nan has been and continues to be a self-employed dissertation editor. Her core areas of work included advocacy and community-building.
Current Advocacy Work: Nan has been committed to anti-bullying advocacy, a cause that has led her back to school to earn a Ph.D. As part of her mission to create safer and more dignified workplaces, she became a moderator at SafeHarbor, a platform for victims of bullying. Nan has also been developing a course aimed at building better boundaries to bolster workplace ethos.
**Grounding Her Work:**
Nan has an extensive background in humanistic groupwork and as a business paralegal. She uses both of these backgrounds in her current work. Nan has also authored the book “10 Steps to Overcome Workplace Bullying: From Recognition to Resilience” and is the co-author of a second book: “The Union Stewards Guide to Overcoming Workplace Bullying (California edition)”. Nan is currently studying intergenerational trauma and epigenetics.
Three theories consistently guide Nan's work:
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Edgar Schein's cultural pyramid
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Bion's shadow group dynamics; and
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Van Bertallanfy's systems theory
A quote Nan strongly identifies with is:
"It’s what you do that counts, not what you intend to do."
**Connect with Nan**
Those interested in reaching out to Nan are welcome to connect with her via LinkedIn or email at nan@essentialbusinessbehaviors.com.
If you or someone you know is currently being bullied in the workplace or you support those that are experiencing being bullied, please contact Nan via this platform:
SafeHarbor, Dr. Gary Namie’s and the Workplace Bullying Institute: https://safeharbor.mn.co/
Especially during the height of the COVID 19 pandemic, the desire to stay connected in the change community was palpable. My wanted to be in community with other like minded change nerds who also had a pulse of the ongoings in the Bay Area. Seeking peers to share and iterate ideas with and also to be inspired by others who were doing amazing work added to My’s decision to take a leadership role at BAODN.
**Valuable Moments with BAODN:**
My recalls when BAODN existed only on the MeetUp application, at the height of the pandemic.
“It was so refreshing to hear each other’s stories of how/why we each got into the field of OD. As someone who has worked at companies for her entire career, I felt so impressed by others who took the leap to start their own business and or who were tackling big hairy challenges with clients.”
My also shares that she had the honor to meet her best friend through Bay Area ODN, too. “I initially volunteered to partner together with her on our marketing and communications workstream and we realized our connection grew far beyond Bay Area ODN. She and I are spiritually connected at the hip, and I am beyond grateful to now have this lifelong friend because of my membership in BayAreaODN.”
**Staying Connected:**
“I really enjoy the meetings as I always walk away learning something new or with a different perspective. I read the regular emails - event announcements, follow LinkedIn posts and try to attend events as my schedule permits.”
**Current Roles and Work:**
My is a passionate people leader and organizational psychologist with over 15 years of experience in cross functional human capital strategy, program development, and change management, currently looking to add value to:
My approaches change with a lens of simplicity via Kurt Lewin's - unfreeze, change, freeze. She says, “I also love to use storytelling to simplify and make change behaviors more ‘sticky’.”
A favorite quote that also drives My’s approach is:
Listen with the same passion with which you wish to be heard. - Harriet Lerner
As the former Head of Human Resources at a cancer-care tech start-up, a few of My’s accomplishments are:
With a specialization in using systems thinking to design inclusive people strategies, experiences, and learning solutions, My has a proven track record of driving multimillion-dollar, human-centered transformation initiatives globally, which incorporate the voice of employees.
**Grounding Her Work:**
In My’s words:
“I am a woman of color, proud of my Vietnamese-Chinese heritage. As a child of immigrant parents, my upbringing has made a profound impact on my worldview and my blessed life with my 2 sisters, my partner, and my daughter. I would not be here today without mine and my family’s resilient courage and love through difficult life circumstances.
Professionally, I have a nonlinear career path which brought me to OD/ IO psychology. After moving to San Francisco from Houston, TX in 2013, I made a career shift from being a certified public accountant into an organizational psychologist, as I earned my MA in Industrial Organizational Psychology from Golden Gate University. My finance background coupled with data driven, science based approaches from IO/OD make me a unique, powerful HR leader.”
**Connect with My**
If any of the above interests you or you know of anyone in your network who is a fellow change enthusiast, connect with My viaLinkedIn or find a time to meet. In My’s words:
“I enjoy ideating on the art of the possible over a cup of boba milk tea! 
Founding Member: Terrell Holmes
Terrell became a Founding Member of the re-imagined Bay Area Organization Development Network (BAODN) due to his commitment to promoting the practice of OD.**Valuable Moments with BAODN:**
Terrell continues to foster new community relationships and receive valuable insights into the power of collaboration most recently when he gathered with BAODN members in Berkeley.
**Staying Connected:**
Terrell stays updated on OD trends by attending BAODN outings, webinars, and workshops.
**Current Roles and Work:**
Terrell serves as a solo practitioner at The Good Org, offering OD consulting, coaching, and training services. He is also a consulting practice partner at Caravann and an educator in USF MSOD and SJSU I/O Psychology programs.
**Grounding His Work:**
Terrell's work is firmly grounded in models such as the Johari Window and Thomas Kilmann Conflict Modes, guiding his approach to OD, conflict resolution, and interpersonal dynamics.
Terrell Holmes continues to inspire transformation in the OD field as Principal Consultant at The Good Org.
Stay tuned as we spotlight more Founding Members each month.