Our Facilitators

Dean Griess has been in the learning profession for two decades, leading teams in a variety of industries such as satellite television providers, outsourcing, and financial services. His passion revolves around creating remarkable experiences and helping other learning professionals achieve their highest potential.

Dean’s primary experience is in facilitation. He has trained, certified, and coached more than 1,000 presenters and facilitators throughout his career. The energy he brings to his sessions creates a unique, growth-oriented environment.

His ATD Master Trainer certification complements the topics he covers during his sessions These include leadership development, coaching, trainer certification, change management, virtual presence, presentation skills, storytelling, new-hire orientations, and transition planning.

Dean holds a bachelor’s degree in speech communications from Colorado State University. He served on the ATD Rocky Mountain Chapter Executive Advisory Board, participated in the ATD Program Advisory Committee, and contributed to the ATD Handbook for Training and Talent Development.

Jonathan Halls is an author, trainer, and coach. He wrote Confessions of a Corporate Trainer (ATD Press, 2019), Rapid Video Development for Trainers (ATD Press, 2012) and was a contributing author to Speak More (River Grove Books, 2012) and the ASTD Handbook: The Definitive Reference for Training & Development, 2nd Edition (ATD Press, 2014). He is author of the ATD Infoline, “Memory & Cognition in Learning” (ATD Press, 2014) and has written numerous articles for TD magazine. Jonathan is an ATD BEST Awards reviewer and has sat on the advisory committees for the ATD International Conference & Exposition and TechKnowledge. The former BBC learning executive now runs workshops in media, communication, leadership, and creativity. He is on faculty at George Washington University and facilitates ATD’s Master Trainer Program, Training Certificate and Rapid Video for Learning Professionals Certificate program. Jonathan has been training, speaking, and coaching for 25 years in more than 20 countries. He describes his work as “at the intersection of media, communication, learning, leadership, and innovation.”

Tracey Harris-Bennett is an energetic, results-oriented training professional experienced in instructional design, multimedia and training program development.  She has over 25 years of experience designing and delivering training solutions for clients in the pharmaceutical, education, and healthcare markets.  Tracey is passionate in creating interactive and immersive training programs that yield high impact results for her clients.  She currently holds certifications as Master Instructional Designer, Certified Master Trainer, Mobile Certification and Certified Online Training Professional (COTP)

When not working, Tracey enjoys playing golf with her husband Jeff and camping in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Dr. Cindy Hill has been an industrial/organizational psychologist at ACT since 1996. She has been a major contributor to the design of the WorkKeys Job Profiling Training program. She has trained and authorized hundreds of job profilers and also provides job profiling services to clients. In addition, Hill has been responsible for conducting content validity studies for the development and review of licensure and certification tests. This includes job analysis, the development of test content outlines, national surveys, data analysis, item writing and review, standard setting, and validating the test scores of off-the-shelf and company-specific tests.

Mason Holloway has an extensive professional background, including 15 years in senior management and consultative positions working in business consulting, business operations, sales, and human performance improvement (HPI). He is a senior analyst, performance technologist, and experienced practitioner of the HPI processes. He has demonstrated skills and expertise in assisting companies in meeting and exceeding aggressive and competitive organizational goals and improving overall business results through HPI processes. Holloway's clients have included The U.S. Navy, National Technical Information Service, L.L. Bean, Social Security Administration, Accelera Corporation, ServiceMaster, and Microsoft. Early in Mr. Holloway's career he focused his skills in the development of marketing and sales programs working with Cellular One (now Cingular). Holloway went on to found and develop a nationally recognized publishing company, serve as digital content delivery consultant to a major content provider, and work with a team developing a contextual learning management system for the United States Government, among other achievements. As a respected consultant in the areas of training delivery and performance, Holloway applies the combination of his extensive real world business experience and acumen with a deep understanding of the fundamental principals of performance in the service of accomplishing business goals. Spanning the disciplines of performance, learning, and development, Holloway's work has included performance-based information taxonomies, performer-centric call center interface design, the development of a contextual learning engine, extensive front-end analysis, online content development and delivery, and performance-based curriculum development. Most recently, working with partner Dennis Mankin, Holloway led the design and development team in the creation of Performance DNA, the most comprehensive and effective tool set for analyzing human performance. Performance DNA has been co-copyrighted by Platinum Performance Group and ASTD and is the only methodology taught in the prestigious HPI certificate program. He graduated with from University of Maryland with B.A. in English and business and continued his graduate studies in management at James Madison University.

