Our People
Consultants
Ann Gardner is a psychologist with more than 25 years of experience as a trainer and human resources consultant to corporations and non-profit organizations, as well as local, state, and federal government.
"All of the work I do comes from the same place. It's about building relationships and fostering relationship-based organizations with strong, positive collaboration between individuals and teams."
Ann received a B.A. from Wellesley College and a PhD in Psychology from the University of North Carolina — Chapel Hill. Upon graduation, she was already working as an assistant professor at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. During that time, Dr. Gardner spent two years on a childcare development project in Appalachia.
"While I was teaching, I started doing some consulting work and realized that's what fed me. I recognized my need to work with people to make a difference and be a catalyst for change. "
In 1974, Ann began her consulting career. She maintained an adjunct position with Emory and joined an Atlanta-based consulting firm as Vice President of Program Development. After four years, she started her own firm, serving as President of TAPP Associates, Inc.
"The firm grew to 25 consultants, but had a narrow niche. I wanted to broaden the scope so I decided to make a change. I went to work for Creative Associates in Washington, D.C. and began working on a number of government projects in education, child welfare and the military."
In 1985, Ann moved to New York and worked as an independent consultant until joining The Coxe Group in 1997. Today, her areas of expertise include organizational development, communication skills, team building, vision-based strategic planning, and management.
"I've always been interested in improving communication and team building. Out of that grew a fascination with leadership and what it takes to be an effective leader. My role varies based on the needs of an organization. In the end, to perform well, there has to be a common vision and shared purpose by everyone in the group."
Dr. Gardner is best known for helping organizations accommodate and implement change. She designs intervention strategies that relate specifically to the structure and culture of the organization. She designs and conducts training programs that focus on the skills staff need in order to implement these change strategies successfully. Ann is also recognized for her skill as a group facilitator and as an executive coach.
While Ann has worked with a number of industries, she is passionate about helping improving the lives of low-income children and families.
"The first part of my career was focused on needy children and families and I have a soft spot for that kind of work. I've served on a number of non-profit boards and I regularly consult with the New York City Children's Services Administration, which offers Head Start programs to more than 20,000 children."
In addition to her formal education, Ann is also a Certified Trainer in Neurolinguistic Programming (N.L.P.), a state-of-the-art communications technology designed to educate people in self-awareness and effective communications. The work involves listening to language and observing body language and facial expressions to identify behavioral patters that have been learned through experience and that can be organized to achieve specific goals in life.
When she isn't sharing her vast knowledge, Ann loves to cook, read, and spend time with her rescue dogs. She enjoys the New York art scene and contributes to it as a member of the Greenwich Village Chamber Singers, a choral society that performs throughout the city.
"I've always loved to sing. Being part of a choir is similar to the work I do — helping organizations find a shared vision and purpose. The chorale beauty is about blended voices — not just one, but the sum of the parts."
Ann lives in New York City.
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Robert Mattox is an architect by training, but he's never designed a building.
"I always wanted to try to help firms manage themselves better from both the practice and business perspectives. There aren't too many architects that want that role over design — but I've just always been drawn to it."
Upon earning a B.S. and B.A. in architecture from Rice University, Bob began his career working with construction documents and later developed an interest in computers. He earned his MBA from the University of Michigan and re-entered the profession as a business manager working in finance administration and as chief of operations.
"I have an interest and passion for what I do — managing the support functions of accounting and finance, human resources, marketing, information technology, and so on."
Bob has devoted much of his more than 40 years in practice to developing tools and software for financial and business management. He has also applied computer-based information tools for financial, operational, and human resources management.
"I try to improve the business side with an understanding of the design side. I bring an appreciation and patience for detailed operations of a creative design practice."
Bob's career includes positions with architecture, landscape, engineering and planning firms located in the Midwest, San Francisco, Boston, and Seattle.
He shares his knowledge as an author and speaker. His work includes Financial Management for Architects, published by The American Institute of Architects in 1980, and the revised AIA book, Standardized Accounting for Architects. He co-authored Success Strategies for Design Professionals.
