Our Team
Leo F. Flanagan, Jr., Ph.D.
President
As founder
and president of Flanagan Consultants, LLC, Leo Flanagan has developed
a unique practice around the creation and execution of business,
marketing and human resources strategies to drive sustained business
success.
A hallmark of Leo’s work is an ability to meet the unique
challenges faced by individual leaders and their organizations,
within the context of their markets… the alignment of an enterprise’s
people and processes with its brand and customer loyalty strategies.
Recent assignments have included:
-- crafting and implementing a customer-centered growth strategy
for a major retailer, which yielded an 18% increase in transaction
value;
-- advising the CEO of a global financial services firm on implementation
of a cultural change process, which generated an estimated $200
million in incremental revenue;
-- installing a process for tailoring global strategy by country
specific requirements, for a multinational consumer products company;
-- realigning the Human Resources function of a $20 billion global
firm to drive measurable business performance; and
-- creating and implementing a brand/client loyalty strategy for
a hospitality chain, which increased customer satisfaction from
22% to 86% and revenue by 15%.
Prior to launching his own firm, Leo was Group Director, Learning
& Development/Chief Learning Officer for The Willis Group, the
global insurance broker, where he launched the company’s first
integrated, worldwide learning and development strategy, as well
as a global sales training system for middle market and premier
accounts, which produced 700 new client relationships in its first
four months, with a training ROI of 228%.
Previously, Leo was with Merrill Lynch where, as Director, Global
Leadership & Organizational Development, he managed orientation
and interventions for 5,000 employees following September 11. Leo
also led scenario planning and analysis of new business models for
the Board in response to dramatic market shifts, designed the firm’s
first integrated learning system and planned the first firm-wide
leadership development process that links and measures the impact
of a leader’s performance through employee loyalty, client
loyalty and financial results. He also integrated the Firm’s
succession planning and talent management processes in order to
facilitate the Board’s selection of the new Chairman/CEO.
Before joining Merrill Lynch, Leo was Senior Vice President, Practice
Leader - Employee & Customer Loyalty for The Forum Corporation,
a global diversified financial services firm. At Forum, he introduced
a leadership development strategy that included simultaneous coaching
of top executives around the world, developed and implemented business-specific
leadership models and implemented decision-making models for the
Office of the Chairman and Executive Management Committee. These
actions saved 525,000 payroll hours annually over traditional training
approaches, and achieved financial benefits comparable to $450 million
in new business, with an 18% ROE.
Leo also spent eleven years in academia, as a member of the faculty
at Cornell University’s, School of Industrial and Labor Relations,
where he was also Director, Office of Management & Executive
Education and Director, Human Resources & Management Development.
He is an active volunteer, most notably as a member of Heart 911,
a group of New York City rescue and recovery workers committed to
sharing lessons learned from September 11 with those affected by
other disasters. Professionally, Leo is a member of the Learning
and Development Committee of the Human Resource Planning Society.
Leo received his B.A. from Fordham University with a double major
in Psychology and Sociology. He received his M.A. in Social Psychology
from Hunter College and his Ph.D. in Psychology from the City University
of New York. He resides with his family in Stamford, CT.
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Richard D. Badler
Senior Client Advisor
Capitalizing
on more than 30 years of practice in all facets of corporate, consumer,
reputation, positioning, issues management, advertising and sports
marketing work, in the U.S. and around the world, Richard D. Badler
is a senior client advisor with Flanagan Consultants in the areas
of corporate communications, organization structure, internal and
external relations and crisis management.
Previously, Dick was executive vice president, corporate communications
and public affairs, for the Western Union Company. In that capacity,
he was an executive corporate officer, reporting to the CEO and
serving on the executive committee, and was responsible for creating
and leading all internal and external communications, the internal
and external web, global branding, public affairs and issues management
on a worldwide basis.
Before joining Western Union, Dick was senior vice president, corporate
communications for Unisys Corporation, reporting to the CEO. He
oversaw the corporation's activities worldwide in the areas of reputation
management, public and media relations, consultant relations, advertising,
employee communications, corporate identity and public affairs.
