WE DEVELOP LEADERS AT THE SPEED OF BUSINESS
Copperbox empowers leaders to live their purpose, make better strategic decisions, and inspire their teams.




Why Executives Fail in Today’s Business Environment

UNCLEAR ABOUT THEIR OWN PURPOSE AND VALUES
- Many executives have not done the critical work of knowing what they stand for and struggle to find how they want to impact the world.
- Leaders have lost sight of what is truly important to them. Day-to-day pressures have disconnected them from themselves – mentally, physically and spiritually – and their true potential to contribute to their company, their community, and their family.
- Business leaders frequently struggle to align their own purpose with their company’s mission and vision, leaving them unable to truly motivate, energize, and inspire their people. This results in their teams being poorly aligned and far less engaged.

LACK OF LEADERSHIP CAPABILITY
- Many executives simply manage others through the day-to-day instead of truly leading them towards an exciting future vision.
- Executives often view ‘being a leader’ in the limited context of their organizational roles, not as the whole person they are.
- It is common for individual executives to develop an incomplete or fragmented approach to leading instead of being grounded in effective leadership practice.

FAILURE TO THINK AND ACT STRATEGICALLY
- Executives commonly struggle to shift from being operationally focused to contributing at a higher strategic level.
- Leaders find it challenging to formulate strategy in an increasingly complex business environment that seems brittle, anxious, nonlinear, and incomprehensible.
- Executives often use strategic planning tools without a foundational understanding of how to think and act strategically.
These common executive challenges result in leaders who are unprepared to keep pace with or meet the demands of their complex, fast-moving businesses.
We’ve partnered with modern leaders at…

Our approach enables executives who:
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- Leaders who are able to take a long-term view on organizational growth and sustainability, while driving near-term business and financial goals
- Leaders who can genuinely inspire their people and lead them towards an exciting future vision
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- Leaders who are able to engage a range of diverse, talented team members, and align their unique strengths, aspirations, and personalities to achieve critical organizational goals
- Leaders who are able to draw lessons from human history and the natural world to apply timeless wisdom to the complexities of today’s environment
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- Leaders who can formulate strategy for complex organizations and businesses to capitalize on opportunities and mitigate potential risks
- Executives who have a strong foundational understanding of how to think and act strategically, which increases the quality of their decision making

Years of collective experience across 24+ countries
Real-time development that achieves results at the speed of business
Developing you into a globally competitive modern leader
WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY
YOUR DEVELOPMENT IS AN EXCITING JOURNEY.
We know leadership development can seem like a big, black box. Development offerings are created for a general audience, instead of individual leaders with specific needs. Leadership programs lack close alignment to a company’s business, strategy and desired organizational outcomes. These initiatives are often focused on incremental improvement of leadership skills, but not true transformational change. More in-depth leadership development experiences are often only reserved for leaders at the highest levels of an organization.
There is a better way.
We are passionate about helping leaders build the critical capabilities that drive organizational results. Through our work we create a development journey that inspires people – that gets them excited about the future, curious about what’s around the next corner, and deeply satisfied with their chosen path. They gain a strong sense of purpose and how they want to impact the world. This alignment enables leaders to achieve extraordinary business results with and through their teams. Along the way we seek to bring more nature, wonder and magic to their work and life – the ‘stuff of the stuff.’
We encourage our clients to choose their development experiences carefully. As we focus on deep, transformational leadership work, we ask leaders to be fully committed and engaged in the process to maximize their growth. We are confident that if you put in the effort, you will achieve your desired outcomes.
In your development journey, let us be the partner that runs hard and fast with you.

Meet the team

Wayland K. Lum
Founder / Managing Director
Wayland works with leaders at all levels to fully develop their leadership potential and achieve profound transformational change. His approach draws from the latest leadership research and adds in a healthy dose of nature, wonder and magic – elements that enliven the human experience, inspire growth and deepen wisdom. He marries the science and art of leadership to take clients through bespoke development experiences that are designed to help them evolve into significantly stronger leaders.
Prior to founding Copperbox, Wayland was a core team member of Korn Ferry’s CEO and Executive Development practice. His work included leadership coaching and real-time executive assessment, as well as designing leadership development programs that expand executive thinking. He has worked with hundreds of leaders globally in organizations such as Abbvie, Scholastic, Nike, Deloitte, John Deere, Hewlett Packard Enterprise and State Farm. His experience living and working in China, the UK and Mexico has given him a nuanced perspective on how to lead effectively across different countries, regions and cultures. He has also led executive career development for top talent at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business’ Executive MBA Programs in North America and Europe.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Wayland earned his MBA from Baruch College and his Masters of Science in Learning and Organizational Change at Northwestern University. He is a member of the Forbes Coaches Council and is a certified professional coach through the Coaches Training Institute (CTI).
AND LIFE…
When he is not doing the work he loves, you will likely find Wayland playing his guitar, running through Texas Hill Country, cooking with family and friends, or practicing the Japanese ‘art’ of Tsundoku (buying books and letting them pile up unread).

