Build. Grow. Thrive.

Fran has navigated the executive ranks as a non-binary queer person and utilizes this unique experience, combined with leading-edge research and practical industry expertise, to advise clients to successfully traverse the complexities of equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging throughout their organizations. As a white person, Fran is committed to the work of antiracism while challenging and troubling his own position of power and privilege.

Fran has guided people and organizations through strategic transformation for nearly 20 years. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, their work has concentrated in the Technology and Life Science industries, as well as with artist and activist communities. Fran served as the Vice President and Head of People for GRAIL, Inc. one of the world’s fastest growing Life Sciences Technology startups dedicated to detecting cancer early when it can be cured. Between 2017 and 2021, Fran guided the unicorn company through nearly 4x employee growth, financing of over $1.5B, an initial public offering, and the eventual acquisition by Illumina for $8B.

At GRAIL, Fran coached the c-suite on amplifying sound leadership throughout the organization, and designed a progressive organizational and human resources strategy to address the needs of a rapidly changing talent landscape. They guide teams to build cohesion and efficacy through trust, connection, and communication.

Fran built a career at the three-point intersection of human capital strategy, leadership, and diversity. Prior to joining GRAIL, while leading Diversity Strategy at Airbnb, Fran guided executives through systemic change, personal transformation, and mindset shifts to build high performing teams anchored in diversity. Fran consulted to Fortune 100 and entrepreneurial executives alike on building leadership ecosystems and inclusive cultures while serving as the Chief of Staff for Deloitte’s Leadership Center for Inclusion. Their experience leading teams of 30+ across global geographies informs how Fran guides clients. Fran has advised companies such as NIKE, Genentech, Airbnb, Cargill, and Bayer.

In the midst of their corporate career, Fran also spent time in the Middle East working in conflict resolution, peace, and reconciliation—an experience that still informs his approach to inclusive leadership and human interaction. Fran was an Organizational Behavior Fellow at the UCLA Anderson School of Management where he received his MBA. While completing their BA, Fran was fortunate to be a Norman Topping Scholar at the University of Southern California, a cohort of first generation and marginalized college students. Fran received a Professional Coaching Certification from New Ventures West and is an Integral Coach focusing on executive development.

When not advising and consulting, Fran spends time exploring nature with their husband and two daughters or by bringing beauty to the world as a performer, vocalist, and visual artist. Fran is a RYT 200 certified Hatha Yoga Instructor and is a student of somatics in leadership development.

Kevin is a behavioral scientist and executive coach whose inspiring work is driven by the need for evidence-based, inclusive and equitable approaches to urgently and proactively transform and coach leaders, eradicating toxic behaviors that threaten profitability, innovation and the overall wellbeing. He is an impactful executive coach, focused on providing research-informed solutions in various settings such as higher education, nonprofit, sales, and large complex, corporate organizations. He utilizes research-based solutions to address organizational challenges such as inclusion, equity and belonging, HR strategy and leadership coaching and development.

Kevin is regularly sought after and consults with leaders around the world related to his expertise in toxic leadership, human capital strategy, and creating inclusive cultures of belonging to enhance organization performance. Kevin has written extensively on topics in various areas such as: CEO narcissism, abusive supervision, workplace authenticity and is currently working on various ventures to further connect the research and best practices to help organizations detoxify and employees thrive.

Kevin earned his doctorate in business administration from The University of Missouri-St. Louis where he focused on the impact of abusive supervision on organizational culture/climate, and employee coping behaviors. Kevin received his MBA from The University of Missouri-Kansas City with an emphasis in leadership & change in human systems and general management and his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Central Missouri.

Shanea Turner-Smith, MSW, LGSW is a licensed graduate macro-level social worker with 10+ years of lived and professional experience in diversity, equity, and inclusion with an emphasis on housing instability and health equity within the non-profit realm, as well as a focus on student development and retention within higher education. She brings an equitable lens to any work atmosphere she is a part of utilizing a person-in-the-environment (P:E) framework to better understand individuals and families and how they interact with societal systems such as the healthcare system in her work as a Learning and Development Manager at the University of Minnesota Medical School's Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI). 


