Laura Bernstein  (2008-2010)
VisionPoint, Inc.
lbernstein@vppi.com 

General Information:  I am the President/ISA Designate for VisionPoint Productions Inc.  An ISA member for six years, VisionPoint, located in Des Moines, Iowa, designs and produces high-quality video and multi-media training products for national and international distribution.  Known for cutting-edge, realistic behavior-modeling dramatics, the VisionPoint production team has been together for more than fifteen years.  VisionPoint develops proprietary content but also works with known thought-leaders like Ken Blanchard, Jack Zenger, Dr. Paul Green, Stan Slap and Tony Jeary, in diverse partnerships and joint venture arrangements. 

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships:  I am currently the ISA BoD President and have participated in a number of ISA events over the last seven years.  This includes committee and attendee registration in annual business retreats, sales & marketing meetings, and informal roundtable groups.  I have been an ISA member through several employer organizations including AchieveGlobal, Provant – American Media, Inc. and now VisionPoint.  I also was an active member of TMA and DLO (now part of ISA), participating in ad-hoc committees related to copyright and video-specific issues.

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors:  I am interested in serving on the Board because I believe in ISA’s purpose and would like to associate more with my extended industry colleagues, learn from these associations, and contribute my insights based on years of experience in our industry.  I have reorganized my volunteer and board commitments in order to dedicate more time to ISA’s goals and objectives.

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors:  I am a real person, with a propensity to serve, in all aspects of my life.  On the personal side, I enjoy teaching at our local community college, mentoring young professionals and participating in student assistance and foster care programs.   As President of VisionPoint, I am personally involved with our “never-ending learning” plan, and champion several initiatives that work to lift our organization’s ability to serve our customers.  As a master trainer, certified with many internationally recognized organizations, I am grounded in sound instructional design and learning applications.  I’ve spent several years in sales, marketing and management positions (all within the training industry), bringing a wealth of relevant knowledge and experience to serving our industry’s needs.  Additionally, I represent the fastest-growing video-based training producer in our industry and am familiar with both the niche video market and the greater training industry’s trends and challenges. 

Jeffrey Sugerman (2008-2010)
Inscape Publishing
jsugerman@inscapepublishing.com

General Information:  I am the President and CEO/ISA Designate for Inscape Publishing, an ISA member for six years.  Inscape Publishing creates instrument based learning solutions for training and development professionals in leadership, team development, sales and service, communication and recruiting applications.  Over 50 million people have used products from Inscape Publishing.  Inscape solutions are delivered worldwide by a network of more than 2000 resellers in 26 languages.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships:  I am currently the Immediate Past President of the ISA Board of Directors.  Previously I have chaired the ISA Net Tracks and Intellectual Property committees. 

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors: 

·         I add the perspective of a well-seasoned business executive with significant experience in creating, marketing and selling training – related products globally.

·         I admire the values and members of ISA and believe I can provide energy and leadership during these very turbulent times.

·         I want to be part of charting ISA’s strategic direction to become a more substantial force for the benefit of members and our industry.

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors: 

·         As a founding member of the Association of Test Publishers I understand roles and activities required to grow and manage an industry association.

·         I’m a good listener with a strong belief that the Association should serve its membership.

·         Experience and appreciation for operating both large companies and entrepreneurial start-ups.

·         A “products” company point of view.

Lisa J. Fagan (2008-2010)
Amplify LLC
lfagan@amplifyselling.com

General Information: I am currently the co-founder of Amplify, an organization focused on strategic growth, sales optimization and business acceleration programs and services.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships:   I have been on the ISA board since 2005 and participated in a variety of ISA committees including:  Sales & Marketing Committee 2000 – 2001; 2002 Annual Meeting Committee member; 2003 and 2005 Annual Meeting Committee Chair.

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors.    My involvement in ISA has been tremendously rewarding and I greatly value the relationships that I have as a result of my involvement in ISA.  That said, my primary reasons for continuing my board role are really several-fold.    First, as I have observed from the previous board members I have had the pleasure of knowing, the board is not only in place to serve the needs of the membership but to help the membership understand and respond to emerging industry challenges.  I have now been in the industry for 17 years and am honored to continue to serve the membership by being a voice to the board and honored to serve the board by being a voice back to the membership.   Secondly, I have participated on the board during a time when the “new vision for ISA” was being developed and introduced to the membership.  I am very supportive of this new vision and hope to continue to shape ISA offerings in support of this new vision.  Perhaps most importantly, my desire to be on the board is an opportunity to “give back” to the industry what has been given to me over the years.  

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors.    ISA is a terrific reservoir of talented leaders from all walks of life that come together to share their business hopes and challenges.  I feel I can contribute by drawing from my sales and marketing experience to serve future board committee assignments and membership requests.  I bring openness and candid thoughts on ways the Board of Directors can continually refine its support of the membership.