Bob has conducted numerous financial management workshops for professional organizations and is a Fellow of The American Institute of Architects.
Away from work, Bob enjoys several creative outlets. He and his wife have remodeled eight homes across the country, and he also enjoys oil painting and landscaping.
"If I ever retire, I have a lot of ideas of how I'll spend my time. But for now, I'm still drawn to my work."
Bob lives with his wife on Orcas Island in Washington.
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Louise Osborne is a well-traveled and cultured consultant of The Coxe Group — specializing in executive search and human resources. She has an intuitive sense for people and how they fit in the workplace — and she has built a career around it.
Louise earned a B.A. in government from Wheaton College, (Norton, MA) and followed a passion for travel — living overseas for six years. She spent time in England, Switzerland, Italy, France, Spain, Brazil, and Argentina working as an interpreter, a translator at the Australian embassy in Paris, and an English teacher. In 1974, she returned to New York where her career took hold.
"I wanted to get into human resources and marketing, and I landed a job with Russell Reynolds. I began doing research. This was back in a time when candidates were logged on index cards, in a series of shoeboxes. It was crazy."
After two years, Louise was recruited to Booz Allen Hamilton where she worked in executive search for the NY, Cleveland, and Chicago offices before moving onto Chase Manhattan Bank in New York as an executive recruitment officer — hiring bank officers for the NY office and staffing offices as they opened nationwide in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Chicago, and elsewhere.
In 1985, Louise left the pace of Wall Street for an equally challenging pace of working mother coupled with her own search firm.
"I had been doing my own thing for a while when I was contacted by The Coxe Group. I started out assisting with phone interviews and smaller projects but eventually it became a full-time role, and I have handled the majority of search work ever since."
Today, Louise leads the executive search efforts at The Coxe Group with the insights and support of others on the team. Her background includes national and international employee searches in a variety of disciplines:
- environmental, civil, and industrial engineering
- architectural and interior design and management
- design firm management
- marketing, financial, administrative, and strategic planning
- corporate, consumer, and investment banking
- facilities management
"I really enjoy talking to clients, learning from them, and getting to know what they want. I need to understand who they are — their values, philosophy, strategic and long-term goals. This helps ensure that I find a candidate that is not only well qualified, but a good fit for the firm."
Louise has helped companies find candidates for all kinds of reasons — whether they are replacing someone who has retired, moved, or been let go due to performance or personnel issues, establishing a new role, repositioning an existing position in the company, or training a candidate for leadership transition.
"It's important to understand the corporate personality. Some hiring situations can be sensitive or controversial. Others may involve a number of decision makers with different ideas of what makes the perfect candidate. Lead times can vary. Searches can be local versus national or even international. Every situation is unique."
Louise also spends a great deal of time with each candidate — either over the phone or in person, whenever possible.
"A lot of my job is based on intuition and trying to be on top of the market. After all these years, I've developed a genuine gut feel. If it doesn't feel right, I won't recommend a candidate to a client."
When Louise isn't finding top talent, she enjoys spending time with her kids. She is an avid art enthusiast, keeping tabs on museum exhibits and touring award-winning architecture in the cities she visits. She enjoys playing tennis and skiing whenever time permits. She welcomes any opportunity to re-engage her love of language and new cultures. She is fluent in French, Italian, and Spanish.
Louise lives in New York City.
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When Greg Shea was a junior in college, he was sure of one thing — he was done going to school. Then he met a guy who introduced him to the psychology of work, or what is known today as organizational behavior, and Greg changed his tune.
"People spend the majority of their conscious time at work so it ought to be rewarding. I was really interested in the topic and wanted to learn as much as I could. That's how I ended up with two masters and a PhD."
Greg is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Harvard University with an A.B. in history and literature, and he holds an M.S. degree in management studies from London School of Economics. He later earned an M.A., M.Phil. and PhD in administrative sciences from Yale University.
