Our Team

Kelli Maxwell graduated college in winter of 2001; after a few years of substitute teaching and coaching, she accepted a position as an Account Manager for Technicolor managing the domestic and international distribution of 35mm film for DreamWorks and Lions Gate Films. After realizing the film industry was not for her, Kelli returned to college to complete her initial undergraduate studies and pursue a nursing degree. Upon obtaining her RN, she took a substantial pay cut to become a nurse and feels it was the best decision she’s ever made!

Kelli grew up on a cattle farm in northwest Ohio, USA, where she cherished every second of growing up in a small community and being a part of the 4-H community. Her experiences taught her the meaning of hard work, how important it is to always help others, to overcome challenges in harsh conditions, and how to find solutions to whatever comes her way.

Many of the skills Kelli learned growing up acted as a springboard for her entry into the medical field, and her eventual role as an ER/Trauma RN in the inner city at a Level 1 Trauma Center.

Samara Hakim, JD, is the Founder of CulturGrit, LLC. She is an international culture and inclusion thought leader, data strategist, speaker, writer, coach, and facilitator. For over a decade, Samara has equipped leaders with the cultural intelligence to work with those who are different, by mitigating bias and integrating culture into business practices and metrics. She has extensive experience in communication, conflict transformation, diversity, equity, inclusion, implicit bias mitigation, and culture transformation. Samara is a dynamic speaker who engages people to think beyond their comfort zone and to work across differences. She draws on a range of experiences including her work across cultures, acculturation in the U.S., her legal career, and her personal background. Samara grew up in Lebanon. She has traveled extensively and is fluent in French, Arabic, and English, and conversational in Spanish. Samara loves chocolate, biking, and dancing. She currently resides in San Diego, CA.

Dr. Janine Allen, EdD, is a CQ Consultant and Master Facilitator with extensive experience developing diverse work teams across the globe. Included in her experience is over 20 years in higher education leading multicultural teams and developing transnational partnerships in Indonesia, Peru, South Africa, China, Australia, Israel, South Korea, and New Zealand.

Raised in New Mexico in a multiethnic family and amongst multiple indigenous tribal groups has given Janine a passion for cultural engagement and equity. Always a learner and a connector, Janine’s relational approach is a key element in her facilitation and executive coaching with executive leaders, managers, and with practitioners.

On a personal note, Janine is an urban gardener and enjoys observing the green world around her despite her location of place!

Dr. Fenny Ang is the Corporate Partnerships Director for INSEAD, world renowned global business school. Based in Singapore, Fenny manages the China, Malaysian and Philippines portfolios. In addition to her business development role, she also provides Professional Leadership Development Coaching for MBA students.

Fenny is a Professional Certified Coach (PCCTM) with more than 20 years of management consulting and HR practitioner experiences in both the corporate and NGO sectors across Asia Pacific. As an executive coach and leadership trainer, Fenny works with senior executives to develop their personal and team leadership capabilities. She has expertise in helping leaders to successfully transition into senior leadership roles, build productive teams or navigate through challenging organisation transitions (e.g.: M&A, restructuring and layoffs). Her recent projects focus on upskilling managers in leading and managing transformational change in their teams, and helping executives navigate successfully in cross-cultural terrains. She especially loves working with millennial leaders to increase their confidence in shaping their workforce, and understand their place in the world, beyond just their workspace.

Fenny obtained her PhD in International Business Management from the University of South Australia and received her M.A. in Educational Leadership (specialising in HR Development) from Western Michigan University. She has published articles in People & Strategy, Journal of Global Mobility, and Coaching World. Fenny is fluent in English and proficient in Mandarin, Bahasa Melayu, and Cantonese.

Anindita Banerjee, PhD is our leading consultant and facilitator in South Asia. She works with companies and universities to integrate cultural intelligence through consulting, training and coaching, and instructional design. She holds a Masters degree in Mathematics, an MBA and PhD in cross-cultural management. Anindita lives in India with her husband and two boys and she leads the diversity and inclusion practice at Renaissance Strategic Consultants. She enjoys travelling and immersing herself in different cultures, especially in local cuisines.

Sara Beaty is our Quality Assurance Analyst. She is the primary subject matter expert of our CQ Learning Portal. She is responsible for coordinating and managing the quality of our technology projects and deliverables, including administration, testing, and analytics of our company’s digital assets.

