About - Inclusion Alchemy

About Us

Today’s workforce has changed:

Women now represent more than half of today’s workforce; holding 50.4% of American jobs as of December 2019.
Women are more educated than men, and are more likely to have a bachelor’s degree than men.
Women of color are the fastest growing segment in the workforce.
Black women are the most educated segment within the U.S. population.
Black women are the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs.
A multi-generational workforce across five generations.

A demonstrated shift in the 21st century workplace demographics has occurred, as many organizations have been successful in the recruitment of women and people of color; but have not been as successful in their advancement and retention, with many organizations still being hierarchical in nature and having large power imbalances with the majority of the power-base still residing with white men at the top of organizations. In addition, for the first time five generations are working together in today’s workforce; and while all women experience many of the same challenges in the workplace, there is a reported difference in how women of the majority group and women belonging to non-majority groups experience barriers in the workplace. This representative change is challenging leaders and their organizations in a way like never before to shift in their very way of being.

Who We Are

We are a team of multidisciplinary practitioners, (Executive Coaches, Management Consultants, Organizational Development (OD) practitioners, Experiential Facilitators, Thought-Partners and Advisors) with front-line experience leading across difference in the military, government, corporate and social sectors; both domestic and abroad.

Our Approach

We help leaders cultivate diverse, equitable and inclusive (DEI) workplaces by helping them bridge across differences to effectively manage a 21st century workforce. Because the multiple dimensions of diversity and the intersections thereof, reflected in today’s workforce demand it. We also focus on leaders because they are at the nexus of the organizational change paradox aimed at creating more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplaces. And, they often struggle in implementing desired changes required to help shift organizational culture and systems to be more aligned with espoused values and stated intentions.

We also focus on helping underrepresented women because they are often the least supported and most vulnerable in the system. And we know, when we solve for the most vulnerable in a system, everyone benefits.

And as systems thinkers, our approach is always viewed through an integrative, holistic lens steeped in the latest research and behavioral-based competencies, informed by demonstrated large-scale change practices; as well as, humanistic and positive psychology principles delivered through a process consultative model; with an experiential learning approach and reinforced through one-on-one coaching support.

We Believe

Organizations are multi-dimensional systems with a complex web of interconnected parts that conspire to shape human behavior and thoughts, both conscious and unconscious.

Sabrina Coleman
CEO & Founder

Sabrina Coleman, CEO & Founder

Sabrina Coleman is the CEO and Founder of Inclusion Alchemy (IA), a consulting practice consisting of a team of dedicated multidisciplinary practitioners, (Executive coaches, organizational development (OD) consultants, change agents, experiential facilitators, thought-partners and advisors) with front-line experience leading across difference in the military, government, for-profit and non-profit sectors; both domestic and abroad.

She and her team are committed to helping leaders bridge across difference to effectively manage a diverse workforce and cultivate inclusive workplaces where all talent can thrive and realize their potential; with an emphasis on underrepresented (black, brown and indigenous) women professionals, who are often the least supported and most vulnerable in the system.

She is also an Organizational Development (OD) Practitioner, Experiential Facilitator and Executive Coach who has lived and worked in three countries, spending more than 20 years partnering with global and domestic leaders helping to effect change across more than 30 countries; in the government, life sciences, technology, education and social sectors.

She led and managed multicultural, multi-discipline, cross-functional and globally disbursed teams as a part of her work leading, implementing and supporting technology-based solutions across multiple states with the Marine Corps; which later led to designing, developing and delivering strategically-aligned technology-based solutions across functional and geographic boundaries on enterprise-level and global initiatives in the corporate sector.

She found people gravitated to her, seeking her advice and coaching; and she in turn sought opportunities to help them. And often, when she went to meet with senior leaders for support, she ended up doing the coaching instead. So, she would spend her days coaching and encouraging people; and then stay after work to do her “real” work. This is also where she began to sharpen her organizational change and engaging across difference expertise; as well as her skills in coaching and facilitating cross-functional, multicultural and multinational groups.

She shifted her focus to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) after almost 20 years in Information Technology; as a result of the personal challenges she experienced as a woman of color in a leadership position and the desire to help others facing similar challenges; along with recognizing there weren't many leaders who looked like her, the compounded challenges faced by the intersection of race and gender; and the struggle many organizations have in addressing DEI challenges. She knew exactly where her multi-disciplinary skillset would be best utilized, as her work-life and practical, hands-on experience had uniquely positioned her for this work.

