Advisory Council
Beau Daane
Advisory Council Member
Beau Daane is a Duke educated corporate sustainability and real estate professional with over 16 years experience in leadership roles across multiple sectors including publicly traded companies. He also has experience in the consulting, education, foundation and government fields. At Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE: NCLH), Covia (NYSE: CVIA) and Harvard Maintenance, he worked/works with executive management and at the board level to identify, manage and report on the highest impact sustainability topics. He is currently the director of sustainability at Harvard Maintenance, one of the largest providers of building managed services in the US. Beau completed his MBA at Case Western Reserve University in 2012 and his certification in Appreciative Inquiry (AI) in 2013.
Eric Nicholson
Advisory Council Member
Erik has worked in agriculture for more than 30 years across the Americas. He currently consults with a variety of clients around labor issues in the production of fruits and vegetables. Previously, Erik was a National Vice President of the United Farm Workers (UFW). During his tenure with the UFW, he worked with retailers, non-profits, workers and other stakeholders to establish two successful multi-stakeholder non-profits; the Equitable Food Initiative and CIERTO. He has led and participated in numerous successful advocacy efforts at the State and national levels.
Julia Flower
Advisory Council Member
.Julia is a is certified Organization Design Specialist (COPD) – advising senior leaders to translate and develop their strategy into viable operating model design options. In her work as a People and Culture Change Specialist she serves as a keynote speaker, on topics such as Future of Work and Equity and Inclusion, new technologies and emerging work models, applying an Equity and Inclusion lens. She recently published a white paper on the Future of Work and Inclusion and is finalizing a book on this topic. Julia has a master’s degree in Human Resource Management and Organization Behavior, and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute and Personnel and Development – UK. Julia resides in Surrey, UK.
Don de Guerre
Advisory Council Member
After a distinguished international career as a consultant and manager working in the private, public service, and non-profit sectors, Dr. Don de Guerre joined Concordia University and is today an Associate Professor Emeritus. His research focuses on applications of open systems theoretical frameworks to solve real world problems. Today he is actively pursuing the design and development of collaborative ecosystems.
Jackie Stavros
Advisory Council Member
Jackie is a professor at Lawrence Technological University (LTU) College of Business and Information Technology. She is recognized for her creation of SOAR, a positive approach to strategic thinking, planning, conversations, and leading. She is a member of the Appreciative Inquiry (AI) Council of Practitioners for the Cooperrider Center for Appreciative Inquiry
Jackie has authored many books and articles, including: Conversations Worth Having: Using Appreciative Inquiry to Fuel Productive and Meaningful Engagement, Learning to SOAR: Creating Strategy that Inspires Innovation and Engagement, and the Appreciative Inquiry Handbook.. She has worked and presented her research in over 25 countries, using AI and SOAR to affect the lives of thousands of people and hundreds of organizations to improve their capacity to thrive and increase performance.
Ron Smith
Advisory Council Member
Ron Smith, AIA, ACHA is Director of Medical Planning | Raleigh with the architectural firm LS3P Associates, Ltd. His strengths-based DesignLab, developed with Bernard Mohr, engages stakeholders in the collaborative design of innovative spaces and operational models for healthcare. His clients include M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston Methodist, Duke University Health, Wake County Public Health, UNC Hospitals, Guam Memorial Hospital Authority, and Lufthansa Industry Solutions.
As a member and past president of the AIA Academy of Architecture for Health, Ron promotes the building of shared knowledge among architects and clients about design and research on architecture and its impact on patient care and the healthcare work environment. Ron is a member of the Sociotechnical Systems Roundtable.
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Ron Fry
Advisory Council Member
Ron’s research in the areas of team development, functioning of the executive, organization change, appreciative inquiry, and adult learning and development has resulted in 11 books and over 45 articles and book chapters.
As one of the co-creators of the Appreciative Inquiry theory and method, Ron works with organizations all over the world to understand how to engage whole systems in strategic thinking and change. His research continues to develop insights on large group dynamics, appreciative leadership, and businesses as agents for world benefit.
Ron is faculty advisor to the Fowler Center for Business as Agent for World Benefit where he launched a global inquiry that has surfaced over 2000 stories of transformative innovations that create mutual benefit for business and society, now known as Aim2flourish.
Birgit Hochreiter
Advisory Council Member
Birgit has worked as a management consultant, coach, and trainer since 2006 focused on vision, strategy, and change processes. Other aspects of her work include self-leadership, self-empowerment, and intercultural competences. She has worked for the Philips group and for a regional Austrian project consulting institute and is now passionate about being an entrepreneur.
She holds a Master’s degree in business economics and a diploma in "Intercultural competences and Gender studies“ in addition to certification as a life coach. Continual training and learning opportunities in Austria and internationally help enrich her work with a truly global mindset.
Everything she does helps people bring out the best in themselves.
Jason Nachamie
Advisory Council Member
Jason, founder of Green Peak Sustainability, is an ESG professional helping businesses understand the true value of sustainable business strategy. Jason has experience with a wide array of sustainability frameworks and works with corporates, investors, and startups to help them mitigate risks to the business while creating value for all stakeholders.
This work centers on ESG strategy development, stakeholder engagement, materiality, sustainability reporting/compliance, Carbon Accounting, ERP/ERM, and implementation of key sustainability initiatives. In his work with cleantech startups, Jason also supports Sustainable Value Proposition development, product development, investor communications, impact measurement/metrics, market research, and pilot project execution. In today’s new normal of business, we need organizations to be hyper-focused on embracing sustainability as a means for catalyzing systemic change, but also, as a viable business model.
With a focus on systems thinking, Appreciative Inquiry, and authentic sustainability accounting, Jason is energized to be a part of CCMVC in their journey to help identify and execute on building products, services, and solutions that directly address our most pressing challenges.