About Wisdom At Work

The idea for Wisdom at Work began 2001 at a bookclub gathering reading A Spiritual Audit of Corporate America. The group thought about doing more to impact the world of work, and Wisdom at Work Austin is the result.

 

 Executive Director

Nogie King    

 

 Chris Douglas      Dan Morman       Barbara Opyt      Teresa Gross

Membership Committee Members
KarenBeth Glunz, Lorraine Rylance, Michael Renquist 
 

Former Council Members

       Carol Warkoczewski, Roberto Aponte, Richard Shannon, Amanda Winters, Sherry Lowry
 

Founding Council Members  
Diane Miller, David Engle , Ann Hagmann, Brian Hammer, Julie Lame, Kurt Lemke, Jody Martin-Emerson, Erin O'Toole Murphy, and Chris Douglas

Executive Director

Nogie King

 

http://sympaticocoach.blogspot.com

Nogie King has recently stepped down from her longtime position on the WAW Council to serve as our first Executive Director.

 

Nogie brings with her 15 years of non-profit experience.  She was the Executive Director of the Mt. Baker Watershed Protection Association, and served on the Executive Boards of the Women’s Chamber of Commerce, and the Greater Austin Sports Association, a sports marketing arm of the Austin Chamber of Commerce.

 

She has also been designing experiences for over 25 years as a coach and consultant with Sympatico productions, as the Program Coordinator at The Crossings, as the owner of Camp Camelot, Inc, and as the Principal Partner of Nogie King Landscape Design Associates. Nogie also brings a profound desire to see people wake up at work. 

 

Current Council Members

 Christian Douglas

www.quest-leadership.com
www.practical-wisdom.net

 

Chris Douglas is a consultant, coach and trainer and the founder of Quest Leadership Consulting. His areas of focus include “Influential Leadership”, “The Art of Productive Conflict”, “Improving Performance Under Stress”, “Effective Communication” and ”Building Effective Teams”  He has worked with a variety of organizations including IBM, Shell Oil, Motorola and the U.S. Federal Government.

 

As a consultant, coach and facilitator, Chris has helped individual clients, teams and organizations dismantle counterproductive patterns, improve relationships and achieve greater success and fulfillment.

 

Chris has traveled extensively and lived in Europe and Asia for a total of three years.  He is a private pilot, a woodworker, an actor and has pursued adventure sports including whitewater kayaking, mountain biking, rock climbing and mountaineering.

 

In 2003 Chris received his Masters Degree in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica.

 

Dan Morman

 

Dan has over 20 years of coaching, consulting, and management experience in improving results through improvements in Leadership, Strategy Development, Large Scale Business Process Reengineering, Integral Change and Cultural Transformation.

He works closely with leaders at all levels to help meet the leadership challenges of and building sustainable, long term profit, growth, and organizational capacity. He has specialized experience in helping managers improve their ability to influence their people, peers, leaders, and clients in complex global environments. Naturally, part of this work often includes the deeper purpose, satisfaction and life balance issues that affect these efforts.

 

He also teaches courses in Leadership and Self Deception, Inciting Excellence: Coaching Skills for Leaders, Courageous Conversations, Building Business Acumen, Integral Change and Spiral Dynamics. Dan’s clients include Cisco Systems, IBM, Chevron-Texaco, Conoco-Phillips, Hitachi Heavy Construction (America), Microsoft, Samson Energy, R. R. Donnelley, and Alcoa.

Barbara Opyt

my-yoga-life.blogspot.com/

 

Barbara Opyt helps individual and groups learn their way to success.  She is a training and development specialist with 15+ years experience working with startup tech companies, in higher education, and with the design and development of e-learning. She uses a blend of analytical and intuitive approach in her work. Barbara has a M.Ed in Adult and Organizational Learning from University of Texas.

 

Wisdom at Work is her passion. She serves on the council and as volunteer web administrator simply for her love of the people and ideas that she finds there.