When Greg graduated, he began working as a consultant before returning to academia. He is an Professor (adjunct) at Wharton and has received an Excellence in Teaching Award.
Dr. Shea joined The Coxe Group in 1989, specializing in organizational development. While he still maintains various appointments at Wharton, he has been consulting for a range of industries for more than 30 years.
"Over the years I've learned that I like to have more 'thought time' than most practicing managers. And I like to have more 'do time' than most academics. They have different ways of pursuing and arriving at truths. And I enjoy spending time in both circles."
Greg brings his expertise to bear when clients seek to improve work group effectiveness, organizational development, conflict resolution, and more.
"It all comes down to psychology. When partners or work groups face challenges, there is a lot at stake. It's not just about money or spreadsheets. It's about relationships, connections, and group dynamics."
Dr. Shea shares his knowledge as an author. His writings have appeared in Sloan Management Review, the Journal of Applied Management, the Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, and the Journal of Conflict Resolution. You can learn more about his latest book at www.YourJobSurvivalGuide.com. Greg is also a member of the Academy of Management and the American Psychological Association.
When he isn't working or writing, Greg is dedicated to his family. He enjoys exercise, and he's an avid reader. He also confesses to participating in a fantasy baseball league — something he started nearly 30 years ago. It keeps him connected with friends and colleagues across the country.
"It's important to know it's a total waste of time. But it's great fun. We get together a couple times a year and regress to sophomores in college. That's a whole different study in group psychology."
Dr. Shea lives with his family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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Cassie Solomon is a highly experienced trainer, organizational development consultant and executive coach. Her career spans more than 18 years solving complex client problems in corporations, non-profit organizations and consulting firms.
Cassie's earned a B.S. in Organizational Behavior from Yale. Upon graduation, she went into theater management, working as a development director in New York and San Diego.
"I started out in fund-raising and then joined a consulting firm to work on capital campaigns. From that point on, I worked exclusively with consulting firms but in a number of capacities for both profit and non-profit groups."
With a decade of professional experience, Cassie returned to academia to get an MBA in operations management from The Wharton School of Business in Philadelphia.
"After my first semester, I was approached by the Center for Applied Research. The consulting firm offered to pay my tuition so I became a student by day and I worked at night. When I graduated, I joined the firm full time."
During her tenure at the Center for Applied Research, the firm grew from 5 to 25 consultants.
"A lot of my colleagues were PhDs in anthropology, philosophy, economics — the environment was very much a think-tank. It was a great place to do group development."
In 2007, Cassie went out on her own as a solo practitioner and before long, she started working with The Coxe Group where she exercises her expertise in leadership and organizational development, project management, team building, strategic planning, culture change, and implementation of new initiatives.
"A lot of what I do is help people work together more effectively. When partners or groups are in conflict or working in silos, they often don't understand the other perspective. My role is to help facilitate difficult conversations. When I'm able to bring people together and they have that 'ah-ha' moment, I've helped them make that bridge. What comes next is really pretty great."
Cassie is best known for helping organizations accommodate and implement change. She designs intervention strategies that relate specifically to the structure and culture of the organization. She also designs and conducts training programs that focus on the skills staff need in order to implement these change strategies successfully.
Cassie shares her knowledge as an instructor and author. She has taught MBA candidates at Wharton, the Aresty Institute of Executive Education, and the University of Pennsylvania's Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics. Her study on the introduction of new technology for the design and construction industry for the National Academies was published in 2003.
Her latest project is a collaboration with Greg Shea, a colleague in The Coxe Group.
"We are writing a book titled, Managing Overload: Learning to Hardwire Change in Your Life and in Your Organization. Everyone who knows me knows I have deep experience on the topic."
Cassie is a member of the Philadelphia Human Resources Professional Society and the International Society of Psychoanalytic Study of Organizations.
Away from work, Cassie enjoys spending time with her teenage daughters. She loves to cook, is learning to quilt, and she travels for aquatic adventures — snorkeling in Mexico, whale watching in Baja, and white water rafting in Montana.
Cassie lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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