Sabrina holds a Masters in Psychology/OD and a dual Bachelors of Arts in Business Management/Management Information Systems. She is also a certified Corporate Coach (CCC), Project Management Professional (PMP) and certified or accredited to administer the following assessment instruments: Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI), Intercultural Communications Style (ICS), Personal Directions (PD), Individual Directions Inventory (IDI) and the Integrative Enneagram tool. She is also certified as a Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault Counselor, Advocate and Intuitive Reiki Master.

Melinda Velasquez
Sr. Consultant

Melinda Velasquez, Sr. Consultant

Melinda Velasquez is a Senior Organization Development Consultant and Trainer with Inclusion Alchemy (IA). She has an advanced degree in Organization Development. She is a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Certified Practitioner and an Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) Administrator. She has worked for the last 13 years with adult and youth organizations in both professional and educational settings.

She is highly skilled in working with complicated group dynamics, team and group development, process improvement, facilitation and training. Her approach to process improvement is both relational and functional; she believes relationship sanity amongst colleagues leads to task efficiency and vice versa. She uses the MBTI and the IDI as tools for individual and group development. She is experienced in developing a leader’s ability to enhance areas such as self-esteem, self-awareness, communication, conflict and stress management. She is committed to helping leaders develop the skills needed to create an inclusive environment where all are encouraged to thrive and realize their full potential.

Her background includes nine years working in mental health and child welfare, with a specific focus on Trauma-informed Care. Using her experience working in mental health, child welfare and her knowledge as an Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Interface Presenter, she developed an extensive, experiential curriculum focused on Trauma-informed Care for families, organizations and communities.

In addition to her work with trauma, she gravitated towards focusing on developing and delivering engaging curriculum focusing on cultural awareness and cultural humility. She believes in the importance of cultural humility being deep and meaningful, lifelong work and not just a box to check off on a training and development plan. While continuing to work with child welfare and mental health professionals in a training capacity, she was drawn to the connection between trauma, culture and racial and social inequities. This was the driving force and the catalyst to her decision to join IA to transition more definitively into her current focus on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) work.

Anne Donnelly
Executive Coach & Principle Consultant

Anne Donnelly, Executive Coach & Principle Consultant

Anne Donnelly is a Health Care Policy Director, Coach, Facilitator, and Consultant. In her health care policy role, Anne is committed to bringing together individuals from diverse, often stigmatized and under-resourced communities with health care decision makers to ensure that health care policies better serve all people whose wellness depends on access to quality, equitable, and culturally competent health care. In her role as a facilitator and consultant, she has helped to convene research, drug development, and health care access think tanks designed to ensure that diverse voices and perspectives are considered in developing and implementing innovative and effective changes in health care delivery, systems and programs.

Anne has worked throughout the U.S. with diverse national and local organizations such as National Minority AIDS Coalition, Black AIDS Institute, AIDS United, CalHEP (the California viral hepatitis coalition), and the Southern AIDS Coalition in leadership and support positions to develop and implement a variety of activities, including organizing lobby days at the national and state levels, training advocates to lobby elected officials and other decision makers, and developing coalitions aimed at increasing equity and dignity in health care. She has also worked internationally supporting local groups in improving HIV treatment and care education and access.

At the 2000 International AIDS Conference in Durban South Africa, she was honored to work with organizations including Treatment Action Campaign, People living with HIV – South Africa, The Well Project, and Women Organized to Respond to Life Threatening Disease to create a satellite conference for South African HIV positive women who were unable to attend the main conference due to limited resources. The women were able to view video feeds of key sessions after which Zulu and Xhosa women health workers were paired with western women health advocates to facilitate discussion about how scientific advances in HIV treatment and care could be applied in African women’s lives.

Anne has been honored to receive the Lonny Paine Leadership Award from the San Francisco AIDS Foundation in 2011, the National Association of State and Territorial AIDS Directors Partnership Award for outstanding contributions for the fight against HIV and hepatitis C in 2018; as well as several other awards for work in health care, including the AIDS Drug Assistance Program and Ryan White care systems.

