Meet the team
Michelle founded Leading Elephants to provide a proof point that achieving great impact and caring for the humans involved don’t have to be exclusive.
Prior to forming Leading Elephants in 2010, Michelle served as Senior Leadership Director for The Broad Residency, a fellowship program designed to place, train and develop talented leaders in urban education. In this role, she designed the Residency’s comprehensive leadership curriculum, led a team of transformational leadership coaches and managed communities of practice to support residents in maximizing their impact and development. Michelle began her career at PwC where she was one of only two women partners in the Firm’s US Mergers and Acquisitions practice.
She is obsessed with far-flung global adventures with her husband and twin boys and thrives on the adrenaline rush of a good skydive or powder day on the slopes.
CEO.
Breakthrough Coach. Org Culture Geek.
MICHELLE MOORE HERNANDEZ
Superpower:
Michelle gets at the heart of complex leadership challenges, surfacing unspoken conversations in ways that bring healing and possibility.
As Managing Director at Leading Elephants, Amber helps to extract the magic in human-centered leadership and create products that meet the array of organizational needs.
Prior to working at Leading Elephants, Amber served as a leader in several capacities at Achievement First. In her early years at the charter management organization, she led a team of data strategists and supported many cross-cutting initiatives. Later, Amber served as a chief of staff in the COO Office. Amber has also served as a coach, strategy consultant, and interim Chief of Staff with charter networks across the US. Amber’s early career was as an economic consultant at Analysis Group where she supported expert witnesses testifying in corporate litigation.
Amber is based in Menlo Park, California. She loves her family, travel, her faith, good food, and the impromtu, cheezy meme.
Managing Director. Strategic Leader. Jane of All Trades.
AMBER MACKAY
Superpower:
Amber turns messy, ethereal ideas into concrete, achievable realities.
As Operations and Communications Manager at Leading Elephants, Jessica supports the team in developing clear, efficient, and creative human-centered solutions for the organization and its clients. Prior to working at Leading Elephants, Jessica served the brilliant students of her community as the Network and Communications Manager for the Greater Delta Teach For America region. With community-focused projects and a multi-media lens, she shined a spotlight on the efforts in her community and the immense beauty, resilience, and importance of equity-driven work. Her professional career began as a social media manager and then project manager for her local United Way.
As a karaoke queen and foodie, she enjoys nights out on the town with her husband in Dallas, TX and spirited debates on any manner of topic with friends and family.
JESSICA WALKER
OperationS AND COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER. COMMUNITY BUILDER. STORYTELLER.
Superpower:
Jessica develops systems that empower others to work towards ambitious goals with confidence, courage, and care.
Our contributers
Leading Elephants works with a network of consultants and coaches with a range of experiences. Here are some of our colleagues that are currently engaged as consultants:
ELONDA JOHNSON
PEOPLE WHISPERER
Elonda B. Johnson is an ICF certified Executive Coach (PCC), NBHWC certified Health & Wellness Coach, Team coach, Global Human Resources (HR) Leader, Diversity Strategist, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker. She focuses on clients as individuals with vibrant lives far beyond titles, circumstances, and roles. She believes when people create space for themselves, they can become more dynamic, impactful leaders who significantly contribute to the growth and effectiveness of their organizations, businesses, and communities
With over 16 years of experience working in diverse roles in tech, professional services, and professional sports, Elonda is also an expert consultant and facilitator on topics such as coaching for change, leading with impact, DEI, wellbeing, and a range of assessments.
OUR COMMUNITY
At Leading Elephants, we expand the community of support to bring diverse and technical skills to complex challenges. Where appropriate, we partner with other organizations to help our clients receive help they need most.
MEET OUR
COLLABORATIVE PARTNERS
Diversity, Equity, And
Inclusion Partners
Academic strategy and
implementation partners
We seek to provide a seamless experience when our clients engage with multiple partners.
We work to jointly scope an initiative and what is needed. Often, our partner will bring deep expertise and technical credibility and will facilitate meetings and advise on the “what” of an initiative. Leading Elephants may support in the initiative design, stakeholder engagement, cultural healing, leadership coaching, and other elements of the “how” experience.
See how Leading Elephants works with our partners to meet each organization's unique needs.
Case Study 1
Our Client's
Story
A Charter Management Organization located in the North East came to Leading Elephants for help with:
1. Merging three organizations into one
2. Navigating a redesign of their central office
3. Redesigning their academic team
What Leading
Elephants did
—Facilitated merger conversations
—Developed the change management plan
—Reconstituted the leadership team
—Advised the new COO and CAO in day to day leadership
What our
partner did
—Created a new academic model
—Selected curriculum
—Developed consistent academic practices
—Advised the organization design of the Academic Team