Sara graduated from Baker College with a Bachelor’s in Accounting. Sara volunteers with an animal rescue group (Shelter to Home) and likes to play video games and go camping in her free time.

CJ Beckmann is an officer with 10 years of military service in the Utah National Guard. His experience in the government sector includes leadership positions in organizations with over 100 employees and managing programs with budgets in excess of $2.5 million.

‌His chief accomplishments include the development of a premiere language training program for service members preparing for overseas assignments. This program culminated in the creation of the Polyglot Games, a multifaceted evaluation exercise for language and cultural proficiency. It was during this time that CJ discovered CQ and began collaborating with the Cultural Intelligence Center to integrate CQ into his training program.

His credentials include an MBA, a B.A. in Communications and certifications in training evaluation and strategic planning. Aside from his military service, CJ also works as a small business consultant with his wife, Elizabeth. The two live in Utah with their 3 dogs and 4 cats.

As our Director, Public Programs and Partners, Jennifer Benbow plans and markets our US and global public events, including CQ workshops, CQ certifications, and Unconscious Bias programs, and assists our Certified Facilitator partners with their CQ needs. She has over 20 years of experience in corporate, non-profit, and government communications, and event management in the United States and Australia.

Before joining the Cultural Intelligence Center, Jennifer worked for the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., where she helped promote UK Government policies through her relationships with state government officials, universities, and businesses. Jennifer graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in Political Science and completed her MA in Communications at RMIT University in Australia.

In her free time, Jennifer enjoys hiking and other outdoor activities with her husband and two children.

Laurent oversees Talent Acquisition & Development at the Cultural Intelligence Center. He has over 30 years of experience in human capital development, strategy, and leadership. He was previously the Vice President of Talent Management at Steelcase.

Laurent is of French descent and was born in Germany. He has several years of experience doing business in various cultures and countries, including working and living abroad.

Laurent is passionate about culture transformation, diversity, and inclusion. Laurent earned his MBA at ESCP Business School in Paris. He is also certified in FLOW coaching and the Advanced Human Resource Executive Program at Michigan’s Ross School of Business. From Bob Dylan to Joy Division, Laurent loves rock music and crime novels.

Chris Bobcean is our Director of Marketing. His responsibilities include providing marketing support and direction to all areas of our business. Chris brings over 22 years of digital, project management, eLearning, and marketing experience to CQC. Chris has experience working with small to large companies and has worked on both client and agency side.

In his spare time, he enjoys spending time on the lake with his family and attending their extracurricular activities (mainly hockey practices and games).

Lucy Butters is a specialist in Cultural Intelligence and founded Elembee ltd in 2010 to support international ambition and inclusion, working primarily with universities in the UK. She is a Master Trainer with the Cultural Intelligence Centre and Above Difference, a UK strategic partner of CQC that works to improve inclusive leadership across the public sector. Recent work includes training and coaching for leaders of companies participating in the Scottish Government’s international Scale-Up program. Previously she worked for the British Council in international cultural relations roles linked with developing and implementing strategy to support the international ambitions of universities in Scotland.

On a personal level, Lucy is the mother of triplet boys who are a constant reminder of the need to adjust her thinking, actions, and expectations.

Mei supports the Cultural Intelligence Center by working with facilitators to ensure virtual events run smoothly and coordinating client-facing materials.

Born and raised in China to American parents, Mei has a life-long passion for helping people understand and communicate better across cultural boundaries. In her free time, she enjoys cross-stitching, playing music with her father, and playing tabletop games with her husband and friends.

Emily is the client engagement coordinator at our UK subsidiary. She is the go-to for our clients, ensuring that they have everything they need for a great experience with us. She also supports our UK director of operations to grow the UK business.

Born and raised in the UK, Emily spent a few years studying and working in Spain before returning to England where she worked primarily in hospitality and events management. Most recently she has been a teacher and administrator. Passionate about languages, she speaks fluent Spanish and is learning French and British Sign Language. Emily has a rescue dog who is her pride and joy. In her free time she loves cycling, swimming and getting messy in her craft room.

Ellen Dyla is our Client Relations Specialist. She is responsible for client support and relations, as well as company marketing and communication initiatives. Previous to CQC, Ellen held Business Development and Account Management roles for startups and IT companies. She’s passionate about helping her clients while also growing productive and effective teams internally.

Ellen graduated from Michigan State University with a B.A. in Economics and a Specialization Chinese and Asian Studies. In her spare time, she loves to spend time with her daughter, stay active, enjoy the outdoors, and cook.