Ed Bancroft
Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Ed specializes in executive coaching and executive team development. His approach brings his leadership and consulting experience to practical immediate change. Ed takes these steps in his approach to developing client leaders:
Efficiently gathers confidential observations from key people
Ensures the individual is committed to the coaching process
Agrees with absolute clarity on the expected interpersonal behaviors and development areas with the individual and key people
Focuses on caring and frank discussions about behavior and its impact on others
Evaluates outcomes based on observation by key people during and at the conclusion of the assignment.
RECENT CONSULTING ENGAGEMENTS HAVE INCLUDED:
Executive coaching for senior leaders in pharmaceuticals, health care and higher education.
Onboarding consulting in consumer goods and environmental engineering.
Presentation skills training for senior executives and high potential employees at global accounting and financial services firms.
Before becoming an independent consultant, Ed was a World-Wide Partner at Mercer Human Resource Consulting and Global leader for performance management consulting services at Watson Wyatt.
Clients have included John Deere, PwC, Citibank, Coleman, New Era, Ball State University, College Of American Pathologists, Erie Family Health Centers, and Toshiba, among others.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Ed earned his BA from Lake Forest College and his MA from Loyola Chicago. He attended the Harvard Business School Management Development program and earned his Program Specialist In Organization Development (PSOD) designation from National Training Laboratories. He has published articles on the aging workforce, performance ownership, 360 degree feedback and severance strategies. He is the co-author of The Total Onboarding Program (Wiley), a guidebook on designing and leading a new manager onboarding program.
AND LIFE…
Ed has served as board chairman for Global Alliance for Africa for the past five years. This group provides digital learning, libraries and art therapy in East Africa. He passions include reading, biking, walking, cooking and spending time with his wife, adult children and just recently a baby grandson. If you want to sidetrack Ed, ask him what he is reading and be prepared to be asked the same.

Barbara Beggs
Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Barbara designs and delivers coaching and development solutions that unleash a leader’s potential and recognizes their whole self. She helps those leaders build teams that not only produce results, but are passionate about and committed to their mission. Her clients experience transformational change in the way they think about their purpose, the meaning of their work and how to engage others in pursuit of their vision. Her practical and pragmatic approach draws upon a long career in industry as well as from the latest leadership research. Working with leaders from the inside out, she helps them become the leader they dream of being.
Barbara was a core team member of Korn Ferry’s Leadership Development practice. Her work included leadership coaching and executive assessment as well as designing bespoke leadership development programs that expand an executive’s world. Barbara was also a member of Korn Ferry’s Diversity and Inclusion practice.
She has worked with hundreds of leaders globally in organizations such as AstraZeneca, Abbott, AbbVie, B&W, Capital One, Deloitte, Flowserve, Genmab, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Indivior, John Deere, Murphy USA, Nike, Pioneer Natural Resources and USPS.
Barbara’s experience is global and she has worked through the Americas, Europe and India. Prior to joining Korn Ferry, she had her own consulting firm and had a long career as an executive herself, starting with United States Steel.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Barbara earned her certificate in Executive Coaching from the University of Texas Jindal School of Business and her BA in Liberal Arts from the University of Pittsburgh. She is a certified professional coach through the International Coaching Federation (ICF).
AND LIFE…
When she is not doing the work she loves, you will likely find Barbara cooking and baking for family and friends, pulling skiers on her boat, teaching English as a Second Language, listening to a rather eclectic playlist, adding another country to her list of those visited (working on countries 37-40 in 2021) and adding yet another book to her Kindle. She’s currently on Kindle #5, due to her penchant for leaving them in airplane seat pockets and hotel rooms.