Previously, Dick served as vice president, corporate communications,
for General Instrument Corporation, where he led the global communications
program for the $2 billion world leader in analog and digital systems
for the cable and satellite industry. Prior to that, Dick was an
executive vice president and account director with Golin/Harris
Communications in Chicago, handling a variety of business and consumer
accounts including McDonald's and Michelin.
Dick spent 11 years with Philip Morris Companies, Inc., most recently
as director, public affairs for Kraft Foods in Northfield, Illinois.
He also had served as director of public affairs for Kraft General
Foods International and spent a year in Lausanne, Switzerland, with
Philip Morris Europe. Before joining Philip Morris, he managed a
variety of consumer and business accounts for agencies in New York.
He began his career on the assignment desk at WCBS-TV News.
A member and past trustee of the Arthur W. Page Society and a past
trustee of the Foundation for Public Affairs, Dick is also a past
director of the Public Affairs Council and a past chairman of The
Conference Board's Council of Corporate Communications Strategy
I. He is currently program director for The Conference Board’s
Council of Corporate Communications Strategy II. Dick has been named
a PR All Star by Inside PR, and to Who's Who in Corporate hi-tech
PR by PRWeek.
Dick is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University, where he
co-edited his college newspaper. Married with two daughters and
the survivor of six corporate relocations, Dick now calls Denver
home.
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Barbara A. Collins
Senior Client Advisor
As a
senior client advisor for Flanagan Consultants, Barbara Collins
partners with client organizations to envision their desired outcomes,
develop strategic plans for change and, most importantly, carry
out effective implementation of their plans.
Certified by the Haines Centre for Strategic Management in Managing
Enterprise-wide Change and Strategic and Systems Thinking, Barbara
has been providing organizational change and management consulting
since 1982. Current assignments include work with a global bank
to deliver products and services more competitively, as well as
facilitating the strategic planning process for the New York State
Office of Children and Family Services as it “right-sizes”
its juvenile justice programs.
Other recent clients include the Bank of New York Mellon Corporate
Trust Division, Chubb Insurance and the Royal Bank of Scotland.
Barbara spent ten years as Director of the Program Development
department at Education, Training and Research Associates in Santa
Cruz, CA. In this position, she generated and managed over $1 million
per year in grants to design educational and health behavior interventions,
as well as develop, administer and analyze all surveys, tests, focus
groups and interview protocols about the effects of various intervention
programs.
Using adult learning principles, Barbara has also designed and
delivered more than 100 training programs over the last 30 years,
including Coaching Skills for Benjamin Moore Paints and Systems
Thinking and Strategic Management for the Government Accountability
Office (GAO) as well as for Avon Products and Montgomery College.
Barbara is also active in association work. She’s a founding
member and past president of the national Juvenile Justice Trainers
Association and currently serves as its project manager. In addition,
she’s a member of the board of the International Association
of Correctional Training Personnel, and is developing its Correctional
Trainer Certification program.
A graduate of Manhattanville College with a B.A in Social Psychology,
Barbara also holds a M.S. in Education from the State University
College at New Paltz, NY.
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Nanette Miner, Ed.D.
Senior Director
Nanette Miner, Ed.D. is Senior Director of Learning
Solutions for Flanagan Consultants, LLC. In her role Nanette is
responsible for the Firm's thought leadership in the areas of learning
strategies and systems, performance support, instructional design
and the measurement of learning and developments impact on business
results.
Nanette has been the chief architect of learning solutions for
premier companies in a variety of industries, including: financial
services, insurance, broadcasting, manufacturing, engineering, telecommunications,
retail and publishing. Learning systems have driven measurable results
in areas such as sales, leadership development, strategic planning,
financial management, customer service, project management, technical
skills and construction.
