Cynthia is a one-of-a kind operational mastermind and facilitator. She balanced care, program effectiveness, operational efficiency, and supporting the professional growth of her team. In the time I managed her she: lead the update of programs operations to reduce team burnout, built out the scalable infrastructure for a growing alumni community, and ensured equity and access was built into or improved for every internal and external facing function within Direct Services. All of this work allowed the organization to work with more companies during a time of rapid growth.

Her experience also supported internal communication and understanding of each other’s work, so that Direct Services could be effective as possible. I highly valued her work!

Cynthia is one of the most authentic, empowering, and effective leaders that I’ve had the pleasure of working with in my career. When it comes to building and operationalizing a high-performing programmatic strategy, she has an incredibly keen eye for identifying the most impactful solution, given resource constraints (ex: time, budget, staff capacity). In our work together at ICA, I’ve seen her brainstorm and build value-creating programs that have reached record high client satisfaction rates. She also introduced a timing change in one of our flagship programs that eliminated staff burnout while doubling the number of clients we were able to serve.

More than just a skillful senior executive, Cyn is also a fantastic people manager. She leads with trust, and it shows in how much she is able to grow and develop her staff. She identifies and maximizes operational efficiencies based on how people actually work — rather than forcing structures and goals that are not aligned with the her team’s innate talent. She is a people builder, and you can trust that staff members under her will blossom professionally.

I had the privilege of working under Cynthia, and her leadership continues to inspire me. She is an outstanding leader and manager who sets clear direction, empowers her team to do their best work, and provides the guidance and feedback needed for people to grow. She has an incredible ability to see and nurture people’s strengths while creating an environment where everyone feels supported, empowered, and motivated to excel.

What truly sets her apart is her strategic thinking. She can take a big, complex challenge, read between the lines to uncover the real root of the problem, and then craft a thoughtful path forward. Her solutions are not only data-driven but also systemized—building processes, feedback loops, and structures that create lasting impact rather than quick fixes. Watching her transform complexity into clarity was both inspiring and an invaluable learning experience.

Beyond her professional brilliance, she leads with authenticity and integrity. Working with her has been transformative for my career and given me a model for the kind of leader I aspire to be.

Cyn is a one-of-a-kind individual and leader, and I’m fortunate to have experienced being part of ICA’s Direct Services team under her leadership.

I would always say that Cyn’s ability to mold a [well-performing] team culture was magic. While I still can’t perfectly explain how she does it, here’s what I can say:

Cyn trusted us to be the experts on our jobs. She listened to us (the people on the ground) to inform her decisions, and took our feedback with humility. When we got bogged down in problems, she prioritized finding solutions and could always point us to the bigger picture. She never backed down from difficult choices, if she knew they were for the betterment of her team or the mission.

Cyn took time to get to know each of her staff individually. She intentionally made space for us to get to know each other as well, and as a result we enjoyed showing up to work. She recognized our strengths (sometimes even before we did) and developed them. And she was our biggest cheerleader and advocate.

I and anyone who was part of Direct Services will tell you that we were the dream team, and Cyn was instrumental in building that. I cannot recommend Cyn as a co-worker, supervisor, and leader enough — any organization would be extremely lucky to have her!

Cyn hired and managed me during my time as a temporary contract employee. I expected to feel like “just a contractor,” but Cyn made sure my voice was heard and that I knew I was an integral part of the team.

She gave me the confidence boost I needed to take my leadership skills to the next level. She encouraged me to speak up, step out of my comfort zone, and grow in ways I had been putting off for too long.

We worked closely together to execute a high touch 12 week accelerator program during a time when the organization we worked at was revisiting its North Star and seemed to be redefining their core ways of working.

During the Accelerator, Cyn’s leadership made a huge difference in how the program came together. She created structure and focus for the team during a time of a lot of uncertainty, which helped us move forward more smoothly than we would have otherwise. Her ability to balance all the moving pieces—entrepreneurs, staff, and shifting priorities—kept the program on track and set us up for success.

Cyn has a real gift for cutting through noise and creating clarity in chaos so her team can stay on track and centered on the mission.