Katerina Bohle Carbonell
Social Network Analysis Expert
EXPERTISE
Katerina uses her expertise in social network analysis to partner with leadership coaches in their work and advises HR analytic companies on relevant human capital-related KPIs. Since 2016 she has taught data-driven decision making for organizational performance at Northwestern University.
Katerina also co-founded Human-Matter, a space for exploring how technology and behavioural science can be combined to help people live better lives.
To help others move away from a person-focused to an eco-system focused mindset, Katerina regularly writes about the importance of communities, meaningful relationships, and the web of interactions and connections everyone has.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Katerina earned her Ph.D in social network analysis and human behaviour at Maastricht University (The Netherlands), where she also completed her Master of Science in Strategic Learning for a Knowledge Society. She has published articles on innovative learning and social network analysis in the Mixed Methods Social Network Analysis and The Internet and Higher Education, among other publications. Katerina has also contributed to the HSTalks series Future Work Now. Her passion for learning and professional growth has led her to join the On Deck Course Creator Fellowship, a community for top talent to grow their career through action-oriented programing and peer-to-peer learning.
AND LIFE…
When Katerina is not talking about or analysing networks, you will find her in the middle of nowhere camping, hiking or sailing with her children or in the middle of the kitchen trying out a new recipe. If it looks like no one needs her she will pick up her Kindle for a good read. After moving several times (Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, South Korea, USA, Ireland), she has given up on building up a physical library and now carries her library in her pocket.

Jessica C. Dawson
Executive and Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Jessica Dawson has a passion for human development that was birthed in an unexpected way. She is a former stockbroker who experienced the collapse of her then employer in 2008. The company and industry devastation highlighted how much great leadership can make or break an organization. Jessica’s unprecedented employee experience activated her to pursue her passion for human capital development.
For almost a decade, Jessica has created and executed coaching and leadership development solutions for some of the largest organizations in the world. Jessica works with leaders at all levels, helps them harness their unique talent set to unlock their leadership excellence. In her coaching approach she creates a safe environment for leaders to pause and expand their perspective of themselves and their teams. This healthy pause is essential for leaders to successfully navigate a rapidly changing workplace landscape. Jessica uses the latest research in workplace and leadership to create a transformational experience for each leader.
Prior to coaching for Copperbox, Jessica has had eight years of experience as a Learning & Development Consultant at Gallup. Jessica has globally coached and advised hundreds of leaders throughout the world. She has worked with organizations such as Twitter, Southwest Airlines, Regions Bank, Highmark Healthcare, USPS, Stanford University, and Atlanta Public Schools.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Jessica earned her BS in Economics from Spelman College and her MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. Jessica is a PCC-level certified coach with the International Coach Federation and is a CliftonStrengths Certified coach.
AND LIFE…
When Jessica is not living out her passion for human development, you will likely find her spending time in nature walking or cycling. She also enjoys traveling to different cities and countries to visit friends and family that are dispersed around the world. She is known to experiment with different recipes and reads/listens to many books and podcasts.

Kim Eisendrath
Practitioner in Residence - Leader Wellness
EXPERTISE
Kim began her career as a special education teacher, curious about the mind-body connection and having a deep compassion for those who learned, processed and absorbed information differently. Acting as a consultant and advocate for those who did not thrive within the prescribed systems, she continued her learning to support her students and their families. Kim developed a passion for identifying opportunities for change to enhance the support for those with different needs.
Kim has brought her heart for serving others into her wellness practice. She is a 20-year yoga practitioner and certified yoga teacher, specializing in stress, anxiety and trauma. Her work with clients incorporates neuroscience and the mind-body connection, and how the body holds onto the stories and beliefs we have about ourselves and the world. Kim guides her clients to use specific and targeted practices which allow them to unravel what has been holding them back, achieve a clearer vision of their present, and ultimately self-regulate their stress management leading to higher level thinking and processing skills. Seeing her clients release the stories and the tension held in their systems is another step towards making the world a better place. In addition to her role at Copperbox, Kim also serves as the Somatic Clinician for the Here and Now Mental Wellness Clinic.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Kim is a certified yoga teacher RYT-200, and has additional certifications in Yoga for Trauma, Advanced Polyvagal Theory in Yoga, TRE (Tension/Trauma Release Exercises), Neurogenic Yoga and is currently in the process of working towards her 300 Yoga Certification in Myofascial Yoga. Kim received her Master of Arts in Teaching, in learning disabilities and social emotional disorders from National-Louis University, and a Bachelors in Arts from University of Illinois.
AND LIFE…
When she is not working with clients or running impactful workshops, Kim loves to do yoga (of course), hike on the coast or in the mountains, read, and hang out with her husband, Bobby. She is constantly entertained by her two twenty-something children. Kim also enjoys doting on her two Havanese dogs, Hallie and Lucy, as well as connecting with friends over tea and a good laugh.

