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Laura Gassner Otting,
President
Laura Gassner Otting founded
the Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group in 2002. Prior to forming the group,
she served as the senior vice president of ExecSearches.com, the web's leading
site for mid- to senior-level nonprofit job postings and search services.
Laura has served as vice president at Isaacson, Miller, one of the largest
search firms in New England, and one of the most highly respected non-profit
executive search firms in the country. Previously, Laura served as a
presidential appointee for the White House Office of National Service, a program
officer for the Corporation for National Service and as a member of the
Clinton/Gore Transition Team and 1992 Election Team. She holds a Master of
Arts
in Political Management from the George Washington University and a Bachelor of
Arts in Government from the University of Texas at Austin. Laura sits on
the boards of Camp Starfish and Newton Montessori School, and is the immediate
past chair of Strong Women, Strong Girls; she has served as a member of
the Alumni Board of the Graduate School of Political Management at the George
Washington University and as the founding board chair of the Boston Choral
Ensemble. Laura is the author of
Change Your Career: Transitioning to the Nonprofit Sector.
Katherine E. Jacobs, Ph.D., Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Katherine Jacobs leads U.S.-based and international efforts to strengthen the
capacity of nonprofits. Previously, Katherine served as Senior Associate
for Isaacson, Miller, one of the nation’s leading search firms dedicated to
nonprofits, consulting and leading projects for their higher education,
advocacy, and nonprofit search practices and facilitating the training and
integration of new employees in the process and craft of leading organizations
through leadership change. For advocacy and non-profit organizations, Katherine
has developed a depth of experience recruiting senior executives for companies
with prominent national as well as international reach. Her search experience in
higher education spans the academic administrative structure and the variety of
academic institutions, from small, private, liberal arts colleges to large,
research-intensive public and Ivy League universities. In her other work,
Katherine has taught and trained in the United States and Europe as a
psychologist. A Fulbright scholar and recipient of the Herbert L. Zimmer Award
for excellence in psychological research, Katherine received her BA in
Psychology from the University of Rochester and her Ph.D. in Psychology from
Georgetown University. Katherine’s doctoral research focused on the
psychological foundations of policy for managing cultural diversity. In her
consulting work, Katherine has brought her research in cultural diversity to
bear on the challenges of diversifying executive leadership.
Deb Berman,
Vice President
Deb Berman oversees a
portfolio consisting of nonprofit executive search assignments as well as the full suite of job
seeker services including resume reviewing and writing, cover letter editing,
job search strategies and interview training. Deb has extensive background in
the nonprofit field, including founding a highly successful program for children
with special needs, called Camp Starfish. As Founder, Deb recruited the founding
board of directors, and established the organization’s marketing, fundraising,
and strategic plans. Deb graduated cum laude from Colgate University with a dual
concentration in Sociology and Education. She has experience working with
emotionally disturbed children as a Psycho-educational Counselor at Judge
Baker’s Children’s Center, and as a counselor and supervisor at Ramapo-Anchorage
Camp in Rhinebeck, New York. Deb also has for-profit experience, as a
Research Associate at Forrester Research in Cambridge, where she
researched and analyzed the impact technology has on Fortune 1000 companies. Deb
holds a Master of Business Administration from the Boston University School of Management, where she
concentrated in public and nonprofit management.
Ellen
Sibley, Vice President
Ellen Sibley leads executive search assignments and manages client relations
across the full spectrum of Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group clients.
Previously, she served as a consultant with the Galler Group, a full-service
consulting firm dedicated to assisting nonprofit organizations in support of
their goals, growth and development, and Isaacson Miller, a leading executive
search firm serving the nonprofit sector. Prior to her work in recruiting, Ellen
was Founder and President of Common Interests, a Boston-based activities club
for busy professionals, where from 1995 to 2000, she grew the organization to
more than 2,000 members, sponsoring up to seven events weekly. Ellen has served
as a Newbury Street League Board Member, twice chairing the Newbury Street gala
and auction, and was an active member of the Boston Chamber of Commerce.
Previously, Ellen served 13 years in the retail and fashion industry in New York
City, working with Macy's, Allied Stores Marketing Corporation and later with
Trifari Inc. Ellen is a graduate of Milton Academy, holds a Bachelor of Arts in
French from Trinity College, and an Master of Business Administration in
Marketing from Columbia University's Graduate School of Business.
Lisa
Catapano, JD, Associate
Lisa Catapano assists clients in understanding their organizational leadership
needs and in making strategic hiring decisions. Prior to joining Nonprofit
Professionals Advisory Group, Lisa served as Vice President of Operations at
Vitale, Caturano & Company, Ltd., New England’s largest full service CPA,
business advisory and consulting firm, where her experience in corporate
infrastructure and business operations included business culture development and
transformation, internal business planning, internal risk management, real
estate strategy, and business architecture particularly in the development and
implementation of policy, process, systems, and controls that drove operational
efficiency. Previously, Lisa practiced law specializing in the representation of
professional athletes, served as a judicial clerk in the Massachusetts Probate &
Family Court, and worked in the commercial real estate industry as Director of
Marketing & Communications at Whittier Partners. In addition, Lisa has
co-founded two non-profit organizations: the Newton Montessori School in 2006,
where she currently sits as chair of its Board of Directors; and the Vitale,
Caturano & Company Foundation in 2000, a philanthropic, grant-making
organization where for six years she served as its Managing Chair overseeing
strategic planning and implementation, grant making, development, administration
and volunteerism. Lisa obtained her JD from Suffolk University and holds a
Bachelor of Arts in English from Boston College.
Carolyn Ho, Associate
Carolyn Ho
facilitates executive search processes in partnership with Nonprofit
Professionals Advisory Group’s team of Vice Presidents. Previously, she served
as Interim Executive Director of the Foundation for International Understanding
Through Students in Seattle, an historic community based nonprofit organization
that fosters international friendship and global understanding located at the
University of Washington. Carolyn brings 10 years experience in higher education
administration and international education in a multitude of academic settings.
The first young adult and only the second Asian American elected as Vice
Moderator of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and
Canada, a mainline Protestant denomination with over 750,000 members, she
continues to serve in an advisory capacity to the General Minister and President
during organizational restructure. A passionate advocate for diversity,
life-long learning and cross-cultural experiences, she has led trainings for
organizations seeking to eradicate systemic racism, as well as regularly
lecturing on application strategies for university admittance. Carolyn holds a
bachelor's degree in flute performance from the University of Illinois and a
master's degree in student development administration from Seattle University.
Jen
Suesse, Associate
Jen Suesse is an associate with the Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group.
Prior to joining the firm, Jen launched a nonprofit practice for The Ariel
Group, an international training company based in Lexington, MA. Jen also spent
nearly a decade at the Harvard Business School as a field researcher for
Harvard’s MBA and executive education programs, where she published dozens of
case studies about leadership and organizational behavior. In addition to
curriculum development, Jen helped to create the HBS Leadership Initiative and
the Public Education Leadership Project (PELP). As a founding member of the PELP
research team from 2003-2006, Jen collaborated with faculty from both the
business and education schools to develop an innovative leadership curriculum
for urban public school leaders. In her consulting work, Jen assists clients
with writing and leadership development projects reflecting her deep concern for
developing civic leadership, healthy communities and ecosystems. She has also
led summer wilderness trips for teenagers. Jen grew up in rural upstate New
York. She graduated from Williams College with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion,
and earned her Master’s degree in Early Adolescent Education from Bank Street
College in New York City.
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