Mark Brodsky (2007-2009)
Ulysses Learning 
mbrodsky@ulysseslearning.com  

General Information.   When a Greek shipping magnate, who was passionate about education, training, and technology wanted to invest in and change the world of corporate learning, he recruited me to start his new company, Ulysses Learning and serve as President and CEO.  The year was 1997. I was charged with a unique mission to search industry-wide and 1) identify the areas of business that could benefit most from developing human performance through technology-enabled training and related services; 2) uncover the toughest barriers to improvement; and 3) assemble a world-class team of experts to develop the best combination of training solutions to achieve and sustain demonstrable and measurable performance results.

Thanks to our Ulysses’ blue-chip team – we have accomplished our mission and grown Ulysses to be a training and consulting company dedicated to helping global organizations improve customer service, sales, and coaching results at all points of customer contact. Client results are achieved by using simulation-based e-Learning intelligently blended with facilitation, coaching, and performance improvement consulting.

I was selected for this mission based on my experience, which now includes 30 years as a senior executive, consultant, and relationship manager for international training and consulting firms.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships.  I have served on the ISA Annual Retreat Planning Committee for the past two years. Additionally, I have been a speaker, panelist, and session facilitator at past Annual and Sales and Marketing Conferences.  I have attended eight ISA Annual Conferences since becoming a member in 1998.

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors.  ISA has been and continues to play an important role in my professional development. The time is right for me to give back and lend my talents and leadership to help ensure ISA continues to effectively serve our members in the future.  To that end, I fully embrace the new ISA vision, approach, and focus and would like to support its continued implementation while also finding ways to extend our reach and influence in the industry. I sincerely feel the best years for ISA are to come and am honored to serve on the Board and contribute to our future success.

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors.  I have a solid understanding and appropriate level of reverence for where the training industry has been and where it currently is.  Though more importantly, I have a unique perspective on where our industry is headed relative to using both traditional and technology-enabled methods to deliver and sustain client results over the long-term. I understand the opportunities and challenges that direction may pose for many of our ISA members and for our industry in general and feel that perspective will serve me well on the ISA Board.  In addition, I work hard, do good work, and enjoy helping those around me learn, develop, and have fun along the way!  

Kris Downing-Sorgen (2007-2009)
Center for Creative Leadership
downingk@leaders.ccl.org  

General Information:  I have been at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) for over thirteen years, having spent time in CCL’s business development, client services, assessment products, and marketing areas.  Currently, I am the Group Director of Strategy, Planning, and Information. My responsibilities include the development and facilitation of CCL’s strategic planning process.  In this capacity, I work regularly with the Center’s executive team and senior management in all aspects of strategy:  formulation, execution, and evaluation.  I am also responsible for the marketing research function.  I have been with CCL for over thirteen years.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships:  I have attended several ISA Sales and Marketing Conferences since 1996, and every ISA Annual Business Retreat since 2003.  I was a member of the Planning Committee for the 2007 ISA Annual Business Retreat.  I routinely take part in ISA quick polls as well as ensure that CCL participates in ISA’s yearly financial survey.

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors:  In my recent work as a committee member for the 2007 Annual Business Retreat, I have had a little taste of what it’s like to work with other ISA members on an event that serves the entire ISA community.  I am struck by the creativity, dedication, and camaraderie that exist in our discussions and meetings. It has been personally rewarding, and I look forward to this type of interaction continuing during my tenure as a board member.  From my company’s perspective, I believe it is important that ISA board membership reflect its constituents, whether that’s in company size, business approach, geographic reach, or other characteristic. 

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors:  I am open and willing to learn.  I also enjoy collaborating with others.  In terms of motivation, I have a strong desire to improve things that I’ve committed to.   As far as skills go, I have a deep understanding of the learning, management/leadership education, and training fields and I use this knowledge to develop strategy and implement sound plans in my role at CCL.  I believe this skill will transfer well to ISA board participation.

Thomas F. Dungan III (2008-2010)
Management Concepts, Inc.
tdungan@managementconcepts.com

General Information.  I am president of Management Concepts, a 30-year-old second-generation training, consulting, and publishing organization.  The company trains more than 40,000 students in open-enrollment courses throughout the United States and at client sites worldwide.

During my 12-year tenure, the company has successfully grown its core federal market and developed new products and services to meet commercial market needs, with a balanced growth and profitability strategy.  The company’s strength lies in its penetration of federal markets, with niche content in technical areas such as, Acquisition and Contracting, Federal Financial Management, and Grants.  Broad-based capabilities in public- and private-sector Leadership & Management and Project Management training support these core areas.

