- I cry at all videos of mom elephants circling their babies.
- I'm obsessed with ice cream year round. I'd eat it every day if I could.
- I just painted my first mural, on my own garage.
- I'm looking into becoming a death doula in the next year.
- I get ridiculously excited about any food put in front of me. Takeout, restaurants, dinner party — I'm in, and I'm thrilled.
I'm Mary Ellen. I find the real problem.
Not the one you came in with. The one underneath it. The one everyone's been dancing around in meetings for six months. That one.
I've spent my career in rooms where something important wasn't being said. As a CEO — twice — I learned what happens when you let that go on too long. I also learned how to be the person who names it, without blowing the whole thing up.
That's what I do now. I work with growing organizations that have people problems they can't quite solve on their own. I listen, I diagnose, I tell you what I actually think, and then we build something that fits — not something off the shelf.
I'm an ICF PCC credentialed coach, certified in CliftonStrengths and Zenger Folkman 360, with a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Chicago. I've been coaching since 2017.
But honestly? The credential that matters most is that I've sat where you're sitting. I know what it costs to lead. I know what it feels like when the team isn't working and you're not sure why. I know how lonely that is.
I started Open Delta Group because I wanted to do this work without the corporate wrapper. Just real conversations, real diagnosis, real change.
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