What stood out most is how deeply Cyn cares for the whole person. She saw me for who I was, modeled strong and thoughtful leadership, and wasn’t afraid to have important conversations about why historically marginalized communities may sometimes show up differently. She taught me how to lead with both compassion and practicality—reminding me that while tough decisions will always be part of the work, how we carry them out matters just as much.

I can’t recommend Cyn enough.

Cynthia is an outstanding leader whose strength comes not only from her extensive experience but also from her exceptional ability to listen with intention. This skill allows her to integrate diverse perspectives from teammates and elevate the best ideas in a truly holistic way. She fosters a culture where everyone feels heard and valued, encouraging genuine collaboration and meaningful contributions.

What truly distinguishes Cynthia is her rare blend of qualities: she is both creatively open and highly organized, providing structure and stability while empowering others to thrive. As a skilled systems thinker, she designs the frameworks that enable creativity to flourish without losing sight of the individuals within them. Her leadership balances rigor and discipline with warmth and humanity—never cold or bureaucratic, but always supportive and inspiring.

Collaborating with Cynthia means working alongside a leader who pairs vision with empathy, strategy with connection, and determination with openness. She is a transformative force for positive change and a trusted mentor and partner in success.

I had the pleasure of working with Cynthia while at One Step Closer (OSC), who is amazing at working with both people and technology, an incredibly rare and valuable combination in today’s workplace. She quickly proved to be a versatile and indispensable team member on our small team, always willing to lend her expertise and knowledge wherever it was needed. Salesforce administrator, strategic planning lead, event host/moderator, advisor, facilitator, fundraiser, VP — Cynthia did it all without hesitation.

Cynthia played an instrumental role in our organization’s successful technological upgrade and adoption, which helped standardize our processes, increase visibility and prepare us for growth.
I also admired her ability to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone she worked with. During our one-on-one meetings, she always took the time to check in on me as a person, making sure to see beyond my job title and connect on a personal level. In group settings, she made sure that every individual was heard and valued, acknowledging the power dynamics at play, which was truly inspiring to witness.

So glad I had the opportunity to meet and work with Cynthia! Any organization would be lucky to have her on their team.

Cynthia’s leadership/commitment through various C-suite changeovers was impressive.

In my work, I leaned on Cynthia to support partner-sponsored events for our partner ecosystem. Additionally, Cynthia provided great thought-partnership for our organizational-defining strategy sessions. I couldn’t imagine anyone else to navigate the global/organizational challenges with, in 2020. I appreciate that she was always “member-first”.

I had the pleasure of having Cyn as my manager at /dev/color.

She actively supported me and my team and was really adept at adjusting her managing style to uniquely support each one of us. Not only was she super thoughtful and caring when tackling company challenges, but also kept my personal development as a top priority. I admire her ability to not only highlight the strengths of those around her, but also provide opportunities for folks to grow in their roles. I am so fortunate to have had such a strong, supportive, insightful manager and anyone on her team will be successful!

Cynthia is a talented project manager.

She handles the fast-paced environment of being the sole PM for the system operations team at a large web-based business with efficiency, grace, and always a sense of humor.

Cynthia is an amazing manager and team member.

She has diligently managed her team through ups and downs and was instrumental in the successful deployment of our CRM (salesforce). She is skillful when it comes to project management. She is able to manage deadlines, resources (employees and vendors) and is able to build strong relationships throughout the organization that allowed her to be successful. Cynthia will be an incredible addition to any team looking for strong and dedicated leadership

Cynthia’s experience and knowledge about project, change and team management was essential in our CRM Salesforce implementation project.

I am grateful I had Cynthia as my partner in this project, and could not have made the system improvements and changes happen without her. Cynthia is a competent and compassionate manager and mentor. She is supportive of her team’s needs as well as balancing the needs of the Organization. In addition, her ability to “manage up” helped significantly in keeping the CRM Salesforce implementation on track. Without her, the JCCSF would not be where it is today with its adoption of new technology and innovative solutions.

Cynthia is an out of the box thinker and inspiring team leader that motivates everyone around her.