Maddie Hooker is an instructional designer who believes that learning experiences should center on learners’ needs, bridging the gap from where learners are to where they need to be.

Maddie pioneered a learning science-based teacher training program and led large teams of instructors, empowering them to transform their performance through skill-gap analyses, individualized training, and coaching. She also designed and developed courses for various industries and modalities, including Raytheon’s Cyber Academy, which received the CompTIA Workforce Talent Development Award, and numerous successful CMMI certification courses. Additionally, she helped enable a certification organization to pivot their training products quickly and effectively into a virtual learning environment.

As a certified Associate Professional in Talent Development, Maddie has a wide scope of knowledge on key competencies in the talent development field. She holds a degree in graphic design from Spring Arbor University.

After receiving her MBA degree from Temple University in the United State, Sophia Huang joined ChinaTrust Commercial Bank as a management associate, and began her Full- function HR career. Sophia participated in various business transformations and organizational reforms at CTBC Bank. She has engaged in strategic human resource management and talent development for over 30 years, including multiple assessment centers establishment, leadership development projects, leading organizational and human resource transformation, and involving international mergers and acquisitions projects.

In 2016, she backed to school and eventually received a Ph.D. degree in Business Administration from Fu Jen Catholic University in 2020 and passed CPTD certification in 2022.

Currently, she serve as an Adjunct Associate Professor at Fu Jen Catholic University, Taiwan. She is also a HR and social entrepreneurship consultant, practicing her academic research interests in social innovation and talent development, primarily integration and co-prosperity across generations. She is a lifelong learning executor and enjoys cross-field exploration continuously.

Cindy is a pioneer in the field of virtual training. She’s been providing virtual training solutions for more than 19 years (since the early 2000s), and is a recognized industry expert in teaching training professionals how to design and deliver interactive online classes.

Cindy is the author of four books on virtual training: Virtual Training Tools and Templates: An Action Guide to Live Online Learning (2017), The Virtual Training Guidebook: How to Design, Deliver, and Implement Live Online Learning (2014), Virtual Training Basics (1st edition 2010 and 2nd edition 2018). She’s coauthored two ASTD Press Infolines, “Simple, Effective Online Learning” and “Designing for the Virtual Classroom”, has contributed to many compilations, including the ASTD Handbook: The Definitive Reference for Training & Development and 101 Ways to Make Learning Active Beyond the Classroom, and written several articles for T+D magazine.

Cindy partners with her clients to help them transition from the face-to-face to the virtual classroom, and works with them to design online and blended learning solutions. Her clients include global organizations of all sizes, including several in the Fortune 100 list.

With over thirty years of overall professional experience, Cindy has worked in various industries including technology, construction, higher education, retail and the public sector. Her management and global experience includes serving as the regional Director of Training and Operations for an international software training company, and the Learning and Development manager for a global mechanical contractor.

Cindy is a sought-after conference speaker, and has presented multiple times at the ATD (formerly ASTD) International Conference and Expo, TechKnowledge, Training, Learning Solutions, DevLearn, as well as the Online Learning Conference, Masie’s Learning, and the Annual SHRM Conference. Her online webcasts have been attended by thousands of people around the globe. And she’s one of only a handful of worldwide trainers who has been chosen to deliver ATD’s Master Trainer and Master Instructional Designer Programs.

Cindy holds a Master’s degree in Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh, and a Bachelor’s degree from James Madison University. Cindy was also one of the first to earn the prestigious Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD), formerly CPLP, designation.

As Chair of ASTD’s National Advisors for Chapters, Cindy served on the global ATD (formerly ASTD) Board of Directors in 2009-2010. She was recognized by the Triangle Business Journal as a “40-Under-40” Award recipient in 2003. She also co-founded a non-profit organization to promote volunteering and community service in her local area. She’s passionate about helping others succeed and brings that dedication and commitment to every project she undertakes.

Bahaa Hussein began his career 28 years ago with Procter & Gamble Egypt (P&G), as a van salesman; or as he puts it, “riding a van, roaming the streets of Cairo selling soap.”  He managed to work his way up to became a key manager for P&G in the Arabian Peninsula, heading the sales operation in Saudi Arabia. Since 1988, he has been qualified to facilitate many of the P&G training programs across CEEMEA and Europe. In 2008, discovering his real passion and interest to genuinely and positively impact peoples’ lives through improved human performance; Bahaa shifted his career to Learning & Development. In 2010 he successfully earned ATD’s Certified Professional in Talent Development (CPTD), formerly CPLP, becoming one of the more than 3500 certified learning & development professionals worldwide, and the first Egyptian to obtain this esteemed certification.  Currently, Bahaa is the Head of Learning and Development at Abudawood Group responsible for the development and delivery of all training programs across six regions.  Additionally, he is the General Manager for Abudawood Irag. Bahaa continues to bring the same passion he had when he first started as a van salesman back, to delivering impactful training programs that create future leaders & professional performers in his organization as well across the whole MENA region business environment. 

