Who We Are
Our vision is to drive powerful performance creating environments where people can do their best work, all while feeling valued, invested in, and allowed to grow.
We are a collective of professional researchers, human behavior scientists, expert strategists, executives, educators, coaches and trainers. We enable high performance, helping people and organizations fast track development and creating success that endures.
How We Drive Your Business Forward
Future
READY
We develop forward-thinking strategies and solutions that prepare organizations and individuals to meet future challenges head-on. Confidently seizing opportunities, accelerating growth and fostering sustainable success.
High
VALUE
We pride ourselves on delivering exceptional value, removing barriers that create measurable differences, elevating standards and producing outcomes that truly matter.
Maximize
POTENTIAL
We enhance capabilities and competence by stimulating high-performance standards. Our approach fosters a culture of excellence and motivates every individual to contribute at their highest level, harnessing the power of people and performance.
Enduring
IMPACT
By addressing today's challenges and anticipating future needs, we enable our clients to achieve more. We are dedicated to helping drive powerful performance with high-impact results, creating better outcomes and success that lasts.
Executive Team
Alison Geskin
FOUNDER & CEO
Alison Geskin is a globally recognized authority in growth leadership, blending strategy with human potential to deliver powerful performance outcomes. As the Founder and CEO of The Art of Strategy, Alison has consistently pushed the boundaries of leadership, cultivating future-ready teams and organizations. Her track record spans start-ups, scale-ups, and large enterprises, each benefiting from her visionary approach that combines strategic insight with a deep understanding of people and culture.
Her contributions to leadership development have earned her accolades from Forbes, CEO Today, and The Global 100. Alison has been named CEO Executive Coach of the Year and Business Strategist of the Year, and under her leadership, The Art of Strategy was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 10 Training and Coaching Companies by ManageHR.
She is also acknowledged as a Top Executive Coaching Voice (2024) by LinkedIn and a Leading Business Coach by the Forbes Coaches Council.
Her combination of strategic insight, people expertise, and passion for development makes her a trusted advisor to leaders around the globe.
Alison is also an accomplished author, having written two leadership books: A Field Guide for Managers and An Executive Operational Planner, both of which provide practical frameworks for driving organizational performance and enhancing leadership capabilities. Her work continues to inspire leaders at all levels to develop the skills needed to thrive in today’s complex business environments.
Her commitment to the coaching profession is reflected in her role as an ICF Mentor Coach, where she guides aspiring coaches through their journey to ICF credentialing, helping them reach their professional potential. She also serves as a Board Member of the ICF Calgary Chapter and is a Fellow at the Institute of Coaching, Harvard Medical School. With multiple certifications, including Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and Certified Executive Coach (CEC), Alison is dedicated to shaping the future of coaching and leadership through mentorship, assessment, and training.
As the host of the podcast Live. Learn. Lead., Alison provides thought-provoking insights on leadership and the challenges of driving performance in complex environments.
Certifications + Designations:
Professional Certified Coach (PCC), International Coaching Federation
Accredited Solutions Provider (Management & Leadership), CDP
Member, International Coaching Federation
Board Member, ICF Calgary Chapter
Fellow, Institute of Coaching, Harvard Medical School
PCC Assessor, International Coaching Federation
Certified Executive Coach (CEC), Certified Organizational Development Coach (CODC), Certified Life Coach (CLC), ICF
Member, CPHR
Accolades:
Top 10 Training & Coaching Firms, Canada (2024 + 2023), ManageHR
Top Executive Coaching Voice (2024), LinkedIn
Top Executive Coach (2024 + 2023) CEO Today
League of Extraordinary Women Leaders to Follow (2023), Fortune
Business Strategist of the Year, Canada (2023 + 2022), The Global 100
Elliott Geskin
Head of Global West
Elliott’s leadership helps drive impactful executive education, strategic support, and HR solutions.
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Elliott serves as the Head of North American Operations at The Art of Strategy, where his leadership helps drive impactful executive education, strategic support, and HR solutions. Elliott brings a robust foundation to his role. Under his guidance, The Art of Strategy has proudly earned recognition as one of the Top 10 Training and Coaching Firms in Canada for 2023 and 2024.
