Our Team

A Little Bit More About Us

In recognition of her extraordinary work, Smart Business nominated Cathy Light for the “Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year” award in both 2009 and 2010.

Before venturing out as an entrepreneur, Cathy worked in the corporate world in a variety of leadership roles, including Vice President and General Manager of Sunrise Technologies, Inc. and Senior Sales and Marketing Executive at Fuji Optical Systems, Ltd. She began her trailblazing career at a start-up company known as Apple Computer.

Cathy is a globally recognized speaker known for engaging and inspiring her audiences. Her commitment to helping others extends to active leadership within the community. She currently serves on the Advisory Board for the Business and Economic School at Boise State University and mentors MBA students when time permits.

In addition to client services, Jennifer has extensive experience providing administrative support in scheduling, planning, communication, and organizational strategy.

She is devoted to her husband and their 2 children. As a family, they enjoy everything outdoors that Idaho offers, especially camping. Golf and soccer also play a part in their busy lifestyle. Jennifer is active in promoting Autism Awareness and participates in several special needs programs throughout the Treasure Valley.

As the practice leader within her Employment Practice Group, Jeanne Holmes, PhD is responsible for managing the HR consulting operations. She has over 20 years of experience providing support and consulting services on issues related to diversity| equity| inclusion| justice, employee relations, leadership development, people analytics, and workforce planning. Her experience spans a variety of entities including state and local government departments and agencies, K-12 private schools, nonprofit organizations, technology companies, financial institutions, and insurance organizations.
In addition to leading the employment practice group, Jeanne is an adjunct professor of management at North Carolina Central University’s School of Business where she develops the next generation of HR professionals. Her past experience also includes serving as a Research Fellow for the U.S. Department of Defense within the Army Research Institute (Ft. Jackson Element) and volunteering for several years as a mediator within the North Carolina criminal and family court system. Her unique blend of practical experience and academic training have shaped her focus on evidence-based interventions and led her to share her solutions on stages throughout North America.
Dr. Holmes earned her bachelor’s degree in management from Miami University, master’s degree in organizational communication from North Carolina State University and doctorate in business administration from the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business.

Possessing both an MBA from Washington University and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, Dr. Nunnery II is a respected consultant across a number of important and related disciplines. They include HR / DEI, project management, business and education as well as the non-profit sector. Besides being the founder of his own consulting firm, PlusUltre LLC, he is a highly sought-after subject matter expert.

His expertise in optimizing effectiveness and compliance is built on a foundation of diversity, equity and inclusion. His experience in developing new business models based on value propositions, market analysis, and business modeling also adds tremendous value to those organizations fortunate enough to benefit from his involvement.

His infectious energy is matched by his keen perspective. His peers recognize him as “a creative and original thinker” and a man who possesses “the rare combination of talent, energy, integrity, pragmatism, and an uncompromising desire to have his clients achieve unprecedented success.” Those traits become evident upon meeting him.

Dr. Tonkin is an executive in Professional Services and Software Sales arena and has over 25 years of business and technology experience. He is currently serving as the CEO of the Conservatory Group as well as the Co-Founder and Dean of Students that the Sales Conservatory. In addition, he is also the Head of Strategic Accounts at SAMI Games, the first crowd-sourced global solution for soft skills.

Dr. Tonkin holds a Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership from Regent University (Virginia Beach, VA) as well as a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership, with a focus on Leadership and Management from Regis University (Denver, CO). Dr. Tonkin holds multiple business certifications, and is a leadership expert. In addition, Dr. Tonkin was an Adjunct Professor at the Forbes School of Business at Ashford University where he taught Leadership in Organizations, Organizational Behavior and various other leadership and management courses. Dr. Tonkin is an award-winning researcher and author with several blogs, articles, and interviews to his name focusing on DE&I, Learning and Development, and sales leadership.

Mark places a premium on developing open, honest relationships with his clients and colleagues so that they can work together to overcome tough challenges. Mark enjoys leading teams through difficult challenges and transitions in a way that brings them together and strengthens their unity and performance.