Esther Jackson helps people discover their potential. Esther resides in Michigan and has myriad experiences in HR leadership, project management, instructional design, and training management. She is a project manager, consultant, college instructor, and national speaker who values selflessness, service, and learning. She has worked in the public sector for the City of Detroit and in the private sector doing projects for various companies including the big three automotive companies, financial clients, and manufacturing along with nonprofits. With a passion for helping others to maximize their potential, she has a track record of achievements to show what she’s doing with hers.

She empowers others to achieve greater levels of success in live workshops, virtual presentations, hybrid events, and in her literary work. You can find some of her articles in TD magazine, ISPI Performance Xpress, and Training Industry. Her training topics for various events include adaptability, change management, facilitation, DEI, emotional intelligence, leadership development, project management, and more. Esther has the uncanny ability to rock a platform and connect with her audience. Her facilitation style captures attention and engages her audiences.

One of her accomplishments is her first book about adaptability in talent development. After completing a bachelor's degree in education, instructional technology became her major with a master's from Wayne State University followed by a doctorate in higher education and adult learning from Walden University. She holds an AQ Foundations Certification for adaptability along with a Certified Diversity Executive credential near completion. The desire to help empower others keeps her driven to share her gifts and affect the masses.

Traveling, writing, and family fun are a few things that keep her busy when she is not working. Another passion of hers is the volunteer work she does as a National Advisor for Chapters with ATD chapter leaders across the country.

She not only wrote the book on adaptability, but she also puts it into action with her approach to meeting the needs of her diverse audiences with any topic she facilitates or presents. She’s an expert at inspiring others to put in the work and level up.

Driven by true inquisitiveness, Nassif Kazan is a seasoned executive based in Dubai and is renowned for his expertise in leadership assessment and development across various industries and from a global perspective. With a relentless commitment to fostering a positive and sustainable impact in all his professional endeavors, Nassif has amassed nearly 20 years of experience as a trusted advisor in leadership advisory and talent and team development. His influence has been instrumental in both private and public sectors, shaping the future of leadership.

Before launching nxtARC, a practice dedicated to leadership development, Nassif set an exceptional standard as the inaugural member of the Leadership Advisory Services (LAS) team in the Middle East at Egon Zehnder, the world’s foremost executive recruitment firm. During his tenure, he not only activated the LAS value proposition within the region but also made substantial contributions to executive assessments. His outstanding reputation as a go-to expert in development and executive coaching speaks to his unwavering dedication.

Prior to his pioneering role at Egon Zehnder, Nassif was the global learning deployment and client manager for The Coca-Cola Company across the EMEA region. In this pivotal role, he assumed responsibility for implementing customized development solutions for more than 1,000 leaders across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

He also loves to get people excited about his passion for learning and makes it a point to always give 100 percent to the work he delivers, ensuring all his learning experiences are empowering and resonate with people. His journey exemplifies a deep commitment to shaping leaders and organizations toward excellence, fostering sustainable impact, and driving innovation in the leadership development landscape.

Nassif holds an MBA with a specialization in strategy and human resources from the IE Business School in Madrid, Spain. He is a distinguished member of ATD, where he continues to serve as a global master facilitator. He is also a trained Co-Active coach and holds multiple certifications for bespoke assessment tools such as the 16pf and the Hogan suite.

Amy P. Kelly, SHRM-SCP, SPHR is a Human Resources & Talent Management Executive. She builds award-winning employment brands, corporate universities, leadership development programs, and organizational well-being strategies. She is a Certified High-Performance Consultant, Master Trainer, and Executive Coach who works with executives to develop exceptional talent and cultures that drive maximum individual and organizational ROI.

Amy is a graduate of the Leadership Coaching for Organizational Well-Being Program at George Mason University’s Center for the Advancement of Well-Being and brings all her work in Human Resources, Learning and Development, Business Development, and Coaching to develop industry-leading executives and their teams in alignment for organizational vision, mission, and goals. Amy also designs and leads Leadership Wellness, Emotional Intelligence, and Women's Leadership Programs for companies and universities.