Sarah Eisendrath
Lead for Sustainability & Social Impact
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Sarah’s immense passion for social impact and making the world a better place is exemplified through her experience with diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) implementation in organizations along with her involvement in discussion facilitation and peer education. These experiences paired with her social media, marketing, customer service, and administration skills have informed her about how to partner with individuals and organizations to foster their own sustainable, equitable services and practices.
Sarah deeply believes in the power of empathy and kindness, centering her work on the values of interconnectedness and belonging. She is fascinated by the human experience within society. Therefore, her curiosity and practice of these values has enabled her to grasp a deeper understanding of effective change-making that promotes organizations and individuals to be their bests.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Sarah is working towards her Bachelor’s in Sociology and is in her final year at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, earning a certificate in Social Justice and Education as well. Sarah has training in both implicit bias reduction and violence prevention. Additionally, she has experience in research regarding social scripts about flirtation in the media, how it informs different generations, and perpetrates violence. Her history with violence prevention related work is synthesized by this research, as it documents the role in which media plays in our socialization.
AND LIFE…
Splitting her time between Madison as a student and north of Chicago where she grew up, Sarah enjoys live music, spending time with friends and family, and traveling. She loves new experiences, learning, and a good conversation by a bonfire.

Steve Heinen
Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Steve focuses on coaching leaders with high potential for development. His approach combines his knowledge as an organizational psychologist of human behavior with his practical experience in guiding organizations and individuals through change. He helps leaders go through a journey with multiple components: to gain insights into their own behavior and to recognize its impact on others; to develop a broader perspective through a sense of purpose and the creation of a desirable work culture; and to become both personally and organizationally adaptable and resilient to deal with a turbulent world.
Steve’s career involves three prongs that have shaped his approach as an executive coach – assistant professor at the University of Minnesota College of Business, General Electric internal consultant/HR professional, and talent management consultant at Mercer Human Resource Consulting.
Throughout his career, he has helped organizations transform their leadership talent to prepare for the future. At GE’s Aircraft Engine business, he led a program of team-based management problem-solving groups to help the organizational leaders transform from a more top-down control leadership culture toward more collaborative decision making.
As an external consultant he helped organizations manage change and develop talent through the use of leadership development programs, assessment centers, and coaching. He has helped organizations prepare for potential leadership changes by coaching leaders to prepare for higher level roles. In one case, the whole leadership team was facing potential retirement and he conducted a systematic process of coaching potential successors; in others, single individuals were coached to prepare them for the CEO position or Senior Executive Leadership roles. He has worked across a range of industries, including manufacturing, health care and consumer goods; in both large companies such as General Motors, Ford, Kimberly Clark, as well as mid-sized and smaller firms.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Steve has a BA in Psychology from Xavier University, Ohio and an MA and PhD in Organizational Psychology from Michigan State University.
AND LIFE…
Steve enjoys an active life style – exercising, walking, riding bikes and playing golf, while also reading both leadership books and good mystery novels. He is an avid sports enthusiast, who reserves his fall Saturdays for watching college football. Observing the varied growth and development of his children and grandchildren has become a favorite past time.

