Coaching & Consulting

Ariel Acuna is a seasoned Human Resources and Team Leadership expert with a career spanning multiple industries, including technology, manufacturing, retail, supply chain, and healthcare. He has a proven track record of aligning HR strategies with organizational goals to drive innovation, efficiency, and employee well-being. From revamping organizational structures, benefits, and HRIS systems in tech to optimizing efficiency and safety in manufacturing and fostering culture and commitment in healthcare, Ariel has consistently delivered impactful results. His leadership in multi-site retail organization includes spearheading HRIS transformations, managing large-scale change initiatives, and developing robust talent pipelines to support growth, while his work in supply chain demonstrates his ability to design HR frameworks that ensure seamless workforce coordination. A graduate of Indiana University, Ariel also holds a certification in Organization Development from Columbia University. On a personal level, he is married with four children and resides in Mason, Ohio. Having contributed to renowned companies such as DaVita, Joann, Target, Gap, Luxottica, and Azek, Ariel offers audiences valuable insights on HR innovation, leadership, and organizational growth.

Preston Bowles is a seasoned leadership coach with deep experience helping individuals and teams unlock their full potential. His coaching approach empowers professionals to thrive in their careers and personal lives, navigate workplace challenges with confidence, and build the capabilities to lead high-performing teams. Preston has coached senior executives and managers across a wide range of industries, enabling them to achieve powerful results and lasting fulfillment. As co-founder and leader of a strategic consulting firm, he brings a background in strategy, finance, marketing, operations, brand management, and innovation. He began his career at Procter & Gamble and went on to lead successful business turnarounds across multiple corporations, including one he acquired. Yet the most meaningful part of his journey has always been helping people and teams become the best version of themselves. Preston holds an MBA and a certification in leadership coaching, and brings decades of experience unleashing the potential of people and organizations.

Vic Clesceri is a certified coach with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), a certified organizational development coach, leadership facilitator, and founder of a consulting firm specializing in executive coaching, talent management, and organizational development. With broad experience across industries — including food & beverage, consumer products, pharmaceutical, education, dairy, nonprofits — and business disciplines — including sales, strategy, business development, and analytics — Vic brings a practical, business-savvy approach to leadership growth. His work empowers leaders to identify blind spots, leverage strengths, and drive meaningful, lasting change. Vic has a passion for mapping attributes within 360, personality, and strengths assessments to organizational competencies, core values, and behaviors, identifying strengths and shadows of individuals and teams to help both become the best versions of themselves.

With over 40 years of global leadership experience and a Ph.D. in Leadership and Change, Bonnie coaches executives, senior leaders, and teams to lead with clarity, drive transformation, and achieve sustainable results. Her approach blends real-world executive insight with evidence-based coaching practices to create meaningful, measurable impact. Bonnie combines practical expertise—from plant-floor operations to C-suite strategy—with insights from her Ph.D. research. She is certified by the International Coaching Federation (ICF), as well as in DiSC and Minds at Work (Immunity to Change), and specializes in helping leaders align people, processes, and purpose to lead more effectively in complexity and change. Whether it's helping a senior team navigate strategic shifts or supporting an executive through personal growth and transformation, her coaching is grounded, actionable, and results-driven.

Dr. Merle Heckman is a dynamic executive coach dedicated to helping individuals uncover their strengths, grow in confidence, and become the best version of themselves—one person at a time. Merle is a certified Dale Carnegie coach. With decades of experience in leadership development, organizational training, and talent growth, Merle brings a rich blend of coaching insight and real-world expertise to every client engagement. As former Manager of Organizational Development, he led global leadership training initiatives and helped shape the next generation of leaders across the organization. His diverse background includes work as a university educator, global trainer, digital producer, and author of Why People Work, all contributing to his coaching approach rooted in both empathy and evidence-based practice. Known for his ability to connect, challenge, and inspire, Merle helps individuals and organizations move from potential to performance—through personalized coaching that unlocks purpose, builds leadership capacity, and drives meaningful change.

Benjamin McCall is an executive coach, practitioner, and leadership strategist who empowers individuals and teams to lead with clarity, confidence, and purpose. With deep expertise in Organizational Strategy and HR Strategy, Benjamin supports leaders at every level—helping them navigate complexity, drive results, and grow with intention. Drawing on a strong background in strategic execution and talent management, Benjamin's coaching bridges insight with action. He works with individual contributors, managers, and executives to overcome leadership challenges, enhance communication, and align values with impact. His experience spans organizations in the private and public sector that include financial services, education, defense, government, startup, healthcare, and manufacturing. Ben is certified in Development Dimensions International (DDI), VitalSmarts, and assessments (DiSC, Strengths, etc). Benjamin brings a practical, grounded approach to coaching that reflects both his corporate and public sector experience and commitment to personal growth.

Valerie Plis is a distinguished Human Resources professional with 25 years of expertise in Organizational Development, currently leading StrengthsBuilders LLC, a coaching and training practice she founded in 2009. Valerie's skills in coaching are underscored by her certifications as a Certified Executive and Social & Emotional Intelligence Coach, Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach, and Certified Five Behaviors Practitioner, allowing her to specialize in enhancing leadership effectiveness and impact and driving team performance. Her coaching experience enables her to effectively guide high-performing leaders and facilitate collaboration, ensuring leaders achieve their wildly-important goals and teams achieve exceptional outcomes. Valerie has partnered with a diverse array of sectors, including education, government, manufacturing, legal, nonprofits, and healthcare, and has shared her insights at prominent conferences such as the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals and more. Actively involved in the professional community, she is a member of SHRM and ICF.

Deanna Suskovich specializes in coaching & mentoring Executive Leadership Teams in to develop or enhance a high-reliability organizational culture that prioritizes safety, error-free performance in complex high-risk environments, enabling open communication and psychological safety, leadership engagement and continuous process improvement. Deanna has spent two decades partnering with leaders in healthcare, life sciences, engineering, and construction to implement transformational change through coaching and structured improvement systems. She has direct healthcare executive leadership coaching experience, supporting leaders in adopting high-reliability principles that improve outcomes, engagement, and operational efficiency. Deanna focuses on helping clients design and develop organizational infrastructure that aligns with an organizations True North or Strategic Pillars and priorities and includes all leaders within an organization as well as front-line staff ensuring growth and personal development. She holds certifications as a Master Black Belt in Six Sigma and Lean Management and has deep expertise in executive coaching, strategic planning & strategy deployment, infrastructure development, and process improvement. Deanna's passion is guiding leaders to unlock their potential, align teams, and deliver measurable, lasting results across complex systems and industries.

Pam Viscione is an executive coach with a passion for helping leaders navigate change, grow in self-awareness, and achieve lasting impact. With 35 years of leadership experience at Procter & Gamble—spanning supply chain, manufacturing, innovation, and global team management—Pam coaches mid-level to senior leaders to elevate performance and lead with clarity. Her coaching is rooted in real-world experience across diverse business sectors. She has led through complexity, mergers and acquisitions, and organizational transformation—giving her a deep understanding of the dynamics leaders face. Pam is an International Coaching Federation (ICF) certified coach who specializes in coaching individuals to develop greater awareness of themselves, their teams, and their work environments. Through her coaching, clients identify strengths, uncover blind spots, and explore strategies to achieve personal and professional goals with purpose and confidence.