Elliott collaborates with a talented team of professionals worldwide, enhancing the firm's ability to deliver comprehensive and innovative solutions. His experience in executive coaching and strategic development ensures that clients receive top-tier support tailored to their unique needs.
At The Art of Strategy, Elliott's approach is characterized by powerful insight, brilliant intuition, and inspires new possibilities and meaningful change. Elliott's leadership helps drive organizational success, solidifying The Art of Strategy's position as a leader in executive education, strategy, and HR support.
Sandhya Mathur
Head of Global East
Sandhya helps professionals exceed their business results by making targeted optimizations.
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Sandhya is the Founder & CEO of Inward Focus, a coaching firm founded in 2011, helping organizations and professionals exceed their business results by optimizing and making targeted improvements to the very conception of human capital in a workspace.
For well over a decade, she has been working closely with Fortune 500 companies, MNCs, large and medium Indian companies, mid-sized businesses and professionals across multiple industries and applications. She has been committed to empowering people to create vision, enhance their lives and fulfil their dreams.
Her personally crafted coaching style combines Emotional Intelligence and Eastern Philosophy with structured coaching techniques to empower professionals and aspiring coaches to build strong leadership character.
As a Certified Emotional Intelligence Assessor, she supports clients to create self-awareness, and inner power to deal with challenges confidently & successfully. In her coaching assignments she works with C-level executives on leading with emotional intelligence to enhance Executive Presence.
She is the author of several certified coach training programs that have been certified & accredited by the ICF (International Coaching Federation), and has authored two books- Emotional Intelligence at the Workplace, & Sapphire: Unlocking Your Shine at the Workplace, a special guide for women- as part of her longstanding vision of creating ripples of transformation in people's lives and careers through a deeper understanding of the self.
Susan McGuire
Head Executive Coach & Facilitator CANADA
Susan is a ICF certified coach and HR leadership consultant with a profound grasp of human psychology.
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Susan is a ICF certified coach and HR leadership consultant with a profound grasp of human psychology, understanding how our motivations, mindsets, and behaviors influence leadership effectiveness and long-term business performance. With a calm presence, Susan cultivates an environment conducive to introspection, guiding clients to uncover what matters most and overcome their obstacles to genuine fulfillment. Susan's approach is marked by curiosity, empathy, and intuition, striking a balance between challenge and comfort to propel personal and professional growth. Her diverse clientele, spanning startups to global corporations, attests to her adaptability and impact.
Renowned for her expertise in employee experience and cultural transformation, Susan champions individual contributions to foster trust and high performance within organizations. A change leader adept at navigating complex transformations, she excels in stakeholder communication and envisioning future states. Susan's commitment to innovation drives her to challenge norms and translate novel concepts into tangible outcomes. As a trusted advisor and coach, she fosters authentic connections, providing a safe space for vulnerability, conflict resolution, and strategic planning.
Susan is deeply committed to cultivating coaching cultures through her leadership, driven by a profound belief in unlocking the full potential of individuals. This unwavering dedication is evident in her continued volunteerism on the ICF Calgary Chapter Board of Directors and within the Global ICF coaching community, where she actively champions the advancement of coaching principles and practices.
Lisa Karell
Head Executive Coach & Facilitator USA
Lisa thrives on enabling others to discover their inner strength and ultimately be their best.
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I thrive on enabling others to discover their inner strength and ultimately be their best. I love to dive in, explore and continuously learn how we can create forward momentum with clarity. I see the big picture, observe the situation on the ground and from 20,000 feet above the trees, and through powerful questioning, collaboratively build a cohesive and visionary plan toward successful change. It’s been said that I intuitively merge all aspects of a team or an organization through empowering others and embracing cohesion. My passion is contagious.
Within each of us lies the ability to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of all viable options. Also within us, lies the answer that is sometimes buried right below the surface, waiting to be discovered. Together, we will discover your inner power, enabling purposeful change.
Lisa holds a Master’s Professional Certification in Change Management from Michigan State University, Eli Broad School of Business, a BSBA from Columbia Southern University, Summa Cum Laude Honors Graduate.