Kim Herrera
Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Kim’s passion is helping individuals and organizations navigate transition and reach peak performance.
In her coaching work she does this by providing support to rising professionals and executive leaders seeking to make significant, transformational change in their companies and in their work lives. Her coaching and organizational assessment work draws from an appreciative inquiry, strengths-based model of change, rooted in a results-focused, evidence-based approach.
Kim has coached talent from organizations such as: McKinsey & Company, BCG, Accenture, Deloitte, KPMG, EY, State Farm, Mercer Advisors, Northern Trust, Evercore, Peter J. Solomon Company, Kraft Foods, Mars Wrigley, Kerry Ingredients & Flavours, McDonalds Corporation, BOSCH, BP, Eaton Corporation, U.S. Cellular, Vertiv, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gap Inc., Foot Locker, & Walgreens Co., as well as since 2006 numerous start-ups organizations.
In addition to her work in private practice coaching, her in-house professional experience includes the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where she delivered 1:1 coaching and leadership assessments to guide Executive MBA candidates and Chicago Booth alumni through complex career change and leadership, W.W. Grainger, where she was a member of the leadership team providing organizational design, change management, generalist direction, and leadership coaching. OnePoint Communications, an early-stage, venture capital-backed telecom company acquired by Verizon Communications, where she led a team of human resource professionals in the design and roll-out of corporate human resources activities including: M&A due diligence, corporate divestitures, talent acquisition, leadership development, corporate compensation, post-merger integration, and organizational restructures.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Kim holds a Master’s degree in Organizational Communications from Northwestern University and is an ICF certified executive coach. As an early-stage stroke survivor, Kim is also a dedicated student of the application of neuroscience to the field of coaching and is a professional Affiliate of The Institute of Coaching, McLean/Harvard Medical School.
AND LIFE…
Kim resides in the metro-Chicago area where she and her family (including dog Matilda) spend their free time taking in the beach, kayaking, and discovering hidden used bookstores. Kim is generally never seen without a camera or drawing pencil in-hand as capturing the magic of life’s moments is one of her greatest joys.

Kim Nugent
Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Since the beginning of her career, Kim has been building and improving organizations’ talent management systems, including performance management, career pathing and development, succession and leadership development.
Some of the representative clients over her career have included: ACNielsen, Booz Allen Hamilton, Cigna, Eli Lilly and Company, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, Stanford University, U.S. Steel and United Airlines.
Kim developed her own Career Development coaching methodology to help individuals discern and navigate among different career motivation styles (achievement, meaning and balance).
She helps her clients discern the cultural landscape of their present organization and set goals that align both with their values and career priorities. Kim is passionate working with leaders to build cultures of accountability, innovation and collaboration in our fast-paced global and digital world. She believes that downtime, rest and an understanding of how we spend our time, is critical to the success and well-being of our own lives and our teams.
Furthermore, she believes slowing down and really listening to others is the super power that all leaders need to build the high-performance teams and careers they want.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Kim earned her BA from the University of Notre Dame. She is about to complete her certification in the Hogan Assessment tool.
Kim previously worked with Watson Wyatt (now Willis Towers Watson) and Mercer.
See her Linked profile for her thought leadership. Some pieces: appeared on the Engaging Leader’s 198th Podcast to talk about: Team Effectiveness; was recently published on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Justice; and authored the piece: Just Do It! – Have A Career Conversation.
AND LIFE…
When Kim is not doing the work she loves, you will likely find her laughing with her 10-year old son, taking advantage of cultural life in her Chicago backyard, and dabbling in her art, including water colors.

Lindsey Thome
Executive Coach
Expertise and Coaching Approach
Lindsey believes in the power of the human spirit and the magic of what is possible when that spirit is ignited. For this reason, she believes the greatest asset of any organization is its people. She is intent on helping others to better understand themselves, to create more connections to the living world around them and to realize the full potential of their desired impact on the world.
Lindsey is an experienced organization effectiveness consultant and coach specializing in team coaching and team development. She leverages systems thinking, expert facilitation and authenticity to inspire and guide positive change. Lindsey approaches her coaching relationships the same as all of her relationships: with care, curiosity and collaboration. She’s in her zone when she is creating space for individuals to show up authentically, connect with one another deeply, and to dream and design together effectively.
Whether you need to decide on your destination, don’t have a map or not sure where you got lost along the way, Lindsey is the partner to jump in the passenger seat with a smile and say, “Let’s do this! Together.”
Education and Credentials
Lindsey earned her BSBA in Marketing and Management from Drake University. She is a certified Systemic Team Coach through the Global Team Coaching Institute. Lindsey is a Qualified Administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory and is a trained facilitator.
And Life…
While not caught in the ever-exciting web of work, Lindsey can be found at live music shows, hiking through the Rockies or enjoying a bonfire at home. She has a penchant for new experiences and new people – which she satisfies through travel, research and saying “yes!” to most any opportunity that presents itself.