Amy is a Global Facilitator for ATD in the areas of high-performance consulting, training, change management, and human performance improvement. She holds multiple certifications from ATD programs including:

ATD Master Performance Consultant
ATD Change Management
ATD Creating Leadership Development Programs
Human Performance Improvement

Amy is the Lead Consultant, speaker, and trainer for The Jon Gordon Companies and co-author of "The Energy Bus Field Guide" a roadmap to fueling your life, work, and team with positive energy.

You can find Amy believing in people and partnering to build great leaders and organizations in all aspects of life - whether it is at home with her husband and four children, in her community, or in businesses all over the world. It is her passion to believe in people and work alongside them to drive performance at the highest levels possible.

Julia Kirkner is a learning consultant for a medical software company in Tampa, Florida. As a former educator and school administrator, Julia has transferred her knowledge of adult learning from the public sector to the private sector. She has experience designing and delivering learning sessions to large and small groups in person and virtually.

While working with all levels of learners, Julia has honed her instructional design and facilitation skills to ensure sessions are engaging and current while aligned to organizational objectives. She has delivered on topics ranging from emotional intelligence; diversity, equity, and inclusion; leadership growth and development; and the importance of feedback.  She earned her Associate Professional in Talent Development certificate and is excited to help other talent professionals reach this goal.

Julia has a master’s degree in educational leadership from NOVA Southeastern University and is interested in supporting a skilled workforce through impactful, effective, and engaging modern curriculum.

Faith Krebs is a master performance consultant and trusted business advisor who coaches leaders and business owners on optimizing and accelerating business results. An ROI Institute associate, she is passionate about measurement and evaluation and coaches her clients on measuring the efficacy of their human capital solutions. Faith is a senior fellow in the Human Capital Analytics Institute of The Conference Board®.

Faith’s professional experience includes working for the McDonald’s Corporation as an executive leading worldwide organizational strategies and solutions. While there, she led the global learning and performance organization that designed, developed, and deployed performance-based learning solutions for 1.6 million employees spanning 118 countries.

Rodrigo F. Lara has more than 20 years of experience in the training industry and is a Chilean expert in ROI and measurement and evaluation. He is CEO of MAS Consultores and the ROI Institute in Latin America. Lara also has been a professor at several universities in Chile and has presented in multiple conferences throughout Latin America and the United States. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in both Psychology and Business Administration and a Master's Degree in Human Resources. He holds the ROI Methodology Certification from the ROI Institute and is a member of ASTD. He was named “Practitioner of the Year Award” by the ROI Institute (Chicago, 2007), and received the “Measurement and Evaluation Award” from ATD (San Diego, 2008). Presentation Rodrigo F. Lara is presenting at the ATD 2014 Mexico Summit on Measuring Learning by Impact on Business Results. Measuring is a big challenge for organizations worldwide. In many organizations, HR areas implement very interesting programs, that maybe get results, but in most of cases there isn't an evaluation strategy; so, there is no evidence to demonstrate the impact on performance or business results. In this session, we will review three case studies that include not only a program but also a comprehensive evaluation. Upon completing this session, participants will be able to: Identify key elements to plan an evaluation using Phillip’s ROI Model Distinguish between a Data Collection Plan and an ROI Analysis Plan Review three different programs evaluated, including Business Impact Discuss how to improve or move forward in Evaluation in their own organizations.

Sherri Leggett is the founder and managing director of SL Consulting, a management and leadership development consulting firm. She is a proud contributing ATD member and past local chapter president.

With a background in managing operations, HR, customer service, quality, process improvement business systems, and training and development, she brings a holistic perspective to addressing performance solutions. Additionally, she has worked with a wide variety of industries, including life sciences, energy, education, and finance and nonprofits. She has worked with employees at all levels of the organization in the US, Europe, and the MENA region.

Sherri has delivered many leadership, business, and cultural programs for in-person and virtual audiences. Topics include leadership development, presentation skills, process improvement, project management, train the trainer, and business skills. Past participants report that she creates a positive, productive, and safe learning environment where everyone is invited to participate and respectfully share their views and opinions as part of the learning process.

One of Sherri’s other passions is health and wellness—she is a certified yoga instructor. Sherri’s purpose is helping people. She loves to train, coach, and inspire people and businesses to be their best.

Aaron Leung is an international speaker, TED experiential coach, and corporate trainer with more than 16 years of experience who has dedicated his life to refining the art of public speaking. He specializes in experiential training styles in public speaking, communication (virtual and holographic, among others), and empathetic and innovative leadership, and he trains new trainers to improve engagement and effectiveness within companies and organizations.