As an internal and external leader and change agent working with state and federal agencies as well as community-based organizations and individuals, Anne believes that all of our perspectives are necessary to create viable and effective change in systems and in organizations. Building on experience gained in the health care arena, Anne has more recently shifted her focus to specifically include Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) work in venues outside of health care. She holds a deep belief that we create more effective and sustainable organizations and organizational strategies when all talents and gifts are valued and when each individual is recognized as a leader in their own area. She sees DEI as a key value in a quality work environment and the work of developing intercultural competencies as a critical strategy to support effective, innovative and inclusive system policies, programs and products.

Ms. Donnelly holds an M.A. in Psychology/OD, BA in Humanities/Social Sciences. She has successfully completed the Coaches Training Institute’s Co-Active Coaching Curriculum and the year-long Co-Active Leadership program. She is a qualified Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) Administrator. She has also successfully completed courses in the Art of Convening, Open Space Technology, Participatory Decision Making and Technology of Participation. She is a long term Vipassana meditation practitioner and currently in the second year of a two year Meditation Teacher Training Certification program through UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center. She sits on multiple state and federal health care systems advisory committees representing people living with HIV and hepatitis C (HCV), as well as the leadership of the California End the Epidemics initiative. She has also opened her home to five exchange young adults from around the world, Korea, France, Norway and Zimbabwe. They lived with her family six months to a year, and she still maintains strong connections with each of them and their families.

Dale A. Dicks
Executive Coach & Principle Consultant

Dale A. Dicks, Principle Consultant

Dale A. Dicks is a retired Marine Corps Officer (Major). He served as a career Aviation Maintenance and Logistics Manager, with over 20 years of experience in leadership, operations and training, logistics and human capital.

Highlights included: while stationed at Headquarters Marine Corps, he was a speech-writer for the Commandant, and responsible for implementation and execution of the congressionally-mandated, Marine Corps’ “Women’s Campaign Plan”; and, while assigned as Assistant Program Manager, Logistics at Naval Air Systems Command, responsible for total Integrated Logistical Support for 150 UH-1N and 200 AH-1W combat helicopters, strategically located around the globe, with just under 200 support personnel. He also served as Inspector General, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (over 1,400 personnel)—as a Major, he served in this Colonel’s billet with distinction, reporting directly to the Commanding General, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

Upon retiring from the Marine Corps, Dale spent 9 years at Fannie Mae, where he distinguished himself as a Senior Project Manager and Train-the-Trainer in Fannie Mae’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Excelling as an inspirational and motivational leader, he was responsible for development and implementation of Diversity and Inclusion training for all employees, as well as externally, with Fannie Mae partners. These efforts contributed directly to Fannie Mae’s mission of making the American dream of homeownership a reality for all Americans—working closely with Realtors, Lenders, and Community-based organizations, addressing disparities in financial literacy and home ownership. He personally trained over 7,000 Fannie Mae employees and senior executives, and over 3,000 external customers. And, upon training Fannie Mae’s CEO and his direct reports, 8-years into his tenure there, Dale was asked, and agreed, to apply for the position of Special Assistant to the CEO; it was a hotly contested competition, and he was runner-up, but, it was the highlight of his career, and a treasured experience, as the exposure opened numerous other doors.

Since retiring from Fannie Mae in December 2007, Dale has pursued entrepreneurship in personal development training and financial services, and is poised and positioned to attract and build a dynamic network of business-owner leaders and a formidable, total-solution, financial services business. He is a Trusted Advisor—background in mortgage originations, life insurance and real estate sales and investing—specializing in aggressive debt pay-off, life-long retirement income, and legacy building. He also has a high-degree of community consciousness; having attained Certified Financial Education Instructor status with the National Financial Educators Council, he is dedicated to helping the masses achieve financial awareness and legacy consciousness, by conducting complimentary financial literacy workshops.

Dale received a B. S. degree in Business Administration from The Citadel and an M.S. degree in Financial Management from the Naval Postgraduate School.

Dr. Kenneth Dickerson
Consultant

Kenneth D. Dickerson, Ed.D.

