"There is a great deal of satisfaction in helping others make a difference in their work and in their lives. Encouraging people to be more aware of their actions and behaviors is an important first step in creating and sustaining both individuals and teams as they strive for performance improvement."

Joining Renaissance Leadership in 1993, Tom Newton brought over 25 years experience in two Fortune 100 companies. Tom holds a marketing degree from the University of Notre Dame. He was with Avon Products for 17 years where his expanding responsibilities included Marketing, Incentives, Sales Management, Management Training and Development and Human Resources. In his seven years with Pfizer he was: Director, Human Resources, Pharmaceutical Production, responsible for 1,250 employees, followed by Vice President, Human Resources, Specialty Chemicals Group, supporting 1,875 employees in 23 countries.

Tom has been recognized for his outstanding work in executive consultation and process facilitation. In 2003, Tom purchased Renaissance Leadership from owner/founder John O'brien.

"We find ourselves living in "interesting times." We can either hunker down, preparing for the worst, or we can look around and see the opportunities all around us. There is nothing more exciting and fulfilling than helping people grow and succeed. Only through an informed leadership, willing to innovate and bring people together, can a company achieve sustainability."

Tom is an enthusiastic coach and leader. He has conducted workshops with many successful organizations to help develop and grow individual executive leadership skills that promote team building that positively impacts overall performance.

Recognized as an award-winning coach and teacher, he has helped many leaders improve their performance by focusing on positive learning environments and enhanced leadership skills.

Tom's industry experience includes both global product marketing and product research. He has managed projects involving state and federal government, corporations and universities. While at Ethyl Corporation, he founded Ethyl University. This entity was designed to improve employee product knowledge, leading to the operational excellence of the chemical company. He has also authored numerous articles, patents and scientific publications and has been a scientific/marketing speaker at numerous conferences.

Tom is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, has served in the Marine Corps and holds a PhD. in Organic Chemistry and an MBA.

"I believe that one of the most significant challenges to corporations in this 21st Century is developing the kind of leadership that understands that the need to operate globally among the many countries of the world, requires balancing business interdependence and diffentiation, and this may be more important to organisations in the long run, than uniformity as the panacea for organisational success and long-term growth. My own values in this respect are in line with those of Renaissance Leadership who are helping leaders create and sustain high performance organisations in diverse and demanding global organisations".

Chris Palmer is a highly experienced executive coach and management facilitator. He gained an MA from Trinity College, Dublin, and then completed his post graduate studies in personnel management at the London School of Economics.

He has extensive international experience in general management and human resources at Board level, most recently as Group Personnel Director at investment bankers Kleinwort Benson. He and his family have lived in Europe and the United States, and his international management work has been carried out in five Continents.He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, and a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.

Chris has been known to Renaissance Leadership for some years, and he is pleased to be joining the "Change Partner of choice".

"There is nothing more satisfying than when you know you have reached someone. Helping people to gain insights and watching them learn and grow are very gratifying experiences. Knowing that you had a small part in that growth is the "icing on the cake". Facilitating learning and growth is what we are all about." "

Suzanne brings over twenty years of experience working with teams and senior leaders to Renaissance Leadership. She has been associated with Renaissance since 1998. Suzanne is known for her ability to diagnose situations and develop and facilitate on-target interventions, exercises and activities to accelerate the performance of individuals and teams.

Suzanne started her career at CIBA-Geigy Corporation, holding various human resources roles with her last position being the Director of Staffing for the Pharmaceuticals Division. Managing, coaching and consulting positions at two career management firms, Right Management Consultants and Seagate Associates, followed this experience. In those positions, Suzanne advised and assisted numerous Fortune 500 companies in major restructuring projects and consulted with companies in the areas of managing change and executive effectiveness. At Right Management Consultants, Suzanne was the Managing Principal for the state of NJ, responsible for the P&L of the region, as well as leading 15 consultants in three locations.

She holds a BS degree in Business from Mercy College and is an active member of the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association, United Way of Morris County's Women's Leadership Initiative, ASTD and NJ SHRM.

"Bottom line: To be successful in business and in life, you have to be successful at building relationships. Relationships with people both at home and at work can bring us tremendous satisfaction and success. Our company helps businesses create workplaces where relationships can flourish and where success is measured in terms of trust, support, mutually-agreed goals and a desire to achieve them. I enjoy facilitating this process and helping others reach new levels of success. "

Erica Hoffman brings to Renaissance Leadership a strong background in training design and development, marketing experience and excellent facilitation skills. Prior to coming to Renaissance Leadership, she was the Communications Program Manager at Digex, Inc., a fast growing internet company. At Digex she was responsible for designing, developing and delivering leadership development and organization development programs and initiatives.She received a B.A. in education and cultural anthropology from James Madison University and also completed post-graduate work in Organizational Behavior and Human Resources Development at JMU. Erica holds a graduate certificate in Organization Development from Georgetown University.

Erica is a Principal at Renaissance Leadership. She is responsible for building client relationships and helping clients along their 'renaissance journey' toward optimal performance. Her key responsibilities include sales, marketing, program design, program development, and program delivery.

"My greatest joy and success comes through facilitating 'ahas!' from our enlightened clients. When we create the ideal mix of setting, agenda, audience and artful facilitation, miraculous insights and alignment are produced by our clients - and I am deeply fulfilled. Most organizations are operating at 40-50% of peak capacity. We love to help them double that!"

When John founded Renaissance Leadership in 1978, he melded his experience as a behavioral scientist, teacher and football coach with his profound knowledge of experiential learning. A true pioneer in his chosen field, John believes passionately in the power of experiential wisdom and wants to infuse it in those leaders who have the greatest influence in the world of business and their communities.

John's early career in academia was followed by research and development in the field of experiential learning, working as Education Policy Fellow at the National Institute of Education and Regional Director for Laser Leadership Inc.

A graduate of Princeton and Johns Hopkins Universities, John's degree work is in psychology, learning theory and motivation. He has been a keynote speaker, seminar leader and high performance coach for over 50,000 managers and executives.

In 2003, John accepted the position of President of the Milton Hershey School in Hershey, PA. John spent his formative years (age 3-18) at Milton Hershey, and returns to lead this prestigious educational organization on the next steps of its journey.