Our Leadership

CEO and Strategic Advisor

Jennifer L. Smith

Hello, Jennifer here. I am excited that every day I am able to work with leaders helping them discover or reignite their passion. Many results-oriented leaders achieve success and then wonder why they do not feel better about themselves or their work. They do not feel as good as they thought they would feel given their many accomplishments. In essence, they are starting to lose or have lost their passion even though they are still cranking out results.

Having been a leader in Corporate America, I know all too well the frustration leaders can face when they feel this way because it leads to not enjoying their work as much as before, frustration, a lack of motivation, and feeling undervalued. All leaders want at that point is to feel better about themselves and jumpstart their excitement so that they have the energy to instill passion in their teams.

My Experience...

With over 20 years of experience either being in leadership roles, training leaders or coaching leaders, I have a keen awareness of the most effective ways for leaders to be effective in engaging employees. I have coached hundreds of leaders across various industries and functions at Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, and non-profits around the world. In addition, I have held positions with the titles of Director, Assistant Vice President, and Vice President for which I reported into the most senior HR person who reported into the CEO so I am very clear about executive effectiveness.

With a drive to stay current on leadership, I am a Past President of the New Jersey Charter Chapter of the International Coach Federation leading a board of 11 and a membership of 200+ members.

My background includes Accounting, Finance, Six Sigma Quality, Human Resource, and Organization Development so you receive a well-rounded business professional partnering with you to help you achieve your goals.

"Jennifer enabled me to focus my attention on why I was feeling a certain way or responding in a certain manner. Not by dissecting what I was doing, but by prompting me with questions that caused me to self evaluate and discover things myself. The main difference for me now is that I realize I do not have to have all of the answers for everyone. I can encourage and ask questions and coach in a much more effective manner. Another key aspect of this coaching effort was the realization of "what people say is about them" and "how I interpret it is about me". Making that distinction and applying it real time has had an enormous impact on my communication with others. Jennifer's coaching enabled me to see that and more. She is a real gem!" Christine B.

My Approach...

Experience has taught me that when a leader is passionate in their role their excitement increases which gives them the energy to inspire their teams to achieve greatness. My unique approach to helping leaders take their leadership game to the next level is using a Passionate Leader Success Profile that has been developed based on my 20+ years of working with leaders.

By using an experiential and personalized approach, I am able to help clients tap into their inner most motivations, realign with their values, and identify practical ways to be an effective leader. This unleashes untapped passion and increases the productivity of their teams. In essence, it is like helping them discover their compass to take steps towards the success they desire. Leaders want to feel appreciated, valued and know that they are making a contribution to the organization. Companies want to increase productivity, satisfaction, and engagement.

When working with Corporate clients, the experiential approach involves a combination of coaching, training, consulting, and speaking to provide a holistic approach to helping them increase productivity. For private clients, the experiential approach includes coaching, resources, and training.

As a keen, astute listener and architect of leadership success, I enjoy customizing programs that meet the specific needs of my clients.

My Strengths...

One of the inventories that I use with my individual as well as team clients is StrengthFinders 2.0 to help them learn about and embrace their strengths. In order for leaders to succeed in altering behaviors or their leadership style to increase their effectiveness, it is best to design approaches that keep the leader’s strengths in mind. By doing so we are able to create a personalized versus a canned approach.

In order to allow you to get to know me a little better, below are my top 5 strengths based on the inventory. The descriptions are courtesy of Gallup and StrengthFinders.

Achiever: People who are especially talented in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.

Developer: People who are especially talented in the Developer theme recognize and cultivate the potential in others. They spot the signs of each small improvement and derive satisfaction from these improvements.

Learner: People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.

Empathy: People who are especially talented in the Empathy theme can sense the feelings of other people by imagining themselves in others’ lives or others’ situations.

Individualization: People who are especially talented in the Individualization theme are intrigued with the unique qualities of each person. They have a gift for figuring out how people who are different can work together productively.

When I first reviewed my report I chuckled at how accurate it is and how well it aligns with what it important to me as an Executive Leadership Coach, speaker, workshop facilitator, leadership trainer, and consultant. These are strengths that I bring to every client engagement. So, what are your top 5 strengths? I welcome discussing your results with you so feel free to click here so that we can talk.

My Education/Certifications (in case you are wondering)...

One of my core values is to ensure my clients receive the best and highest quality services possible. I take my development just as seriously as my clients. Below lists my education and certifications.

Certified Professional Coach (CPC), Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching
Professional Certified Coach (PCC), International Coach Federation (ICF)
Social + Emotional Intelligence Certified Coach®
Hogan Assessments (HPI, HDS, MVPI)
Energy Leadership Index Master Practitioner (ELI-MP)
MS, Organization Development and Human Resources (concentration in Organization Development), The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School
BS, Accounting, Grambling State University
Graduate of General Electric's Financial Management Leadership Program (FMLP)
Certified Six Sigma Master Black Belt