I worked with Cynthia from 2010 – 2018 on a verity of projects for the JCCSF’s website. Not only does she supervise a project efficiently she also has deep knowledge and understanding of all the aspects of the projects we worked on and at the same time respecting her team members expertise and talent. She is a great listener and knows to be assertive at the right time. Working with Cynthia brings out the best in the teams she builds and plays a crucial role in attaining their goals and reaching the best results.

Cynthia has a special talent for public speaking and presentation. She is able to create excitement in her team and the organization about the projects they are working on.

Cynthia is a great asset to any company and is an impeccable leader.

I have had the privilege of working with Cynthia for the past seven years at the JCCSF. I was her direct report for almost four years and we worked on multiple projects together.

As Cynthia was building her team to excel in an upcoming system transition – I was lucky to move from the fundraising department. She made this transition exemplary and created a support plan for me and departments that were affected by this switch. She was supportive of every training opportunity that would open up and encourage me to broaden my expertise.

Her ability to connect with the key players is unmatched. Cynthia’s strategic insight, vision, expertise, and leadership was instrumental in the success of our Salesforce implementation. Her comprehensive knowledge of different business systems and her impeccable communication skill allowed her to be the driving force uniting different stakeholders: from Directors and C-Suite to the end users.

I am proud to be linked to Cynthia both professionally as well as personally. If you have a chance to work with her – don’t miss it, it will be your loss.

Cynthia is an out of the box thinker and inspiring team leader that motivates everyone around her.

I have worked with Cynthia from 2010 – 2018 on a verity of projects for the JCCSF’s website. Not only does she supervise a project efficiently she also has deep knowledge and understanding of all the aspects of the projects we worked on and at the same time respecting her team members expertise and talent. She is a great listener and knows to be assertive at the right time. Working with Cynthia brings out the best in the teams she builds and plays a crucial role in attaining their goals and reaching the best results.

Cynthia has a special talent for public speaking and presentation. She is able to create excitement in her team and the organization about the projects they are working on.

Cynthia greets all with a smile and a delightful sense of humor. She is an accomplished
professional a respected leader, mentor and friend.

You could not ask for a better co-worker.

Cynthia’s power lies in her natural ability to transform lay people into leaders.

On our team, Cynthia identified seeming disparate skills and abilities and then worked with us to understand our true professional potential. Regardless of perceived abilities or technical expertise, Cynthia was able to see raw, undeveloped talent and create access to different tools, ways of thinking, challenging opportunities, and concrete experiences.

Fueled by her ability to imbue trust and empowerment, Cynthia fostered our team to be autonomous yet collaborative, passionate yet professional, and, through iteration and reflection, always working towards a better process.

In a large organization with many moving parts, it can be easy to feel overlooked or that the impact you have on a space has gone unnoticed. Not so with Cynthia; she saw us, our value, and where we fit into the larger picture. Cynthia made a seat for everyone at the table and, if there wasn’t one, she built you a chair.

Before Cynthia’s leadership, I was unfocused, someone with good customer service skills, the ability to multitask, and good at finding needles in haystacks. After working under Cynthia, I have a legitimate identity in the workforce, an understanding of my passions and abilities, confidence in my strengths coupled with an awareness of where I need to grow.

Cynthia is one of the brightest, hardest working, and deeply thoughtful people at the JCCSF.

She embodies the values of our institution as a principled, curious, compassionate, and creative person. I particularly admire her integrity–professional and personal– and have, over the years, tried to learn a variety of management techniques from her since I consider her a first-rate manager and an excellent colleague.

Cynthia is a forward thinking eCommerce guru with a knack for optimizing the user experience in light of the strategic thrust of an organization.

Cynthia is such a kind, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and engaging human being! I would wholeheartedly recommend her to anyone.

She has a great way of explaining things and of helping you see the bigger picture, that you really get the feeling that you are partaking in something special — whatever the project may be, everything has a fun and creative twist. And most importantly, Cynthia offers such great guidance and insight, that before you know it, you’re mastering a new program or software, without even realizing it. Working with Cynthia was a really wonderful experience for me and I always look back on the time with great memories and feel so lucky to have gotten to know her. She is incredibly intelligent and charismatic.