Victoria Wirtala
Leadership Coach
EXPERTISE AND COACHING APPROACH
Victoria has coached emerging leaders across a varied set of industries, including education, finance, and the nonprofit sector. She is passionate about amplifying her clients’ communication skills and cultivating their ability to navigate ambiguous and dynamic business environments. She combines an engaging manner sharpened by improv performances at Second City with a deep grounding in principles of scientific management and psychology from her studies at Northwestern University.
She is also an experienced business professional, and currently collaborates with Fortune 500 companies to develop and activate agile digital marketing strategies. Victoria also serves as an 1871 mentor, guiding Chicago entrepreneurs in evolving their strategic approaches to team building, cultural development, and marketing for maximum impact and ROI.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Victoria earned her BA in Communication Science at Michigan State University, where she supported student entrepreneurs at the University’s first Incubator, Spartan Innovations. She is a certified OLCC coach, having successfully completed Northwestern’s coaching program, and has completed the ACE coaching accelerator program. Victoria has received a Masters in Learning and Organizational Change from Northwestern University, where she discovered her interest in understanding generational differences in leadership styles and preferences. Her master’s thesis focused on understanding which leadership behaviors inspire employee passion for work.
She is a professionally trained facilitator and an alumna of The Second City’s improvisation program.
AND LIFE…
When not coaching or improvising Victoria seeks out opportunities to learn new hands-on skills like candle-making and foraging. She also takes every possible opportunity for “forest bathing.”
She is currently tackling her lifelong goal of learning how to swim! (And plans to be the first in her family to learn!)
Advisory Board

Steve Wourgiotis
Steve leads sustainable business innovation at Quantis, a leading international sustainability consulting group that uses science and data to guide top organizations to their sustainable future. In 2019, he became an Adjunct Professor of Sustainable Business at the University of New Hampshire’s Peter T. Paul School of Business and Economics, and has been a guest lecturer in the UNH Sustainability program and for the University of Vermont business school’s Sustainable Innovation MBA program.
Before joining Quantis, Steve was recruited to innovate the learning and consulting services portfolio for the NeuroLeadership Institute, including topics such as diversity and inclusion, psychological safety / motivation and the mitigation of bias in decision-making. In 2019, he wrote and delivered a TEDx talk to 900 people about the systemic intersection of negotiations theory, psychological motivations and politics.
Steve has been an Associate Partner at Korn Ferry delivering assessment, coaching and development for high-potential executives at international companies. He was a core member of the team that rebuilt the company’s renowned business simulation assessment for global CEO candidates, and was one of only three global CEO assessors for financial and strategic leadership acumen.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
Steve earned his MBA from the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, and his BA in Linguistics and Cognition from the University of New Hampshire. He is currently finishing his master’s degree in Sustainability from Harvard University.
AND LIFE…
Steve has too many interests to master any of them. You might spot him canoeing, teaching wine tasting, setting up a tent in the snow, learning a new language, listening intently to acoustic music or making a laughing mess while cooking with his young daughter. He lives with his wife and daughter in the beautiful seacoast region of New Hampshire.

B.K. Simerson, ED.D
Strategist-in-Residence
B.K. has over 20 years of experience providing strategic advisory in public- and private-sector organizations. B.K.’s areas of expertise include strategic leadership and thinking, strategy formulation and execution, and strategic change and transition enablement. He has worked with a range of leaders, from senior-level partners of management consulting and professional services firms, to Federal, State, and foreign government officials. These leaders have spanned industries ranging from paper to electronics, colleges and universities, branches of the military, and NGOs. B.K. has consulted and coached throughout the U.S. and in Canada, Iraq, Argentina, Poland, Singapore, Mexico, Germany, Italy, Bermuda, England, France, and the Netherlands.
B.K. is the co-author of Leading with Strategic Thinking (John Wiley & Sons, 2015) and the author of Strategic Planning: A Practical Guide to Strategy Formulation and Execution (ABC-CLIO, 2011). He has also co-authored several other books, including The Manager as Leader (Praeger Publishers, 2006), and articles in HBR and HBP.
B.K. is currently on the graduate faculty of Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy (SESP), where he teaches and conducts research in the areas of Strategic Thinking, Strategic Leadership, and Strategy Formulation and Execution.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
B.K. earned his Ed.D. with emphasis in management and organization development, from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He earned an M.A. with emphasis in administration, supervision, and higher education, from Appalachian State University.
AND LIFE…
B.K. has devoted decades developing and refining his skills in Tsundoku (the Japanese art of acquiring books and letting them pile up unread). When not engaged in his advisory work you might find B.K. in the kitchen experimenting with an undoubtedly-about-to-collapse cake recipe or at a pond trying to figure out the origins of the myriad of frog calls he hears on warm summer nights.