He is also the founder of Aaron’s Public Speaking Studio, which helps more than 50,000 individuals each year. He believes that anyone can master and customize their public speaking styles to create a lifetime of opportunity.

Aaron was an introvert but overcame many hardships to become the trainer he is today. He has traveled to more than 90 countries, immersing himself in various cultures and finding the best solutions for training methodologies, development, and delivery for different clients. He is honored to deliver training to renowned companies such as Microsoft, Alibaba, Tencent, Amazon, Google, and Cisco, along with nonprofits like TEDx, Agora International, and JCI. He has attended more than 5,000 workshops globally and won more than 120 speaking contests, becoming Global Impromptu Speaking Champion in 2019.

Aaron’s notable achievements include being a pioneer of corporate hybrid training models, incorporating virtual and holographic elements. He has prepared talented individuals to become speech champions and Guinness World Record holders, enabled people with disabilities and people who were previously incarcerated to learn new skills, and helped hospital patients through the art of public speaking.

He is humbled to be interviewed by radio stations, podcasts, and cultural magazines.

Aaron’s coaching qualifications are numerous and have proven a bonus when delivering high quality and effective training to his clients. He also designs customized programs for clients to match their needs as well as a few patented courses.

He is currently the head speaking coach at TEDxYouth@Elliotstreet, the lead trainer at Techstars Startup Weekend, an executive member and trainer at Dena Law Firm, and the China ambassador for Agora Speakers International.

Lynn Lewis is an author and learning and performance consultant who fell onto this path in life by accident. Starting her career in broadcast journalism and newswriting, she taught those subjects at the University of Pittsburgh-Bradford. During this experience, she realized that she was meant to be a facilitator and consultant when she grew up. Since that time, she has been a corporate trainer, training manager, director of project management and held two vice president positions—one where she was responsible for building a corporate university and the other where she was responsible for building a performance solutions consulting practice and project management office (PMO). After these experiences, she found that the work she loved best was working as a consultant, strategizing with clients, managing projects, designing and developing learning solutions, and helping to mentor and develop these skills in others. Lynn is a certified project management professional (PMP), and a certified professional in talent development (CPTD). She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from St. Bonaventure University in New York. Lynn is the author of several books: Ten Steps to Successful Meetings and Ten Steps to Successful Presentations. She also co-authored the ASTD Learning System (a series of 10 books used to study for the CPTD credential). She facilitates the following programs for ATD: Consulting Skills Certificate Project Management for Learning Professionals Emotional Intelligence for Improved Decision Making She is an independent consultant and works with organizations across many different industries—especially pharmaceutical/biotech, insurance and financial services.  

Cecilia Lillegard is a Certified Professional in Talent Development and an innovative connector of people and processes to technology, growth, and purpose. With a focus on operational and performance improvement, she incorporates her technical perspective, creative problem-solving skills, and passion for collaboration to deliver consistent business impact and instructional system design.

Cecilia has experience designing and delivering customized high-tech and marketing programs, including business planning, safety programs, and equipment maintenance, to professionals around the world. She partnered with engineering teams designing several equipment service courses using remote learning tools, virtual machines, and augmented reality. She facilitated marketing workshops across Asia and Europe for numerous business divisions with GE Healthcare. She even facilitated safety training and engagement sessions in Japan for sitewide VPP OSHA recognition. As a certified ATD instructional designer and mechanical engineer, she is knowledgeable about the development and new technologies applied to outcome-based learning programs.

Cecilia has a master of engineering management degree from Marquette University, an active role in her community, and three amazing daughters. She’s lived across 10 US states and for two years in Japan. Cecilia is passionate about using her love of travel and technology to work on establishing wider perspectives of what is available for student success in the classroom and their workspace— wherever that is.

As principal of Talent Seed Consulting, Stacy leverages more than 15 years of experience in identifying opportunities and implementing large-scale learning solutions for associates at all organizational levels. She has developed and delivered blended learning approaches, led learning and development teams, selected and implemented learning technology initiatives, and designed and managed leadership and succession planning and development programs.  Stacy is a past president of the Midlands Chapter of the Association for Talent Development (formerly ASTD), and served on ATD’s National CORE committee. She served on the advisory board of the 2013 International Conference on e-Learning in the Workplace. She blogs for ATD’s Learning Technologies community and has written articles and publications for ATD as well as Learning Solutions magazine. Stacy is certified to facilitate Achieve Global, GROW Coaching, and ProMax training, regularly speaks at local and national training conferences. Connect with Stacy on Twitter, LinkedIn, or through her company website: www.growyourtalent.com.