She also is an adjunct faculty member at the University of St. Thomas School of Social Work and works part time at the Adult Shelter Connect helping individuals in Hennepin County experiencing homelessness find shelter placement. She has served in various leadership capacities but some that are noteworthy to mention as it relates to this opportunity are the following: Minneapolis Urban Scholar, Commissioner for the Minneapolis Commission for Civil Rights, Committee Member for the Minneapolis Housing Advisory Committee, served as a community researcher for the Urban League’s 2021 Publication on the State of Black Minnesotans, and currently a Member of the Office of Governor Walz and Lt. Governor Flanagan’s Mind, Body, Soul Convening of Black Minnesota Leaders.


She received her bachelor’s in social work  (BSW) with a concentration in American Culture and Difference from the University of St. Thomas and her master’s in social work (MSW) was completed at Washington University in St. Louis with a specialization in Social and Economic Development with an emphasis on Policy and Housing.


She is from the Twin Cities area and grew up in the Rondo Community and enjoys family time with her 5 year old son (CJ) who will be starting kindergarten this fall at Benjamin E. Mays School which is located in the Rondo Neighborhood a few blocks from where she grew up. She identifies as a Black Multi-racial woman and specializes in the following topic areas: intercultural development, generational wealth, redlining, gentrification, racial identity theory, light-skinned privilege, not being indigenous enough, racial trauma and mental health, the public health crisis of racism and homelessness, double-marginalization, implicit bias, bystander interventions, cultural humility, anti-racism, allyship, coalition building, restorative practices, and all things to do with leading and building relationship through an equity-based lens.

Becka Tilsen’s coaching practice combines her extensive experience as a community educator, curriculum developer, and organizational development consultant with her expertise in counseling and human development. As an educator and trainer, she has designed and facilitated workshops for a wide range of constituencies, from grassroots community organizers to low-income housing residents to policy makers.  

Becka has more than two decades of experience with program development including supervision, direct service provision, and grassroots fundraising and grant writing within social justice and non-profit organizations, particularly in the fields of Immigrant Rights and Domestic and Sexual Violence. Most recently, Becka authored a relationship skills curriculum for the Northwest Network of Bi, Trans, Lesbian and Gay Survivors of Abuse and co-developed a curriculum for Jewish Family Services for children who have witnessed domestic violence. This community-based work compliments and informs her counseling experience, participation in the Selah Leadership Development Program, a Master of Arts in Human Development from Pacific Oaks College (2011).  

Credentials at a glance:   

• 25 years of leadership working to support non-profit and movement based projects 25 years experience as a trainer and consultant
• 12 years experience supervising staff, directing programs, and answering to a Board of Directors
• 16 years experience counseling and coaching
• 9 years as a Approved Somatics and Trauma Bodyworker by Generative Somatics
• Authored curriculum published by the NW Network of Bi, Trans, Lesbian and Gay Survivors of Abuse (2012)
  Published contributor in Beyond Inclusion, Beyond 
• Published contributor in Beyond Inclusion, Beyond Empowerment, A Developmental Strategy To Liberate Everyone, by Dr. Leticia Nieto et. al. (2010)
  
• M.A. in Human Development (2011)

Berry is an impact-focused HR leader with over a decade of experience spanning diversity, equity, and inclusion and organizational development. With a unique blend of in-house and consulting expertise, she has driven transformative change across various industries, from high-growth tech companies to established enterprises.

Most recently as Director of DEI and People Analytics at Stitch Fix, Berry designed and implemented company-wide DEI initiatives while leveraging data-driven approaches to enhance organizational effectiveness. Her work has resulted in significant improvements in leadership trust, employee engagement, and equitable talent practices. Prior to Stitch Fix, she brought her strategic vision to Twitter, where she led the company's U.S. Latinx talent strategy and pioneered their first DEI scorecard system to enable executive accountability.

As a Senior Consultant at Paradigm Strategy, Berry partnered with over 20 organizations across tech, healthcare, legal, and nonprofit sectors to build more inclusive cultures, implement sustainable DEI strategies, and train leaders to keep equity at the center of all their decisions. Her consulting experience includes work at CEB (now Gartner), where she specialized in enhancing the consistency, efficiency, and scalability of clients’ talent assessment and organizational development practices. 

Berry holds a Master's of Science in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from San Diego State University. Her systems-thinking approach and commitment to measuring impact have consistently delivered tangible results in both employee engagement and organizational equity. Outside of work, she can be found running around the Bay with her dog, trying out different forms of artistic expression, and coalition building with local community groups and friends. Berry identifies as a cisgender, heterosexual, Persian woman with an episodic disability, and is based in San Francisco.