Coaching and Facilitation for Organizations and Individuals
When things break down in organizations or projects, Michelle steps in to help, using the skills she learned from her MS in Conflict Resolution and Negotiation from Columbia University and her career as a content producer. One past client has referred to Michelle as“A facilitator for facilitators; a coach for coaches.” She’s helped startup founders determine ways to move their companies forward by creating a facilitated space to explore their options. She’s helped high-impact individuals move through challenges related to their personal projects, thought leadership projects, and, conflicts at work.
Co-creating a Community-led Public Art Experience - Harlem Wellness Center
As an active member of the Harlem community, Michelle is constantly looking for ways to support community wellness. She saw an opportunity to do this when Vivian Kurutz, the Founder of the Harlem Wellness Center, reached out to the community to see if people were interested in planning an event for the National Day of Racial Healing.
Michelle helped move the event planning team’s ideas into action by sharing her conflict resolution and production skills. The team developed a year-long program, including seasonal public art experiences alongside a dialogue series, aimed at increasing racial understanding amongst Harlem community members. It launched on the National Day of Racial Healing, January 19, 2021, with a day-long, socially distanced, self-reflective labyrinth walk in Marcus Garvey Park. While walking the labyrinth alone, participants were invited to reflect on the question, “Harlem + Race: What is Bubbling Up for You?”
50 people visited the labyrinth over the course of the day, reflecting on their race and that of their neighbors, including African American, Asian, Latinx, and White people. In follow-up conversations, some people told Michelle that the launch event made them feel supported enough to explore questions of Race in Harlem. Others mentioned the experience was impactful.
Co-developed Conflict Transformation Circles for NYC Parks & Recreation / GreenThumb
Michelle was hired alongside her facilitation partner, Skye Roper-Moses, to co-develop a conflict resolution workshop for 30 community gardeners at the Green Thumb Leadership Program hosted by NYC Parks and Recreation. Through this experience, Michelle and Skye discovered that gardeners wanted to learn more about conflict management within their garden groups and larger communities. This insight led them to develop an ongoing series of conflict transformation circles for gardeners, starting in Fall of 2020. They used a ‘circle facilitation’ method to create space for people to share their experiences and knowledge. They provided ‘teach-outs’ on various conflict resolution skills and frameworks to build capacity for garden leaders. The knowledge Michelle and Skye share in the garden circles increases participants’ ability to navigate conflict within their garden organizations and individual relationships.
Managing Content Creation for Fortune 500 & Major Brands
In 2005, after a decade of working for major advertising agencies, Michelle started her own freelance art production business that she still operates today. As a production expert for domestic and off-shore productions, she facilitates an enjoyable collaborative process that leads to creative and business outcomes that meet or exceed client expectations related to their creative vision, budget, deadlines, and production. She manages an inclusive, collaborative process, drawing upon her working knowledge of a wide range of organizational structures and ways of working. She works across sectors on multiple complex creative projects ranging from global photography shoots for large international brands to illustration and design projects.
Creating dialogue through curation - The Half King
The Half King was a pub in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan owned by journalists Sebastian Junger and Scot Anderson. Aside from providing excellent food & drink, they wanted to foster social engagement. Real conversation. A Sense of community. And art made that happen. For over three years, Michelle curated a monthly photojournalism series that drew standing-room-only crowds. Even after she left, it remained a gathering place for visual storytelling, and the conversations continued.
Collaborative Writing Research Lead - The Ombudsman Project
Mr. Johnston Barkat, former Assistant Secretary-General and head of the United Nations Ombudsman Office in New York (Internal Conflict Resolution & Mediation) invited Michelle, to support his research project on Organizational Ombudsman in a producer capacity as Lead Researcher. Michelle kept the project moving forward by liaising with interviewees and five other researchers, co-constructing the research plan, and contributing to writing efforts. Interviews explored the topics of organizational conflict management with a focus on fair processes in corporate governance, cost-effectiveness, and the development of the business organization. The lessons Michelle learned while conducting this research have informed her understanding of possible approaches to organizational conflict management systems and policies and have stayed with her ever since, informing other facilitation projects and ways of working, such as those she’s co-developed at Prime Produce.