One recent assignment was for a leading financial services firm
with a need for a uniform process for selling, cross-selling, and
account management since each of a number of recently acquired businesses
had its own methodology. To accommodate the needs of a global sales
force and a need to limit travel and time requirements the solution
consisted of a series of "tools" downloadable from the
company intranet. Tools ranged from 3 – 20 pages of written instruction
that described the skill and its execution step by step. Tools also
included small executable programs that made practicing the new
skills easier. Sales managers were trained to coach their sales-teams
in using the new knowledge and skills acquired via the tools. Key
tools were introduced via synchronous learning events to reinforce
the coaching. A total of 14 tools and three "courses"
were designed and disseminated in 7 months. Over $750,000 in new
business was directly linked to the first sales team of 30 using
the tools. These remarkable results were achieved in the first 90
days.
In addition to increasing revenue her learning solutions have
increased customer loyalty, improved efficiency and increased retention
of high potential talent.
Nanette is a widely sought after speaker on the latest trends
in learning, measuring business results, leveraging limited learning
and development resources for maximum business impact. She has also
written dozens of articles as well as authoring or co-authoring
a number of books. A recent publication is "The Synchronous
Training Primer" with co-author Jennifer Hofman.
Nanette, has a doctorate in adult learning theory, a master's
in training and organizational development, and a bachelor's in
business & communications.
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Gary R. Owens
Senior Client Advisor
Following an award-winning 30-year career overseeing large-scale
customer service operations and human resource teams, Gary Owens
brings to Flanagan Consultants a proven understanding of the customer
service paradigm and how to generate organization responsiveness.
Recent engagements have included process development for a national
wireless communications company’s start-up of Internet access
on US airlines, and service upgrades for a global bank’s credit
card validation and transaction management operation.
Prior to joining Flanagan Consultants, Gary was CEO of Accent Marketing
Services which, under his leadership, doubled in revenue and quadrupled
in profitability. The firm ranked as the number 11 marketing services
agency in Advertising Age’s 2004 annual marketing services
report.
Previously, Gary held executive positions in customer service operations
with Sprint Long Distance, most recently as Vice President, Customer
Solutions, Mass Markets Organization. During the course of his tenure,
his groups were recognized for “Best Customer Service”
by the Yankee Group, won six “Highest Customer Satisfaction”
awards by J.D. Powers and Associates, garnered the International
Customer Service Association Award of Excellence and earned the
Sprint Chairman’s and State of Missouri’s Quality Award.
A frequent national and international speaker, Gary has been a
guest lecturer at Avila College’s Executive MBA program, Cornell
University’s Executive MBA program and Miami University’s
School of Business. He’s also been a member of the Business
Advisory Council to the Dean of Miami University’s School
of Business, and a member of the Board of Directors for the University
of Southern California’s Center for Telecommunications Management.
Gary is a graduate of Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, where he
earned a B.A. in Political Science with an English minor. He now
resides in Salem, SC.
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Linda Brainin Solon
Senior Client Advisor
For Flanagan Consultants, Linda Solon draws on 15 years of experience
working directly with clients and in operational leadership roles.
She partners with organizations to improve their business performance
in three areas: organizational development, learning, and sales
and marketing strategy.
Recent engagements include helping several professional services
firms define and implement consultative sales strategies, and leading
a large-scale initiative to define and implement a major information
services provider’s client experience strategy.
Previously, Linda was with GlobalEnglish Corporation, a provider
of online learning and support for English as a second language.
As Director of Global Account Management and Consulting, she helped
develop the company’s go-to-market strategy and led the team
responsible for all post-sale customer relationships, worldwide.
Linda’s efforts led to a 100 percent renewal of existing business
and a 50 to 100 percent growth across all accounts.
Prior to joining GlobalEnglish, Linda was Vice President for The
Forum Corporation, a global training and consulting firm. Selling
a full range of learning, technology and branded customer experience
services, she achieved a number of milestones, most notably a $1
million relationship with an industry dominating high tech firm.
Linda has also held strategic positions with several public-private
partnerships and non-profit organizations in the areas of project
management, assessment and organizational development.
A graduate of James Madison University with a B.A. in Political
Science and Spanish, Linda also has an Ed.M. from Harvard University,
with a concentration in Adult Education and Organizational Behavior.
She resides in San Francisco.

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