Mark’s background and experience across various sectors – military, nonprofit, and for-profit business – have helped him to maintain a results-oriented, actionable focus when it comes to leadership, learning, and organizational success. His approach keeps his clients’ objectives in the realm of achievable outcomes, rather than lofty platitudes that never effect lasting change. Whether he works with you in areas of problem-solving, change management, leadership development, or talent management, you can be certain you will walk away with an implementation plan that is grounded with measurable, actionable, and achievable steps and goals.

Everyone talks about measuring results but few people or organizations truly know what that means, or how to do it. Dr. Tuggle’s experience in developing and analyzing surveys and assessments provides the data clients need to truly measure change and success. Mark led a research project for onboarding sales reps at a Fortune 100 company in which he measured key metrics that correctly predicted retention and performance results for the new reps. He recently completed a social selling research project used by a top sales training organization to help develop its social selling training program. His current work on leadership balance is designed to help leaders identify their unique balance of three key areas for healthy leadership. He has developed proprietary assessments that measure different aspects of organizational culture, health, and employee engagement.

Irwin retired from IBM in May, 2012, and spent 3 years as the Executive Director of PYP Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on improved HIV Awareness, Education and Prevention in young people ages 18-29. In April of 2015, Irwin joined WOSH, an NGLCC-certified LGBTBE, where he served as the Chief Compliance and Procurement Officer. Headquartered in Los Angeles, WOSH is an on-demand, waterless car cleaning company. Irwin’s responsibilities at WOSH included B2B Business Development, Compliance,
Diversity, Corporate Social Responsibility, Procurement, HR, Corporate Relations, and Governmental Affairs.

In August of 2019, Irwin launched a new venture, Diversitas, a consulting practice dedicated to assisting businesses that are certified as diverse-owned and operated by either WBENC, NMSDC or NGLCC maximize their growth potential. Diversitas offers a wide range of consulting services, including Business Development, Supplier Diversity, Procurement and Strategic Sourcing, Compliance, and Corporate Social Responsibility (including both Diversity & Inclusion, Sustainability, and Corporate Philanthropy).

Selena is an active member and champion of corporate- and community mentorship programs, particularly focusing on providing tools and guidance for women to succeed and excel in leadership and executive roles. Selena’s PhD is from the University of Melbourne, Australia and she is an alumnus of the Executive MBA program at the University of Maryland, where she is an Adjunct Professor, focusing on Leadership and Organizational Development.

In her spare time Selena is a Board member for the non-profit organization Friends of Trione Annadel State Park and is a trail patrol volunteer in three California State Parks. Having worked as a Scuba Dive Master in Australia and Vanuatu she is an avid diver and underwater photographer.

Amy Lou Abernethy began her career as an educator but was soon drawn into the world of visual storytelling and video production. In addition to co-founding and nurturing the agency AMP Creative, she followed her heart back to the art and science of adult learning a few years ago, getting her masters in learning in digital environments. Amy Lou has consulted for Facebook, developing custom content for their inclusion efforts, including virtual reality experiences.

Standing at the crossroads of learning innovation and cinematic storytelling, Amy Lou collaborates with companies to develop transformative learning experiences and AMP Creative produces those experiences. She looks for opportunities to connect with people through stories, across a variety of mediums, from printed infographics to immersive virtual reality. 

Gustavo “Gus” Salem joined IDEX Corporation in March, 2015 as President – IDEX Health & Science, LLC. In 2016, Gus was promoted to the position of Group President, IDEX Health and Science (IH&S) when the IDEX Optics and Photonics, LLC (IOP) business was added to his responsibilities. Combined, the newly formed Group represents the industry’s broadest portfolio of fluidics, microfluidics and optical components serving the life science research and in-vitro diagnostics markets. The company’s technologies provide high-value, engineered solutions addressing key life science applications such as HPLC, mass spectrometry, clinical chemistry and next generation sequencing. The business unit consists of 12 manufacturing operations globally with over 1200 employees.