I have emphasized better business planning and results in our organization, which has brought new alignment within the company, a stronger sense of purpose and vision throughout the business units, and a dedicated effort to take the often-perilous journey from small to mid-size to large organization. 

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships.  I have attended most of the ISA Annual Meeting Retreats and Sales and Marketing Conferences since becoming a member of ISA in 2000.  Additionally, I served on the Membership Retention Committee for one year and on the Nominations Committee for two years.  Our company was represented on the Annual Meeting Retreat Planning Committee in 2004 and on programs in 2004, 2005, and 2006.

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors.  I want to serve because I am committed to the new ISA vision, and because I want to work with the other Board members—whom I see as a creative, well-informed, and savvy leadership cadre.  I have been a participant, listening and learning; I am now joining forces with those at the helm looking to strengthen and enrich the ISA experience, and to contribute to and benefit from growing strong relations with ISA members on and off the board. 

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors.  Perhaps most important, I bring continuity to the Board.  I have been a member of ISA long enough to have participated when most of the founders were in the room, have caught their spirit and vision, and want to maintain their spirit by linking my experiences to the new vision for ISA.  To this task, I bring leadership experience with several other non-industry groups and a business and financial background.

Ray Halagera (2008-2010)
Career Systems International
ray.halagera@careersystemsintl.com  
 

General Information:  I have held executive management positions for the past eighteen years with the ISA members Psychological Associates and Strategic Management Group, and now hold the position of President and Chief Operating Officer for Career Systems International, a long-established company providing training and consulting in career development and employee engagement and retention to Fortune 500s and large government organizations.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships:  I have been a member of ISA’s Board of Directors from 1992-1996 and 2001-present.  I have chaired the 2004 and 2005 Sales and Marketing Conferences, as well as served on a variety of task forces/committees including the Financial Survey Task Force, ISA Budgeting Task Force, Member Services Task Force, ISA Award Committee. I have also facilitated a number of Fly-In meetings and Net Tracks sessions.

Why I enjoy serving on the Board of Directors:  I derive great personal satisfaction from helping others in general, and especially in using my skills, experience and network to help other professionals improve themselves and their organizations.  I also enjoy a deep sense of fulfillment from working with others to make things happen, no matter how small or large the accomplishment.  Serving on the ISA Board allows me to continue helping my professional associates and impacting the business side of the learning industry.  It also lets me represent and work with the richly talented and diverse ISA community to identify, create and then maximize additional benefits of membership in ISA, regardless of the size of the member organization.

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors:  I have extensive experience in developing realistic, practical solutions to a diverse range of business problems and then efficiently implementing these solutions.  I also have extensive experience in strategy as well as team-based problem solving in a wide range of disciplines.  I am a team player and a listener who easily synthesizes diverse input into effective solutions.  I also have finance, budgeting, and operational skills, including extensive experience with ISA budgeting and financial analysis, which I believe are required for the continuing viable growth of ISA.

 

Ann Herrmann-Nehdi (2008-2010)
Herrmann International
ann@hbdi.com  

General Information: I am currently CEO of Herrmann International (HI), a global company celebrating 25 years in business this year. HI is the creator and publisher of the HBDI assessment and a wide array of products and services that help organizations and individuals accelerate their processes and achieve better results by more effectively leveraging their brain power. Over my 20 years at HI, I have had responsibilities for most key areas of the corporation including sales, marketing, product development, research and operations. Under that leadership, the international scope of HI has grown to 20 countries that span the globe with the HBDI translated into 28 languages.  I have experience serving on corporate boards, as an advisor to both the American Creativity Association and the Innovation network, and I am currently a member of the Southern Appalachian Science and Technology Board.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships:   I have served ISA in several different ways.

·         Committee/Task Force work includes two stints on both the Annual Meeting Committee and the ISA Awards Committee, a member of the 20^th Anniversary Planning Committee, the Member Retention Committee and a variety of other tasks in various initiatives

·         Presentations and facilitation of annual/sales and marketing meeting sessions including several small company meeting sessions, concurrent sessions, as well as general sessions

Why I like serving on the Board of Directors.    My involvement and experience serving ISA has always been immensely rewarding. I am honored to listen and represent member companies input on the board and help ISA expand its role in our industry as the powerful association I believe it can be. HI represents the target of the new vision of ISA, a growing, thriving enterprise. I am motivated to share my energy, expertise and experience as a successful entrepreneur and business person to help the association and its membership grow. In particular, I would like to help ISA as the association faces several key strategic opportunities in the next few years:

1)       Effective execution of the new ISA vision and approach

2)       Making ISA a more powerful brand and voice, resource and influence in the industry

3)       Continuing to develop effective partnerships with other key organizations

4)       Growing the targeted membership and member services

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors.    I feel my contribution will make a difference. As a second generation, successful small company leader, I feel I have “grown up” with ISA which gives me a very unique perspective: I have seen where ISA has been and have a strong commitment to the new vision and future. I strongly believe that ISA can grow in its influence and reach in our industry. To effectively make that happen, ISA must deliver against its membership promise and adapt and change with our industry. I will work diligently with the board to grow the effectiveness, membership and impact of ISA. I cwill help ISA as it navigates the next critical few years executing the new strategy and targeted approach.  My time has come to serve and I am ready to commit time and energy to help ISA grow and thrive.
 