Dr. Kenneth Dickerson joined Inclusion Alchemy Consulting, following a career as a highly qualified Senior Administrator and Music Educator with more than 30 years of experience. Devoted to student success through the effective management of faculty and financial resources, as well as the implementation of student-centered practices. Experienced in developing and managing budgets and teams of over 110 employees. Bringing a multi-award winning career as an educator, showcasing a drive to continuously improve and commitment to promoting a multicultural and accepting learning environment. With an ongoing education in leadership, counseling and mentoring skills, demonstrating the applications of stress and conflict management techniques into the classroom and school community. Dickerson’s team drove the continuous development, implementation, and evaluation of diversity programs and initiatives to create the best learning opportunities for a diverse student body.

He also managed the instructional leadership, curriculum development, student discipline and the development, implementation, and evaluation of Diversity Special Programs. He fostered communication between personnel and student families to create positive environments for addressing conflict or academic issues. He served as the Peaceable School Representative and Liaison, communicating with parents and staff to discuss educational activities and policies, as well as student behavioral learning problems. He set educational standards and goals while helping to establish policies, procedures, and programs to carry them out. He acted as a liaison to the greater community, connecting with members to establish and grow support for the area schools. Inspired school personnel to greater attendance, continuous learning, and deeper levels of student connection. In his role as Dean of Students he led the Security Team, Attendance Team and In-House Suspension program, implementing a unified response to a wide range of student conduct, and evaluating if students required a punitive or academic model of discipline to successfully participate in the school environment. He directed the Wilson Male Initiative program of over 250 members of a diverse group studying the Sean Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens

As Music Director he revitalized a defunct music department and created a blue-ribbon marching band program by partnering with National and International organizations for master class presentations and creating after school private lessons through the Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz, the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Dr. Dickerson never lost sight of the fact that participating in music saved him from a life in the mean streets of Washington DC; thus, he used the same formula to save his students. A strong believer in empowering others, Dickerson is passionate about teaching self-love and strongly promotes the value and importance of living a purposeful life. With exposure to a wide array of cultures and human conditions in general – both domestically and internationally, he started to develop significant interest in strategies that would help to ensure diversity, equity and inclusion through policy and practice. He is a firm believer that all organizations should focus on breaking down barriers through emphasis on racially equitable outcomes and fair access to opportunities.

Dr. Dickerson holds a Doctorate in Human Development and Organizational Learning from The George Washington University. His dissertation: Enacting Organizational Improvisation as Shared Leadership: A Case Study of Human Relationships Emerging in the Moment. He earned a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership from George Mason University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from The University of the District of Columbia.

Who We Work With

Senior Executives, Managers, Supervisors and Team Leaders

Women of Color looking for resources to thrive in the workplace

Here’s What Clients and Teams Have Said About Our Work

Prior to our conversation I was worried about my career progression, and trying to determine which path would be right for me. Sabrina helped me identify my core values and make a decision that aligned with both my heart and my head. She also encouraged me to step into my own strength and negotiate for terms that worked for both me and the organization, creating a win-win situation. She helped me step into my own power and feel more confident and self-assured about my contributions. Because of Sabrina's expert coaching, I now encourage other professional women in the tech field to shine their brightest light, to question assumptions, and to say yes to professional opportunities, on their own terms. Sabrina didn't give me strength; she helped me find and grow my own.

Kathy Grant, Sr. Technical Leader, Technology

When I began coaching with Sabrina I was preparing for a job transition but felt stuck in initiating my search. During my work with Sabrina, we delved deep into my personal values and my cultural background, which helped me understand and integrate my full and authentic self with my career aspirations. This work was truly transformational for me. It helped me to identify unexplored channels of myself and to feel more in control over my direction. I continue to revisit notes from my coaching sessions and to practice what I learned from Sabrina. Sabrina’s empathy, experience, background in psychology, and ability to weave things that are spiritual with what is known from research and literature is a rare and powerful combination. I feel fortunate I had a chance to work with Sabrina—the work we did together will continue to be an important force in my life and career.

Marselle Alexander-Ozinskas, Senior Program Officer, Philanthropy

I know Sabrina as both trainer and coach. As a trainer she is always offering well-researched and provocative material presented with compassion and humor. More than most other trainings I have experienced in my career, her inputs lead to deep self-reflection as well as action. As a coach, her insights offered me a clear path forward. She helped me show up in my workplace as authentic and open to change. In working with her I always felt encouraged, supported, and challenged. Anyone able to work with Sabrina Coleman should consider themselves very lucky indeed.

Barbara Kibbe, Sr. Leader, Philanthropy

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