Joel Francis has 22 years of experience as a Law Enforcement professional. After 20 years of service with the New York Police Department, he served as the Chief of Education and Training for the Baltimore Police Department. He then served as an Assistant Director for Public Safety at Monroe College and Columbia University, respectively. Prior to joining the Cultural Intelligence team, Joel Francis was an Associate Facilitator/National Director for the Verbal Judo Institute, where he presented their tactical communications program to Health and Hospitals Associations, Law Enforcement Agencies, Educational Institutions, Social Services Agencies and other government and private institutions throughout North America.

Joel received his MS in Management from Johns Hopkins University, with an emphasis on Executive Leadership, and has found that his background, education, growth, and experiences in both the public and private sector have enabled him to relate to almost any industry and management level.

Brandon Gamble is our IT and Software Development Manager. He is in charge of leading the maintenance and development of our learning portal, website, and our internal IT infrastructure.

Brandon has a degree in graphic design, applied science, and two in computer information systems. His early career was focused on developing E-Learning courses for Raytheon Professional Services and AT&T, then he fell in love with web development and programming, both professionally and as a hobby. After making the transition into management, Brandon found he had a knack for servant-leadership: fulfilling his role as manager by empowering and enabling his teams to do their best work.

In his free time, Brandon enjoys playing board games, video games, and Dungeons and Dragons with his wife and kids, and putting up with his two dogs.

Becky Greer is our Accountant. She supports our Operations Specialist with keeping monthly financial records up to date, maintaining office supplies and inventory, and assisting with other data entry and analysis. Becky has an Associates of Business Administration from Wayne County Community College and is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Accounting at Wayne State University. Becky is an active volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America and enjoys camping, music, and spending time with her four children, family and friends.

Shayna began her career at CQC in September of 2020 as a Virtual Events and Resource Coordinator. This role provided a strong foundation for her to step into an Account Manager position in March of 2022. Shayna’s passion for justice, equity, diversity and inclusion has allowed her to pursue many enriching experiences. Some of these include: membership in a multicultural and historically Latinx sorority, facilitating inter-group social justice dialogues, creating an implicit bias awareness resource and campaign for Central Michigan University, and working on a local documentary film crew as a Production Coordinator. She is currently studying Business Administration, and has plans to continue her higher education journey in Social Innovation and Public Administration. Shayna is also an avid reader, a poet, and a writer. She is very dedicated to community engagement, and she works with several community leaders in Grand Rapids, Michigan on various creative projects and local initiatives. Shayna sees herself as a bridge-builder that aims to improve community through intergroup dialogue and considers herself to be lifelong learner.

Yun Hee Jang has been appointed as Vice President Operations at the Cultural Intelligence Center and will be working out of the Southfield office.

Yun Hee has over 25 years of experience in Accounting and Operations. Born in Seoul, South Korea, Yun Hee moved to Ohio when she was 10 years old and went on to study Accounting at the University of Cincinnati. Yun Hee and her family have lived in Cincinnati, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and abroad for several years in Malaysia & Singapore. Yun Hee loves sports, especially college football, basketball, and Cincinnati Reds.

Andrej Juriga is the managing director of the training company Cultural Bridge in Slovakia. As a Certified Facilitator of EQ and CQ, Andrej delivers workshops and coaching to large corporations, medium-sized businesses, and start-ups across a variety of countries and industries. He has a background in corporate sales and HR at a national and global level. Andrej has lived in five different countries across Europe and Africa.

Sabrina is a consultant with the CQ Center and teaches the CQ Sales workshop. She has over 20 years of business development strategy and leadership experience, both as our former Executive Vice President of North America, as well as previously overseeing the P&L and sales strategy of a multinational large business unit within a large business intelligence firm. Sabrina has several years of experience doing business in a variety of cultures and countries, including working and living abroad. She is trilingual and has executed business in every region of the world.

Luisa La Via is a Leadership Coach with an international background with more than 20 years of experience traveling the world and coordinating international teams in multicultural environments. Luisa grew up learning from the diversity of the people she met which allowed her to open her mind and see things from different perspectives.

Luisa has covered different positions in the Corporate HR Department in the Luxury field (Bulgari and LVMH) from Recruiting, Training & Development to Organisation and Internal Communication. Recently, she added Corporate Social Responsibility to her curriculum.