 

 

Teresa Gross

www.teresagross.massagetherapy.com

 

Teresa Gross is a marketing consultant and massage therapist. After graduating from Clarkson University with a B.S in Marketing, she has worked in the hi-tech, human potential, and healing arts industries acquiring expertise in online marketing. Her employers have included Eastman Kodak, HP, and Dell as well as WholeLife Publishing and The Crossings. As a massage therapist, Teresa serves her client’s needs for relaxation massage or therapeutic bodywork. Her professional affiliations include Wisdom at Work, ICF-Austin Chapter, and Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals.

 

Teresa’s commitment to doing what she loves and loving what she does drives her desire to help others who share her passion for personal growth, integrative healing, and collective awakening.

 

Former Council Members

Former council members that have contributed their time and energies to Wisdom At Work Austin since 2001 include:

Diane Miller

Founder, Council Member 2001 - 2004

Progressive Potluckers

Envision Central Texas

Diane Miller has a unique background blending project management, civic engagement, group process design, and corporate and civic culture change expertise. She is currently assistant director at Envision Central Texas (ECT), a regional planning non-profit working with the public and private sector on land use, transportation and environmental issues. Prior to her work at ECT, Diane worked in the field of organization effectiveness and corporate culture change. As a project manager and change process designer for Pecos River Change Management, and again with her own consulting firm RCR-Discovery, Diane worked with corporate clients to design and implement leadership and team development initiatives. She began her career as an account manager with Aon Corporation, the world’s largest insurance brokerage and risk management firm.

 

In the civic realm, Diane has served in key roles in a number of organizations focused on revitalizing civic spirit and improving public discourse, including Texas Forums and the National Coalition on Dialogue and Deliberation. She has also been involved in the creation of several grassroots organizations in Austin, including Wisdom at Work and the Austin Progressive Potluckers. Diane has a Bachelor of Science in Liberal Studies degree from Excelsior College.

David Engle

Founder, Council Member 2001 - 2004

David was one of the founders of Wisdom at Work, collaborating with his colleagues to create the organization we know today.  As a consultant for JMJ Associates, David provides leadership development, group facilitation and individual coaching to produce extraordinary results for individuals and companies.  David has worked with Fortune 100 companies, family-owned businesses and non-profits.  David trains both cross-functional and multi-cultural groups; facilitates breakthroughs in performance; and coaches individuals on being leaders.  David’s clients report that he brings a high level of integrity, consulting talent, and a strong commitment to having people be successful.

 

David lives in Austin with his wife and three children.  He is an experienced sailor and quite proud of having sailed from San Francisco to Maui.  He is a registered professional engineer in the State of California.  David is a volunteer facilitator for the Pachamama Alliance whose mission is bringing forth an environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling and socially just human presence on Planet Earth.

Carol Warkoczewski, MSOLE

Owner, Synergy Builders
www.synergybuilders.com
www.LinCP.com

Leadership in Capital Projects LinkedIn Group

Council member 2002 - 2005

Carol first learned about WAW from Ken Beck (Founder of The Crossings), attended herfirst luncheon in 2002, and has been a supporter ever since. She was a WAW council member from 2003-2005, and was the original Wisdom At Work web-master, bringing the organization on-line.  Carol lead the organizing of the first “Wine and Wisdom After Work” social event, and set up a casual alignment with the International Center for Spirit at Work.  Carol says, "Through Wisdom At Work I have met some wonderful people, many of whom who have become my friends and professional associates."

Roberto Aponte

Council Member 2008-2009

www.bioneers.org

Roberto’s passion is to see the potential of the human spirit find a place in work and business. He feels that we can transform our workplaces, our organizations, institutions and ultimately the planet, by allowing this spirit to be expressed in our work. Roberto Aponte has extensive experience working in events which spans over 25 years. Roberto has a varied skill set in the field of event management which includes technical production, project management, conference operations, food & beverage management.

 

Roberto also has a Masters in Business which supports his additional experience and expertise in training and facilitation with an emphasis on teambuilding and organizational development. Roberto’s stellar reputation in the event business is only partially due to the outstanding results consistently delivered.

 

Those who have worked with Roberto know him for his positive presence, open and soothing communication style and grace under pressure.