Kathleen has been working in leadership development for 20+ years—from advising and developing undergraduate student leaders, to coaching Fortune 5 senior leaders and executives, and to designing and delivering leadership development programs across industries and segments. Her own leadership journey started at a young age playing competitive athletics and being involved in clubs, organizations, and volunteer groups. After completing a successful college campaign as a Division I volleyball player and recognized student leader, she pursued graduate work that would open up a career in furthering her own leadership growth and helping others uncover their potential.
She spent six years working on university campuses in Colorado and Washington state helping student leaders discover their strengths and evolving into successful leaders ready to take on big life and professional challenges. She then transferred her experiences in team building, leadership development, and facilitation to the corporate world where she spent 14 years in various Learning & Development roles at Microsoft Corporation. While at Microsoft, Kathleen was rewarded and recognized for her work designing and delivering leadership development programming for high potential engineering leaders and HR professionals. She was often sought out to facilitate large group meetings and offsites and was seen as a thought-leader in the space of learning and leadership development. She was also one of a handful of coaches used in development workshops and internal coaching for some of the company’s most senior executives. Currently, Kathleen owns and operates KMH Advantage, a leadership consulting and coaching business aimed at helping individuals, teams, and organizations develop their full leadership potential to maximize their personal and professional impact. Her clients are varied and include multi-national tech companies, government agencies, small local businesses, and non-profit organizations.
In 2017, Kathleen’s love of rolling up her sleeves and working closely with individuals as they step into their own personal and professional leadership led her to complete a certificate in Executive Coaching from the University of St. Thomas. This passion for coaching is the backbone of KMH Advantage and allows her to directly with individual leaders, teams, and organizations looking for breakthrough thinking on some of their most difficult challenges.
Colleagues and clients have shared that Kathleen’s super-powers include:
- Cutting through the clutter to get to the real challenge,
- Focusing on what’s most essential to make the biggest impact,
- Tuning out noise for strategic signals,
- Designing inclusive and engaging learning experiences where everyone’s voices are valued,
- Being big and bold, and making it safe for others to be as big and bold as they can be,
- Infusing fun whenever it’s possible.
Kathleen, her husband, and their two sons live in Northfield, MN. In 2022 she was elected to a city leadership role as a member of the Northfield City Council. She is also involved in the community on the non-profit Friends of Downtown Northfield board and as a member of the Northfield Golf Club Board of Directors. Her passion for DIY and home improvement projects have resulted in a slow but sure renovation of their 150+-year-old house, and if there’s any extra time, she can be found chasing her boys around and playing as much golf as the Minnesota weather allows.
KMH Advantage, LLC 