Her certification in Cultural Intelligence (CQ) has only reinforced the multicultural approach which characterises her professional expertise. Luisa is now contributing to the development of professionals and organisations both through individual and team coaching and managerial courses with the use of HR development tools such as the CQ assessment and feedback report, Assessment Center, workplace climate surveys, and personal motivation indicators.

Bria Marcelo, M.A., is a social justice educator and student affairs professional who focuses on educational opportunities, collaboration, and strategic engagement to create change. In her higher education career, Bria has held numerous roles centered on identity, equity, inclusion, diversity, and intercultural communication.

Currently, she serves as the Director of Diversity Resources and Strategic Initiatives at the University of Iowa. Her unit helps drive the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts to shift campus culture to more inclusive, welcomes diversity, breaks down barriers to increase dialogue across difference, and is affirming and respectful of all identities. The primary methods employed include educational opportunities, consultation and coaching, events, resource development, and strategic planning support and engagement. Bria is a certified facilitator in Cultural Intelligence, Restorative Justice, and the National Coalition Building Institute. Bria completed her Master of Arts in Student Affairs Administration at Michigan State University and her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, Social and Economic Justice at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Christine Martey-Ochola is our Lead Consultant focusing on our education partners. She focuses on consulting with partners, developing new business, and providing key critical trainings to high level stakeholders.

Christine Martey-Ochola has had over 20 years of experience in the higher education sector as both a research professor and strategic management consultant.  Prior to joining the Cultural Intelligence Center, she worked as a management consultant with colleges and universities focusing on faculty training, new program development, strategic planning, program assessments, and organizational change management.  Christine is passionate about organizational sustainability and inter-cultural structure and engagement, where she complements her academic profession with organizational management to improve workplace culture.

Christine has a doctorate in Chemistry from Lehigh University, Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from East Stroudsburg University, and a diploma in Food Science and Technology from Technical University of Kenya.  She speaks English in addition to several Kenyan languages.

As the Administrative Assistant, Shayla’s focus is providing a positive client experience throughout the event process – from pre-event coordination to post-event analysis. Her time spent tutoring English as a Second Language sparked her passion for learning about and spreading the knowledge of diversity and inclusion. Shayla enjoys exploring outdoors, connecting with new people, and spending quality time with loved ones outside of work.

Angelica is the Administrative Assistant. In this role, she assists in business administration and marketing.

Angelica has studied and lived abroad in addition to being an ESL (English as a Second Language) teacher while residing in China. She’s fluent in Spanish and feeds her desire for knowledge by actively interacting and learning about different cultures. In her spare time, she loves to travel, bike ride, and explore new restaurants with family and friends.

David Przybylo is a Senior Software Engineer from Farmington Hills, Michigan.

David began his professional career at digital advertising agencies developing websites and campaigns for major consumer brands. He then spent seven years building applications for a Fortune 10 health insurance company where he discovered his passion for web accessibility. David also participated in two internal hackathons and was an active member of the corporate volunteer team.

David is dedicated to improving the web every day by focusing on high-quality user experiences. He enjoys spending time with his family, playing guitar, woodworking, and all things retro video games.

Graham Rutherford is the Digital Marketing Coordinator and is responsible for performing the needed day-to-day marketing updates related to the execution of the Cultural Intelligence marketing plan. Additionally, he provides support in copywriting, graphic design, social media posting, website chat monitoring, email marketing, and website updates.

With a B.A. in Video Production from Michigan State University and an M.A. in Media Design from Emerson College, Graham brings a variety of design talents to CQC. He’s lived in both Michigan and Massachusetts and has experience working in a variety of different production fields (live events, freelance, studio).

In his spare time, Graham enjoys running, gaming, spending time with friends, and going to shows.

Sophie is our Client Relationship Specialist. In this role, she is responsible for customer support and client relations. In addition to this, Sophie supports marketing department initiatives and projects. Her goal is to make internal and external communication more personal and effective.

Rita Savoia, CNP, RYT, MIR, B.Com (Hons), was born in Italy and grew up in Toronto. She graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce from York University, and a Master of Industrial Relations from Queen’s University in Canada.

