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Dr. Allen has written and presented widely on topics related to leadership, human development, and organizational development. Dr. Allen is a skilled facilitator of organizational change and organizational development. The earmarks of her work are the creation of shared ownership of the results of a change project, long-term sustainable change for the organization, and increased capacity for the staff members and leaders in those organizations.
Dr. Allen has co-authored (with Dr. Cynthia Cherrey) Systemic Leadership: Enriching the Meaning of Our Work, has written many articles, and contributed to a variety of books including The Transforming Leader: New Approaches to Leadership for the Twenty-first Century (Pearson, 2012) and Innovation in Environmental Leadership: Critical Perspectives (Redekop, Gallagher, & Satterwhite Eds., 2018).
More recently, Dr. Allen has written Leading from the Roots: Nature Inspired Leadership Lessons for Today’s World. This book firmly anchors leadership in the soil of nature. It’s a foundational leadership framework that challenges our 20th-century views that leadership concepts can be universally applied to all contexts.
For the past 40 years, she has consulted with a variety of Foundations in leadership and innovation including W. K. Kellogg Foundation, McKnight Foundation, Surdna Foundation, Sierra Health Foundation, the Blandin Foundation, Sherwood, and others. She has served on the Board of the Leadership Learning Community and has been a Senior Fellow at the Academy of Leadership at the University of Maryland. Previously she was the Vice President of Student Development at the College of St. Benedict in Minnesota. She has a Doctorate in Leadership from the University of San Diego, CA.
TESTIMONIALS:
"Leading from the Roots provides a powerful new way of thinking about organizations as living systems and delivers practical leadership frameworks for individuals to learn how to unleash the energy and create innovative, effective teams. Dr. Kathleen Allen has identified the power of changing the metaphor of an organization from a machine that needs to be controlled by a living system that has the capacity to sustainably evolve. Taking lessons from complex biological systems, Dr. Allen system articulates the key elements that must be present and how to apply this in an organizational context. Whether bringing a fresh approach to executive transitions with the metaphor of ‘living bridges’, reminding us of the power and necessity of transparently managing tensions, or helping us ask ourselves what do we need to relinquish to move forward, Dr. Allen helps us to adapt to our rapidly changing opportunities. “Leading from the Roots” is not only thought-provoking but offers valuable exercises and questions to help us think and act differently. Leveraging the natural tendencies of living systems, we can increase the vibrancy and sustainability of our organizations and the people who power them."
Anne Bonaparte
CEO , Appthority
"When we create a world of generous organizations, everyone thrives. Dr. Kathleen Allen takes the reader on a journey to this world by painting a landscape of how high-functioning, generous organizations look based on the longest-running R&D lab on the planet—Nature. Drawing on her extensive experience in organizational development and leadership coaching, she uses her keen ability to quiet the ego and listen to nature’s core principles of life to then translate them into relevant and impactful strategies for leadership and organizational evolution to generous systems."
Daniel Lawse
Principal, Co-founder, and Chief Century Thinker, Verdis Group
"If you are a leader and want to deepen your impact, read this book and hire her as a personal coach! My coaching relationship with Kathy has expanded my worldview and has enriched my leadership practice."
Caren Dewar
Executive Director, Urban Land Institute Minnesota USA
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