Gus brings nearly 30 years of industry experience and a strong record of executive leadership driving strategy, commercialization and operational execution required to bring emerging technologies to the life sciences and diagnostics markets. Previously Gus was CEO at SISCAPA Assay Technologies, an early stage company focused on development of mass spectrometry-based diagnostic testing. Gus remains on the Board of Directors, a position he has held since 2012. From 2007-2013 Gus served as VP and General Manager of the Biological Systems Division at Agilent Technologies where he managed the mass spectrometry, genomics, and clinical diagnostics businesses. During his tenure, Agilent developed into a market-leading supplier of LC/MS systems and established market leadership in target enrichment sample prep for next generation DNA sequencing. Gus came to Agilent from Assay Designs, Inc. where he served as President and CEO. That company’s focus was on development of immunoassay reagents for pharmaceutical discovery and research. Prior to Assay Designs, he led the Protein Separations Division of Bio-Rad laboratories including laboratory and process chromatography, and electrophoresis. Gus holds a BA in Physiological Psychology from UC Berkeley and completed 2 years of graduate work in Psychobiology at UC Irvine.

Gus has 3 adult sons, Matt, Sean, and Joshua and 3 granddaughters, Emma, Chloe and Riley. His interests include coaching youth sports, scuba diving, golf and biking.

Dr. Shelton Goode is the president and chief executive officer of Icarus Consulting.  Icarus Consulting is a veteran-owned firm that helps companies build a diverse workforce and create an inclusive workplace.  This is accomplished by partnering with clients to develop strategies to attract, develop, and retain highly skilled talent from an emerging diverse workforce and, at the same time, enhance the engagement, knowledge, and skill of current employees.

Dr. Shelton Goode is the president and chief executive officer of Icarus Consulting.  Icarus Consulting is a veteran-owned firm that helps companies build a diverse workforce and create an inclusive workplace.  This is accomplished by partnering with clients to develop strategies to attract, develop, and retain highly skilled talent from an emerging diverse workforce and, at the same time, enhance the engagement, knowledge, and skill of current employees.

Dr. Goode has over 20-years of HR and D&I experience, and he has held executive positions in several global companies. He has earned the reputation for being a strategic yet results-oriented leader whose expertise includes Talent Management, Change Management, and Executive Coaching.  
Dr Goode was the first person awarded the Roosevelt Thomas Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in the field of diversity, equity and inclusion.  Forbes Magazine recently selected him as one of the Top 10 D&I Trailblazers in the country. 

He has also taught at several colleges and universities and is currently an adjunct professor with Duke University’s Corporate Education department.  Dr. Goode has published several books.  His most recent book, “Winter in America; The Impact of the 2016 Presidential Election on Diversity in Companies, Communities and the Country is on the Outskirts Press best seller’s list.

Dr. Goode received his Doctorate from the University of Alabama and his master’s degree in human resources from Troy University.  He serves on the board of several organizations and has won several awards.  Dr. Goode currently resides in the Atlanta area. 

It’s a pleasure to welcome DEBORAH LEVINE. Deborah is one of Forbes Magazine’s 10 Diversity and Inclusion Trailblazers you should know. She is passionate about addressing inclusion challenges and unconscious bias in the workplace that can limit team functionality and organizational innovation onsite and online. Her methodology not only boosts cultural competence and creative teamwork, but also demonstrates how to avoid situations that damage an organization’s reputation and decrease its ability to engage a diverse team.

Deborah inherited her passion from her father, a U.S. military intelligence officer assigned to interrogate Nazi during WW II. His understanding of how organizations fell prey to negative thinking, prejudice and fear of diverse groups, was preserved in his wartime letters that Deborah has put in her memoirs. Her background prompted her to not only focus on thought and religious diversity, but to invent a neuro-communication technology: the Matrix Model Management System. She gave it the matrix terminology to coincide with her work in computer science decades ago which helps provide the multi-dimensional tools to boost neural pathways.

Deborah is an award-winning author of 14 books, and is Founder/Editor of the American Diversity Report Her books have won a National Press Association Award and been featured in major major media outlets: Online Wall Street Journal, The Chicago Tribune, and CSPAN BOOKTV. She has 33 years experience in presenting, training, and coaching for international industries, federal agencies, universities, and civic organizations. 

Many thanks to Deborah for giving us the benefit of her years’ experience with diversity and inclusion, cultural competence and unconscious bias. We appreciate her extending her work to include the growing threat of hate in today’s contentious environment and the social unrest soon to be generated by the coronavirus.