Sean Kavanagh (2006-2008)
The Ariel Group
skavanagh@arielgroup.com 

General Information:  I am the CEO for The Ariel Group, which uses techniques from the performing arts to help executives in corporations and non-profits to lead, motivate and inspire their people. I joined The Ariel Group in 1999 as Director of Business Development, was promoted to General Manager in 2003 and CEO in 2005. Since joining the company we have enjoyed double digit growth for 8 years and have grown our full time staff from 8 to 22, and our affiliate pool from 14 to 45 affiliates in the US, Europe and Asia. My professional career includes working in, information publishing, international advertising, software marketing and in the early 1980’s I was part of a two-person comedy troupe that performed around Boston and New England.

ISA Events/Task Forces/Committee Memberships: I have served on several ISA committees including the Annual Business Retreat Planning Team and Awards Committee. Also, I have participated in numerous ISA onsite events both as faculty and panelist.

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors: It is always slightly embarrassing to toot one’s own horn but let me try and provide some insight into my make up that is useful without bragging. I am a business generalist with a leaning towards sales and marketing and a knack for crafting effective messages. At The Ariel Group I have created an effective sales force, helped establish a premium brand in the marketplace and fostered a culture of loyalty, creativity, risk-taking and fun. I like to make quick decisions. I believe in creating a plan, executing efficiently, monitoring results and altering course appropriately. I’m a good conceptual thinker and enjoy strategy more than operations. I never use any math beyond what I learned in 7th grade but I can read a sales forecast and an income statement. I like meetings if they are fun, effective and short. I can tell an amusing story, I like independent movies and I mix a pretty good Margarita. If these are skills you need on the board, I’d be honored to serve.

Why I like serving the Board of Directors: It is time I gave back to an organization that has given so much to me and The Ariel Group since I joined in 1999. I’m excited about helping build a stronger organization that can reach out to younger, growing businesses and help them the way ISA helped us. In particular, I’m very interested in promoting the notion of corporate social responsibility among ISA members. As a member of the board I would champion this issue by creating opportunities for member firms to learn how we can all do good and do well at the same time.

Al Switzler (2008-2010)
VitalSmarts
aswitzler@vitalsmarts.com 

General Information: I have been in the training industry since 1974, during which time I’ve been involved in management, product development, training trainers, and training and consulting. Currently, with my colleagues we operate VitalSmarts, a company that has developed training products focused on video-based, behavior modeling for many years. I also spend time in the trenches researching, writing, developing, consulting, and speaking with teams and organizations in lots of places.

ISA Events/Task Forces/ Committee Memberships: I have been a regular attendee of ISA for the past 4 years. I was honored to be a committee member for the 2006 Annual Business Retreat.

Qualities and skills I bring to the Board of Directors: At the heart of what I would bring are two components: motivation and experience. The motivation springs from my respect for ISA and for the industry. Collectively and specifically as an association, the world has been made better because of good work. I am eager to contribute to such a noble effort. Each of us has just so much discretionary time and I’m eager to devote a good bit of mine to this cause. In terms of experience, I have consulted with hundreds of boards, for-profit and not-for-profit, and I have been in the industry for decades. I am confident that the experience I have accumulated could be helpful.

Why I like serving on the Board of Directors: Over the years I have found that the sharing, communication, support and surveys have been helpful to me and to my associates. I would like to build and help extend that reach and that help. There are yet many organizations who could join with us and the more high quality companies we have the more we help each other and the more we help the industry. Personally, too, there comes a time in one’s career where it’s just the right thing to do to make the effort to contribute and give back.

Pamela J. Schmidt, Executive Director
Pschmidt@isaconnection.org
 
Lois Donovan, Manager of Finance & Administration
ldonovan@isaconnection.org

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Antitrust laws are intended to preserve competition by, among other things, prohibiting agreements, combinations and conspiracies in restraint of trade.  As groups of competitors working together, trade associations are subject to particular antitrust scrutiny. ISA has a policy of strict compliance with federal and state antitrust laws.  ISA members should avoid discussing certain subjects when they are together - both at formal ISA meetings and in informal contacts with other industry members - and should otherwise adhere strictly to the guidelines attached.  Click here to read the full guidelines updated in February 2003.