Executive Leader | Executive Coach | Inclusion as a Business Strategy Expert | Author | Speaker | C-Suite Advisor

🔥 PROFILE
Trailblazing CEO and Founder of InclusionINC, driving the global evolution of Inclusion, Diversity & Equity (IDE) as a business strategy—not a check-the-box initiative. For 25+ years, I’ve partnered with Fortune 500s and rising enterprises to architect inclusive cultures that fuel performance, retention, and innovation. A practical business leader, I connect IDE to what matters most: results.

Acclaimed author of four industry-shaping books, including Deliberate Disruption: Unraveling the Anti-DEI Ideology & Getting Back to Why DEI Works. A TEDx speaker, podcast host, and executive coach who's guided 22,000+ leaders globally to “Get It”—and embed inclusion into the DNA of how business gets done.

💼 EXPERIENCE: InclusionINC | Founder & CEO: 2001 – Present
🔹 Strategic Visionary: Set the direction for a cutting-edge consultancy that redefines inclusion as a profit driver. Developed globally validated inclusive leader competencies and a full suite of executive offerings, including the Inclusive Leader 360.
🔹 Advisor to the C-Suite: Partnered with clients like BASF and Michelin North America to assess, transform, and align IDE strategy with business imperatives.
🔹 Executive Coach & Facilitator: Delivered transformative leadership development to 22,000+ execs and managers across the globe—fostering cultures of accountability, psychological safety, and inclusive growth.
🔹 Global Impact: Led groundbreaking work in assessing corporate cultures, embedding inclusion as a strategic lever, and measuring performance through behavior change and leadership action.

💼 EXPERIENCE: Frito-Lay (PepsiCo) | Division Sales Manager, Carolinas 1994 – 2001
The only woman among 26 leaders—and ranked #6 nationally in sales. Proved early on that performance and inclusion go hand in hand.
✔ Directed high-performance sales teams in a fast-paced, competitive CPG environment.
✔ Delivered sustained market share and revenue growth across a major U.S. territory.
✔ Built strategic customer relationships and team cultures that drove engagement and results.
✔ Learned firsthand how inclusion boosts business—igniting a career-long passion and business case for IDE.
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📚 EDUCATION University of Minnesota:B.A., Education
🔗 MEDIA & THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
• Deliberate Disruption: Unraveling the Anti-DEI Ideology & Getting Back to Why DEI Works (2023)
• Inclusion: STILL the Competitive Business Advantage (2019)
• Becoming an Inclusive Leader (2014)
• Inclusion: the NEW Competitive Business Advantage (2012)
• TedX The Shift to Inclusion
• In-Demand Public Speaker
• Media Contributor
• Strategy Portfolio: www.shirleybio.com
• Learning Portfolio: www.biolearningshirley.com

💡 SIGNATURE STRENGTHS
• Strategy | Executive Coaching | Culture Transformation
• Public Speaking | Organizational Change | Global Facilitation
• Business Development | Sales Leadership | IDE Measurement
• C-Suite Engagement | Book Authorship | Performance Culture

Work Terms

Available for short-term project or part-time assignments. Remote work is preferred through Zoom type, regularly scheduled team meetings. Payments can be made weekly.

I want clear outcomes for the assignment with paid on-boarding as part of the process.

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