“Strategist, Executive Ally and Trusted Partner”

Melanie Mills, Strategist, Executive Ally, and Trusted Partner came to transformational leadership through professional speaking. She presented a keynote speech to over 500 CEOs on leadership and change. Following her presentation, a leader walked up to her and asked her if she could do what she talked about. Melanie’s response was, “I don’t know, do you want to find out?” This was over 15 years ago and changed the trajectory of her business. Moving from making her living full time on the platform speaking, she jumped into the arena to assist leaders whose organizations were going through exponential growth. When growth happens, leaders are needed at all levels of the organization, especially when you want to preserve a culture, deliver high performance, and exceed client expectations.

Always an advocate of the people, Melanie is a demonstrated leader and trusted partner to CEOs, VP’s and rising stars emerging into leadership roles. She can tell the truths that need to be heard and has a genuine desire for others to grow and embody the best version of themselves. Her commitment is to develop leaders who grow more leaders.

In simplest terms, Melanie will lead you to the source of your power as a leader. In the process, you may have to remove some barriers keeping you from fulfilling your full potential. The paradigm of leadership is changing very fast. It used to be that the leader at the top held the most power and influence. Not only do we not trust this model anymore, but it is also not nearly as effective as committing to bringing out the best in the people you lead.

Leadership is a people business and positive reinforcement makes all the difference. Melanie has an uncanny ability to transform leaders who guide the people and the organizations they lead to do great things. This begins with the CEO and the executive team, the leaders they lead, and the associates rising into leadership.

You can count on Melanie to see the whole picture of where you and your organization are. Individual leadership development is primary. Your team's development is next, and your organization's alignment to the destination you want to reach is the ultimate goal.

At the core, Melanie believes leadership can be developed and is needed at all levels of the organization. If a person raises their hand and says they want to have more impact or influence, she knows raising them up is possible. The process begins with a high level of awareness of where they are, a commitment to integrating what they learn, and subsequently you lead others to where they have never been before.

Through 1:1 work, Melanie makes sure the leader she is working with is clear and focused. After that is accomplished, she translates this clarity to the executive team. They then discover a way to make the company's direction clear to everyone involved, translating vision into action. Melanie can navigate deep waters, fears, barriers, and insecurities in the leaders she works with. Together, this work cracks open what is truly possible.

“As a strategist, I serve and support leaders in making significant and lasting changes. I assist them in moving a situation and their organization from where it is to where they would like to be. My projects often begin during significant divergent energy. Time, money, and resources are being wasted, and the performance of the company is lagging. In my opinion, leadership has never been more important as it is right now.”

The desired outcome of the transformation is to converge the energies and get everyone involved and focused on what matters most for the business,” says Melanie. “This demands a comprehensive approach but begins with finding focus and personal commitment from the organization's leader. When this is clear, the objective shifts to aligning the leadership team and transforming them into a highly functioning collaborative unit. After leadership is aligned, we involve and engage the front line in making changes. Transformation is not for the weak of heart. False starts are fatal. Not only do we not trust this model any more, it is not nearly as effective as committing to bringing out the best in the people you lead.” IEWL