Rita has 16 years of progressive Human Resources, Personal Development & Career Coaching, Training and Management Consulting experience. In 2012, she embarked on a 7-year entrepreneurial journey, and founded an HR & Talent Management consultancy based in Dubai servicing corporate and individual clients across various industries in the Middle East. She has been a facilitator of Cultural Intelligence since 2015 and completed Unconscious Bias certification with the Cultural Intelligence Center in 2020. She is a heart-centered facilitator and holistic wellness practitioner passionate about corporate wellness and mental health advocacy.

Robin Shabazz, Principal and Founder of the Eastledge Group, LLC, is a business and human capital consultant with expertise in guiding organisations in developing internal capabilities to become more efficient working in diverse environments. She also uses the Cultural Intelligence model to assist leaders in transforming their cultural awareness into appropriate action.

Robin is a licensed attorney and a trained civil mediator in the State of Ohio, whose career has spanned over 30 years with proven results in cultural transformation, diversity and inclusion, human resource management, and employee relations. As a certified Unconscious Bias, Racial Justice, and Cultural Intelligence professional, Robin capitalizes on her diverse background to deliver simple yet practical tactics, to help organizations understand their “cultural lens” and build the knowledge, strategies, and action plans that enable them to manage and relate to people of all backgrounds and thus foster a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace for employees, customers, and other stakeholders.

Prior to forming The Eastledge Group, Robin held several leadership roles within global retail companies. She served as Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Signet Jewelers, Inc. where she was responsible for developing and executing the human capital strategy. While at Luxottica Retail, she built a nationally recognized Human Capital analytics infrastructure, which linked employee behaviors and traits to business outcomes.

Her work was published in Talent Management Magazine and the book Calculating Success: How the New Workplace Analytics Will Revitalize Your Organization. Robin was recognized as a “2nd Act Honoree” in 2019 by the Cincinnati Business Courier in recognition of the success of her start-up, The Eastledge Group. She was also awarded the 2020 Volunteer Leadership Award by the Ohio Society for Human Resource Management Council in recognition of her dedication to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and a Juris Doctor.

Karyn Stano is our Sales Director and leads the sales team & business development efforts of the company. Karyn has over 20 years of “hands-on” experience in direct Sales, Marketing and Management. Her approach with the sales team is as a coach and mentor. As a consultant, Karyn knows the cornerstone success lies in building strong client relationships, the development and successful implementation of programs and having a solid reputation of following up and following through. Karyn is a strategist by nature and is focused on listening, asking good questions, and helping clients reach the right buying solution.

Throughout her learning and development profession, Ling Ling has designed, facilitated and delivered various corporate programs in 21 countries across four continents in technology, travel and humanitarianism since 2005. She lived, worked and studied in 8 countries. Since 2017, Ling Ling facilitated Cultural Intelligence workshops and programs in Singapore and Malaysia. She has a background in Electronics and Psychology and is now pursuing an MPsy. In Intercultural Relations to become a Cultural Psychologist. Also, she is a member of the British Psychology Society (BPS) and the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology (IACCP). She regularly practices Vipassana meditation and Ashtanga yoga.

Ben Terova is a software engineer from Brighton, Michigan. Growing up with a passion for understanding the ins-and-outs of all things technological, he has been helping clients with their hardware and software needs since he was a teenager. He now works on our specialized CQC learning software, as well as our digital presence around the globe.

Viviane Vicente is a global professional with a legal background and over 20 years of experience in both government and corporate settings. Prior to joining the Cultural Intelligence Centre, she operated her own consultancy, specialised in educating business people, military personnel, nonprofit staff, and other professionals on how to communicate, present, and successfully lead in domestic and international environments. She is passionate about organisational behaviour topics and has spoken on matters of Business Etiquette and Cross-cultural Management at various events around the world.

Viviane possesses a Law degree and an MBA from Brazilian universities, a Master of Laws degree (LL.M.) in National Security and U.S. Foreign Relations Law from The George Washington University Law School, and a Certificate degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) from Georgetown University. She is a speaker of English, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish.

Ritika Wadhwa is our Director of UK Operations. She will be responsible for leading the Cultural Intelligence Centre’s work in the UK and beyond. Ritika brings over two decades of extensive experience in client retention, marketing, business development, and project management. Experience she has gained by working with senior stakeholders across continents, the corporate and Government sector.

Born and brought up in India, Ritika has the unique experience of living, studying, and working in senior roles in several multicultural countries. She is passionate about Cultural Intelligence and is a Diversity & Inclusion champion. Ritika has a degree in Economics and an MBA. She is fluent in Hindi, Punjabi, English, and spoken Greek.