HOW WE PARTNER WITH CLIENTS
It takes 20 years of exposure to the sun, wind, rain and snow to create a deeply rich, green patina on the surface of copper. The weathered beauty that copper develops over time is an apt metaphor for the development of leaders.
Like copper, people are also exposed to different elements which can draw out the richness of the human experience and reveal the unique character, developed over time, of the leader within.
At Copperbox, we accelerate the client’s journey through this process of transformational growth to become richer and deeper versions of themselves, and ultimately leaders who have profound lasting impact – on their people, their organization, and their community.
We help you become a better leader faster than standard development programs at other leading firms. Key to our multidisciplinary approach is a focus on making sure your development is tightly linked to the business outcomes you need to achieve and the rapid changes in your business that can happen over a matter of months. Through our work you will broaden your leadership mindset, grow your strategic thinking and decision making, and identify your core purpose so that you develop in each of the key areas essential for you, as a modern leader, to be more successful.
While we work with executives from the C-suite to mid-level leaders, we understand that the work of leadership starts from early on in a person’s career and life, irrespective of their title, scope of responsibility, or number of people reporting to them. It is from this lens that we approach developing the ‘whole’ or ‘complete’ modern leader.
Leadership begins with you – understanding your principles and values, being grounded in your core purpose, and possessing a clear idea of how you want to make an impact in the world. As leaders mature and broaden their scope of leadership responsibility, there is a continuum of development that executives journey through – a journey that is deeply personal and about the leader her / him / themselves.
There are many good firms out there that help executives work on leadership competencies and skills. Our focus and approach is on developing the whole leader, which encompasses not only building competence, but helping people understand how leadership is a natural expression of who they are. It is from this place of full authenticity that we invite the person to pick up the ‘torch of leadership.’
Our method of developing leaders is designed for 3-4 months of focused partnership with a coach versus 6+ months at many other leadership development firms.
We also work with executives to ensure they are able to add significant value on several important dimensions of leadership – operating from their values and core purpose, formulating strategy for complex businesses, and bringing leadership wisdom that is both timeless and relevant to meeting today’s challenges.
Leaders today can no longer afford to operate as they did in the pre-COVID era. Life and work have changed in fundamental ways. Old paradigms of what constitutes the ‘workplace,’ how people should collaborate, and what effective leadership looks like will not meet the needs of employees today and enable them to be and do their best at work.
Balancing onsite, virtual, and hybrid work environments adds an additional layer of complexity for leaders trying to effectively manage and develop their people. While technology is an enabler for the work of leaders, it is no substitute for the intentional and consistent focus on nurturing people that will define success for the modern organization.
At Copperbox, we believe modern leadership encompasses the following principles and thinking:
- Understanding how to think and act strategically
- Leveraging diversity in its various forms – generational, cognitive/neuro, racial, cultural, religious, disability, and gender.
- Understanding life’s stages and seasons, as well as the ever-evolving needs of a multigenerational workforce
- Knowing the benefits and limits of technology in motivating and engaging individuals and teams
- Understanding evolutionary psychology – how humans operate and why
We work closely with top teams, including business unit and functional groups, to help them achieve sustained team performance and create additional value. We introduce leadership teams to new thinking, tools, and practices that enable them to operate effectively within a system to meet multiple stakeholder needs and organizational objectives. This work also includes helping leadership teams with their strategy formulation and strategic planning needs.
We have partnered with leading faculty at Northwestern University to develop a systematic approach to developing strategic thinking and decision making at every level. This begins with ensuring that leaders have a strong foundational understanding of strategy and what it means to think strategically. From there, we help individuals and teams build their ability to formulate strategy, taking into consideration the specific contexts, complexities, and time horizons relevant to their organization and business.
Some examples of our strategy solutions include:
- Two-day strategy sessions for top teams / business and functional leadership teams
- Strategic scenario planning for top teams / business and functional leadership teams
- Thinking and Acting Strategically workshops (manager / director level)
- Strategic Leadership workshops (VP and above level)
Our strategy programs and solutions are created and tailored based on the objectives and needs of our clients.