Dr. Karen Lawson, executive coach, international speaker, consultant, and author, is president of Lawson Consulting Group, Inc., specializing in leadership development. Her clients represent a wide range of industries including financial services, pharmaceutical, health care, manufacturing, government, and nonprofit organizations. Karen is the author of 15 books on leadership, coaching, training, speaking, and career management. She has also written chapters for 15 different professional collections in addition to numerous articles in professional journals and an op-ed piece in the Philadelphia Inquirer. She has been quoted in Forbes, Fast Company, and the Wall Street Journal. She holds a PhD in Adult and Organization Development and both an MA and BA in English. She is also a graduate of the National School of Banking in Fairfield, CT. She is one of only 400 people worldwide to have earned the Certified Speaking Professional designation from the National Speakers Association. She has received numerous awards for her outstanding contribution to the training and speaking professions and was also named one of Pennsylvania’s “Best 50 Women in Business” as well as one of the Philadelphia Business Journal’s “Women of Distinction.” Karen is currently an adjunct professor at DeSales University and Arcadia University in their MBA programs and has served on the adjunct faculty of several other universities at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. In addition, she conducts online programs for the United Nations System Staff College in Turin, Italy. She has presented at several professional conferences in the United States, Asia, and Europe.